Beach bags and burglaries

Haley and her three best friends head to the exclusive Rowan resort as part of a prize won from her employer, hoping to see Hollywood stars (Brad Pitt?) and to score a much-sought-after Sea Vixen beach bag. Instead, Haley stumbles across the body of missing maid Jaslyn. A frenemy of the group is also at the resort for her over-the-top wedding and wants Haley's help. Cute FBI agent Luke is on the island, too, along with a reporter Haley has tangled with in the past, but no one is talking about the crime. Haley tries to get staff and her mainland law-enforcement friends to help her sort out what may be happening on the island when another maid goes missing. Haley is a smart character distracted only by the promise of the designer bag, and readers will enjoy her wry humor even as she draws herself into danger. The ending has plenty of unexpected twists, engineered by the feisty heroine. Howell continues to deliver light, fun beach reading. Fans of Laura Levine may also enjoy this one.--Alessio, Amy Copyright 2014 Booklist

Though she's on vacation, an otherwise airheaded California girl is determined to come to grips with the serious business behind a murder. Through some sort of complicated contest she can barely remember (as if she could remember anything not fashion-relevant), Haley Randolph has won a trip to the uber-exclusive Rowan Resort. Accompanied by three of her closest friends, she has big plans: work on her tan, watch for celebrities, and somehow find this season's hottest bag, the polka-dot Sea Vixen. The Rowan Resort's private beaches are well-known for being virtually inaccessible to mere mortals, so Haley's shocked when the numerous aspiring suitors in her life keep running into her. Though Haley isn't over the breakup with her longtime boyfriend and employer, Ty Cameron, the owner of Holt's department stores, Howell (Evening Bags and Executions, 2013, etc.) painfully describes every beat her heart skips as she shares a long, lingering look with each of her potential romantic interests. At this rate, it's lucky for Haley that she's not in the emergency room for congestive heart failure. It's also lucky, at least for Haley, that her mind has something to focus on: Jaslyn Gordon, a maid at the Rowan Resort whose murder Haley had the unfortunate distinction of discovering. In fact, Haley may be the only one interested, since the resort is determined to keep the death out of the media. Haley's curiosity makes her resolve to find out why Jaslyn's been murdered and by whom, even if she does have to miss some buddy-bonding beach time to do it. In spite of some flippant fun, the disdain Howell feels for her leading lady is palpable, making Haley more of a burlesque of herself than a persuasive heroine. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.