Lay it on the Line
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- $2.99
Publisher Description
A FREDDIE O'NEAL MYSTERY
For fun, she likes a game of Keno. To relax, she'll hang out with her cats. And for excitement, nothing beats piloting a plane. But when it comes to crime—in a gambling town like Reno—Freddie O'Neal is all business.
A GAMBLER AND A GUMSHOE
Freddie figures she's got some legwork to do when an ex-chorus girl asks for her help. Joan Halliday says her elderly father's being conned by his caretakers—and a little investigation is needed. But the case gets more complicated when a murder—and a tangled mess of family secrets—are discovered. And before she knows it, Freddie's gambling with her own life....
"She's a unique, engaging crime-solver in a terrific new series." —Judith Kelman, bestselling author of The House on the Hill
"Appealing characters and an intriguing plot...a winner." —LINDA GRANT, author of Love Nor Money
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Add another hard-nosed female detective to the list. This one's a lanky blonde named Freddie O'Neal who lives among the motels and casinos of Reno, Nev., pilots a small plane to Las Vegas when she needs to check leads, and subsists on a stomach-numbing diet of greasy burgers and instant coffee. She's also a loner who's capable of steely pragmatism but tentative about showing affection for those close to her. Freddie is hired by Joan Halliday, an ex-showgirl, to investigate the drug-dealing, neglectful caretakers of Joan's elderly father. However, when Joan's not-so-beloved sister is killed in a suspicious hit-and-run and Joan is named the prime suspect, Freddie must figure out if the crime was committed by the caretakers, by Joan or by Joan's father, who appears to be involved in a shady real-estate firm. Not surprisingly, another murder thickens the plot, the obligatory love interest temporarily turns Freddie's head, and Freddie's life is threatened. Overall, this formulaic debut is well written but unremarkable, weighted down with sketchy minor characters.
