Asking For Murder - Roberta Isleib
Asking For Murder
An Advice Column Mystery
Roberta Isleib
Berkley Prime Crime
Mystery
Therapist Dr. Rebecca Butterman has been looking forward to this lunch date for some time. She and her friend, Annabelle Hart, are headed to their favorite local hamburger place for great food, gossip, support, and to finalize plans for Friday that will bring together the two women and their significant others. Rebecca hasn’t met Annabelle’s man yet, and the curiosity is making her antsy. But Annabelle never shows for that lunch. She doesn’t answer her cell or home phones, and she’s not in her office.
Still worried when there’s been no word by evening, Rebecca drives to Annabelle’s place. Annabelle’s car is in there, so why isn’t she answering the phone? Using a hide-a-key, Rebecca lets herself inside. It looks like the place was ransacked, but all the pricey (and easily carried away) electronics are there. In the bedroom, she finds Annabelle, in a head on the floor. It’s more than clear that someone viciously beat her and then left her for dead. It feels like a miracle when Rebecca realizes her friend is still breathing. The investigation, as Rebecca is told by Detective Meigs, is police business, and her intrusions will not be helpful.
Everyone reacts to a stressful situation and the near-fatal beating of a friend in her own home ranks right up there on the stress scale. It still doesn’t explain the strangely dismissive attitude of Annabelle’s sister when she meets Rebecca at the hospital. Still, Rebecca feels a real need to be involved in the investigation, not least because she and Annabelle had a deal in writing that, if one were to fall ill or need to travel, the other would take on the patients left, even temporarily, without a therapist. It’s clearly a stressful situation, but some of Rebecca’s reactions just seemed overly shrill and less genuine this time around.
This series, now in its third installment (DEADLY ADVICE, PREACHING TO THE CORPSE) excels at pointing out the difficulties of running a therapy practice. Just like any other job, there are ups and downs; often not about things one might think. Annabelle’s method of therapy is to use sand play (think Zen sand gardens) so Rebecca needs to get up to speed quickly. The interplay between the many supporting characters has a very realistic feel to it, and the investigation conducted by Rebecca is interesting to watch. Newcomers to the series can jump in here with no problems.
Rating: 7
September 2008
ISBN# 978-0-425-22331-4 (paperback)
An Advice Column Mystery
Roberta Isleib
Berkley Prime Crime
Mystery
Therapist Dr. Rebecca Butterman has been looking forward to this lunch date for some time. She and her friend, Annabelle Hart, are headed to their favorite local hamburger place for great food, gossip, support, and to finalize plans for Friday that will bring together the two women and their significant others. Rebecca hasn’t met Annabelle’s man yet, and the curiosity is making her antsy. But Annabelle never shows for that lunch. She doesn’t answer her cell or home phones, and she’s not in her office.
Still worried when there’s been no word by evening, Rebecca drives to Annabelle’s place. Annabelle’s car is in there, so why isn’t she answering the phone? Using a hide-a-key, Rebecca lets herself inside. It looks like the place was ransacked, but all the pricey (and easily carried away) electronics are there. In the bedroom, she finds Annabelle, in a head on the floor. It’s more than clear that someone viciously beat her and then left her for dead. It feels like a miracle when Rebecca realizes her friend is still breathing. The investigation, as Rebecca is told by Detective Meigs, is police business, and her intrusions will not be helpful.
Everyone reacts to a stressful situation and the near-fatal beating of a friend in her own home ranks right up there on the stress scale. It still doesn’t explain the strangely dismissive attitude of Annabelle’s sister when she meets Rebecca at the hospital. Still, Rebecca feels a real need to be involved in the investigation, not least because she and Annabelle had a deal in writing that, if one were to fall ill or need to travel, the other would take on the patients left, even temporarily, without a therapist. It’s clearly a stressful situation, but some of Rebecca’s reactions just seemed overly shrill and less genuine this time around.
This series, now in its third installment (DEADLY ADVICE, PREACHING TO THE CORPSE) excels at pointing out the difficulties of running a therapy practice. Just like any other job, there are ups and downs; often not about things one might think. Annabelle’s method of therapy is to use sand play (think Zen sand gardens) so Rebecca needs to get up to speed quickly. The interplay between the many supporting characters has a very realistic feel to it, and the investigation conducted by Rebecca is interesting to watch. Newcomers to the series can jump in here with no problems.
Rating: 7
September 2008
ISBN# 978-0-425-22331-4 (paperback)
posted by Deborah Hern @ 11:36 PM
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