Sink Trap - Christy Evans

Sink Trap
A Georgiana Neverall Mystery
Christy Evans
Berkley Prime Crime

Mystery/Cozy


Until recently, Georgiana Neverall ran her own computer security firm in San Francisco. Due to circumstances – and business partners – beyond her control, she’s now back in her small hometown of Pine Ridge, Oregon. To the consternation of her mother, real estate magnate Sandra, Georgiana has begun a plumbing apprenticeship. It’s light-years away from her previous life, it’s good honest work, and that makes it just about perfect.

While Georgiana and her boss are working on the plumbing of a warehouse, she comes across a cameo brooch lodged in a drain. She’s alarmed to realize that it belongs to Miss Tepper, the town’s longtime librarian. Miss Tepper wore the brooch daily. According to her lawyers, Miss Tepper is in the process of moving to Arizona to enjoy her retirement. But when neither the lawyers nor anyone else in town can produce a forwarding address, Georgiana becomes suspicious.

This is the first installment in a new series, and it starts out with a lot of promise. Georgiana is a fun character, and watching her re-connect with her hometown friends and neighbors is entertaining. The way the mystery is set up is fairly original, and makes a lot of sense. Unfortunately, the mystery itself is fairly linear. There really aren’t a whole lot of suspects to be had, so the villain of the piece is quite easily identifiable.

There are a lot of references to Georgiana’s life in San Francisco, that I presume will be addressed in later volumes; and a maybe-romance with a hometown guy. Her dogs get more narrative time than the guy, though, and seem more likeable to me. For those readers aspiring to deal with some basic plumbing issues, there are tips throughout the book, and a list of indispensable tools at the end. With a bit more attention to making the mystery more central, this could be a very interesting series.

Rating: 6
October 2009
ISBN# 978-0-425-23079-4 (paperback)