The Hammett Hex by Victoria Abbott

First Line: Squished into a cable car, hurtling down a steep hill, clinging to a rail with the wind rushing in your ears amid the clang and clatter of metal and the shrieks of fellow passengers might not be everybody's idea of a romantic moment, but strangely, it was working for me.

It wasn't easy but Jordan Bingham managed to score a romantic getaway to San Francisco with her main squeeze...as long as she picks up a primo copy of a Dashiell Hammett mystery for her curmudgeonly boss. Jordan's main man just so happens to be a Hammett fan, and besides visiting his estranged grandmother, he intends to see the Hammett highlights. But things start going downhill fast. After two attempts on their lives, it's clear someone's after them-- but who...and why?

In a mystery filled with lovely San Francisco ambiance (especially if you love climbing hills), the writing team known as Victoria Abbott has hit another one out of the ballpark. Besides that setting, there's plenty of tongue-in-cheek humor, narrow escapes, and an excellent whodunit that takes time for readers to put all the pieces in the proper places. The bonus is-- like with the other books in the series-- The Hammett Hex is brushed with a bit of fairy dust reminiscent of the crime fiction great mentioned in the title. (We've already been graced with Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Rex Stout, and Ngaio Marsh.)

One thing that I particularly enjoyed, although other readers might not, is the absence of some of the secondary characters. Don't get me wrong, Vera Van Alst, Signora Panetone, and Jordan's Kelly relatives are wonderful characters, but they can be overwhelming and have the tendency to elbow their way into the action. It was nice to see how Jordan can handle herself without her usual backup, and now that I've had a little break from curmudgeons, cooks who specialize in ambrosia, and crooks with hearts of gold, I'm raring to see them again.

Quite simply, I love Victoria Abbott's Book Collector mysteries with a passion, and if the series ever ends, I will pout so hard that I'll trip over my lower lip. Haven't met Jordan and the gang? You have to do something about that, quick!
 

The Hammett Hex by Victoria Abbott

ISBN:9780425280355
Berkley Prime Crime © 2016
Mass Market Paperback, 304 pages

Cozy Mystery, #5 Book Collector mystery
Rating: A+
Source: Purchased at The Poisoned Pen


 

The Marsh Madness by Victoria Abbott

First Line: Be careful what you wish for, as they say.

When the heir to the Kauffman fortune offers his fine collection of first edition Ngaio Marsh mysteries at a very good price, Jordan Bingham and her employer, the inimitable Vera Van Alst, can't believe their luck. Jordan dresses in her best vintage fashions in order to join Vera and Chadwick Kauffman at Kauffman's fabled estate, Summerlea, to hand over the money and finalize the sale of the books.

The next day Jordan and Vera are flabbergasted when they learn that Kauffman is dead-- found at the foot of the grand staircase at Summerlea. When Jordan sees that the photo in the paper is of a different man, it becomes crystal clear that they are the victims of a scam-- and being framed for murder. (Even Jordan's Uncle Kevin!) Jordan is going to have to use all her street smarts-- and every tip Marsh's fictional Roderick Alleyn can give her-- to keep them out of prison.

I've been a fan of Victoria Abbott's Book Collector series since the first, The Christie Curse, but in this fourth installment the series has come into its own in glorious style. All the elements mesh together perfectly. The humor is often laugh-out-loud funny, and the plot is a knockout. At first I couldn't believe that Jordan and Vera could be so naive about their Marsh windfall, but when I was proved right, the story immediately kicked into another gear that took me straight to the realm of "What in the world is going on?!?" 

The characters are a delight. Jordan, with her love of vintage fashion, Signora Pantone's cooking, her job, and her family's background in the shadier side of commerce. Jordan's Uncle Kevin, who's a one-man disaster area waiting to touch down. Vera's got the curmudgeon-with-tunnel-vision down to a fine art. Friends like Cherie and Lance know just how and when to lend a helping hand. And you can always count on Signora Panetone to make sure you won't faint from hunger. Even the animals in the book-- Walter the pug, Good Cat, and Bad Cat-- have their own wonderful DeMille-like closeups. Detectives Castellano and Stoddard are the only blights on The Marsh Madness's landscape, but even they did their jobs well, since they really made me fear for Jordan.

I could rave about this book for quite some time, but I won't. Instead I'll end with an added bonus this series has given me: the incentive to read books written by the Golden Age authors it has covered. Since I've been avoiding the aforementioned authors for years, that's quite some added bonus. I can't wait to see where this series takes me next.
  

The Marsh Madness by Victoria Abbott

ISBN: 9780425280348

Berkley Prime Crime © 2015

Mass Market Paperback, 304 pages

Cozy Mystery, #4 Book Collector mystery

Rating: A+

Source: Purchased at The Poisoned Pen.


 

The Wolfe Widow by Victoria Abbott

First Line: The doorbell rang.

Thanksgiving is approaching, and Jordan Bingham is thankful to have a job she truly loves. Vera Van Alst may be the Supreme Curmudgeon of Harrison Falls, New York, but she's given Jordan a suite of rooms she loves, fantastic meals courtesy of Fiammetta (the cook who never met a diet she couldn't kick to the curb), and the joy of working with a first-rate collection of rare crime fiction. 

All that changes when Muriel Delgado comes to stay. In no time flat, Muriel's moved in and Jordan's lost her job. The iron-willed Vera Van Alst has suddenly become a mealy-mouthed pushover, and Jordan knows something is drastically wrong. Even though she's technically unemployed, Jordan's going to do her best to save Vera and her books-- whether Vera wants her to or not.

In this third Book Collector outing, Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin are Jordan's role models to solve the mystery of Muriel Delgado, who's swiftly isolating Vera from anyone who could possibly help her. Vera may be without a safety net, but so's Jordan, who's recuperating from a bad accident. The only person who can possibly lend a hand is her Uncle Kevin about whom Jordan says (with great affection and a dusting of fear): "Having Uncle Kev as an ally is like playing catch with a grenade." She needs all the tricks Nero and Archie can teach her in order to save both Vera and herself.

Watching Jordan solving the mystery is a joy, due in large part to the humor in this book. The Wolfe Widow is filled with comedic touches sure to bring smiles to any reader's face. I've also learned while reading this series that one of its bonuses is being so intrigued by each book's featured classic mystery writer (so far we've had Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Rex Stout) that I've started sampling-- and enjoying-- books that I normally avoid.

The only thing that bothered me was the character of Muriel Delgado. For me, she was a bit over the top, and I kept envisioning a strange combination of Cruella de Vil and Joan Crawford whenever Muriel had a scene. This woman had some serious issues that her cartoon-like description detracted from. Dial her back a couple of notches, and Muriel Delgado would've been a kickass villain. Hmmm... perhaps too kickass for a cozy mystery? I'll have to ponder this for a while.

In the mean time, it was another wonderful outing with Jordan, and I can't wait to see what she gets up to next!

The Wolfe Widow by Victoria Abbott

ISBN: 9780425255308

Berkley Prime Crime © 2014

Mass Market Paperback, 304 pages

Cozy Mystery, #3 Book Collector mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Paperback Swap 

The Sayers Swindle by Victoria Abbott

First Line: I was falling for an older man.

Jordan Kelly is slowly becoming accustomed to working for Vera Van Alst, the meanest resident of Harrison Falls, New York, and she really wants to keep her job. Unfortunately her employment status may hinge on whether or not she can find and reclaim Vera's missing complete first edition collection of Dorothy Sayers. She finally tracks down the books and just when she thinks she might have elderly Randolph Adams convinced to trade them for a Hemingway first edition, the entire Adams family disappears, and a dead body shows up. Now Jordan still has books to find and a killer to catch. It's definitely time for her to ask, "What would Lord Peter Wimsey do?"

Once again the mother-daughter writing team that call themselves Victoria Abbott have crafted a book with a strong plot, plenty of humor, and a cast that's oh-so-easy to fall in love with. Top all this off with clever mentions of the rare book biz and Lord Peter Wimsey, and-- like me-- you're well on the way to becoming addicted to this Book Collector cozy series.

The path to solving this mystery isn't a straight one. (The good ones seldom are.) A couple of the subplots are more easily guessed than others which remain a surprise until the end, but they all blend together into a very satisfying read. For that we have to thank a sterling cast of characters.

Jordan herself is a perfect blend of sass, savvy, and slapstick. She loves books, she doesn't know when to quit, and she is a kind and generous person. She also knows more about the shadier side of the law than the heroines of most cozy mysteries, thanks to her uncles, and it's Jordan's use of her uncles' nefarious training while trying to do the right thing that beings about so many of the laughs in the book.

Jordan's best friend is off in Africa doing good works, and Jordan misses her. In the mean time, she's become close with Karen Smith, the owner of the Cozy Corpse mystery bookstore. Karen is still recuperating from her injuries sustained in the first book in the series, The Christie Curse, and as Jordan works with her, her recovery adds depth to the story and to the characters.

There's also some romantic sparks throughout the book. A local police officer always seems to be in Jordan's vicinity, and she wishes he'd stop simply because of her uncles. Besides, there's a very hunky librarian that she's had her eye on for quite some time....

This book... this series... is a cozy lover's dream. A good laugh-laced plot, knowledge nuggets about the rare book business, and characters that make you smile and want to invite them over for coffee. Hmm... I don't think I'm on my way to being addicted to Victoria Abbott's Book Collector series-- I already am!

The Sayers Swindle by Victoria Abbott

ISBN: 9780425255292

Berkley Prime Crime © 2013

Mass Market Paperback, 304 pages

Cozy Mystery, #2 Book Collector mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Purchased at The Poisoned Pen. 

The Christie Curse by Victoria Abbott

First Line: If I hadn't been desperate for a job and a new place to live, I might have made a run for it as soon as I got a good look at that sour face.

Jordan Kelly is in debt, thanks to school loans and a thieving ex-boyfriend. She needs a place to live, and she needs a job. NOW.  When she learns of a position available that provides room and board while she spends her days tracking down rare books for a passionate collector, she can't believe her good fortune. But yes, there's a catch: Jordan will be working for Vera Van Alst-- the most hated person in Harrison Falls, New York. 

Jordan's first assignment is to track down an Agatha Christie play. Supposedly written in eleven days while the famous author went missing, people aren't even certain that the play exists. The assignment is made even more difficult when Jordan learns that her predecessor met his untimely end while searching for it. This job is good, but with someone out there willing to kill to keep the play out of Vera's hands, Jordan's got to wonder if her new employment is worth losing her life over.

This is the first installment of the Book Collector cozy mystery series written by mother-daughter writing team Mary Jane and Victoria Maffini. It didn't take me many pages at all before I knew these two have a winner on their hands. Not only does the reader have the opportunity to learn about books, authors and book collecting, there's also a wonderful cast of characters to get acquainted with, and many, many moments filled with laughter. The sense of humor in this book is absolutely delicious!

Jordan Kelly is just the sort of smart yet hapless heroine that readers can fall in love with. Her life is not only complicated by her thieving ex and those student loans, she has uncles who aren't always on the right side of the law. Their unlawful knowledge can come in handy in certain circumstances, but at other times those uncles can make life difficult. Then there's Jordan's new boss, Vera Van Alst, whose five facial expressions include "scowl, glower, sneer, utter boredom, and reverence, although reverence was reserved for books in her collection." Don't stand in this woman's way because Vera would just as soon run over you with her wheelchair than look at you. The vast Van Alst mansion is a bit worse for wear (except for the pristine, state-of-the-art room that houses Vera's book collection), but Jordan loves her rooms-- even though she lives in "a house that's ruled by a bipolar cat that can walk through walls." I have to admit that Jordan and the cat made me laugh. A lot. Simply because it took her so long to figure out what was going on.

If you're in the mood to enjoy a good mystery with a cast of characters that will keep a grin plastered on your face, get your hands on The Christie Curse. I'm already impatiently waiting for Book Collector #2 (The Sayers Swindle).

The Christie Curse by Victoria Abbott

ISBN: 9780425255285

Berkley Prime Crime © 2013

Mass Market Paperback, 304 pages

Cozy Mystery, #1 in the Book Collector series

Rating: A-

Source: Purchased at The Poisoned Pen.