July 30, 2009

Review: Dead Write: A Forensic Handwriting Mystery by Sheila Lowe



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After completing an interview giving her thoughts on the latest misbehaving celebrity, handwriting expert Claudia Rose received a call from a potential new client. Baroness Grusha Olinetsky owner of Elite Introductions would like to hire Claudia to analyze the handwriting of her wealthy clients to ensure good matches.

The Baroness quickly gets Claudia on a plane to New York from California and once she starts reviewing the client files, Claudia sees more than a few red flags that cause her concern. After a close friend was recently murdered, Claudia is hesitant to be drawn into anything even remotely dangerous but the Baroness pleads for her help.

Still unsure that anything serious is going on Claudia agrees but she quickly learns that several members of the dating service have died in the past few weeks and although each death appears to be natural or accidental, Claudia tries unsuccessfully to cut all ties with the Baroness. Now Claudia is right in the middle of the feuding playboys who are her number one suspects and on top of that, her relationship with her boyfriend back home is on very shaky ground.

Dead Write is book three in the Claudia Rose Forensic Handwriting Mystery series however it does stand alone. There are a few references to the events in books one and two but you can jump right into this story without missing a beat.

What I especially like about this book is the plausible storyline. Claudia isn't stumbling over dead bodies and jumping in to investigate the murders like in most cozies. It's a more realistic scenario where she even tries to run away from any sign of trouble.

I also love the unique premise of Claudia's work as a graphologist. Sheila Lowe has over 25 years of experience in this field but the book doesn't get too technical with the details. She makes it interesting enough that I want to get my own handwriting analyzed along with my husband and co-workers.

There is a pretty good cliffhanger at the end of Dead Write that leaves me anxiously awaiting the next book in the series which will hopefully be along soon. All three books in the series are a must read for all cozy and mystery lovers.

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3 comments :

Melissa said...

I read the second book in this series and enjoyed it, so I'll keep my eye out for this one.

bermudaonion said...

Sounds good! I have one of the books in this series and can't wait to read it.

Ladytink_534 said...

I think I'd like the plausibility of this one too. Sounds like a really neat premise though!