Helpful Score: 1
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.
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.
I received a copy of this book through First Reads giveaways, and I have to say, I'm very glad that I did. Despite the fact that this book is third in a series -- and I haven't read the first two -- I had no trouble falling into the story and understanding what was going on. When I entered the giveaway for the this book, I was terribly ambivalent about being selected as one of the winners because I felt that a book calling itself "A Forensic Handwriting Mystery" had the potential to either be very interesting and unique OR be horribly boring and silly.
Thankfully, this book turned out to belong to that former category. I really enjoyed reading about Claudia Rose and her handwriting analysis expertise. The plot is similar to an episode of Bones. Some people die, and the protagonist comes into contact with several viable suspects who could have potentially done the killing. Then she is forced to endure endless uncomfortable and nerve-shattering situations with each of these potential murderers until everything finally comes to a head at the end. Pretty standard stuff, really. But Sheila Lowe writes beautifully, and her characters -- especially Claudia, Joel, and the gender-confused matchmaker Grusha -- are personable and endearing. Not to mention the whole handwriting thing... it adds a totally unique angle which I've never experienced before. I fully intend on looking up the other two books in the series and reading them quite soon.
Thankfully, this book turned out to belong to that former category. I really enjoyed reading about Claudia Rose and her handwriting analysis expertise. The plot is similar to an episode of Bones. Some people die, and the protagonist comes into contact with several viable suspects who could have potentially done the killing. Then she is forced to endure endless uncomfortable and nerve-shattering situations with each of these potential murderers until everything finally comes to a head at the end. Pretty standard stuff, really. But Sheila Lowe writes beautifully, and her characters -- especially Claudia, Joel, and the gender-confused matchmaker Grusha -- are personable and endearing. Not to mention the whole handwriting thing... it adds a totally unique angle which I've never experienced before. I fully intend on looking up the other two books in the series and reading them quite soon.
