From debut author, Traci Andrighetti, comes a tale of murder, mayhem,
and meddling Sicilian grandmas...
Francesca "Franki" Amato is a tough-talking rookie cop in Austin, Texas—until an unfortunate 911 call involving her boyfriend, Vince, and a German female wrestler convinces her once and for all that she just isn't cut out for a life on the police force. So Franki makes the snap decision to move to New Orleans to work at her friend Veronica's detective agency, Private Chicks, Inc. But Franki's hopes for a more stable life are soon dashed when Private Chicks is hired by the prime suspect in a murder case to find out what really happened to a beautiful young boutique manager who was found strangled to death with a cheap yellow scarf. When she's not investigating, Franki is hoping to seduce handsome bank executive Bradley Hartmann, but most of her time is spent dodging date offers from a string of "good Italian boys"—make that not-so-good aging Italian men—that her meddlesome Sicilian grandma has recruited as marriage candidates. As Mardi Gras approaches and the mystery of the murdered shop girl gets more complicated, Franki must decipher the odd ramblings of a Voodoo priestess to solve both the murder and the mystery of her own love life.
Francesca "Franki" Amato is a tough-talking rookie cop in Austin, Texas—until an unfortunate 911 call involving her boyfriend, Vince, and a German female wrestler convinces her once and for all that she just isn't cut out for a life on the police force. So Franki makes the snap decision to move to New Orleans to work at her friend Veronica's detective agency, Private Chicks, Inc. But Franki's hopes for a more stable life are soon dashed when Private Chicks is hired by the prime suspect in a murder case to find out what really happened to a beautiful young boutique manager who was found strangled to death with a cheap yellow scarf. When she's not investigating, Franki is hoping to seduce handsome bank executive Bradley Hartmann, but most of her time is spent dodging date offers from a string of "good Italian boys"—make that not-so-good aging Italian men—that her meddlesome Sicilian grandma has recruited as marriage candidates. As Mardi Gras approaches and the mystery of the murdered shop girl gets more complicated, Franki must decipher the odd ramblings of a Voodoo priestess to solve both the murder and the mystery of her own love life.
Review by K.T Sullivan
Franki Amato is an
Austin police officer about to get the surprise of her career. Responding to a
call, she finds the love of her life wrapped up in bed with a German female
wrestler. Time for a job and relationship change. She calls her friend,
Veronica Maggio, the owner of Private Chicks Inc. and asks for a favor. Franki
packs up her dog along with her dignity and moves to New Orleans. She joins
Veronica’s firm and meets her landlady. Glenda is a former stripper with plenty
of moves left. The firm is hired to solve a murder involving a yellow scarf.
Franki’s nonna would prefer she settle down and make beautiful great
grandchildren for her. She sends a couple of men Franki’s way to speed up the
process. The chase for the killer includes skull beads, a wayward nun, a voodoo
priestess, shellfish allergies, a sleazy exonerated boyfriend, and a hunky,
possibly married, bank executive. Franki has to sort through all of the above
to find the killer before she gets caught in a permanent bind.
The story has a Stephanie
Plum vibe to it. The cast of characters add to the humor and suspense of the
story. New Orleans is a gorgeous backdrop to cast the seedy and the splendor of
Franki’s pursuit of love and criminals. This is a gal pal read, best friends
looking for love and hunting bad guys. Fun read.
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About the Author:
Traci Andrighetti is the author of the Franki Amato
Mystery series. In her previous life, she was an award-winning literary
translator and a Lecturer of Italian at the University of Texas at Austin,
where she earned a PhD in Applied Linguistics. But then she got wise and
ditched that academic stuff for a life of crime—writing, that is.
If she's not hard at work on her
next novel, Traci is probably watching her favorite Italian soap opera, eating
Tex Mex or sampling fruity cocktails, and maybe all at the same time. She lives
in Austin with her husband, young son (who desperately wants to be in one of
her books) and three treat-addicted dogs.
Connect with the author at:
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