Rating: 
Summary: Talk, Talk, Talk
Review: Desiree Shapiro is a heroine who is usually good for a laugh. She's human, funny, and fallible, and her perspective on the world makes her adventures quite delightful.However, "Murder Can Upset Your Mother" is probably the weakest in this series of six novels by Selma Eichler. The plot seems quite contrived, and filled with frustratingly false diversions--wedding dresses, food poisonings, and other events which don't contribute to either plot or characterization. The ending, too, is formulaic: we knew who the murderer was, we even knew Desiree was going to catch him, and it was only a quirk of fate and a little sleight of handedness that the drugstore clerk identified the purchaser of the poison as quickly as she did. And then, to add insult to injury, Eichler adds nothing less than a recipe for eggplant parmigiana. It's not even a particularly distinguished recipe, for heaven's sake...but it is in keeping with the mediocrity of the novel.
Rating: 
Summary: Not the fairest of them all...
Review: Desiree Shapiro is a heroine who is usually good for a laugh. She's human, funny, and fallible, and her perspective on the world makes her adventures quite delightful. However, "Murder Can Upset Your Mother" is probably the weakest in this series of six novels by Selma Eichler. The plot seems quite contrived, and filled with frustratingly false diversions--wedding dresses, food poisonings, and other events which don't contribute to either plot or characterization. The ending, too, is formulaic: we knew who the murderer was, we even knew Desiree was going to catch him, and it was only a quirk of fate and a little sleight of handedness that the drugstore clerk identified the purchaser of the poison as quickly as she did. And then, to add insult to injury, Eichler adds nothing less than a recipe for eggplant parmigiana. It's not even a particularly distinguished recipe, for heaven's sake...but it is in keeping with the mediocrity of the novel.
Rating: 
Summary: A funny P.I. mystery
Review: Desiree Shapiro just arrived home and goes into her routine of first listening to the messages on her answering machine. The first entry comes from her neighbor, very excited and pleading with Desiree to hurry over. Desiree shuts down the tape and runs off to see what her neighbor needed so urgently, which turns out to be a party. Desiree, known for her appetite, enjoys the food. A week later a friend chastises Desiree for not returning her call. Desiree, thinking what happened, realizes she never listened to the messages the day of the party. One of the calls comes from philanthropist Miriam Weldon asking Desiree for help as someone is trying to kill her. Desiree calls back only to learn from Miriam's mother that the woman was murdered. Feeling guilty and heeding the request of the mother, Desiree begins to search for Miriam's murderer. Very quickly, Desiree learns that the statue on the pedestal crumbled as she finds out the truth behind the do-gooder image of the victim who almost everyone wanted dead. What makes Desiree Shapiro unique from the typical female sleuth is the fourth slice of pizza. Still that overindulgence in eating sometimes turns irritating perhaps because it hits home for many of us readers who are not Buffied. Her latest tale, MURDER CAN UPSET YOUR MOTHER, is an entertaining Manhattan who-done-it that will entertain fans as it is a cleverly designed mystery with a moral message stating that even heroes have flaws. Readers will relish (with two hot dogs and mustard on rolls) Selma Eichler's tasty novel. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: Not up to par
Review: I am a big Selma Eichler fan. That being said, I found her latest offering, Murder can upset your mother, to be somewhat of a disappointment. The story involves a wealthy, and seemingly well-loved, philanthropist who phones Desiree Shapiro, private investigator, and leaves a message that she fears she will be murdered. Unfortunately, by the time Desiree receives the message, the victim is already dead. Desiree is hired by the victim's mother to solve the crime. Through her investigation, Desiree discovers that things are not as they seem. She eventually solves the mystery, but the solution seems to come much too easily, and thus leaves the reader feeling somewhat cheated. Another shortcoming of this book is that the usual supporting characters, Desiree's niece, secretary, and friend, come across as whiny in this book. Further, the author begins a side plot with Desiree's employer that does not go anywhere. In all, it seems that the author was following a formula and did not give her usual effort in writing this book. That being said, those who are true Desiree fans will likely enjoy the book. It contains many familiar and fun aspects from past books, like Desiree's insatiable appetite and her glorious hair. All in all, a good read but not the best.
Rating: 
Summary: Desiree Shapiro is the best! The book could be better...
Review: I am a huge fan of the Desiree Shapiro mystery series and eagerly anticipate reading each new book. Desiree is an endearing heroine,the writing is usually crisp and entertaining, the characters usually intriguing. Murder Can Upset Your Mother falls a little short. The plot is a little murky and difficult to follow at times. Desiree's neice Ellen is becoming a bit tiresome and it would be good for the series if Eichler would develop some better supporting players for Desiree.Let's get Ellen married and have her move to Buffalo or something and get on with it! Despite the shortcomings, I found this book to be an enjoyable and entertaining read. Not rocket science, but a pleasant diversion nonetheless.
Rating:
Summary: Desiree Shapiro is the best! The book could be better...
Review: I am a huge fan of the Desiree Shapiro mystery series and eagerly anticipate reading each new book. Desiree is an endearing heroine,the writing is usually crisp and entertaining, the characters usually intriguing. Murder Can Upset Your Mother falls a little short. The plot is a little murky and difficult to follow at times. Desiree's neice Ellen is becoming a bit tiresome and it would be good for the series if Eichler would develop some better supporting players for Desiree.Let's get Ellen married and have her move to Buffalo or something and get on with it! Despite the shortcomings, I found this book to be an enjoyable and entertaining read. Not rocket science, but a pleasant diversion nonetheless.
Rating:
Summary: Too much, talk, too boring
Review: I have read all Desiree Shapiro books by Selma and each one gets worse. I was hoping that by reading another one it would keep my interest but... I don't care what Desiree looks like or if she is plump or etc., she cannot keep a thought by which you can follow what is happening after a murder has been committed and Desiree is hired to solve it. How does she have time to solve anything when her life is in turmoil and her co-worker, niece and the neighbors are running (ruining) her life. There doesn't seem to be any story line to follow and after about 25 pages you just give up and get rid of the book. I kept hoping the stories would change but they didn't.
Rating:
Summary: Talk, Talk, Talk
Review: I was amazed to see that this person has written more than one book. This is the most boring mystery I have ever read. Not only do I not care about the lead, I don't care why the woman was murdered or anything else. The book is too talk-y. Shut up!
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I've been a big fan of the Desiree Shapiro series, but this book fell really flat for me. The one fact Desiree recalled which led to her conclusion of "whodunnit" didn't seem like a big enough deal to me that it should've convinced her of the person's guilt with such conviction, based on all the other evidence she'd gathered. The way she went about setting out to prove the person's guilt was extremely contrived, and the ending much too convenient and uneventful for this type of book. I also didn't understand why the reader seemed to be getting teased with other potential subplots that led absolutely nowhere. Desiree's desire to see all she could of the opulent Manhattan residences she was visiting, Jackie's food poisoning, Pat's birthday party and Ellen's trip to the bridal shop in New Jersey served no purpose to the story whatsoever, and seemed like they just occurred to fill pages. An utter disappointment from a usually stellar author. I hope this isn't a trend, but rather just a bad writing day.
Rating:
Summary: This book can upset your brain
Review: Usually I love Desiree Shapiro and the methods she uses to solve a crime but this book seemed unorganized and I found myself not even caring what the outcome was. There were side stories about Ellen picking out a wedding dress and somebody giving a party but this was not one of Selma Eichler's best.
Don't waste your time.
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