An Educated Death (Thea Kozak Mysteries (Paperback))

Rating:
Summary: A great read
Review: I loved this book--not for the plot, which comes across as immature a good deal of the time--but for the interplay between the main characters. Yes, the author tends to make Thea describe her feelings too us way too much (we don't need half the details we get!), and yes, she ends up chosing having her way over listening to her boyfriend's VERY REASONABLE concerns for her, but I still loved it. Thea is bright, sassy, has a great sense of humor, and doesn't let anybody walk on her. Don't expect too much depth or heart string tugging, but a great read if you want to laugh a lot.

Rating:
Summary: This is a must-read mystery.
Review: Thea Kozak is one of the most unusual female amateur detectives in existence. She is a consultant for private schools and often becomes involved in murder with her signigicant other, a policeman fearing for her safety. Bad things happen to the people in the book. The initial victim is a teenage girl with few scruples, but one the reader begins to warm to and sympathize with as Thea probes her background. Buy this book, but only after reading the three proceeding this title which are available in paperback. See the author's note and keep Thea in print.

Rating:
Summary: Promising Beginning Leads to Nancy Drew Behavior
Review: This book began well, with an intriguing chapter from the point of view of the murder victim, but rapidly went downhill, to the point where I wouldn't have finished it if I hadn't been traveling in Italy and unable to get my hands on anything else in English. As the murders pile up, the heroine behaves more and more like Nancy Drew, doing foolish and unprofessional things so that she has to be rescued - and with constant references to similar behavior in past books that put her in the hospital. Well, duh.... Ultimately, a real let-down.