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Rating: 
Summary: Clever addition to the Claire Montrose series
Review: Class of '79. The cheerleader, the wannabe, the brainiac, the murderer. Murderer? In this third installment of April Henry's Claire Montrose series, Claire and her dashing boyfriend, Dante, embark on a weekend trip to Claire's 20 year high-school class reunion. Upon arriving, Claire is flattered to receive a handcrafted heart-shaped box lined with her old yearbook photo from an anonymous admirer--well, flattered until popular ex-cheerleader Cindy Sanchez is found lying dead in the parking lot with a similar heart-shaped box in her hand. Ms. Henry expertly guides us through clever twists and turns as Claire's lingering adolescent insecurities give way to an emerging self-confidence and savvy which just may keep her alive. Anyone who has ever pondered attending a school reunion will enjoy this classy mystery lightly seasoned with '70's nostalgia and Ms. Henry's trademark humor.
Rating: 
Summary: a good read for mystery fans
Review: This is a classic good novel for mystery novels, a good "whodunnit" type of book. You are kept hanging until the very end as to who is murdering the girls (women now) at a high school reunion who are found with a heart-shaped box. Typical good fashion in the Agatha Christie genre, where the murderer is found out at the end, and it is often not who you might suspect.
This was my first read of April's novels, and I decided I would give it a review.
Why four stars instead of five? Well, the license plates are fine, but I have read through the other books, and while certainly license plates or some other form of paraphernalia often tends to be a serial detective's shtick (such as Sherlock Holmes phrase to Dr. Watson, "It's all elementary, Doctor"), in this case, I believe the license plates are starting to grow old. The shtick isn't sticking for this particular character, and new growth is needed. Just my opinion, but there it is.
I would also warn those that are of a religious nature that the character Logan and his mother are caught in a time-warp, depicted as one-dimensional closed-minded fundamentalists that have a lack of intelligence (Logan is feeble-minded). Unfortunately, I rather expect this from April, but I need to inform those who would read this book. Perhaps an inclusion in her books as to an intelligent, articulate person of a religious persuasion could be adapted? I rather doubt that she will heed the advice, but read and judge for yourself. Otherwise, it is a good read.
Rating:
Summary: Great Entertainment
Review: This is the first book I've read by April Henry, and I liked it so much that I will buy her first two mysteries now. The character of Claire Montrose is very appealing, and her boyfriend, Dante, is interesting too. Setting the action of the book at a high school reunion weekend is inspired. The interactions of all the high school personalities, 10 years later, is both funny and pretty much right on the mark. Anyone who has been to a reunion will get a kick out of this aspect of this book. The mystery is good too. I, for one, did not figure out who the killer was until the end. There were several good suspects, and I kept going back and forth between them, not sure who was the most likely culprit. Overall, a great read, and I am looking forward to reading more of April Henry's work.
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