To Hell in a Handbasket (Book) - 7/7/2009 10:55:36 AM
I’ve just finished reading the second Claire Hanover mystery, and I’d have to say Beth Groundwater’s main character really is strong enough to keep my interest through a whole series. A fascinatingly resourceful amateur detective, with the cleverness of Miss Marple, the sore knees of the middle-aged, and the physical prowess of an empty-nester who plans to keep skiing forever, Claire has the confidence to believe what she sees and to tell it like she sees it. Just because no one else saw the ski tracks doesn’t mean they’re not there. Just because no one else sees the danger doesn’t mean she shouldn’t protect her daughter. Just because…
So she walks into police stations and describes exactly the sort of details that someone unaccustomed to such places would notice—the presence or absence of family photographs, the pictures on the walls… She walks into a night club and learns the right words for the music by making mistakes—okay, so daughter’s embarrassed, but Mom’s taking charge. She leaps into action, rightly earning the nickname Mama Bear. And the reader follows along, all the time amazed and impressed and, if you happen to be me, just plain wishing I were more like her.
I guess Claire’s kind of a niche hero, perfect for us moms with kids fleeing the nest, and ideal for the recipients of gift baskets. She makes me want to ski again. She believes in ibuprofen. She’s real and she’s fun. And she’s more than capable of leaving me eagerly awaiting her next adventure.
A Real Basket Case (Book) - 6/19/2009 10:06:37 AM
A Real Basket Case by Beth Groundwater is a really fun book, and just perfect to add to that gift basket for mother, sick friend, empty-nester, or whoever else you feel needs a bit of spice to cheer them up. Just be sure whoever reads it will be inspired to believe in themselves, in the future, and in the value of love and relationships.
Beth’s protagonist, Claire Hanover, is a middle-aged mother of grown-up children, valued confidante of friends whose marriages are breaking up, and loyal wife. But an exercise class run by gloriously handsome Enrique surely can’t be a problem, and all she agrees to is a massage. Depending on your own position in life, you’ll either be crying out “Go for it Claire,” or “Claire, don’t do it!” as one of her friends eggs her on, and the other decries the duplicity of all men.
But things go drastically wrong. Claire’s moment of pleasure becomes a trek through the seamy underbelly of Colorado Springs. Her husband is arrested for murder. Everyone thinks he’s guilty. His boss threatens to fire him. And when Claire manages to arrange his bail, he retires straight to a friend’s house because he doesn’t believe she loves him anymore.
By the way, did you know that works? Arranging bail and all that?
Meanwhile Claire delivers gift baskets to the realtor, and tries to avoid getting shot by the local drug lord. She’d have every justification for ending up a real basket case, but that’s not her aim, and true love, true grit, and true determination win through.
I love Claire. I love this story. And I’ll soon be reading the sequel, To Hell in a Handbasket. I can hardly wait.
