Steel Guitar

In Linda Barnes's Steel Guitar, this cool fast-paced mystery will leave you singing the blues. Meet Carlotta Carlyle. A former Boston cop turned PI who drove a hack for her side business. When she went to pick up her latest customer, it was a blast of the past. Dee Willis was a R&B singer with a band and a former foe of Carlotta. It all started with a crash of a mad mob at the park, when Carlotta's purse had gotten stolen from her. From there, it went downhill from there, when Dee asked her to find a former friend of theirs and fellow bandmate, Davey Dunrobie. With any bittersweet animosity aside, she discovered what was the story behind the letter she received. She also had some run-ins with her band and groupie, when things turned grisly, when a former band mate turned up dead. It brought back painful memories of when a fellow friend of theirs died the same way a decade ago. Although her close friend was in trouble with the law, she continued the search for Dunrobie and went into her ex-husband Cal. Right in the end, they've nabbed the bad guys and had a sobering ending of their close friend. Bring a hankie!

This mystery had a lot going on, for starters. I thought Carlotta was an amusing private detective.  I did care for Carlotta and for her friends. I loved the Boston location to set the scenery. It was very picturesque and lovely. I loved the concept of the blues band and the art of music recording, too. I did feel sorrow for Davey with a ping of heartache as well. As for Dee, I thought she was a great singer. I didn't care for much for some of the band members like Brenda. I thought it was a shocking twist that she slept with her ex. Great drama on the edge of suspense, lots of tension, and a good action. This was one powerful read that you make you sigh and cry in the end.

Ready to sing the blues? Pick up a copy this weekend!