Bringing in the Thieves (The Joyful Noise Mysteries Book 1)
By: Lora Lee
Rating: 5 of 5
“Bringing in the Thieves” is the debut mystery by Lora Lee who also writes romance stories. It is set in western Texas and the heroine (Frankie Lou) is the daughter of a preacher. Ms. Lee is clearly in her element here – she is from the Hill Country of Texas (really more mid-state than west) and is, herself, the daughter of a minister.
Frankly, nothing is sacred here. Ms. Lee skewers the police, the church and its members, Big Hair, southern manners, cosmetic surgery, politicians, and everyone and everything else. I found myself laughing at some of her over-the-top dialog, especially anything to do with Miss Nettie – the elderly neighbor of Frankie Lou who clearly rules the town by the sheer force of her big personality in her tiny little body.
Frankie Lou is the daughter of the retired minister of the local church. She left the town in disgrace years before and no one has forgiven, let alone forgotten, the reason why. Frankie is back and she wants to head a contemporary choir group, The Joyful Noise, to winning the local championship. When her arch nemesis, Poppy Fremont, turns up dead in the church baptismal font and Frankie is the one that finds her, Frankie becomes suspect #1 in all eyes. Frankie has to do what she has to do in order to clear her good name, get her standing back in the community, and get her gospel group started off on the right foot.
While the whodunnit is a sprung on the reader a tad quickly in the last few pages of the book, the story really is more about the people of the town and getting to the end of the story more so than it is who did what when where and why. It is a very cute start to a new mystery series. I was provided a sample copy of the book by the publisher, Bell Bridge Books, via Netgalley.
“Bringing in the Thieves” is the debut mystery by Lora Lee who also writes romance stories. It is set in western Texas and the heroine (Frankie Lou) is the daughter of a preacher. Ms. Lee is clearly in her element here – she is from the Hill Country of Texas (really more mid-state than west) and is, herself, the daughter of a minister.