Murder Over Easy

by: Jimmie Ruth Evans

Published by: Berkley

Reviewed by Dawn Dowdle - www.mysteryloverscorner.com and www.romanceloverscorner.com

Melvin, Wanda Nell's boss at the Kountry Kitchen restaurant, has been arrested for murdering Fayetta, another waitress who he had been dating. He asks Wanda Nell to help clear him because she helped clear her son recently when he was charged with murdering his dad. As if Wanda Nell didn't have enough to do.

Fayetta wasn't a nice person. She and Wanda didn't get along, but no one deserved to die the way she did. So, Wanda Nell decides to try to help Melvin in any way she can. She runs the Kountry Kitchen in his absence, hires Tuck as his lawyer, and does some snooping on her own.

She discovers that Melvin wasn't the only man Fayetta was dating. Plus Wanda Nell finds a bankbook with a large sum in the savings account. There was no way Fayetta made that money as a waitress. Wanda Nell works to uncover more about Fayetta's life and those she "worked" with, including a club where it didn't appear she was delivering food. But can Wanda Nell discover the truth without putting herself or her family in jeopardy?

I love this series. Wanda Nell is such a terrific character. I love how she interacts with her kids and grandson, as well as her best friend Mayrene. Tuck is a wonderful character as well. Wanda Nell's mother-in-law is as cantankerous as they come, but that makes it work.

The fact that Wanda Nell lives in her double-wide mobile home with her two daughters and her 16-month-old grandson lends a lot of credibility to the story. So does the fact that she has to work two jobs to make ends meet, and then it's still tough.

The setting is great and the plot has plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing who did it until the end. I highly recommend this book and the series.

Armchair Interviews agrees.