In Davis's fluffy fifth Sophie Katz mystery (after 2009's Lust, Loathing and a Little Dark Chocolate
), the part Jewish/part black mystery author and sleuth sets out to avenge the murder of her best friend, Dena Lopiano, the proprietor of an upscale San Francisco sex shop. When a bullet hits Dena in the back at the apartment of Dena's ditzy cosmetician cousin, Mary Ann, Sophie wonders whether Mary Ann, who's intent on a Disney-themed wedding with successful toymaker Monty Sanchez, was the real target, or even Sophie herself. Suspects include Mary Ann's ex-boyfriend, Rick Wilkes; Rick's weird taxidermist girlfriend, Fawn; and Chrissy Powell, the founder of MAAP (Moral Americans Against Pornography), whose husband once dated Dena. Wacky quotes from Fatally Yours
, one of Sophie's books, and an exciting cliffhanger ending compensate in part for a surfeit of breathless dialogue and a too obvious killer. (June)
