At the start of Handler’s assured sixth mystery starring film critic Mitch Berger and police trooper Desiree Mitry (after 2006’s The Sweet Golden Parachute
), the crime-solving odd couple have gone their separate ways: Des has returned to her former husband, while the overweight Mitch has slimmed down, toned up and thrown himself into being a bigtime movie critic. While some of the finest citizens of Dorset, Conn., strive to bring them back together, Des gets caught up in the aftermath of an ugly domestic situation that leaves young Molly Procter, a friend of Mitch’s, with a homeless father and a strung-out mother. Des’s duties bring her into conflict with a federal investigation, and then a murder inquiry forces her to put her life on the line. Can Mitch be a movie-role hero? Handler avoids wrapping things up too neatly with a couple of well-hidden surprises. Fans will eagerly await the next installment in this edgy cozy series. (July)
