Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice

The enjoyable fourth entry in Cosimano’s Finlay Donovan series (after Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun) picks up right where the previous installment left off, with the suspense novelist turned sleuth and her nanny, Vero, pausing to collect Finlay’s two young children from her ex-husband, Steven, before they head from Virginia to Atlantic City to rescue Javi, Vero’s childhood love, from loan shark Marco. During that pause, Finlay and Vero accidentally amass multiple unwanted traveling companions, including Steven,who’s angling for a reconciliation, and Finlay’s mother, Susan. To make matters worse, Marco refuses to cooperate with Finlay and Vero once they arrive in Atlantic City, and shortly after their first meeting with the loan shark, the women find him dead in a luxury casino suite. Then the police—including Finlay’s new boyfriend, Nick, and her sister, Georgia—arrive to look into Marco’s death and the disappearance of his nephew, Ike, setting off a fine farce involving interfering mothers, lost hoodies, disappearing kidnapping victims, romantic jealousy, and dirty diapers. Cosimano nails the tone—breezy but not too fluffy—and maintains a breakneck pace throughout. Readers who prefer their mysteries to lean madcap will eat this up. (Mar.)