Thursday, May 21, 2009

THE BIG DIRT NAP by Rosemary Harris (Minotaur Books)



Following her Agatha-nominated Pushing Up Daisies, Harris has outdone herself with "Dirt Nap." Paula Holliday is still scrapping to make a living as a landscape designer and garden writer. Her best friend, Lucy Cavanaugh, who is still pulling down the dollars in the TV business invites Paula for an all-expenses weekend at a spa hotel. The carrot at the end of the stick is an opportunity to write an article about the hotel's namesake "Titan Arum" which is due to bloom at any time. This lily is encased in glass in the lobby because its odor is (and I can attest to this!) noxious.

To put it bluntly, the weekend sucks. Lucy doesn't show up, Paula nearly stumbles on a body, the police think she's a person of interest ("Don't leave town.), she thinks she might be the next victim, and menancing Russians start following her. Be glad you're reading about Paula's weekend instead of experiencing it!

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