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Jane Lawless #20
Rest for the Wicked
DeAndre Moore came to Minneapolis from St. Louis with a purpose, but things aren't going as he planned. When it becomes clear he's in way over his head, DeAndre can think of only one person to call for help—his Uncle Nolan's business partner, newly licensed private investigator Jane Lawless. However, by the time Jane listens to his voice mail, she's hearing a voice from beyond the grave—DeAndre left the message only minutes before he was knifed to death outside a gentlemen's club. Soon his murder isn't the only one.
With Nolan in the hospital, Jane sets out to find out who killed DeAndre, how his death is connected with the others, and what he was doing in Minneapolis in the first place.
Rest for the Wicked is another outstanding addition to Ellen Hart's award-winning mystery series.
With Nolan in the hospital, Jane sets out to find out who killed DeAndre, how his death is connected with the others, and what he was doing in Minneapolis in the first place.
Rest for the Wicked is another outstanding addition to Ellen Hart's award-winning mystery series.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published October 2, 2012
14 people are currently reading
184 people want to read
About the author
Ellen Hart
72 books221 followersEllen Hart is the author of twenty-eight crime novels in two different series. She is a five-time winner of the Lambda Literary Award for Best Lesbian Mystery, a three-time winner of the Minnesota Book Award for Best Popular Fiction, a three-time winner of the Golden Crown Literary Award in several categories, a recipient of the Alice B Medal, and was made an official GLBT Literary Saint at the Saints & Sinners Literary Festival in New Orleans in 2005. In 2010, Ellen received the GCLS Trailblazer Award for lifetime achievement in the field of lesbian literature. For the past fourteen years, Ellen has taught "An Introduction to Writing the Modern Mystery" through the The Loft Literary Center, the largest independent writing community in the nation. Ellen's latest Sophie Greenway mystery is No Reservations Required (Ballantine). Rest for the Wicked, the twentieth Jane Lawless mystery, will be released by St. Martin's/Minotaur in October 2012. Bella Books has recently revived the out-of-print books by publishing them in both trade paperback and E-book. Ellen lives in the Minneapolis area with her partner of over 35 years.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
May 8, 2023
Jane Lawless is now licensed as a PI and is partnered with her old friend, Nolan, who is in the hospital after injuring his back. One of her first cases involves Nolan's nephew, DeAndre, and takes Jane to a strip club. She is looking for DeAndre's sister though his family believes that he doesn't have a sister. Soon men start dying and the case becomes more urgent. Without Nolan's help, Jane is on her own. This mystery also has a new romance for Jane. I normally rate Ellen's mysteries with 4 stars but I was a little disappointed in this one, mainly because it leaves a few loose ends and has a UFO element that seems too tangential.
June 4, 2019
This was my first Hart novel and my introduction to Jane Lawless. Overall, I enjoyed the well-crafted primary characters and the description of a Minnesota winter made me shiver. The plot moved along at a good and fairly consistent pace, however the constantly changing point of view was confusing at times.
My chief criticism concerns a couple of subplots, revolving around one character, that went nowhere. This added page count but nothing else and ultimately we were left hanging with no idea of the outcome. A quick look at the synopsis for #21 doesn't indicate these subplots carry forward so why are they here? In fact, one of these subplots could have been the basis for a separate book.
Nice twist at the end with plenty of red herrings to throw readers off the scent.
My chief criticism concerns a couple of subplots, revolving around one character, that went nowhere. This added page count but nothing else and ultimately we were left hanging with no idea of the outcome. A quick look at the synopsis for #21 doesn't indicate these subplots carry forward so why are they here? In fact, one of these subplots could have been the basis for a separate book.
Nice twist at the end with plenty of red herrings to throw readers off the scent.
July 11, 2025
It’s a good story. It contains many plot lines, not all of which get resolved in this book so I know I have to read the next book. This story has some odd characters and that’s because Jane is a newly minted PI. The pace is good, the mystery is a head scratcher for the first half of the book and then you keep waiting for the shoe to drop. Some romance, as Jane is single again. I just like Ellen Harts writing, soft, easy Ann fun recurring characters.
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April 1, 2024This is one where I actually called it early on. Not the that the premise was weak but because I actively wanted that to be the case.
Extremely dark but realistic enough content.
More hinged than some of her other work, even with the brief mention of UFOs.
Extremely dark but realistic enough content.
More hinged than some of her other work, even with the brief mention of UFOs.
June 4, 2024
This book definitely fits the bill if you are looking for just an old fashioned cozy mystery. The characters were really fun. The banter between private investigator and police officer was delightful.
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October 8, 201920 down.
March 10, 2020
Loved it!
This book held my attention from beginning to end. Can't wait to see read more about Ago in the next book!
This book held my attention from beginning to end. Can't wait to see read more about Ago in the next book!
May 8, 2023
Well written, clever mystery
November 19, 2023
Ok, great writer but really keep putting things of rape and such in a book I should have been told ahead of time and not while I was reading it.
February 24, 2013
So readers know, the author and I are friends, often travel together as the Minnesota Crime Wave and occasionally consult about writing crime fiction. I believe I retain my critical abilities at a sufficient level to fairly judge her novels as well as those of other author-friends and acquaintances. This is an interesting novel from several directions.
As is the case with nearly all Hart’s novels, this one is smoothly and carefully written. The characters are alive, interesting and, at least in the case of three in this novel, people I think readers will continue to want to follow. Two of them are old friends, Jane Lawless and her alter ego, Cordelia Thorne. The third is Jane’s new love interest, Avi. I hope we’ll see more of her in the future.
The setting for this story is a new one for Jane who has acquired her Private Investigator’s license and is now discovering that owning restaurants and being a PI requires even more than two full lives. It will be interesting to see how her creator handles this new development in Jane’s life. I particularly liked the running theme in which Jane has to deal with restaurant personnel who don’t operate quite the the way she did.
The main setting is a strip club in central Minneapolis called Gaudy Lights. The many absorbing scenes in the club are potent, rich with meanings and possibilities. They amply demonstrate the skills of the author, as do her character sketches. The major plot deals with murder, murder with roots reaching back fifteen or twenty years to terrible acts. Yet the initial murder which opens the book serves mainly to bring Jane into the case, since the victim is related to her mentor and hospitalized PI partner, AJ Nolan. That killing and the subsequent fallout are, in my view, plenty strong enough to carry the book. Other material, particularly some that involving a relatively minor character, a pilot, I found to be distracting and unnecessary. The novel is well-written and moves almost entirely at an appropriate pace. I really enjoyed the book, although in my view it is not as strong as “The Lost Women of Lost Lake.” However, I have no hesitation in recommending “Rest For the Wicked” to the widest possible audience for crime fiction, even tho it doesn't rise quite to the level of four stars.
As is the case with nearly all Hart’s novels, this one is smoothly and carefully written. The characters are alive, interesting and, at least in the case of three in this novel, people I think readers will continue to want to follow. Two of them are old friends, Jane Lawless and her alter ego, Cordelia Thorne. The third is Jane’s new love interest, Avi. I hope we’ll see more of her in the future.
The setting for this story is a new one for Jane who has acquired her Private Investigator’s license and is now discovering that owning restaurants and being a PI requires even more than two full lives. It will be interesting to see how her creator handles this new development in Jane’s life. I particularly liked the running theme in which Jane has to deal with restaurant personnel who don’t operate quite the the way she did.
The main setting is a strip club in central Minneapolis called Gaudy Lights. The many absorbing scenes in the club are potent, rich with meanings and possibilities. They amply demonstrate the skills of the author, as do her character sketches. The major plot deals with murder, murder with roots reaching back fifteen or twenty years to terrible acts. Yet the initial murder which opens the book serves mainly to bring Jane into the case, since the victim is related to her mentor and hospitalized PI partner, AJ Nolan. That killing and the subsequent fallout are, in my view, plenty strong enough to carry the book. Other material, particularly some that involving a relatively minor character, a pilot, I found to be distracting and unnecessary. The novel is well-written and moves almost entirely at an appropriate pace. I really enjoyed the book, although in my view it is not as strong as “The Lost Women of Lost Lake.” However, I have no hesitation in recommending “Rest For the Wicked” to the widest possible audience for crime fiction, even tho it doesn't rise quite to the level of four stars.
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May 28, 2014Rest for the Wicked, by ellen Hart, a-minus, Narrated by Aimee Jolson, Produced by Audible Inc., downloaded from audible.com.
Jane receives a call from a cop with whom she has had previous, not necessarily pleasant, interactions. This cop indicates that a young Black male was found murdered in the alley near a gentleman’s club. A card with her number and “licensed private investigator” on it is found near him. He apparently died while on his cell phone, and the call was to her number. Jane has had her cell phone turned off. When she turns it back on, she finds a message left from DeAndre Moore, whose uncle is her private eye partner, A. J. Nolan. He couldn’t reach A. J. so followed A. J.’s directions and contacted Jane. She relays the information to Nolan, who was close to his nephew and is very upset that he is dead. He has no idea why his nephew came to Minneapolis in the first place. Nolan ends up in the hospital, so Jane has to investigate this case on her own. She soon learns that DeAndre had come from St. Louis tracking down his biological sister. (Nolan is his adoptive family uncle.) He met his sister in Minneapolis. She apparently worked for the gentleman’s club where he was murdered. She indicated to him that she was taking revenge against more than one man. As Jane investigates further, she finds that several men, all of whom know each other, are being eliminated one by one. Jane is falling in love with a bartender at the gentleman’s club. The other bartender seems very troubled. Jane meets some of the girls working there. Cordelia is contemplating a new venture. Her sister, Octavia is back. All in all, another gripping mystery, well written and well narrated.
Jane receives a call from a cop with whom she has had previous, not necessarily pleasant, interactions. This cop indicates that a young Black male was found murdered in the alley near a gentleman’s club. A card with her number and “licensed private investigator” on it is found near him. He apparently died while on his cell phone, and the call was to her number. Jane has had her cell phone turned off. When she turns it back on, she finds a message left from DeAndre Moore, whose uncle is her private eye partner, A. J. Nolan. He couldn’t reach A. J. so followed A. J.’s directions and contacted Jane. She relays the information to Nolan, who was close to his nephew and is very upset that he is dead. He has no idea why his nephew came to Minneapolis in the first place. Nolan ends up in the hospital, so Jane has to investigate this case on her own. She soon learns that DeAndre had come from St. Louis tracking down his biological sister. (Nolan is his adoptive family uncle.) He met his sister in Minneapolis. She apparently worked for the gentleman’s club where he was murdered. She indicated to him that she was taking revenge against more than one man. As Jane investigates further, she finds that several men, all of whom know each other, are being eliminated one by one. Jane is falling in love with a bartender at the gentleman’s club. The other bartender seems very troubled. Jane meets some of the girls working there. Cordelia is contemplating a new venture. Her sister, Octavia is back. All in all, another gripping mystery, well written and well narrated.
May 31, 2014
In Hart's 20th dynamic novel, "Rest for the Wicked," to feature the no-nonsense PI and restaurateur, Jane Lawless, the caring, levelheaded protagonist is waist-deep in multiple murder cases, with a vast list of suspects with dark secrets.
Men are being knocked off. Why? And to add insult to injury, somebody is not who they really are, masking themselves between a cloak of mistaken identity.
When a twenty-something boy named DeAndre Moore is murdered outside GaudyLights, a gentleman's club, he phones his uncle Nolan's business partner, Jane Lawless, for help. But by the time she listens to Moore's voice message, she is too late. The strange phone call from Moore piques Lawless' interest. And she is immediately drawn into the young man's murder.
Between the murder of Moore, a slew of unknown men passing through town with deadly agendas to settle, and her friend Nolan's unexpected hospital visit, Jane is racing against the clock, traipsing across town posing questions to friends and complete strangers in order to get to the bottom of all this senseless act of violence.
Written in an engaging, succinct narrative, sometimes bordering on poetic, "Rest for the Wicked," is one of those novels that will grip you until the last page. And one of the most satisfying novels you will not want to see end. Gay or straight, this is definitely a novel not to be missed by avid fans of the mystery genre.
Believable characters, sharp dialogue, splendid writing, and a fast-paced entertaining plot, makes this a complex story to cherish. Recommended reading.
Men are being knocked off. Why? And to add insult to injury, somebody is not who they really are, masking themselves between a cloak of mistaken identity.
When a twenty-something boy named DeAndre Moore is murdered outside GaudyLights, a gentleman's club, he phones his uncle Nolan's business partner, Jane Lawless, for help. But by the time she listens to Moore's voice message, she is too late. The strange phone call from Moore piques Lawless' interest. And she is immediately drawn into the young man's murder.
Between the murder of Moore, a slew of unknown men passing through town with deadly agendas to settle, and her friend Nolan's unexpected hospital visit, Jane is racing against the clock, traipsing across town posing questions to friends and complete strangers in order to get to the bottom of all this senseless act of violence.
Written in an engaging, succinct narrative, sometimes bordering on poetic, "Rest for the Wicked," is one of those novels that will grip you until the last page. And one of the most satisfying novels you will not want to see end. Gay or straight, this is definitely a novel not to be missed by avid fans of the mystery genre.
Believable characters, sharp dialogue, splendid writing, and a fast-paced entertaining plot, makes this a complex story to cherish. Recommended reading.
March 24, 2013
I'm not sure whether my lack of enthusiam about this book stems from changes in my taste or in the book itself. I've enjoyed the Jane Lawless series for years, stemming back to when a lesbian detective was something new and different.
This book kept jumping from one character to another with changes in the POV. This felt disconcerting.
At least one theme seemed unnecessary to the story, reminding me of the rule for playwriting that if a gun is seen in Act One, it should be used by the end of the story. . I did like the actual mystery and its solution and the new development in Jane's relationships.
This book kept jumping from one character to another with changes in the POV. This felt disconcerting.
At least one theme seemed unnecessary to the story, reminding me of the rule for playwriting that if a gun is seen in Act One, it should be used by the end of the story. . I did like the actual mystery and its solution and the new development in Jane's relationships.
July 25, 2017
Jane is a licensed P.I. now, and Nolan’s partner-in-investigation, and Nolan’s nephew, DeAndre, is in the thick of this mystery. But Nolan is still suffering the effects of the bullet that lodged near his spine (two books ago), and when he slips on the ice, the bullet moves, necessitating immediate surgery, and resulting in a rocky recovery. Jane’s investigations take her into the strip club Gaudy Lights (where she meets a bartender that may become her new love interest), and where a former employee of one of her own restaurants may be mixed up in some shady business. Meanwhile, Jane works on juggling life as a P.I. with the responsibilities of owning two restaurants, something that will deepen the storylines of future book, I think. Cordelia embarks on a new business venture that involves a partnership with her difficult sister Octavia – another bit of fodder for future stories! – and a new nanny for Hattie gives Ellen Hart yet another interesting character going forward. The mystery itself is a good one, involving several murdered men with a connection in their past.
December 28, 2012
Jane Lawless and Cordelia Thorn are two of my favorite characters, and I love how Hart has allowed them to change and grow throughout her series. Especially remarkable is Jane's move from amateur sleuth to burgeoning PI. As Jane has changed, the novels have grown darker and meatier while still retaining their delightful humor. I know of no other mystery series that has morphed from one subgenre to another. If anyone else does, please let me know. Studying such a shift appeals to me both as a writer and as an academic geek fascinated with the way genre shapes a writer's trajectory and vice versa. I admire the way in which Hart has made her shift seem natural and inevitable.
Rest for the Wicked also treats the reader to several fun plot twists--and the promise that Jane might find love.
Rest for the Wicked also treats the reader to several fun plot twists--and the promise that Jane might find love.
November 13, 2012
Reading a Jane Lawless book is like coming home to a warm fire and my girls. I have been reading this series since I was somewhere in my 20's and Jane was in her 40's. Now I'm in my 40's but Jane does not seem to be aging quite the same way. Wonder how that happened, lol.
Anyway, its a easy read but a good read. Would have liked to seen Cordelia a little more, she always makes me laugh. In my opinion, there were a lot of side stories that really didn't seem to fit the main story line and then seemed to just fade away. Not really sure why they were included. Its a good book, not my favorite, but it did have that excellent twist at the end.
Anyway, its a easy read but a good read. Would have liked to seen Cordelia a little more, she always makes me laugh. In my opinion, there were a lot of side stories that really didn't seem to fit the main story line and then seemed to just fade away. Not really sure why they were included. Its a good book, not my favorite, but it did have that excellent twist at the end.
October 11, 2012
Jane Lawless thinks she can continue to run two restaurants and work as a private investigator, but things rapidly deteriorate when her business partner goes into the hospital for sudden surgery, her girlfriend dumps her, and she finds herself investigating a murder at a tawdry strip club. Her best friend Cordelia is also experiencing--and as always producing--stress. The point of view shifts from one of the club's bartenders to the owner to his old basketball teammate to Jane and back around for a deeper psychological insight into the characters.
June 17, 2013
This was OK. I wanted to like it more, but...it was just OK. Two things took it from three to two stars: Jane's assumptions about what the killer would look like were based purely on prejudice, and nothing was said to indicate that she realised that, when things turned out differently than expected, and I felt absolutely NO chemistry between Jane and her new girlfriend. None. I have no idea why Jane decided she was falling in love with the woman, or vice versa, because both of them were cut out of cardboard and had their faces drawn on with crayon.
July 21, 2013
First time with this author.
I found "Rest for the Wicked" tedious. No other word for it.
The characters are two-dimensional. Many are gay. This does not make them interesting.
I bailed about halfway through — something I almost never do. Hell, I finished "Fifty Shades of Grey" and that was up there on the Tedium Scale.
But this is just too contrived — Oh. here are the quirky characters, and the quirky strip club, and the quirky menu descriptions, and the quirky dog, and the guy in the maid outfit (how quirky), and...
Blecch.
I found "Rest for the Wicked" tedious. No other word for it.
The characters are two-dimensional. Many are gay. This does not make them interesting.
I bailed about halfway through — something I almost never do. Hell, I finished "Fifty Shades of Grey" and that was up there on the Tedium Scale.
But this is just too contrived — Oh. here are the quirky characters, and the quirky strip club, and the quirky menu descriptions, and the quirky dog, and the guy in the maid outfit (how quirky), and...
Blecch.
February 16, 2013
I didn't realize when I picked up this book that it centered around a gay PI. That fact didnt bother me, but the things going on in the strip club did, as well as the casual sexual relationship with those pursuing a committed relationship with someone else.I guess maybe I'm showing my age here. Also some of the situations were over the top-especially the UFO plotline that served no purpose at all to the plot.
September 2, 2012
This is a fascinating murder mystery the solution of which depends on sex and sexuality. Although I'm not convinced it's wholly credible, it's still a very impressively constructed book with one of the most tragic motives for murder I can recall reading for many years.
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December 18, 2012
I actually really liked it. i just hate that they waited til the end to explain the "incident". The bad guy wasn't who i expected it to be so that was a pleasant surprise. I didn't like shanice's or georgia's characters. I would have liked to see a little more of DeAndre before he his untimely demise.
February 15, 2014
Ellen Hart is solid! I love the Jane Lawless series. I especially like the would-be anachronisms. The characters all have cell phones and appear to live in current day Minnesota. But then they have weird things, like little pocket address books and rolodexes.
I'm not sure how many more books Hart will write about Jane Lawless, but I'll read them all!
I'm not sure how many more books Hart will write about Jane Lawless, but I'll read them all!
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July 17, 2013No, no, no. This was a cold pick off the library shelf. I only lasted 39 pages: too much relationship content and when drugs were introduced I was done. No sign of anything I wanted to know more about.
October 30, 2015
A mostly solid read with multiple characters and their stories providing lots of possible suspects. I felt like the "issues" here--sex work and bullying--were not integrated into the story as well as they could have been nor explored as far as they should have been.
October 27, 2012
3.5. Lots of things going on in this one, lots of tension. Nice to see Jane and Cordelia again.
December 6, 2012
I love all of Ellen Hart's books. She manages to put enough familiar stuff in that you can follow the series but also adds new things that keep the books fresh.
March 25, 2013
I read the first three chapters and decided I was unable to relate to the main characters, even though the crime itself was interesting. A personal decision only.
April 30, 2013
Very good. Kept me guessing and stayed ahead of me. I figured some of it out, but not the real kicker. Will read more by this author.
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October 4, 2013Another good one for Jane Hart
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews