Foolproof

Iris Thorne Mysteries #4

by Dianne G. Pugh, Dianne Emley

From where she stands in her newly purchased beachfront bungalow—complete with cozy garage for her beloved red Triumph convertible—life looks good for investment counselor Iris Thorne. The only clouds on her horizon are her boss from hell and the never-ending office battles at McKinney Alitzer. But one hot night, everything changes. Her dear friend Bridget is brutally murdered next to her backyard swimming pool, and the sole witness is Brianna, her five-year-old daughter. The primary suspect is Bridget’s husband, Kip—the volatile creative genius behind the couple’s computer games company, Pandora.

Bridget surprised everyone—especially Kip—when she left her majority stake in Pandora not to her husband, but to her daughter. And she named Iris as administrator of Brianna’s trust. Suddenly, Iris must deal with conflicting emotions as the evidence mounts against Kip and she finds herself responsible for the financial future of a little girl—and maybe even the five-year-old’s life.

Genres: Mystery

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Pseudonym used by Dianne Emley

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book came in a box packed with cozy mysteries from eBay. But, this one didn't belong in the cozy genre. But, Iris Thorne is an amateur sleuth. So, that may be why it was placed in that lot. This book was published in 1998. Unfortunately, it does feel a bit dated. First of all the book centers around video games and certain hot button issues like the effect all the violence and sex might have on the kids that played those types of games. There were also the inevitable OJ remarks that popped up in nearly all mysteries during the 90's.
Iris has two friends that are murdered close together. Bridget was a close friend and her husband Kip is the primary suspect. Then it's revealed that Bridget left all the controlling shares of her company to her five year old daughter. Iris is named administrator. It seems that everyone wants control of the company for their own reasons. Iris has her hands full trying to figure out who killed her friends and who is out to get her.
The mystery here isn't all that bad. But, it was a bit too "busy ".There was Kip, a real JERK all the way through the book, then Iris has backstabbers in her regular job connected to the whole mess involving "Pandora ", Bridget 's computer game company. I also hate it when a new character in introduced midway through and muddies the water. It was fairly obvious though who was at least involved in the murderers. There were a few unanswered questions, which is always frustrating, but most everything is cleared up in the end. Overall a C -.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's an okay book, but there are way too many loose ends.