Screenscam

Rep and Melissa Pennyworth #1

by Michael Bowen

"A gem of a book that just keeps getting more brilliant page after page."―Michael Stackpole, New York Times bestselling author Attorney Rep Pennyworth faces the client from hell. Charlotte Buchanan, author of a mystery of no particular merit, contends her 1997 novel is the basis for a 1999 film, and she wants to sue. Rep would blow her off, but Charlotte's the daughter of the CEO of Tavistock, Ltd., the firm's major corporate client. Rep digs in, aided by his literature-addicted wife Melissa, and files suit. By return mail comes a death threat, a grisly (and gristly) version of "Hold Your Tongue." The film's director, Hollywood legend Aaron Eastman, and Rep talk and, bit by bit, the outline of a bizarre scheme to destroy his credibility―and that of his films―emerges. Hoosiers Rep and Melissa aren't prepared for the larger licenses granted to political powerhouses, but they're quick on the uptake and soon armed....

Genres: Mystery

227 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Lois Baron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusing.

The threads of the crime in this book are many and tangled. I didn't bother to figure out whether all the points got addressed. That's usually not the thing in a mystery that attracts me anyway, I mean, I don't try hard to figure out who did what and why. In this book, I mostly noticed that there were a lot of interconnections among various parties. I got the impression that they all got addressed. Mostly I liked the book because of the very low-key hero and his movie-trivia maven wife. I'll read more in this series.

[Cluessister Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is what I would call a Chinese Food book - great fun while you’re reading it but an hour later you’re hungry again. Rep Pennyworth is a lawyer with a semi-naughty sexual proclivity that doesn’t make him that likeable. He is called upon to do the bidding of the daughter of a large client – an heiress who wants to sue a movie producer for stealing her story.
My favorite character is Melissa, who he describes as “his literature-addicted wife.” It is Melissa who uncovers clues in the script and movie version that could provide strong evidence for the case. Meanwhile she indulges in side chats with university chums about her dissertation on whether Lord Peter Wimsey was gay, and goes “undercover” at a convention for lovers of a certain sexual fetish.
There’s blackmail, a helicopter piloting film director, a plot to rig the Oscars, corporate skullduggery and even a subplot where Rep might find his missing mother in the most unlikely of places. It’s a romp and worth the investment for a light reading meal or a lit-snack.

[Daniel · Rating 1 out of 5]

I started reading this lawyer series, and was immediately encouraged. Ah. The writer knows something about law! Can’t stand lawyer books where they don’t. What’s the point? So check.

Next pleased that he offered some wisdom from an anti trust course I think. Wisdom potential in law or life—one of the necessities of good fiction. Check.

Then he made his protagonist both smart yet humble. Cool.

Then he was funny. Satirical. W/so much going for it, why not. What could go wrong?

Then he added an aspect of minor weird sexual fantasy. His hero Rep likes to be spanked by women with a brand of brushes. Back to the humble hero point above, who at first seems a mouse (another theme) but who will later roar? Ok. Move on.

Then the (effort) to (amusing + smart) ratio went way down. Slogging now. Satire. But a satire that is not particularly insightful. Snide? Sure.

Finally, the embarrassing to the protagonist sex thing with hair brush paddling becomes a means for the client to blackmail him. And furthering the point, they eat in a marquis de sade themed restaurant as the blackmailing client’s means of pressing her point, Rep thought.

This isn’t gonna quit, is it? Nope, scanned ahead, and it’s a running theme, that I’m guessing gets weirder. Now his wife — the literary part of the duo — is crying, and working thru ways to punish him. But she fears he will like it. Oy. I suppose this counts as madcap somewhere.

Still, it’s a good thing, the freedom to toss a book that over the shoulder, and move on. (There is no Goodreads provision to allow for review, and yet not marking it finished. Well, I am finished. Le fin.)

(As always, even when I don’t add it, i would not think it fair for my personal star ratings to be included in Goodreads’s partner Amazon reviews. It is simply my review against my own scale. And for the ratings to work, on the 5 star scale we are given, a 1 star must do double duty for books tossed, as well as reviled, even tho they are not necessarily the same. And 5 stars either for the lyrically exquisite, and the meaningful. Even tho they are not necessarily found in the same book. . . There’s real problems with the 5 star scale. But that’s what we got. Peace to the authors whose effort and skill is not necessarily described by these ratings. I wish them well.)

[Avid Series Reader · Rating 2 out of 5]

Screenscam by Michael Bowen is the first book of the Rep & Melissa Pennyworth mystery series set in the contemporary US. The tale starts out amusing, turns into quite a romp; so many 'bad guys' it's hard to keep track (at least if listening to the audio version).

As a student in law school, Rep Pennyworth decided he wanted 'a quiet life' (unlike most who pursue the legal profession for money, power, fame). Rep chose to specialize in copyright infringement so he'd have easy paperwork cases, go home predictably at close-of-business each day. His secret vice, the only excitement he craves: online sexual fantasy.

His wife Melissa is a voracious mystery reader. According to Melissa, every mystery plot is a variation on one of the deadly sins: pride, anger, avarice, lust, envy, sloth, gluttony. She's completing her PhD, teaching creative writing, working at the university library. Her secret vice: taking tokes with a fellow faculty member on weekends.

Rep is assigned a plagiarism case he doesn't want, a repulsive client who insists her mystery book was copied by a movie. He plans to write an excruciatingly detailed memorandum to justify dropping the case. But alas, the client's father is too important to Rep's law firm; he must handle the daughter's case. Melissa found an interesting goof in the movie, so the client's case is marginally plausible.

So begins a total romp of mistakes, misunderstandings, lucky and unlucky coincidence, multistate travel. When Rep goes missing, Melissa springs into action to find him - even to a convention of his secret vice. All their adventures are generously seasoned with humor.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a strange little plot with ‘adult spanking’ as a sub-plot which I didn’t think added to the book a little ‘ewww’ factor. I doubt I will read any more in the series.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed the main characters, Rep and Melissa Pennyworth. He is a copyright infringement lawyer and she is working toward a Ph.D in literature. Their personalities reminded me a bit of Nick and Nora Charles from "The Thin Man" movies. The story begins when a client of Rep's firm decides to sue because she thinks the plot of a book she wrote was ripped off to make a movie. There are several plot twists that make the story entertaining. The writer's descriptions of events and characters are engaging and fun to read. This is the first book in a series, and I plan to read others.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rep, a lawyer, gets tied up in a plagiarism/mergers&acquisitions case that goes weird. There were a disproportionate number of excellent, funny, cutting one-liners in this book, to the point where you wonder if the author has been keeping a journal for twenty years with these awesome lines and basically wrote some filler plot that was both over-complicated and over-simple.

[Beverly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rep Pennyworth faces the client from hell: Charlotte Buchanan contends her 1997 novel is the basis for the 1999 film, Contemplation of Death. She wants to sue so Rep files suit. By return mail comes a death threat, a grisly version of "Hold Your Tongue." This book has an implausible theme and is not very inviting.

[Carolyn Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, fast, and full of plot twists and red herrings. Rep and Melissa Pennyworth are delightfully unlikely sleuths, but once they get going they make a terrific team in this tale of a stolen plot that turns into something far, far larger.

[Mary G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting little book with a quirky story.

[Casey · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some interesting plot twists but it was a bit bland.

[Pam]

09/17/08 rec via Poisoned Pen Press Book Club