Squeezed & Juiced

Carol Sabala Mystery #4

by Vinnie Hansen

Her first real P.I. case, an ailing mother, and a stalled relationship. As Carol Sabala attempts to juggle the components of her life, they all threaten to crash. Training to be a private eye, Carol wrangles a job to investigate a woman's will. The more Carol probes the retirement home where the woman died, the more she grasps how easily one could kill an elderly person in such a facility. It is, after all, an expected last address. With Carol's mother intent on moving to the same retirement home, the stakes are high. Will Carol prevent this facility from being her mother's final address? Can she keep all the pieces of her life in the air as she enters a world of drug addicts and murder?

198 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Two-time Claymore Award Finalist Vinnie Hansen is the author of the Carol Sabala mystery series (misterio press) as well as literary works and over 40 short stories, appearing in such diverse collections as Fault Lines, Fishy Business, Santa Cruz Noir, Catamaran Literary Reader, Destination: Mystery!, Fish or Cut Bait, Lake Region Review, Porter Gulch Review, Mystery Weekly, Transfer Literary Magazine, Mysterical-E, Crime & Suspense, and Web Mystery Magazine. She won the Golden Donut Award from the Writers' Police Academy, and a B.R.A.G. Medallion for her mystery, Black Beans & Venom. Award-winning crime writer Allen Eskens says of Black Beans & Venom: "It is the mark of true talent for a writer to be able to deliver her readers completely and believablyto another world, and in Black Beans and Venom Vinnie Hansen has done just that. Set in the vibrant and gritty back streets of Cuba, this cat-and-mouse hunt for a missing woman is full of intrigue, suspense and authenticity."

Reviews

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Santa Cruz is a small town.
Carol Sabala, wanna be sleuth, has a problem or three or more. She isn't a detective yet, so she has to work at a bakery job she doesn't enjoy (I think she's burnt - out). The "detective agency" she works for is actually just her, and a usually drunk guy, who is allowing her to "apprentice" to him. Her mom is getting older too fast, her cat is overly demanding, and her happy-go-lucky boyfriend wants her to move in with him.
She takes her mom to visit a facility for aging persons. She doesn't like the place. Which about guarantees her mom will. Her mom cites people, particularly one woman, as why she likes it. As a result, they come back, and discover her dead body...Carol gets hired to try find evidence that will help the son break the woman's last will and testament.
And her mother ends up in the hospital.
Carol's boyfriend's office - mate turns out to be on of the state inspectors responsible for looking into nursing home complaints. There've been a few about the facility....
Who killed the old lady? Will Carol get fired from her job as a baker? Will she be able to get ahead of her boyfriend when they go mountain biking, thus forcing him to eat dust? All these, and more questions arise.
This book does not tie things up neatly. It is part of a series. It has a messy, realistic ending. Unfortunately, there is also heart ache and heartbreak in the world.
About Carol and her boyfriend? She might move in with him. Or him with her. You have to read the next book to get any idea.

[Stuart · Rating 5 out of 5]

With Tang is Not Juice, Hansen again has woven an excellent contemporary mystery with an insider’s view of a setting that warrants reflection. In this case, Hansen has delved into corporate-run assisted living facilities for the elderly and the governments regulation or lack thereof of these facilities. Add in her usual assortment of colorful characters, snappy dialog and surprise twists and this read proves rewarding…especially for those looking at “retirement living.”