I love Jen Lancaster. This latest work of fiction by her was so much fun. Kitty and Jack (short for Jacqueline) have hated each other ever since they roomed together in college. What started out as a promising friendship turned into bitter rivalry after a series of misunderstandings. The two could not be more different: Jack is a reporter who thrives on danger and Kitty is raising her three kids in a tony Chicago suburb while running a popular lifestyle blog. Now the only thing these two ladies can agree on is their mutual friend, Sarabeth ("Sars" to Jack, "Betsy" to Kitty). Sarabeth's husband, Trip, has been killed in a plane crash and the two put their differences aside to be there for Sarabeth. Reporter Jack smells a rat though: Trip was about to be indicted by the SEC for fraudulent practices, and the timing of his plane crash is awfully convenient. After Jack discovers Kitty despised Trip, she enlists her help in getting to the bottom of his disappearance. It was lots of fun, I loved the flashbacks to the ladies in college. I just hope women my age don't actually ever use phrases like "totes adorbs" except in an ironic way. Otherwise, that's just sad.
James Ellroy collected a bunch of the LAPD's crime scene photos from 1953 and published them alongside his sardonic wit and unique Ellroy slang, which made for interesting reading. I don't want to say it was fun, since it was, after all, a collection of horrific crimes, but it was definitely illuminating and different. I also learned that the LAPD has a museum! How neat is that? I'll have to make a trip up there and check it out.
Another Mickey Spillane reread, "Vengeance is Mine". Mike wakes up drunk in a hotel room with the dead body of an old buddy of his. He can't remember the night before, and the D.A. is itching to pin the murder on him. He takes away his P.I. License and his gun. Mike is able, with much help from Velda and Pat, to start to piece together the events leading up to his friend's murder. This book has one of the best closing sentences in the history of books, the first time I read it I literally gasped out loud. Did not see it coming a mile away.
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