The Dushane Sisters And Pogo Are Back
Murder, Mystery, Secrets, Family History
Mobsters, Books, And Memoirs
This Book Has It All: 5 Stars
In Courtney Pierce’s latest book, Indigo Lake, we find the Dushane Sisters on the front lines again. Yes, they are back again for more snarks, funny quips, and shenanigans. These ladies are the funniest women in the United States. Of course Pogo, former mobster’s buddy and pampered standard poodle turned service dog, is right in the middle of the action. You have to love a dog that watches the Meerkat Manor show on television.
INDIGO LAKE, STORY LINE:
Olivia Novak’s novel, The Executrix, is a success which garners an invitation for all three sisters and Pogo, to the Wake With Jo Show in New York. Danny, always the motor mouth, tells ALL in regards to Pogo’s ownership and reveals Olivia’s real life mobster secret memoir manuscript which contains names and details. Ms. Pierce’s first book in this series, The Executrix, details how this manuscript came into existence. Olivia, Lauren, and Danny are living in a whirlwind after this revelation on national television.
Mobster Little Frankie, Jr., incarcerated in Lewisburg Penitentiary, watches the show and Danny’s revelation. Little Frankie is the hit-man sent to kill the 93-year-old mobster under witness protection in book one, The Executrix.
“Frankie pulled out his specially marked deck of cards. Time for a game with guard. He might need to earn a phone call to Allenwood Prison after the show.”
Also, Olivia found her deceased mother’s manuscript hidden away and published the book they believe a work of fiction. It garnered praises and awards from the literary community. However, the story does not stop with the revelations on national television.
In another part of the country, Della Rainey has read Ellen Dushane’s novel. Della, filled with vengeance and anger, is out for blood. She orders her son, Woody, to sue the sisters and Sloane Publishing for plagiarism, copyright violations, anything he could pull out of his box of lawyer skills. As Olivia states, Della is:
“An old biddy with a grudge.”
This is just the beginning of this action packed book as we journey with the dynamic trio, and Pogo, Come along as they solve mysteries, run from mobsters, finds themselves involved in a scandal, solve an old murder and maybe a little romance is in the air.
With a hot cup of coffee or a cold beverage in hand, have a seat in your favorite chair, and let the fun begin!
INDIGO LAKE, CHARACTERS, PLOTTING, AND DEVELOPMENT:
Author Courtney Pierce, knows how to hook the reader from the first page. Ms. Pierce’s story-telling skills are apparent to the reader as she masterfully weaves a tale with many threads. As a result, shortly after starting this book, I realized I was in for a long day and night of reading. Needless to say, I did not want to put the book down. I found Ms. Pierce style of writing refreshing, clear, and finely tuned.
Furthermore, Ms. Pierce filled this story with human emotions; greed, vengeance, murder, intrigue, regret, fear, love, family unity, humor, and the wish for a legacy. As a result, this book has everything needed for a successful story.
Also, the sisters relationship was skillfully portrayed by Ms. Pierce as she instilled them with sisterly closeness, caring, humor and snarky quips. Most noteworthy, is Ms. Pierce’s ability to show families dynamics in all its reality; caring and loving, regardless of the situation, true to life with all our faults. Lauren’s purse is a wonder to behold; what she can cram into a purse is amazing which included a gun she calls “Ethel” and probably the kitchen sink.
The sister’s meeting with the Don of the Palermo’s Crime Family was a surprise with a capital S. It was not what I expected. Well done, Ms. Pierce, well done.
Inclusion of the attraction and romance between Olivia and Woody was a great addition to Olivia’s life. I was glad to see Olivia coming out of mourning, coming to terms with her loss, and recognizing she had a healthy sexual side, a life to live, and a second chance for love on the horizon.
I found the adversaries in this book were well-developed and crafted. Della is the quintessential old biddy with secrets and issues. However, there is a lot more to Della than meets the eye. The development of the mobsters and criminal elements in the book, were skillfully and the inept mobsters were a hoot.
Also, I found Ms. Pierce incorporates a wonderful sense of humor into her stories and added tidbits of Yankee speak; I think I will call my driveway a dooryard in the future. This was a new one for me. I laughed out loud reading this story. There are too many hilarious scenes to mention in this review. This is a relaxing fun-filled romp. Consequently, I found myself waiting for the next snark, quip, or situation from these three and Pogo.
Indigo To Black, Della, and the mobster memoir manuscript are the backbone of this skillfully written book. The plot was up to Ms. Pierce usual high standards with many twists and turns which she skillfully wove into a cohesive book.
To conclude the review of Indigo Lake, I found Ms. Pierce character development was skillfully. The pace never slows or lags as Ms. Pierce pulls you into the story-line; her descriptions were so vivid I could picture each scene. Finally, this is a well-balanced and well-written book.
INDIGO LAKE, RECOMMENDATION: 5 STARS
In conclusion, I highly recommend Indigo Lake. I loved this intriguing story. I found Indigo Lake a well-developed, paced, and plotted novel by a talented author. This is a standalone book. However, I do suggest you read The Executrix. As a result, this will give you a more in-depth look into the sisters, the back-story, and characters that appear in both novels. I look forward to further adventures with the sisters and company. You will not regret buying this book or the entire series.
Finally: Review copy provided via Reading Alley in exchange for an honest book review. All Book reviews of any novel are dependent on the book review author’s opinion; consequently, all book reviews on line and on my blog under my name are my opinion.
LINK TO MY BOOK REVIEW OF THE EXECUTRIX
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Courtney Piece lives in Oregon with her husband and cat. She worked as marketing and sales executive in the theater. She worked with two best-selling authors, Jennifer Lauck and Karen Karbo, fine turning her craft as well as completing the Hawthorne Fellows program for writing and publishing at the Attic Institute.
She is a member of Willamette Writers, Pacific Northwest Writers Association and Sisters in Crime. Please visit her website and leave a comment.
NOTE FROM AUTHOR’S WEBSITE:
The Executrix, book one of the Dushane Sisters Trilogy, was accepted as a feature selection in Library Journal’s curated SELF-e collections