Curse Of The Kissing Cousins: A “Where Are They Now?” Mystery
By Toni L.P. Kelner
Berkley Prime Crime, $6.99
ISBN: 978-0-425-22812-8

Freelance reporter Tilda Harper was giddy over her last assignment, tracking down the stars of the family sitcom Kissing Cousins, as she was a devoted fan of the re-runned syndicated show that featured three Stepford-ish siblings being raised with their three "weird" cousins. What completely consumes Tilda though is the unexpected truthfulness to the "curse" her editor titled her article when a third member of the cast, Holly Kendrick dies following the drug overdose of Jim Bonnier and the hit-and-run motorcycle crash of Alex Johnson. Prodded by her friend and even more obsessive fanboy Vincent, Tilda decides to track down the one missing member of the cast, Mercy Ashford, who played Gothgirl Mercy and was Tilda's favorite character and the inspiration that led her to entertainment reporting. Since Tilda was able to hunt down three seasons of Capt. James T Kirk's conquests she should have no trouble with the star of a cult sitcom, right?

Wrong. You would think that with gossiping makeup artists, money-chasing agents, unions, publicists, casting agents, fan websites, and souvenir sites that it would be easy to track down a child star. But Mercy seems to have left no trace of her whereabouts, and Tilda begins to fear that time is running out before the curse can fall upon her favorite star.

Tilda navigates her way through a maze of intriguing, bizarre, and always hilarious characters, including her own mooching roommate (her fourth in four years), a rival star-chasing reporter, her former editor who lives enshrined in her apartment with a rotating cast of boytoys, and Nick Tolomeo, the son and partner of the private investigator who once bodyguarded for the elusive Mercy.

The author of the Laura Fleming mystery series and a popular paranormal short story writer, Toni L.P. Kelner introduces a very lively new series that continues to prove her skill at writing humorous, delightfully plotted mysteries. The quirky yet entirely realistic characters never overwhelm the plot, and the television lore contributes to the compelling story. The only negative to this series is that the sequel won't arrive in bookstores until 2010!

Review by CINDY CHOW

©2009 Lorie Ham. All rights reserved.