Book Review: Tip A Canoe

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

Tip A Canoe     Amazon US PB Amazon US HC Amazon Canada PB Amazon Canada HC
Peter Abresch
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Amateur Sleuth   Senior Sleuths   Romantic Suspense
Series: James P. Dandy Elder Hostel Mysteries # 3
Write Way, Jan 2001, $23.95, 285 pp.

Elderhostels are brief vacations that can be learning experiences for people over fifty-five years old. Maryland physical therapist James P. Dandy and Kansas Jayhawker artist-gallery owner Dodeee Swisher met at one and have been lovers ever since. The duo arranges to get together at an Elderhostel in South Carolina.

Jim prays that this time there are no dead bodies to interrupt his romantic rendezvous. However, he and Dodee find the corpse of natural resource agent Hank Davis in a nearby swamp. One of the other participants, a former FBI agent sees conspiracy written all over the death. Soon dynamite is missing and earlier an experienced boater drowns. Now an environmentalist talks of blowing up the dam. Dodee, with a reluctant Jim as her sidekick, begins seeking answers even though she knows she probably endangers their lives by doing so.

The James P. Dandy Elderhostel mysteries are funny yet exciting. The latest TIP A CANOE is one of the better entries in a strong series. Readers remain in the dark as to why the murders and who the killer is until the end of the novel due to a fabulous case of misdirection. Using passionate love between the middle age couple adds a dimension to this character-driven winning novel.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner