Book Review: Sweetie's Diamonds

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

Sweetie's Diamonds     Amazon US HC Amazon Canada HC
Raymond Benson
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Thriller
Five Star, Feb 2006, $25.95

In Lincoln Grove, Illinois popular highly regarded high school teacher Diane Boston lives with her Marfan syndrome inflicted teenage son David. Her former spouse Greg detests her for hiding secrets from him and for coddling their son, who he wants custody over.

David’s best friend Billy Davis finds a stash of his father’s hard core porn movies from the late 1970s. The two young teens recognize the star Lucy Luv as David’s mom. Billy’s dad catches his son watching and recognizes her as Diane too. He gleefully informs the tabloids as a way of avenging her beating him out for a job at the school and her rejecting his sexual advances.

California porn producer Aaron Valentine learns that Lucy Luv is in Illinois and sees this as the break in a two decade old betrayal that he plans to correct. He sends his muscle Emo Tuff to take care of business. Corpses begin appearing in the diamond centers of New York and Chicago and in Lincoln Grove until Emo abducts David.

The past comes back to haunt Diane as her secrets become public. Besides her concern for her son, she needs to worry that Aaron will demand the gems taken from him. The story line is at its best as a deep character study of an ethical middle class paragon suddenly held in contempt by those who named her teacher of the year. The Aaron-Emo spin adds action and excitement, but takes away from the choices that Diane has to make as the lioness instead must go after her cub. Still Raymond Benson provides a fine tale starring an ethical individual who has enough on her plate without Aaron and Emo seeking to break her bones one at a time.

Harriet Klausner

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