Book Review: Be the One

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

Be the One     Amazon US HC Amazon Canada HC
April Smith
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Sports   Woman Main Character
Series: Cassidy Sanderson # 1
Knopf, Jun 2000, $24.00, 317 pp.

Former superstar Cassidy Sanderson does not feel like a pioneer or a freak. Instead baseball has always been part of her gene pool so being the only female major league baseball scout seems normal to Cassidy. She knows that for her to keep her job, she needs to remain productive, signing prospects for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Lately, Cassidy seems in a slump so when she receives a tip about the next great Dominican Republic athlete, she immediately flies to the Caribbean.

On the island, Cassidy meets financier Joe Galinis and realizes that Alberto Cruz is even more than she expected. She returns home with a major prospect and a lover. However, instead of accolades and a bonus, Cassidy finds herself in the midst of a voodoo-blackmailing plot that leaves her wondering who can she trust?

Sports mystery fans, especially lovers of baseball will warmly welcome the return of Cassidy Sanderson (see NORTH OF MONTANA). In her mid thirties, Cassidy still retains that competitive toughness that provides the edge to a well-drawn character. The clever intermingling of baseball, scouting, and voodoo turns BE THE ONE into a perfect game that will surely place April Smith’s novel on everyone’s top three lists of sports mysteries.

Harriet Klausner

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