Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner
The Cactus Club Killings
Amazon US PB Amazon Canada PB
Nathan Walpow
Class/Genre: Mystery Amateur Sleuth
Series: Joe Portugal # 1
Dell, May 1999, $5.99
Joe Portugal convinces his best friend Gina Vela to accompany him when he visits the home of noted UCLA botanist Dr. Brenda Belinski. Joe, renowned for his TV commercials, is the secretary of the Culver City Cactus Club. He promised Brenda, his former lover and president of the CCCC that he would take care of her canaries and her greenhouse while she traveled to Madagascar. After arriving at Brenda's home, Joe, who has a phobia when it comes to wasps, inadvertently soaks Gina with bug spray to avoid a stinging insect. Gina goes to take a shower, but finds the corpse of Brenda with a segment of the deadly abdelkure plant stuffed down her throat.
LAPD Detective Casilles questions Joe, who swears he does not own an abdelkure. When the police find the remaining segment of the abdelkure in Joe's greenhouse, he becomes a prime suspect. When the vice president of the CCCC is murdered, Joe wonders if he could be next even as the police put him on top of their suspect list. With the help of Gina he begins to investigate Brenda's activities to ferret out a killer before he becomes the next victim.
THE CACTUS CLUB KILLINGS is a very entertaining and humorous amateur sleuth tale. The story line is fun as readers get inside Joe's head as he conducts his inquiries. The characters turn this an enjoyable reading experience. Being inside Joe's head is amusing yet it does help propel the who-done-it forward. The support ensemble adds depth. In his debut novel, Nathan Walpow writes a lovable and believable tale that will leave sub-genre fans desiring sequels.
Harriet Klausner
Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner
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