Shoulder Bags and Shootings

A clever, fast-moving plot propels Howell’s third mystery to feature L.A. fashionista Haley Randolph (after 2009’s Purses and Poison ). Haley really hated Tiffany Markham, her archrival in the purse party business, but she didn’t shoot Tiffany and stuff her body in the trunk of a Mercedes belonging to Ada Cameron, the grandmother of Haley’s boyfriend and department store owner, Ty Cameron. Discovering who did is a challenge, ditto snaring this season’s totally hot Sinful handbag. Can Haley do both and stay out of jail? While Haley’s hyperventilating first-person voice can be too much at times (“I perked up in my seat, beyond excited, way past thrilled, bordering on crazed”), the action is smoother than the butter-soft leather of a Prada bag, and the gritty details of working retail are spot-on. Airhead Haley displays appealing grace under fire as she also deals with her stalking nemesis and former boss, lawyer Kirk Keegan. (July)