The Last Four Digits

Former attorney Lola Vega, the narrator of Leo’s fresh, funny, romantic mystery, is an endearing and unconventional L.A. PI. Broke and living off burritos, she’s prone to awkward mishaps and has a weakness for margaritas and men (notably Michael Escobar, a gorgeous but aggravating LAPD homicide detective). When Lola looks into the alleged suicide of Hollywood A-lister Jack Stone and subsequently discovers the body of a second victim, she unwittingly becomes a suspect in what develops into a murder case. In an effort to clear her name, Lola teams with Molly O’Reilly, the late movie star’s former psychic, who supplies some enjoyably irreverent humor (and communications with the dead) but can feel at times like an accessory. The investigation takes Lola and Molly to a dog track in Mexico, a Russian circus, and small-town Pennsylvania—with occasional stops at Lola’s mother’s house in Glendale for a home-cooked meal. Readers may pick up on clues before Lola does, and the Russian characters can be cartoonish, but these are minor blemishes. [em](BookLife) [/em]