Jane of the Jungle

In Baskin%E2%80%99s comic debut, Jane, a 60-year-old widow and former nurse, is offered $30,000 to fly a plane to Mexico with mobster and Air Force veteran John. Together the unlikely duo poses as a tourist couple and, in a time-honored twist, fall in love while completing their assignment. Gunfights, turf rivalries, kidnapping, a romantic interlude in Cozumel, and a faked death all combine with rapid-fire narration to create an engaging yet sometimes meandering tale. Subplots about the aging process, an encounter with a sentient Siberian tiger, and the impulsive purchase of a roadhouse complicate this novel of second chances and spiritual self-examination. While scenes featuring a talking fox, a flying bus, and familiar character types (e.g., bumbling henchmen) often seem excessive, Baskin presents an entertaining search for magic in the underworld that concludes with a spot-on assessment of people%E2%80%99s need to reconcile past lives with future promises.