"A quirky PI, a homeless lady, and a dog"

Alexander McBee has become a private investigator. He has trained by watching re-runs of Magnum P.I., Rockford Files, and other old detective series on the television. He comes upon a strange dog who becomes his partner. Herr Schnoodle is not the most attractive mix of schnauzer and poodle, but he knows how to investigate.

They begin to get more cases as they are able to solve them quickly. They meet Apple Sally, a local street woman. McBee is intrigued by her, but he can't figure out why. Then there's the beautiful Darcy, the gossip reporter out to scoop McBee's cases.

Soon McBee realizes there is more to Apple Sally than meets the eye. Can he uncover her past without alienating her or letting Darcy break the story before he's ready? Can he keep investigating his cases without letting on about Herr Schnoodle's part, especially to Darcy?

McBee is definitely a quirky character, but that's what makes him interesting. I really enjoyed this first book in this series. I look forward to reading many more. The setting and other characters is well written and I feel as if I've been there and met everyone. I highly recommend this book.

Reviewed by Dawn Dowdle
Courtesy Mystery Lovers Corner
Posted February 21, 2007

Summary

While visiting Israel, archaeologist and museum curator Lisa Donahue finds an ancient papyrus, part of a lost first century AD codex on the teachings of Jesus' female disciples. Lisa teams up with her ex-boyfriend Gregory Manzur, racing to find the rest of the codex ahead of Christian fanatics who will kill to prevent the codex's publication. Told from multiple points of view, this mystery/suspense story is set in Israel in 1997, prior to the recent Palestinian uprisings. The characters, two American archaeologists, a Jordanian epigrapher, a Lebanese museum curator, an Arab-Israeli registrar, and an American conservator, reflect the diverse population and religious beliefs of modern Israel. Since the provenance of the papyri turns out to be a cave located smack on the Jordanian-Israeli border, an international committee is convened to determine the ultimate fate of the Dead Sea Codex.