"A fabulous first sexy mystery!"

I believe this is Jennifer Apodaca's first mystery and I think it's FANTASTIC! It does have a couple of steamy sex scenes but I didn't think they were in bad taste. Jennifer also did a good job with the character development.

Samantha Shaw was a soccer mom to two great boys named T. J and Joel and had been married to Trent but he wasn't much of a husband. Samantha didn't know what everyone else in town knew about Trent, a condom salesman, until he died from a peanut allergy eating homemade candy.

Samantha and Trent had met through a dating service called Heart Mates so when he died, she bought the service hoping that in bringing lonely hearts together she would help mend her broken one.

Then she found a stash of sexy panties -- each with a rating of the wearer on a Post-it note -- hidden in Trent's car. She finds out that the whole town knew he was sleeping around. Instead of telling her they had just told one another!

One day a man appears at Heart Mates looking for the perfect woman but instead uses a stun gun on Samantha and then writes in permanent marker on her dress and legs for her to bring the money Friday to an arcade or die. She now has to figure out WHAT MONEY he was talking about. Trent had left them with no money. How could someone think she had money?!

As she tries to figure this out, she gets assistance from Gabe, a hot PI. She stumbles upon a dead body and then meets Detective Rossi who is very good looking. She thinks good looking men are trouble because Trent had been good looking.

Samantha gets attacked, burned, and hurt many times but always comes back fighting. She has to find the money to keep her kids and her Grandpa out of danger.

I HIGHLY recommend this book. I am eagerly waiting for the second one. I hope she writes fast!

Reviewed by Dawn Dowdle
Posted October 4, 2002