Jaine Austen can't wait to begin her cruising adventure.
She's only able to afford the trip because it's free for
instructors and Jaine is going to teach a class on writing.
Jaine is anxiously anticipating the free twenty-four hour
buffet and some deck chair relaxing, but it's not to be.
Unfortunately, an unexpected guest accompanies Jaine. Her
cat Prozac is a car trunk stowaway and Jaine doesn't have
time to return her guest home before boarding. And so her
troubles begin. After spotting the stowaway, Jaine's
steward Samoa, agrees to keep her secret if Jaine edits his
hand-written novel, Do Not Disturb about a cruise ship
steward foiling an international terrorist plot . If it
were only the forbidden cat and oddball novel, things could
still have worked, but Jaine's not allowed to order the
nicer dinner entrees, her dining companions aren't a happy
group, her sparsely attended class may have caused a couple
to divorce, and her new friend the lounge singer is accused
of murder. Thank goodness for the always available buffet
dessert.
Jaine is lucky in her unluckiness. She just happens to
befriend the woman who will be accused of murder, her table
companions are intimately involved with the victim, and the
one guy she has a crush on might just be the one. Her
parents, who were going to cat sit, are causing trouble for
Jaine on the home front but that too might be lucky for her
best friend and his love life. The bumbling and confusion
that surrounds Jaine doesn't take away from her accidental
sleuthing abilities, making Jaine a great underdog heroine.
There's more than one story going on in this book, but they
all get a satisfying resolution and the murderer is a good
surprise. The eight book in the series, KILLER CRUISE can
be read by itself but you might find yourself going back to
share more time with a new friend, Jaine Austen.
When Jaine takes a teaching gig on a fancy cruise ship
heading for the Mexican Riviera, she’s hoping for a week of
fun in the sun and hanging out at the all-day buffet. On her
first night at dinner, she’s seated beside Emily Pritchard,
a sweet, wealthy 70-year-old whose financially dependent
relatives don’t take kindly to Emily’s blossoming
relationship with the ship’s smooth-talking British dancer,
Graham.
Within days, Emily announces her engagement — but next
morning, Graham is found dead on deck. The captain is quick
to accuse Graham’s former girlfriend, but Jaine suspects
there are more sharks lurking about. And with Jaine’s
flirtation with Emily’s handsome nephew further more
complicating matters, her relaxing cruise is about to
encounter some very treacherous waters…