I want to be best friends with Terry Faye, the heroine of TRASH COURSE by Penny Drake. I want to drink coffee and eat cheesecake with her as she tells me about her latest case. I want her to teach me martial arts so I can sneak my way into her investigation. Terry is a little snarky, a lot smart, and seriously kickass. What more do you need in a friend and heroine?

To be honest, I want to hang out with her and all her friends. There is Diana Hawk, the omnipotent and mysterious owner of Hawk Enterprises, and Terry's employer. Slava, her quirky Ukranian best friend, is a college professor who would rather be investigating than teaching. Zack Archer, charming photo-journalist and potential love interest, raises suspicion when he works his way into their current case. Hawk Enterprises has been hired to determine the whereabouts of the old Peale brothers, eccentric hoarders who haven't been heard from in several months. Their first task is to navigate a booby-trapped house filled to the rafters with apparent junk. When two bodies are found, they are tasked with finding the brothers' wills, an investigation that unearths a decades old family mystery.

TRASH COURSE, written in first person from Terry's point of view, reads like a tale being told by a good friend (with a really cool life!). The storytelling is fairly straightforward with lots of dialogue, a style which I prefer. Drake effectively builds suspense with the simplest of actions. The attempts to navigate through the Peale's home evoked the same feelings I get from a haunted house, fear and anticipation of what might be around the corner. I really liked that Terry made smart and logical choices, not foolishly putting herself in danger. The only element of the story I found lacking was the romance. There was no romantic tension, which is surprising given Zack and Terry's personal histories. I found it hard to believe Terry would trust Zack so easily. The same action and suspense evident in their efforts to find the truth, should have been evident in their journey to love and trust each other.

TRASH COURSE is an engaging and action-packed PI-type adventure that I highly recommend. I hope this is the start of a series featuring these appealing characters. I would be seriously disappointed if I did not have more opportunities to get to know them and unravel their secrets.