Final Note

Liz Rooney Mystery #5

by Dorothy P. O'Neill

Handsome, young country rock star, Buford Doakes, is found drowned in the hot tub of his hotel suite after a late-night party. With the deck in disarray and Doakes' famous diamond studded Stetson still intact, foul play is obvious but his image as a wholesome Texas boy is shattered.

Amateur sleuth Liz Rooney again matches wits with the man in her life, NYPD Detective Ike Eichle. Together, they unravel the sordid details of Buford's last night of parties and hot tubbing. Who wants Buford dead, and why? A jealous secret bride? A disgruntled groupie? While delivering into the long list of potential suspects and motives, Liz comes up with some questions, and a few vital clues, that help crack the case. At the same time Ike comes up with a question that seals their relationship.

208 pages, Paperback

First published October 30, 2005

About the author

Dorothy P. O’Neill is a native of Staten Island, New York, and is now living in Greensboro, North Carolina. She wrote a weekly newspaper column for the Staten Island Register for eight years and had numerous poems and light verse published in Good Housekeeping, The Ladies Home Journal, and other leading women’s magazines under the name Dorothy Barlow. Her verses now appear regularly in Woman’s Day magazine.

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is the fifth in a series, and the first book I've read by this author. It's also the last book I'll read by this author.

It took me awhile, but I finally figured out what was bothering me about the dialogue in this book--besides it being somewhat hokey, that is. It reminded me of the dialogue in an episode of Scooby Doo, meaning that it was overly expository, almost patronizing at times, much in the way Velma or Fred would explain things on Scooby Doo, making sure that even the youngest viewers could follow the logic.

I was waiting for someone to say "jinkies!" at any moment.

The mystery itself wasn't all that bad, but the ending felt way too rushed, and there were huge, huge leaps in logic made in order to zero in on the guilty party.

[Michaelah Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an okay book