Murder... Suicide... Whatever..

Fifi Cutter Mystery #1

by Gwen Freeman

Fifi Cutter is an acerbic 20-something with family issues and a delightfully cynical world view. When she is hired to investigate the murder of her Uncle Ted, Fifi is catapulted into immediate action, finding the unlikely killer and gaining an unlikely accomplice.

Genres: Mystery

281 pages, Paperback

First published March 15, 2007

About the author

Gwen was born in Alexandria, Virginia.She Immediately after law school attended the University of Virginia School of Law, obtaining her J.D. During law school, she clerked for the Dade County Attorney's Office in Miami.Immediately after law school, Gwen headed for Amish country, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She is now a partner at Knapp, Petersen & Clarke, and lives with her husband and law partner in a historic property in the Mt.

Series:
* Fifi Cutter Mystery

Reviews

[Jay Tate]

I want to give it 3 stars, but I just can't. There's just too much hokiness here to take this seriously. And I am still confused as to why the writer insists on making the lead character a black woman. Her racial identity is not central to the story at all, but it gets mentioned a lot.

The mystery itself is average, but as dimestore fiction goes there are better examples available. But, that's what libraries are for, no?

[Tomi]

This was a fun read. It was a lighthearted mystery with a surprise ending. What's not to like with characters named Fifi and Bosco?

[Dena]

Maybe 2.5 stars. The writing just felt forced through most of the book. Trying to get a laugh and not really getting there.

[Diane]

Fifi Cutter and her half brother Bosco are about as different as night and day. Fifi is blunt, very honest and a hardworking insurance adjustor. She really doesn’t have a lot of friends because she is so straightforward and tells it like it is. Bosco is super friendly, very outgoing, unemployed and could charm the pants off anyone. They get along like oil and vinegar.

Bosco shows up on Fifi’s doorstep one morning telling her that they are hired to investigate the death of “Uncle Ted” Heffernan. Eddie Waller, a fellow employee at the insurance firm where Ted worked, hired them. He is a sleaze and only out for himself but they are supposed to be paid by the hour and Fifi really needs the money to keep her house. To all outward appearances Ted died of a heart attack. Even the autopsy did not shown any evidence of foul play.

Fifi is almost convinced that there wasn’t any foul play but then strange things start happening. First she gets a phone call warning her to stay out of business that doesn’t concern her. Someone tried to break into her house and then someone did leave a dead rat in her kitchen. After interviewing one of Ted’s clients, as she was walking to her truck - it blew up. The topper was when Eddie was shot in the head in the parking garage at the insurance firm. OK, so maybe it wasn’t just a ‘death by natural causes.’

There are twists and turns throughout the whole book with any number of suspects. The banter between Fifi and Bosco keeps the tone lively and fun. Even though Fifi gives the impression of not having much use for her freeloading brother, at the end when push comes to shove she was desperate to keep him safe.

[Julia]

Fifi Cutter is down and out in LA, recently unemployed, working as an independent insurance adjustor, and hoping to get enough money together to pay the property taxes on her house. Her half-brother Bosco comes to town and manages to get them hired to invesitgate a family friend's death. It's a classic style murder, "Uncle" Ted is found in his own office, alone, with a full length birthday banner covering the door. The story is fine, the characters full of life and some great one-liners, and Fifi survives to sleuth again.

[Susan]

When free-lance insurance adjuster Fifi's free-loading half brother Bosco arrives, uninvited, to stay with her, he assures her that he has a job: finding the murderer of a family friend, Ted. Of course, he expects her to do most of the investigating, and Ted seems to have died of natural causes, but Bosco does have someone who says he will pay for their work. As she reluctantly investigates, Fifi realizes that there might really be something hinky about Ted's death, even though everyone has an alibi.

[Pat]

Fifi Cutter is at it again. Just as she thinks things have settled down from her last adventures, her freeloading half brother, Bosco, shows up again & gets her involved with another murder investigation. Funny and a good mystery.

[Sage Streck]

This was a pretty easy read--good plot, interesting characters, but it felt like the author was trying just a little too hard to be funny. The mystery felt a little too contrived. By the time things started to come together, I just wasn't interested anymore.

[Kcriswell Criswell]

I loved this book. Except for the 20 something part, I could play Fifi in the movie

[Heather]

While it wasn't horribly written, it was pretty slow moving.

[Brenda]

This took me a while to enjoy. There are a lot of characters to keep track of. Overall, it's a good mystery.

[Lance]

Whatever!

[Nancy]

Very funny characters & the protagonist is a hoot. First in a series of two books.