# Spying in High Heels

By Gemma Halliday · High Heels Mysteries, book 1

Profile: https://hahafiction.com/books/spying-in-high-heels-581e5e97/

Maddie Springer designs shoes in Los Angeles; tracking a missing boyfriend and twenty million dollars was never part of the job. As bodies turn up and an attractive LAPD detective watches her, she recruits help from her mother, a psychic and an aspiring actress. Fashion, romantic complications and amateur sleuthing share the spotlight in this comic mystery.

## What makes it funny?

Maddie panics over being late in two different senses, then worries that her boyfriend can somehow see she's missed her period. Even in a crisis, she pauses to assess her mascara and apply lipstick in traffic.

### The comedy at work

Her first-person narration keeps interrupting urgent business with fashion judgments and self-justification. She remembers more speeding tickets as she tells the story, and counts shopping at a crowded sale as her version of a cardio workout.

### Try this if…

Maddie’s fashion-conscious voice is a large part of the appeal, with romantic distraction sharing space with amateur detection. Publishers Weekly emphasizes the busy pace, including freeway adventures and disrupted wedding plans alongside the criminal case.

### Good to know

A pregnancy scare is part of Maddie's reason for seeking her missing boyfriend. The story also visits Los Angeles's adult-film world and includes the discovery of a shooting victim.

## What to expect

- Genre: Mystery · Romance
- On the shelf: Amateur sleuth
- Kind of humor: Situational comedy · Wordplay
- Format: Novel
- Length: 260 pages

## Sources & further reading

- Publisher: [Buy Spying in High Heels by Gemma Halliday online - Jaico Publishing House](https://www.jaicobooks.com/shop/fiction/spying-in-high-heels)
- Library catalog: [Library edition](https://dod.overdrive.com/dod-armymwr/content/media/961619)
- Reading sample: [Opening excerpt](https://freshfiction.com/excerpt.php?id=9613)
- Review: [Publishers Weekly review](https://www.publishersweekly.com/9780843957358)
- Author commentary: [Gemma Halliday: Spying in High Heels](https://www.gemmahalliday.com/spying-in-high-heels)