On the HahaFiction shelf
Spying in High Heels
High Heels Mysteries · Book 1
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.
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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.
More funny amateur sleuth
Sources & further reading
- Buy Spying in High Heels by Gemma Halliday online - Jaico Publishing House
Publisher
- Library edition
Library catalog
- Opening excerpt
Reading sample
- Publishers Weekly review
Review
- Gemma Halliday: Spying in High Heels
Author commentary
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