Reviewer: Connie Payne
Title: Calamity Jayne Goes To College - 4th Tressa Jayne Turner Mystery
Author: Kathleen Bacus
Publisher: Dorchester
ISBN: 0505527014 & 9780505527011
Release Date: April 2007
Genre/Sub-genre: Mystery Romance
Year/Setting: Present Day - Iowa
Overall rating: 4.25
Sexual Content Rating: Sensual/Sexual (briefly - innuendo)
Language (Profanity) Content Rating: Mild+
Violent Content Rating: Minimal
Kathleen's Website: www.kathybacus.com
Tressa Jayne Turner works for her hometown newspaper and has the opportunity to become an investigative reporter with a raise and benefits. The catch is she has to take some college journalism classes.
Unfortunately she’s not doing very well in her classes, what with sleeping through them and all, which isn’t a good thing since the investigative paper that’s due soon is a huge part of her grade. Too bad she doesn’t have a topic for the paper. Until something juicy falls into her lap, that is. She’ll soon find out how juicy.
Frankie, her cousin, and his fiancé, Dixie, are taking criminal justice courses. It seems they’re the only ones who’ve noticed a pattern between one of their professor’s lectures and the rash of crimes being committed on campus.
Whoo hoo! Paper topic!
More importantly, time to meddle, uh, investigate! Even if it means peril and catastrophe lurk around every corner. Even if she does have to be paired with Dixie on fact finding (snooping) missions. Even if her love life is in jeopardy (she wishes).
Yes, even with the danger Tressa bravely forges on, determined to put the pieces together before more people are hurt. Or someone gets killed. But is she too late?
Tressa is a witty and offbeat and totally relatable narrator who is surrounded by both normal and off the wall characters. (Gram is a riot!) The mixture of personalities all ends up creating oft-times a combustible atmosphere.
There were a few distractions that could bother the first time reader to this series...More than a few references to previous fiascos, um, sleuthing was mentioned. Things that perhaps the reader would rather find out about on their own...Once in a while Tressa stopped her narration to make a comment directly to the reader. This sometimes interrupted the flow...The banter between Tressa and Dixie often feels as if it crosses the way-past-mean line.
All in all Calamity Jayne Goes To College down right entertained me. Once I waded through the beginning introductions and overlooked the distractions the pages flew by with lots of tense and laugh out loud moments.
Kathleen Bacus has delivered. Tressa Jayne’s escapades in sleuthing and relationships are delightfully entwined with her smart-alec humor and makes for a razor-sharp combination.
Connie
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