Reviewer: Janet Davies
Title: Cinderella and the Vampire: A Cindy Nesbit Mystery
Author: J. Lee Taylor
Publisher: Hard Shell Word Factory
ISBN: Paperback 0-7599-0806-2
E-book 0-7599-3689-7
Release Date: June 2006
Genre/Sub-genre: Contemporary Romance/Mystery/Paranormal
Year/Setting: Present Day - California
Overall Rating: 4.0
Sexual Content Rating: Sensual
Language (Profanity) Rating: None
Violent Content Rating: Moderate-gun shots
J. Lee's Website: None found
What do Vampires, dead cows and a blonde surfer god have in common? That is what Cindy Nesbit, finder of lost items, wants to know.
When best friend Liz Rhodes asks her to search for her brother Ty, Cindy is reluctant to get involved. It has nothing to do with the fact that straight arrow Ty appears to be mixed up with Vampires. It has everything to do with past history. Ten years ago Ty Rhodes and Cindy Nesbit had a moment, and she is not at all sure she is over it yet. Does she want to get involved with Ty and uncover the deeply buried feelings that she still has? But a request from a best friend is a request to be honoured so Cindy goes in search of Ty, the man who calls her Cinderella. How hard could it be to find him and get him to phone home? Cindy is a professional. She can keep her feelings to herself, can’t she?
In the small Californian town of Murphys, the talk of Vampires is rampant. So why is a successful business man like Ty Rhodes involved with a Vampire cult? Is there more to Ty than Cindy suspects? Did she ever really know him? The further Cindy investigates, the more she realises Ty is caught up in something he should not be. Who are Devlin and Renfield? What scam are they running? And what is Caldura and how do you find it? Is Ty really apart of the Vampire cult? And why is he so annoyed when Cindy turns up unannounced? It’s not like they mean anything to each other. Or do they?
The opening sentences of Cinderella and the Vampire caught me immediately. I like it when a book grabs your attention straight away. The character of Cindy Nesbit is smart, quirky and vulnerable. She is a capable woman, who has her own business, Finders Inc, and who is not afraid to take on the bad guys. She listens to gossip and meddles in things that she probably shouldn’t meddle in, but to get the job done she doesn’t mind taking a chance. She is not adverse to the use of physical and psychological disguises to achieve her means. The substitute use of colourful expressions instead of swear words was amusing and creative.
Cindy and the Vampire is a mystery and a romance. Nothing is as it seems. There is the question about what is going on in the Club Med like vampire camp run by Devlin and his henchman. There is also the issue of what is going on between Cindy and Ty. Do they like each other or is the past too much to handle? The whole relationship with Cindy and Ty is slowly woven into the story so the characters true feelings aren’t revealed straight away. I enjoyed that. It keeps you guessing as to do they or don’t they mean more to each other than they say.
The only thing I had to question about the story was how quickly Cindy managed to track down Ty when she has so little information to go on. That seemed awfully quick to the sceptic within. Clearly Cindy Nesbit is better at tracking things down than me.
I enjoyed the fact that this story leaves you wanting to know more like is a relationship or independence more important to Cindy? It definitely makes you want to read the further adventures of Cindy Nesbit. If you like mystery, romance and a laugh, you will enjoy Cinderella and the Vampire.
Janet
Question or comment regarding the review or the book? Click here and let Janet know.
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