In the Wash: The Rona Shively
Stories
Rebecca Benston
Reviewed by Sarra Borne
The protagonist of this story, Rona Shively, bears a
superficial resemblance to Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum. Both are sassy, loudmouthed single gals,
living alone with their pet for company.
Both drive crappy cars, both are short and too pretty to be
taken
seriously in their chosen line of work, and both like to eat greasy
food. The author was obviously
inspired by
Evanovich’s success but chose to take her mysteries in a different
direction. Instead of writing fluffy
slapstick Benston takes on a darker subject.
As a struggling private detective Rona Shively has seen a
lot of strange things in her day, but Gilbert Delvecchio is definitely
a
first. He needs her to find his missing
ex-wife. The ex is now remarried and
living under a different name but they have still remained friends and
Gil is
worried.
The case turns out to be much more complex than Rona
anticipated. One of her contacts is
murdered and she becomes afraid the same fate will befall anyone she
lets into
her confidence. This leaves her working
alone without a safety net. Her paranoia
follows her into her personal life where she pushes away her suitors. Rona is determined to not ask for help from
anyone, not even if she really needs it.
At just under one hundred pages, this book is more of a
novella than a novel. For such a thin
volume it is surprising just how much plot is crammed into the pages. Rebecca Benston doesn’t waste any words. She uses the flow of the narrative to fill us
in on Rona’s back-story and motivation while still keeping the action
moving
along to the inevitable conclusion.
This series should be popular with readers who enjoy tough,
out-spoken female leads. The next one in the series is
expected in July titled Under Lock and Key.