So much fun! Highly recommend to anyone who likes funny PI-in-training books. Fresh and entertaining and I immediately snatched up book 2. ( )

The mystery was solid, but some of Maisie's interrogation choices just did not seem logical. ( )

Maizie Albright has just returned to Black Pine, Georgia, the small town she lived in as a child (after being ordered by a California judge to finish her Criminal Justice degree, leave Hollywood and showbiz, and get a job in Georgia within 10 days of her arrival).

In Hollywood, Maizie was a celebrity, a teen star on TV's Julia Pinkerton, Teen Detective. She began acting in commercials, and landed her first big role (Kung Fu Kate) at age 9. In Black Pine, 25-year-old Maizie has to make a few adjustments for a life out of the spotlight.

In Hollywood, she was surrounded by people, such as

her trainer, Jerry
her therapist, Renata
her stylist
her assistant, Blake
her nutritionist
her publicist, Sherry

but when Maizie's funding went away, so did her "friends." In Black Pine, after a bit of a rocky start, Maizie makes two true friends in Tiffany and Rhonda. I enjoyed reading about how the three of them help each other out.

Maizie's a hoot. (She's got to be related to Author Larissa Reinhart's other sleuth Cherry Tucker, maybe a distant cousin or something.) Sometimes, she just can't stop talking. For example, here's how she introduced herself to Wyatt Nash, her potential P.I. mentor:

"I'm Maizie Albright. I mean, Maizie Spayberry. Well, it was Spayberry, and I'm thinking about switching back permanently. Although I do like my other name. It has a better ring, which is why my manager changed it."

Nash isn't really thrilled about the idea of being a mentor, or having an assistant / trainee, especially this particular trainee. As he puts it,

"Here's an investigator training tip. It's a little hard to do undercover surveillance when the investigator is front page news."

It's also a little hard for Maizie to do undercover surveillance when.... Wait, Author Larissa Reinhart can explain it better than I can. After Maizie's Jaguar is repossessed,

"You're not any good without a vehicle," said Nash. "Get your act together and come back tomorrow."

Maizie turns to her father, Boomer Spayberry, for help.

"But Daddy, how can I persist and work my tail off without a car?"

"I bought you a vehicle for your fourteenth birthday. It's still in the barn where you left it."

"What vehicle?" My face squinched and I almost forgot to smooth out the wrinkles. "The dirt bike? I can't ride a dirt bike around town."
...

"How do I ride a dirt bike in a dress?"

"You don't. You need to stop dressing so fancy, anyhow. ..."

15 Minutes abounds with humorous moments, in addition to those with Maizie running surveillance on "Lucky," her dirt bike. Maizie often tries to resolve sticky situations by asking herself, "What would Julia (or Kate) do?" Since Julia and Kate would rely on their stunt doubles, their solutions don't really help Maizie much. She is successful, using some remembered dialogue and muscle memory.

The action in the climax is so exciting! I can assure you, you'll never think about jeans, thongs, and flare guns the same way, after reading 15 Minutes. I can't wait to read the next book in the Maizie Albright Star Detective series, 16 Millimeters, coming in 2017!

I recommend 15 Minutes to all fans of cozy mysteries, especially to those partial to mysteries with Southern settings. I think it will have special appeal to readers who are fans of child actors, teen detectives, reality shows, and Author Larissa Reinhart's Cherry Tucker Mystery series.

I really enjoyed 15 Minutes by Larissa Reinhart, and grant it Four Stars!



Note: I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of 15 Minutes. All opinions shared are 100% my own.

Originally published on my blog at Jane Reads. ( )

I have been a fan of author Larissa Reinhart's Cherry Tucker Mystery Series, so when I saw she had a new series coming out, I was eager to read it and let me tell you, Larissa does not disappoint her fans!

15 Minutes is the first book in the Maizie Albright Star Detective Mystery Series. Written in the first person narrative, the reader is transported to Black Pine, Georgia, to follow ex-teen reality star Maizie Albright's first investigative adventure.

Maizie puts her Hollywood career behind her and returns to her hometown of Black Pine, Georgia to start a new career as a private investigator. But it seems like she can't leave Hollywood behind when she reprises a role and immerses herself in a missing person's case that has plenty of trouble and danger around every corner.

This was such a fun whodunit to read, it had a great mixture of mystery, romance and humor. I easily found myself entertained by Maizie's craziness and her madcap investigative adventures. From Maizie's dysfunctional family, to her romantic issues, to her amateur sleuthing skills, this sassy southern lady's antics kept me entertained and laughing as I followed her quest to solve the missing person's case.

With a zany cast of characters who keep the reader in stitches with their witty dialogue and hilarious interactions; a storyline filled with enough drama, suspense and twist and turns that keeps the reader guessing; and a richly detailed setting that transports the reader to a quirky Southern small town; 15 Minutes is an entertaining new cozy mystery interwoven with Southern charm and humor that leaves you wanting to go on more crazy adventures with sassy Maizie Albright!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the author / publisher in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event hosted by Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.

http://jerseygirlbookreviews.blogspot.com/2017/02/15-minutes-by-larissa-reinhart... ( )