Stilettos & Scoundrels by Laina Turner-Molaski

The Synopsis from Amazon.co.uk:

Presley Thurman, a sassy, thirty-something red-head, was looking to reinvent herself. She didn’t allow the fact she was recently fired to bother her – she was ready to pursue her lifelong dream of becoming a writer. Presley is a lover of shopping and Starbucks, and even though she sometimes had bad taste in men, she always had great taste in clothes. Not looking back on corporate America, Presley decided to follow her dream. With her feisty nature and a spirit to not “sweat the small stuff,” she was ready to tackle any challenge (even if she had no idea how she would pay the bills). When her friend Trevor offered her a job with his online magazine to interview public figures, she jumped at the chance. However, the new job turned into something unexpected when the U.S. Senator she was slated to write about was murdered – in her home town! Presley was excited – she hadn’t seen so much buzz since the spring sample sale at Saks. She was ready for this adventure, even if it didn’t seem to fit neatly into her life. She couldn’t pass up the opportunity to be in the middle of the buzz. Presley was determined (not to mention curious) to find the killer and write her story. After all, she couldn’t afford her shoe habit without a job and she was certainly not one to shy away from danger. The only thing standing in her way was an old high school fling, Cooper Sands, head of the Senator’s security. He was not actually standing in her way, but because of his good looks, he was the biggest distraction and one she was having the hardest time overcoming. Cooper felt it was too dangerous for Presley to look for a killer and tried to distract her with reliving the past; which Presley found more dangerous than any killer. While she attempted to resist Cooper’s good looks and charm, Presley was able to discover the Senator’s wife, Helen, had been having an affair… with her best friend’s boyfriend! Did Helen kill the Senator? Or was it the Senator’s love of gambling that got him killed? And what was Cooper’s secret tie to the mob boss Garrison Palazzo? Presley was betting her favorite pair of Manolo’s she will find the killer… but will time run out!

My Review

Stilettos & Scoundrels, by Laina Turner-Molaski, is an interesting twist on the romance novel – romance with a kick! Stilettos & Scoundrels follows Presley Thurman, the recently fired, shoe shopping, fashion lover knows this is the chance of a lifetime – to follow her dream & become a professional writer. She takes on a writing assignment for a friend’s magazine, interviewing  a US Senator. unfortunately for Presley, the senator ends up murdered & Presley somehow thinks it’s a good idea for her to investigate the killing. Enter Cooper Sands (ok, I have to say, the character’s names kinda drove me crazy), Presley’s one time high school fling, who is the head of security for the Senator. In an attempt to keep Presley occupied, and safe, Cooper tries to re-kindle their romance, but Presley doesn’t let that stop her.

Stilettos & Scoundrels is a pretty easy read, with some nice plot twists, that keep you hooked.  I think that for avid chic lit fans this is a nice departure from the norm, a little spice with your romance. But for avid murder mystery fans, I think the romance element would probably just annoy. I am more on the murder mystery side, but I do love a good bit of chic lit every once in a while (search my previous posts, there are lots of them about chic lit) & for me this was an enjoyable read.

Disclaimer: This book was provided by the publisher, free of cost, for me to review. My review is of my own doing and is in no way influenced by the author, the publisher or by Nurture Virtual Book Tourz