Shoot from the Lip
Leann Sweeney
Signet
Reviewed by Kirsten Fournier
In Leann Sweeney’s Shoot
from the Lip, sarcastic, Houston-based, private investigator, Abby
Rose, is
on the case again. After being
approached, well, make that harassed, by reality television’s Reality Check: The Lifestyle Makeover Show
to assist in finding someone’s long-lost relative for an upcoming
episode, Abby
puts aside her initial distaste for Reality
Check’s smarmy and conniving producers, when she meets the amiable
Emma
Lopez. Abby is a PI specializing in the
location of birth families for adopted individuals and vice versa.
After an anonymous letter detailing the lives of Emma Lopez
and her siblings is received by Reality
Check, the television show decides that Emma Lopez should be their
next
makeover candidate. Emma Lopez put
herself through school and raised her three younger siblings after
their mother
abandoned them. Life has not been easy for the Lopez family and now the
only
thing they own, their house, is set for demolition by the city. Although the city would give them money to
rebuild, the paltry amount would be inconsequential.
Reality
Check wants to build a house that Emma and her siblings really
deserve
given all of the life hardships they have endured.
However, Abby quickly surmises that Reality Check’s
motives are less than altruistic.
Unbeknownst to Emma, a missing baby was mentioned in the
anonymous letter, a fact Reality Check
did not disclose prior to her signing the contract.
Given the exploitative nature of the media, Reality
Check producers are fully
prepared to capitalize on the search for Emma’s missing sibling in an
attempt
to increase ratings, much to Emma’s chagrin.
With the help of her clinical psychologist sister, Kate, and
members of
the Houston Police Department, Abby begins the search for Emma’s
missing
sibling, making some shocking and gruesome discoveries along the way.
Before long, the search unfolds, baby bones are found buried
under the Lopez house, and a homicide investigation also ensues. The case turns deadly and Abby soon finds her
own life in danger as well as those around her: her sister Kate, her
crotchety,
yet well intentioned Aunt Caroline, and her homicide detective
boyfriend Jeff
Kline. As Abby races to find out what
happened to Emma’s mother and the identity of the baby bones, Sweeney
creates
the appropriate amount of drama around the case and keeps the reader
engaged.
Sweeney’s characters are both believable and likable and she cleverly
incorporates America’s
obsession with reality television and its voyeuristic nature to provide
a
modern day twist. Readers will find Shoot from the Lip an entertaining read
and will look forward to Abby’s next case in the Yellow Rose Mystery
series.