Left At Oz

By Sandra Carey Cody

http://sandracareycody.com/

Plot
Jennie Connors’ car has been stolen. Jennie and her friend, Kate,
following a strange message on her answering machine, discover not only the car, but the dead body of her babysitter. Enter Lieutenant Goodley, a
stolid, serious man asking too many questions for Jennie’s comfort.
Believing she’s the prime suspect, she starts her own investigation and
winds up dodging danger or encountering resistance with every inquiry.
Secrets regarding the babysitter are revealed and an acquaintance is
involved in a mysterious accident. Jennie notices a bald man following her. Someone is making strange phone calls to her husband. Her house is
ransacked. Can she find the killer before she becomes a victim or before
Goodley arrests her?

Standard fare. Nothing out of the ordinary. Typical secrets and cozy type
intrigue and suspense.

Characters
Jennifer Conners: 30. About to start work at a Memphis retirement center.
Married with two young children. Former beauty pageant contestant.

Tom Connors: Jennie’s husband. Works for computer company. Gets himself in
trouble with Jennie during story

Kate Britten: Jennie’s next door neighbor and friend. Freckled. Short.

Weston Goodley: Lieutenant in Homicide. Tall, thin. Unfeeling attitude.
Doesn’t deviate from the job.

Fairly surface stuff for everybody. The cast is what you would expect. The
boyfriend, the almost boyfriend, the rigid or stalwart sets of parents. The slightly uppity cousin. Jennifer is the main character, so of course
you’re going to be seeing most from her point of view. Don’t expect any
‘gotcha’ characters.

Dialogue
Again, nothing spectacular. I tire a little at Tom’s insistence that
Jennifer and he get away for some together time. Kate’s caring about her
friend is okay.

Writing
It’s a cozy with a little suspense added in to keep it interesting. Not
too detailed or descriptive. I had difficulty judging time at points.
Sometimes I’m wasn't sure how much time has passed between scenes. No profanity.
No gore or excessive violence. Jennifer’s action scenes are more
suspenseful than full of shoot outs or chases. My ARC was only 218 pages, so it’s a fast read.

My ranking:

Green Belt