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When you mix big city with old town, snoops, cops and drug dealers, what do you get? An excitingly wild ride of suspense, mayhem, humor and home repair. Moving from Manhattan as a power broker to fix-it-up homeowner is one thing, but Jacobia "Jake" Tiptree takes it a step further when she purchases a rental home with her good friend Ellie White. Bought just two months earlier with repairs sorely needed, they are both surprised when it's immediately rented to a cult of witches.
Phone calls from the new tenants become the norm for Jake, as she's become quite handy with tools. On one of her frequent repair visits, though, she doesn't anticipate stumbling upon a dead body in the shed. Who would have thought their shabby investment would become the scene of a murder?
Adding to the mix is the kidnapping of a language-deficient child who is semi-diabetic without her medicine. The problem: no one knows why and no one can hear her scream. It's up to Jake and Ellie to hammer out the details and find her before something bad happens. As Jake unfolds the clues to this mystery, she encounters more than what she bargained for, having to take a trip into her son's drug-induced past to gather information. She soon learns that the trade-off of being nosy is not necessarily one you would want. Bringing it all together is the discovery of a conman whose agenda is more than just swindling money. After all, things aren't always what they seem. Revealing the truth behind the murder may turn out to be Jake and Ellie's personal ticket to their demise.
Jake's womanizing ex-husband stubbornly refuses to get out of her life, the personal home repair project falls to pieces, and her father insists on tearing up the cellar. Can she handle all that is going on, keep it together, and still fight the demons that overshadow her past? Not many people get over the fact of their mother being murdered, their father being an innocent fugitive most of their life, and cousins who did more than give "family" love. At what point does she stop holding it in and allow folks to help? Jake's husband Wade is more than supportive; he knows there's something wrong but is waiting for Jake to make the first move. As she consistently places her life in danger, Jake realizes that she's not just living for herself anymore, but also for the people who care about her the most.
If you've ever wondered whether or not home repair was a boring job, wonder no more. NAIL BITER is a delightful addition to the Home Repair is Homicide mystery series. Sarah Graves masterfully weaves her plot, adding touches of love, sympathy, friendship and preservation, casting out the notion that all stereotypes are true.
--- Reviewed by Belinda Williams
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