CURING THE BLUES WITH A NEW PAIR OF SHOES

Author: Dixie Cash ISBN: 9780061434389 8/2009 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: AVON A

Elvis has left the building . . . and his shoes have followed suit! No holiday in tiny Salt Lick, Texas, is more revered than January 8th—Elvis's birthday! To commemorate the grand occasion, Hogg's Drive-In—where the King enjoyed many a burger on the road to fame and fortune—is displaying an “actual” pair of Elvis's blue suede shoes. That is, until some heel without a soul swipes them right out of their display case. Debbie Sue Overstreet and Edwina Perkins-Martin—the shoe-loving Domestic Equalizers—are shocked that someone would perpetrate such a dastardly crime. So the plucky detecting duo agrees to help the town's inept sheriff track down the royal blue loafers. And being majestic multitaskers, the ladies might even be able to squeeze in some matchmaking as well. Mix-ups, mayhem, the threat of gunplay, and shocking octogenarian secrets revealed—it's all in a day's work for the Domestic Equalizers, the two best friends whose motto is: Don't get mad . . . get evidence!

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

I love a book that's well-written; engaging; filled with intriguing characters; and, as an added bonus, shares something "extra" at the end. I mean, who doesn't? CURING THE BLUES WITH A NEW PAIR OF SHOES does all that—and more. The prose gallops across the pages, the dialogue is laugh-out-loud funny, and the extras at the end taught me more about Texas than I ever hoped to know.

Edwina and Debbie Sue are two over-the-top ladies from a place called, of all things, Salt Lick. I never will be able to decide which one of these gals is my favorite; they are equally savvy, funny, and insightful about all kinds of "down-home" things. It seemed like they were constantly in the middle of one mess or another, and always scheming to get themselves untangled. I loved the lobby fiasco...it shows that even carpet can melt in one of Edwina and Debbie Sue's adventures!

To top it off, Elvis steps into this tale, which is, I've got to say, the icing on the chocolate cupcake for me. I loved this book, and I believe other lovers of zany fiction will, too. Well done!

Kay James