Loretta Plansky, a 71 year old widow, is woken up from a sound sleep by a call from her grandson who has just been arrested for a DUI and needs $10,000 to get out of jail. What grandmother wouldn't want to help? Of course she provides her bank account details and password to transfer the funds, only to discover the next day that it was a scam and all of her accounts have been emptied, leaving her penniless.

Mrs Plansky is no ordinary widow though and refuses to just accept her fate. When the FBI determines the scam originated in a small town in Romania, she hops on a plane, determined to get her money back. What follows is am entertaining romp through Romania's post Soviet criminal underworld. It's easy to underestimate an elderly American woman and Loretta takes advantage of this to uncover the scammers and recover her money.

This is a quick and entertaining read.

Despite her millions, retirement isn't quite what Mrs. Loretta Plansky had hoped it would be. Her beloved husband, Norm, died. Now, she's alone in her condo in Florida. Her children occasionally call, but they always hope she'll invest in some outlandish scheme. Her ninety-eight-year old father is demanding. Loretta's memory is a little shaky. It's not surprising when a phone call wakes her at night, and the young man at the other end claims to be her grandson Will, and he needs access to her bank account. The next morning, Loretta learns her bank accounts are empty. She's been scammed. When the FBI lets her know they won't be able to recover her money, someone makes a mistake, and she learns it was transferred to Romania. Without telling her family or the FBI, Mrs. Plansky gathers her courage, and flies to Romania to get her money back. Along the way, Mrs. Plansky will deal with the American embassy, a journalist, and Romanian tough guys. Don't underestimate an angry American grandmother.

I thought I was going to relax with a cozy mystery but what I got was a thriller with cozy characters but a plot that reflects the problems of our times. Grandparent fraud is out there. Police send around notifications and social media tells us to beware but it is unfortunately a part of life. Mrs. Plansky gets a call in the middle of the night from her "grandson" Will needing money. Her accounts are emptied and she decides to find the fraudsters. A great read!
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Loretta Plansky isn't having the happy retirement she and her husband had planned. After selling their business for millions, they had retired to Florida to live out their golden years. Sadly, her husband Norm died and she sold their house in a retirement community to move into an apartment in the same area. Her two children don't live nearby, but keep in touch and call frequently. They also aren't shy about approaching their mother to ask for "loans" to invest in questionable business opportunities. Mrs. Plansky is also dealing with her demanding 98-year-old father. She's paying for his care in an upscale nursing home, but he's never satisfied and the staff wants to move him into an area where they can "provide more care" and which also costs nearly double the already hefty sum Loretta is paying each month,. With all of that going on, it's no wonder that her mind is not entirely clear when she receives a call which wakes her in the middle of the night. Her grandson Will is calling to ask her to bail him out of jail. He's apparently been arrested for DUI and wants his grandmother to help him. More importantly, he doesn't want his mother to know about the situation, so he convinces her to give him the banking details so he can get out of jail. Mrs. Plansky does and is relieved when a few minutes later Will calls back thanking her and saying he's been released from jail. Mrs. Plansky goes back to sleep and receives yet another phone call the next day. This one is from her bank telling her that her accounts were emptied overnight. Assuming some mistake, Mrs. Plansky goes to find out what's wrong. Then her old friend and asset manager calls wondering why she closed her accounts without telling him, since they were on such good terms. Once everyone gets together, they soon realize Mrs. Plansky has been scammed. Worse, the scammers appear to be from outside the USA, and even the FBI tells her there is no way to get her money back. After moving her father into her own apartment (to stop the nursing home bills), she decides to investigate the matter herself. After learning that this scam was traced to Romania, and learning the name of the town where the perpetrators are based, she sets off alone to track them down and get her money back.

I really enjoyed reading about Mrs. Plansky who wasn't going to let anyone stop her from investigating the crimes against her. Somewhat like Miss Marple, no one really thinks the elderly lady is entirely on top of things, so she's not seen as a threat -- neither by the criminals or by the US law enforcement entities who are "investigating" themselves. While not making light of the crimes or seeming to defend the criminals, the author does a good job of portraying the lives and motivations of the sorts of people who carry out these types of crimes.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Mrs. Plansky's Revenge.

I'm a fan of the author's Bernie and Chet series so I was excited he had a new book out and I was approved!

Mrs. Plansky's Revenge follows the newest trend of elderly protagonists solving crimes or acting outside of their stereotypical roles befitting their advanced age.

Mrs. Plansky is an active, intelligent 72-year-old with serious tennis skills.

She's mourning the loss of her dear husband, Norm, of many years; at the same time dealing with her childrens' personal issues and monetary responsibilities,

When she's duped by a scam originating in Romania, Mrs. Plansky is outraged and frustrated, until she takes matters into her own hands.

I liked Mrs. Plansky; instead of stewing and flailing around and crying about what happened to her, she makes things happen.

Yes, the narrative is a bit far-fetched; how Mrs. Plansky discovers upon the scam and gets the upper hand, but it's fun reading about how it happens.

The author also gives us the perspective of the scammers': not bad young men who take part in these scams due to their personal circumstances.

Mrs. Plansky's Revenge was a good read, a refreshing change to what I usually read where the main characters are usually involved in murders and mayhem.

This book was a fun ride - a bit of a departure from his usual stuff but fun plot, great characters, just an all around fun ride

I thought the book was lovely. It was a fresh story and something that I haven’t seen before. The characters were complex. However, I felt like it was lacking more explanation and context behind Dinu. I felt like his story could be expanded more. Overall a wonderful read that will have you on your toes!

I am a big fan of Spencer Quinn’s Chet and Bernie detective series. I even named my dog Quinn. As soon as I heard about his new series featuring Mrs. Plansky I searched for a way to read and review it early, so huge thanks to NetGalley. I’m a senior citizen myself and it’s thrilling to read about a brave, intelligent, older heroine like Mrs. Plansky. Hooray for what I hope will be many more books about this wonderful character.

I hope Mrs. Plansky's Revenge by Spencer Quinn is the first in a long series for this character. Much as I love Chet and Bernie, it is nice to have a new protagonist to enjoy. Mrs. Plansky's adventures while trying to recover her scammed money are entertaining while addressing a real problem for the elderly. Mr. Quinn does well portraying and older woman with all her aches and pains and family problems.

This book is a big departure from Spencer Quinn’s serious about private investigator and his dog Chet. It got off to a rather slow start, but then took off with a raucous, exciting adventure, and the solving of a mysterious cybercrime that has shaken dames. Plansky to her core.

Love the writings the humor, the cast of characters — it’s a great read!