Far Fetched! I received this book free from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. Written by Paula Paul and published by Alibi / Random House in 2017, it is a crime story set in Santa Fe, New Mexico in the present. I guess the main protagonist is supposed to be Irene Seligman, a former New York City (Manhattan) prosecutor who returns to her birth place and opens a second-hand consignment store, but it is sometimes difficult to tell because the perspective sometimes changes to Juanita, a member of the Pueblo tribe of native Americans who makes hand-crafted jewelry and sells it to tourists. Juanita is convinced that her drug-addicted son has been murdered, and goes on a search for him. In the meantime, somebody is stealing and selling Pueblo-made artifacts and selling them at auction in France. A Frenchman is murdered, and Juanita becomes the primary suspect. Or is it her son, Danny? Maybe it’s the Capitolistas, a local street gang. Or it could be somebody else. We don’t know for sure (although we have an idea) until the very end of the book, which is abrupt and unsatisfying.

Paula Paul is an experienced author with a dozen writings to her credit, so I expected to read a much more polished work than this one. Unfortunately, this story seems artificial and contrived, something we wouldn’t see even in a comic book. Characters are thinly developed, perhaps because it is one of a series. Irene’s mother, Adelle, for example, is more of a caricature than a character. She often wears inappropriate clothes, including wearing jeans that are too tight, along with 3 inch heels, while running into the desert in order to follow her daughter. She refuses to wear more sensible sneakers into the sand and rocks. She seems to be modeled after “Lovey” Howell from Gilligan’s Island, only in the extreme.

We are told little about other characters, like Harriet, Angel, and P.J., to name a few. In one scene, Irene sees Jaunita at the Green Corn Dance festival, and sets out to catch up. Unfortunately, every time she catches a glimpse of her, she disappears again. It is ludicrous that she can’t seem to catch up to her, even though Irene is running and Juanita seems to be struggling with somebody. Every time Irene really needs to use her cell phone to call the police, at that same instant somebody calls her on the same phone. When she needs to talk to somebody about something important, her phone rings. The timing is uncanny. Then, at another point in the story, Irene takes a panicked phone call from her mother and immediately turns off her phone. Why would she do that? These sorts of things reminded me of the epic poem Evangeline by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. After the Expulsion of the Acadians, Evangeline roams the country searching for her beloved Gabriel, always arriving sat some place just after he has departed. At about this point, I decided that reading this novel was becoming tedious.

The end of the story is as unlikely as anything you will ever read in a crime novel. It beggars the imagination. Nothing we learn from the descriptions of the various characters in the novel can prepare us for the ending. It is as contrived as it is possible to be. In reminiscence of 1950’s grade-b western movies, for example, somebody literally shoots the gun out of a bad guy’s hand near the end of the story. What? I haven’t heard of that since the old Roy Rogers and Gene Autry movies (black and white, BTW).

I’m sorry. I’d like to recommend this book to other readers, but I just can’t. It seems to me to have been amateurishly-written. It is unfocused and stilted. The story is highly contrived. It is not an easy read. Avoid it.

This second book about Irene Seligman, former attorney who moves home to Santa Fe, New Mexico from New York to take care of her mother, was a delight. Irene has opened a store and settled in to her new life when her friend, Juanita, ends up in a bad situation. Irene wants to help Juanita out of her troubles, so she steps in to investigate. What follows is a very enjoyable story. This makes a great follow up to the first book!

This was an interesting, light read. It was a little confusing since I'd never heard the Santo Domingo pueblo called by its original name, but once that was explained, it made a lot of sense. It was fun reading about places I'd actually been. That made it easier to visualize the story.

Irene Seligman, former prosecutor and consignment store owner gets drawn into a murder/stolen artifacts case when her friend Juanita gets involved to save her son.
Some shady characters have put it out that Danny has committed the murder and is drug involved. Juanita disappears after escaping from custody. Irene, her employee Angel,her friend Attorney P.J. Bailey try hard to connect the dots as Irene's mother, Adelle conspires to make Irene crazy, unwittingly ruining many opportunities for Irene to get her answers.
Just when you wish Adelle was left in the straitjacket, she shows that she knows much more than she's shared.
It was a slow start for me, but it didn't take too long to get involved in the tale.
The addition of Native American characters is a nice change of pace.
I requested and received an ARC from NetGalley

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

A fun and quirky murder mystery set in Santa Fe. It was an easy read that kept me entertained. I liked the idea of the setting and the native American theme. It provided a little a fresh backdrop for the story. The Irene and Adelle relationship was interesting. The ending left me a little blah. I never really felt like I could guess who the killer was along the way as most of the characters were never introduced until the book was winding down.

Accessories to Die For is the second book in Irene’s Closet series. Irene Sellgman, previously an Assistant District Attorney in Manhattan, New York, returns to Santa Fe, New Mexico and opens a second-hand designer clothing store called Irene’s Closet. This was to be a temporary move to pacify her mother, Adelle, who feels very vulnerable since the end of her latest marriage. Irene befriends Juanita Calabaza, a Native American Artisan of handcrafted jewelry, who is concerned about the disappearance of her son Danny. Adelle is afraid her son is dead either from drugs or some shady dealings with Louis Joliet Armaud, who is buying off historic relics of the various Native American tribes only to be sold in auctions in France. When Armaud is found dead with a special made bullet, Adelle is arrested. It is Irene’s determination to prove her friend is not guilty and to attempt to find Juanita’s son with help from P.J. Bailey, a criminal lawyer, and Angel, her shop clerk. This sleuthing group also includes Adelle who is an interesting character in her own way. The book provides historic information of various Native American beliefs that play part in the plot.
I received an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. This is the second book in the series which I feel could be read as a stand-alone. Ms. Paul’s writing of the book was well balanced with respect to the use of historic values and the rituals of the Native American.

This is a cozy mystery set in Santa Fe where amateur sleuth Irene meets the underbelly of this tourist town. Her friend, a Native American artisan and her son are suspected of being part of a scheme to steal and sell Native artifacts. Irene needs to clear her friend.

Accessories to Die For by Paula Paul

NetGalley and Penguin Random House – Alibi provided me with a prepublication copy of this book in return for an accurate review. The best thing about this quick mystery is the setting: Santa Fe. The descriptions of the town and the surrounding area are lovely and accurate. Characters could have been more developed. The only character who was fully written out was Adelle Daniels, the mother of Irene, the owner of a specialty consignment clothing store. Adelle is spoiled, has run out of money and husbands and has returned to Santa Fe to look for new ones (husband and money). For unexplained reasons, Irene has left her high-paying and high-prestige attorney job in New York to come to Adelle’s rescue. Someone has stolen a precious jeweled Native American artifact from the Kewa people. The prevalent theory is that one of the Native Americans has stolen the artifact to sell for drug money. Many of the characters in this novel take irrational actions - I sat back and wondered why he or she would take such an illogical and, often dangerous, action. This is not a novel for serious mystery readers. It is light, all is explained in the last couple of pages. There are hints of Native American customs and healings, as well as a tiny view of a possible romance.

I was attracted to this book because of the fabulous cover! It's a beauty. That, along with the title, just seemed like a sweet little goody with my name on it. The cover design, title and blurb were the best this book had to offer, unfortunately.

If you love reading about the vapid women who would spend $1700.00 to buy a used dress just for the designer label you'll probably think I'm wrong. If you find it entertaining to read about the drug addiction problems among our Native American youth you'll think I'm wrong. If you think calling attention to the economic and cultural divide between the two groups is a fun read...you will think I'm wrong. I felt it did a disservice to both. Native Americans have a rich and vibrant culture and shouldn't be depicted as the lowest common denominator of ALL of us. Also, many wealthy women are community champions and DON'T spend their waking hours flitting from house to house to only associate with their wealthy friends.

This book, however, is nicely written and easy to read. The plotting was fairly tight even though the motivations of the characters was a bit thin. The main character, Irene, was likable enough and walks a fine line between her wealthy customers and the friends she makes in the Native American community. Walking that line may have been the motivation for the author to highlight the two differing groups, if so, I think she missed the mark...I found it...difficult. Not knowing the author's intent plus the quality of the writing is all that kept this book from having 2 stars instead of 3.

Set in Santa Fe NM, "Accessories to Die For" assembles an interesting cast of characters to propel the story forward: Irene Seligman, a former NY prosecuting attorney and now owner of a resale boutique of high-end women's clothes; her assistant, Angel; a local boy in trouble, Danny; his mother, Juanita from the Kewa pueblo; a friend and attorney P.J. Bailey; Irene's erratic mother, Adelle Daniels. Together, they somehow manage to solve the disappearance of an ancient necklace from the Pueblo and clear the names of those originally accused of the theft and other crimes. The reader will learn a good deal about Santa Fe and its culture, the nearby pueblo and its culture, and the criminal underbelly of Santa Fe. It's an enjoyable book.

This Santa Fe-set mystery has interesting characters and a peek into an unfamiliar (for me) culture. I enjoyed the book on a scene-by-scene basis, but the mystery overall wasn't strong enough. It felt more like a novel that happened to revolve around a killing (and as a reader, I had no stake, really, in finding out who killed the guy, who was apparently involved in fraudulent and unethical dealings). The gang members and clues are not clearly shown, so there's no element of whodunit, which I look for in a cozy mystery.

Oh dear. I just realized I tried a previous mystery in this series and did not like it enough to even finish it. Nor did I remember it, though I read more than half of it. Clearly, this is not the mystery series for me!

Enjoyed reading this book, lots of laughs with the antics of Adele, and the complete novel was excellent. A very entertaining read..

Haven't read the first in this series, but I loved the touch with the Native American and the handcrafted jewelry. Enjoyed the Santa Fe setting and the characters, look forward to more from this series.

Accessories to Die For

Good old-fashioned murder lurks behind the Old World charm of Santa Fe, New Mexico. And nobody knows that better than former attorney turned consignment-shop owner—and part-time amateur sleuth—Irene Seligman.

When New York assistant DA Irene Seligman moved home to take care of her demanding mother, Adelle, she thought she was leaving a world of corruption and violence behind. But after opening her store, Irene’s Closet, and getting reacquainted with the locals, she learns that something’s rotten in sunny Santa Fe. Even upstanding citizens like her friend Juanita Calabaza, a Native American artisan, can’t seem to escape the decidedly unfashionable surge in crime.

Juanita’s handcrafted jewelry has been known to catch the eye of many a tourist on the plaza in Santa Fe’s historic district. But lately she’s been attracting the wrong kind of attention . . . from the police. With her son missing after falling in with a bad crowd, Juanita foretells the death of one of his associates—which comes back to haunt her when the scumbag actually turns up dead. Now Juanita’s trading in her turquoise beads for an orange jumpsuit, and Irene will need to call upon all her old investigative skills to clear Juanita’s name—before her friend pays the ultimate price.

____________________

Today, when I thought about how to write up this book review, a sentence kept popping into my head

Watch out for a lady in elaborate dressing gown and high heeled sleepers

I am not crazy, nor am I going to give you any spoilers and explain what I mean. Just humour me, watch out for this wonder-lady (not woman, but LADY).

If I ever decide to buy this book I would buy it for my girlfriends, for all of us who have mums still with us. This book, besides being an interesting and informative read (on Native American culture) and being a crime novel to boot, is a good, a feel-good story about mother-daughter relationships.

Accessories to Die For is a revelation of sorts. Appearances can be deceiving, both in a good and in a bad way. Also, people never fail to surprise us. Sometimes, our stereotypes and our life experiences are working against us. We need to stop, to inhale and to listen.. Life just might be not that bad.

At the end of the novel everything turned out well. Murderers were caught. Accessories were returned. Mothers and children were reunited. All is well that ends well.

Hopefully, there will be more in store for main characters in the next book.

All in all, I found this book a very nice read. Reading along I stopped paying attention to the language, to the narration of murder and investigation and became more interested and involved with the lady in high heels sleepers and her relationship with her daughter. I was waiting for surprise from this corner and surprise I got.

Have a read, be surprised.

I received a copy of this book in return for a voluntary review. I've never read one of Paula Paul's mysteries before, but I plan on making up for lost time. Irene and Adelle's daughter/mother relationship was a breath of fresh air, there were times you could visualize Irene wanting to throttle her mother for her antics. The mystery of the stolen artifacts and the murders were almost secondary to all of the wonderful characters, but were still an amazing part of the story. Can't wait to see what else Angel, PJ and the rest help Irene pull off.

This book had an interesting story and I enjoyed reading it.
Irene is a good character and I love her relationship with her mom.
This story goes back generations and sacred items are at the root of this mystery.
I'm looking forward to reading more in this series.
I voluntarily read an ARC of this book provided by the publisher and NetGalley.

I love this well written mystery. This book has a great plot that pulled me in immediately, great characters and a great setting. I enjoyed this author's writing very much and look forward to reading more books by her.

Irene Seligman has been happily operating her high-end consignment shop in Santa Fe. When her friend Native American artisan Juanita Calabraza tells Irene her son missing and she is worried something has happened to him, Irene feels the need to help in the search. Before long a random comment by Juanita gets her arrested for the murder of the director of a French auction house.Juanita believes this man has been stealing Native American artifacts and her son is somehow involved. It's a wild ride with Irene's eccentric mother Adelle and handsome defense attorney P.J. Bailey along for the investigation.

This book was a little different, some times I thought there was too many details but it all came together and was a very good read, I wasn't surprised at the ending but I look forward to reading more from Paula Paul.

The American Southwest -- along with Native American culture -- is showcased here, around a fantastically crafted mystery... a caring mother looking for her son -- questioning -- with her friend, Irene, by her side. I loved the jewelry side of this tale. Looking for more!