Seventy-one-year-old Loretta Plansky is a widow who misses her late husband, Norm, every day. After Norm's death, Loretta buys a condo in Florida, where she resides with Chandler—her cantankerous ninety-eight-year-old father—along with his home health aide, Lucrecia, and Chandler's lady friend. Although Loretta wishes that her argumentative dad would stay in an assisted living facility, he prefers getting on his daughter's nerves on a daily basis.

Loretta, who is a good athlete, and her tennis partner, Kevin Dinardo, come from behind to emerge victorious in a competitive doubles match. Loretta drives Kevin home, and is shocked when, shortly after they arrive, she sees Kevin's boat explode. Subsequently, Kevin disappears, and adding to Loretta's concern, her son, Jack, is also missing. The first few chapters of Spencer Quinn's "Mrs. Plansky Goes Rogue" are rambling and slow-moving. Fortunately, the story picks up steam when Loretta endangers her life to get to the bottom of a possible crime. Throughout it all, we are entertained by Loretta's hilarious musings.

In this farcical novel, we meet treacherous villains, an intrepid female reporter and pilot, a good-hearted fisherman, and a detective who refuses to take Mrs. Plansky seriously. The plot is preposterous; Loretta's determination to conduct her own investigation, sheer madness; and the heroine's ability to emerge unscathed from perilous situations, nothing short of miraculous. What makes this book so much fun is Loretta's self-deprecating manner coupled with her chutzpah and courage; passages of humorous dialogue that are filled with non-sequiturs; and a hectic conclusion that vindicates Mrs. Plansky's suspicion that Kevin and Jack were involved in something sinister. Aficionados of unconventional tales in which the main character is too old to be gallivanting around like Nancy Drew will likely enjoy "Mrs. Plansky Goes Rogue."

I have read all of SpencerQuinn’s Chet and Bernie books and enthusiastically picked up this new series.

His characters are the heart of his writing, and Mrs. Plansky and her father are both well-crafted and jump off the page.
I enjoyed the book, but found myself skimming over large sections of descriptive material. This is something I rarely do in a book…..particularly in light fiction. Reflecting on my reading experience, I would have to say the “ site descriptions” felt like filler and the “action sequences” felt like cinematic direction. This didn’t affect my overall favorable impression of the book, but just were distractions for me.

If Mr. Quinn hopes for a mini-series, the material is here. If he wants to build a series as successful as Chet and Bernie, he has some work to do.

Spencer Quinn has created another great character in Mrs. Plansky. In this second book in the series, this smart and strong widow is presented with a mystery and must confront danger to safe both her tennis partner and her son when they get involved with some shady business partners. This is a strong story with intrigue and danger and very interesting characters. Mrs. Plansky is surrounded by interesting characters and there are some laugh-out-loud funny scenes.

I enjoyed the first book, and was happy to get my hands on an ARC of book 2. It was just as much fun as the first one, though I was surprised by how much of the cast from the previous book wasn't in this one. The dad continues to be an unlikable pain in the ass, but considering how many books like this have the father being somebody the female lead needs to save the world, having him be part of the problem was an appreciated switch.

Mrs. Plansky Goes Rogue by Spencer Quinn is the second in the series and follows Mrs. Plansky, after she and her tennis partner Kev Denardo win the senior tennis championship. Later, celebrating at Kev's house they watch as his yacht blows up and sinks. While Mrs. Plansky tries to figure out where her son Jack and Kev have each disappeared to, she also does a little free diving where the yacht sank, breaks into Kev's house and lots of other shenanigans. With good characters and lots of humor this is a great read.

I enjoyed Mrs Plansky Goes Rogue more than the first title in the series. Not sure if some of the lengthy drifts off topic are intentional to create the characters or a need for better editing but sometimes it is a bit off-putting.

Mrs. Plansky is my new favorite literary heroine. I'd follow her anywhere — even if it was just shopping or out to lunch or a game of tennis. But fortunately she tends to get herself involved in much more—interesting—situations. I love everything about this book: the quirky characters, the humor, the insights into (and empathy for) getting older, all while being thoroughly engrossed in a plot that kept me turning pages when I should have been asleep. More please, and keep 'em coming!

Spencer Quinn (really bestselling author Peter Abrahams) writes wonderful mysteries with fascinating main characters. His Chet and Bernie mystery series won my heart first. Chet the dog is the narrator of that mystery-solving duo. His newest mystery series stars the plucky Mrs. Plansky, another engaging main character. This is book number 2, so read this and then go back and read the first Mrs. Plansky. Good luck solving the mysteries in both books before Mrs. Plansky does.