Publisher's Weekly Review
LAPD homicide detectives Michael Lomax and Terry Biggs take on a killer targeting a group of police officers' wives in Karp's irreverent third mystery (after 2007's Bloodthirsty). When spouses of some of Lomax and Biggs's closest co-workers are found murdered, they begin their investigation by questioning the surviving members of the LA Flippers, the partnership of cop wives who, along with popular mystery writer Nora Bannister, have found a lucrative way to flip houses in the highly competitive Southern California real estate market. With the body count rising and pressure from Lomax and Biggs's superiors to close the case fast, the wisecracking duo must somehow track down a cunning psychopath before Biggs's wife becomes the killer's next target. Blending the gritty realism of a Joseph Wambaugh police procedural with the sardonic humor of Janet Evanovich, Karp delivers a treat that's not only laugh-out-loud funny but also remarkably suspenseful. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Booklist Review
Cop wives are dropping like flies in Karp's third offering to feature the irrepressible Los Angeles Police Department detective team of Mike Lomax and Terry Biggs. All of the victims were partners in a real-estate venture: flipping houses for fun and profit. (The group, which included mystery novelist Nora Bannister, had an ingenious gimmick; in her books, Bannister would set a murder at the address of an actual home up for sale). Lomax and Biggs think they've nabbed the killer, but too many loose ends remain, including a couple of widowed cops who are behaving very suspiciously. With their own romantic partners in peril, Lomax and Biggs set out in search of damning evidence before higher-ups shut the case in their face. Karp's earlier novels (The Rabbit Factory, 2006, and Bloodthirsty, 2007) were gems of comic timing, focusing on good-natured Lomax and one-liner-slinging Biggs. This time around the attention is more on secondary characters and plot. That's all well and good, though series fans may be a bit disappointed to see two such scenery-chewing stars forced to share center stage.--Block, Allison Copyright 2009 Booklist
Kirkus Review
What do cops' wives do when their husbands are on the job? Get killed, it seems. Meet the L.A. Flippers: Jo, Marisol, Marilyn, Julia and her mystery novelist mother Nora. Their company rehabs a house and puts it on the market after Nora uses it as a setting for her The House to Die For series. So far so good, until Jo is shot to death and a chunk of her hair chopped off, presumably taken as a trophy. Next to die are Julia and Nora, then Marisol. Is it open season on cops' wives, or is a dissatisfied homeowner intent on doing in these particular helpmeets? Detectives Mike Lomax and Terry Biggs (The Rabbit Factory, 2006) feel pressure from the Los Angeles City Hall to bring the cases to a quick conclusion, but there are several plausible suspects, including Nora's literary assistant, who may have coveted her bestseller status; Charlie, who became sole heir to the cool million Nora planned to bequeath Julia; and Marisol's husband Tony, who'd been carrying a private eye on his tail ever since Marisol became convinced he was having an affair. A bevy of sarcastic ripostes later, Lomax and Biggs figure out who's behind the killing spree. Alas, the denouement breaks up their weekly poker game. Glib, trendy and not so much plotted as delivered in comedy-club one-liners, with an over-the-top final twist. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Library Journal Review
Los Angeles dectectives Lomax and Biggs (The Rabbit Factory) look into the murders of several real estate agents who also happened to have been married to cops. Karp's humor and convoluted plot make this mystery a pleasure to read, Ø la Janet Evanovich and Lisa Scottoline, but he includes just enough pointed barbs about contemporary culture to keep the story in perspective. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
