Courting Disaster
An Angie Amalfi mystery

By Joanne Pence

     Angie Amalfi, gourmet chef and free lance food writer (currently Unemployed) is engaged to San Francisco homicide detective, Paavo Smith. To avoid having her mother control her wedding, Angie has agreed to let her plan a party celebrating her engagement. The only problem is that Angie wants to learn where the party is to be and what her mother has planned. But no one will tell her.

     Her next door neighbor, Stanfield Bennett, is depressed because Angie is getting married to her homicide detective. At a Greek restaurant he sees a pregnant waitress, Hannah, and is immediately smitten. She confides in him that she fears the father of her unborn child. When she is about to give birth Stan takes her to the hospital and then takes her and the baby to his apartment.

     The baby's father is killed and evidence points to Hannah. Stan is desperate to prove Hannah's innocence and enlists Angie's aid. Angie uncovers a nefarious international ring of baby smugglers, putting her life in danger.

     This is a book filled with everything a reader could wish for: murder, romance, laughter and thrills. The love between Angie and Paavo becomes stronger as they both begin to accept each others' eccentricities. The baby scenes are hilarious and are guaranteed to revive memories of the reader's own experiences. Equally hilarious are Angie's attempts to discover where her mother plans to have the engagement party. The plot is well developed, the action fast paced, and the characters believable.

     This will be a satisfying read for a pleasant afternoon; guaranteed to tickle your funny bone.