Lucky Stiff is the exciting follow up to Wanna Get Lucky? and the 2nd book in series. I was expecting another gripping caper with little momentum in Lucky’s personal life, but I was pleasantly surprised.

When the book begins, the Vegas strip is shut down when a beekeeper’s truck full of honeybees tips over in front of the Babylon, unleashing a giant swarm of P.O.ed honeybees. Lucky finds the district attorney, naked, hiding in a closet in the Babylon. A skanky, old bookie, “Numbers” Neidermeyer, turns up in the Mandalay Bay shark tank. The #1 suspect in the murder happens to be The Beautiful Jeremy Whitlock, private investigator and personal friend of Lucky’s. Teddie Kowalski, Lucky’s now boyfriend and female impersonator heads to LA to chase a recording career (at Lucky’s urging), but it leaves her feeling alone. Lucky’s mom, Mona, plans to auction a virgin while Lucky’s parents, still in love, give it another try in the newer, maybe less judgemental Las Vegas.

Interestingly, this case takes Lucky through the remaining side streets and scruffy characters of old Las Vegas. That is the side of Vegas that is so intriguing. Reading this book I kept thinking, this reads like the plot of CSI. Part of that resemblance was the shark tank thing, but mostly it’s just exceptionally gripping murder mystery.

As Coonts’ Lucky O’Toole series progresses, I hope to see some more development of supporting characters, like Mona — who could be far more of a force than she has been (thought its been hinted at). I also hope the series doesn’t end up to tightly wound around Lucky’s love life. The near-androgeny of Lucky, a powerful woman, combined with some stereotypically female personality traits makes her a breath of fresh air as a female lead. I hope that, though it may be tough to keep her walking that line, Coonts‘ manages to do it.

Interested in other books by Deborah Coonts?