Genre: Book
Grade: B+
Notable People: David Handler
Title: The Sour Cherry Surprise
Review: Who doesn’t like revisiting an old friend? Accidentally ran into this book, from the Mitry and Berger mystery series that I had last left off about 15 year ago. Surprisingly, Handler has kept putting out this series (since late 90s) about a determined Black female state trooper in remote Connecticut and her dubious partner in crime, a Jewish New York movie critic relocated from the city……. who she calls “doughboy” due to his penchant for all things doughnut and his resulting physique. I always liked these books, even though they are not world class writing………but the characters are really quite well developed and the setting of the remote village of Dorset, along the glitzy Long Island Sound area of Connecticut are quite the draws. There is great Jewish grandmother character in the weeds here, who seems to be the second coming of Bella Abzug. I am excited to rediscover these books, and have taken three out of the library. Quick, entertaining reads for the chilly nights ahead. By the way, Handler is clearly devotee of the great, great John D. McDonald, who wrote all his fantastic Travis McGee novels with colors in the titles.