Review: A Quarter for a Kiss
(Part of the Million Dollar Mystery Series)
Author: Mindy Starns Clark
Latter-day Saints who love mysteries have a limited number of choices. There aren't too many LDS mysteries, and most mainstream mysteries have elements that make us feel as though we need to repent if we read them. Even cozies, once the safe haven for mystery buffs with morals, have begun to push the boundaries, adding sex, profanity and other elements we prefer to avoid. I've begun a search for authors outside the church who write mysteries we can read, and I have a truly wonderful choice for you today.
Mindy Starns Clark writes Christian mysteries. Her Million Dollar Mystery series is a joy to read. I've just finished the second to last book in the series, A Quarter for a Kiss, which was the first I've read, and I couldn't put it down. Although I generally prefer to start a series at the beginning, I had no difficulty picking up the back stories that allowed me to completely enjoy this adventure.
Callie Webber is a young widow and a private investigator with a fascinating job: she investigates charities to be sure they are worthy of the grants her boss, Tom, loves to hand out. Although they enjoyed a telephone friendship for a number of years, Callie and Tom finally met in person and fell in love. Now Callie is introducing Tom to the thrills of actually presenting a check to a charity himself, rather than leaving it to Callie. However, after the check is presented, they learn that Callie's beloved mentor has been shot. He is in a coma, but before losing consciousness he insisted to his wife that only Callie and Tom can find the clues Eli left behind that will identify his attacker and the motive behind the shooting. Callie isn't sure what she knows that makes Eli feel she knows where to look, but she and Tom hurry to the rescue on a trip that takes them to the Virgin Islands to find out why Eli had seen a woman whose death was documented through autopsies and photos, alive in the Islands. In the meantime, Callie learns that some of the people she loves, including Tom, have pasts she knows nothing about.
Save this story for a day when the house is clean and the children are busy. The fast pace, engaging characters, and surprising twists will make it impossible to put down the book. The growing romance between Callie and Tom adds a delightful thread that is not marred by immorality.
Callie and Tom could nearly be Latter-day Saints if you ignore the coffee that keeps them awake during their grueling schedule and a few Sabbath Day activities that aren't on our approved list, but this is mild. The author addresses the issue of sex, but only to explain how they avoid temptations. Other characters—non-Christians--do engage in off-screen intimate relationships, but this is only mentioned or suggested, and never with approval by the author or the Christian characters. There are a few standards that vary a bit from our own, such as a scene in which Tom and Callie kiss briefly in a bedroom behind a closed door. (This is not a sexual scene. It really is just a good-night kiss and the author makes it clear that Tom immediately leaves the room afterwards.) Again, however, chastity is celebrated, so most readers will not be uneasy with the standards presented here.
All aspects of Christianity presented in this book are compatible with our own Christianity, so LDS readers will feel right at home in Callie's world. The author avoids the preachiness that often bogs down religious fiction of any denomination, and Christianity is presented in a natural and positive way, without mention of any specific religion.
This is definitely a series I intend to complete. It is a pleasure to find an author who proves that mystery and morals can co-exist without cost to the story. Be sure to check out the author's website for bonus content, including the song that gives this book it's name, and to order autographed copies of her books.
A Quarter for a Kiss (The Million Dollar Mysteries, Book 4) by Mindy Starns Clark