Savannah Blues

December 24, 2001
This delightfully breezy, richly atmospheric debut by a former journalist who covered Savannah's infamous Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
murder trials fails to generate much suspense, but it derives its charm from an encyclopedic trove of lore about antiquities and dishy gossip, Southern style. Divorced from blue-blood architect Talmadge Evans III, but still living in a carriage house in the backyard of their restored mansion, Eloise "Weezie" Foley suffers the indignity of having her ex's sexy fiancée, Caroline DeSantos, living in the main house Weezie restored herself. As a "picker," Weezie earns her living foraging for discarded treasures in Dumpsters and at estate sales. When she discovers Caroline's corpse in a historic manor house, Weezie is the prime suspect in her murder. To compound her quandary, Weezie's attorney—her closeted Uncle James, an ex-Catholic priest—is having an illicit affair with a man from the DA's office. Factor in her on-again, off-again romance with old high school flame Daniel Stipanek, counterfeit antiques and her mom's alcoholism, and the plucky heroine has enough problems to drive at least three novels. Unfortunately, the suspense gets lost somewhere among the antiques and Weezie's attempts to consummate her romance with Daniel. But even a denouement that comes way too soon and a junk bin of distractions won't keep readers away. 8-city author tour. (Feb. 20)Forecasts:This appealing effort should do well enough on its own, but if booksellers and publicists play up the
Midnight connection, it could soar.

January 1, 2002
Eloise "Weezie" Foley has started up her own antique business after bitterly divorcing her husband, blue-blooded Talmadge Evans III. Her new independence has one serious crimp--she's living in the carriage house in his backyard, and he's now living with his beautiful new girlfriend, Caroline DeSantos. Their hilarious if hostile feuding only ends when Weezie breaks into an abandoned plantation house to get an advance look at an estate sale. What she finds is Caroline, dead in the bathroom closet; soon Weezie has become the prime suspect in her death. Weezie asks her Uncle James, who has just come out of the closet, for investigative help and turns to a gorgeous former boyfriend and her smart-mouthed best friend, Be-Be, for emotional support. Andrews incorporates her immensely likable characters and irreverent humor with a backdrop replete with southern lore, antique furniture, and cooking. She sets a breakneck pace, and readers will just love keeping up with her. An amazingly accomplished, genre-bending debut novel: smart, sassy, and fun to read.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)

February 1, 2002
Reeling from a divorce, Eloise "Weezie" Foley misses her lovingly decorated historic home a bit more than she misses her cheating ex-husband. Her passion is finding and selling antiques, and she struggles to collect enough inventory to turn her hobby into a full-fledged business. When she discovers a dead body while attempting to sneak early into an estate sale, things get complicated especially because the murdered woman is her ex-husband's latest girlfriend. Andrews moves the plot along with a multitude of quirky and entertaining secondary characters Weezie's alcoholic mother, an uncle who is a gay ex-priest, and an old boyfriend who is the chef at her best friend's pricey bistro. Facts about period furniture, linens, china, vintage clothing, magazines, and paintings blend seamlessly and enrich what might have been just another ho-hum, screwball romantic story. Despite a dismal book jacket, Andrews's debut novel should soon find an audience among readers who enjoy Jayne Ann Krentz or Olivia Goldsmith. A worthwhile purchase for public libraries. Margaret Hanes, Sterling Heights P.L., MI

Copyright 2001 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.