Death By Bikini

DEATH BY BIKINI
LINDA GERBER
Mystery YA
Puffin/Sleuth
ISBN# 0142411175
240 Pages
$6.99
Trade - Available May 15, 2008

Rating: 5 Enchantments

Aphra Behn Connolly lives a quiet life working at her father’s resort on a remote island. But things are about to change. When a family of unexpected guests show up late at night and her father pushes her away to take care of things, Aphra’s already suspicious, as her father isn’t all that tech savvy. She’s even more so when the next day, there’s no trace of him ever checking the Smiths in, let alone to villa four, the one villa on the property that isn’t fully guest ready. But when Bianca, the girlfriend of their resident rock-star guest is found murdered on the beach the same day, Aphra can’t stop the wave of guilt she feels over Bianca’s death, since it was her who suggested the woman try the beach for a change, instead of lounging by the pool.

DEATH BY BIKINI is the definition of a page-turner. The story pulled me in from Page One and never let me set it down till the very last page. The mystery of who killed Bianca as well as the very suspicious behavior of both Aphra’s father and the late-night-guests, the Smiths, ratchets up Aphra’s suspicions-even more when her father warns her to stay away from the hottie teenage son, Adam. But when a Google search turns up the truth about the Smiths’ real identity, Aphra thinks she’s solved Bianca’s murder, a thought that could prove fatally wrong.

This was a great read! Aphra’s suspicions tend to be right on the money (at least about her father’s behavior) and she’s willing to do whatever it takes to find out the truth, even going behind her father’s back, something she really hasn’t done before. I loved so much about this book, but my favorite scene has to be when she’s trapped in the cave and has to confront her fear of bats to find a way out, or risk having the real killer find her and Adam.

The mystery had me guessing right till the very end of who was behind Bianca’s death and what was really going on with the Smiths. Several twists and turns and an unexpected guest or two made this a very engrossing read. Ms. Gerber penned a must read mystery with DEATH BY BIKINI. I look forward to reading the next in the series, DEATH BY LATTE due out this fall.

Lisa
Enchanting Reviews
April 2008