Vol. 4: DEAD IN THE WATERWHAT’S THE ETIQUETTE WHEN YOUR HOSTESS IS ARRESTED FOR MURDER? San Francisco lawyer Rebecca Schwartz has occasion to wonder when she and her weekend hostess, Marty Whitehead, find a body floating in the 30-foot kelp tower at the Monterey Aquarium, and Marty’s promptly dragged off to the slammer. Rebecca quickly grasps the Emily Post solution—sign on as Marty’s lawyer, try … grasps the Emily Post solution—sign on as Marty’s lawyer, try to keep her client’s two young kids out of the deep end, and somehow avoid drowning in the sea of lies gushing from Marty’s mouth–and everyone else’s. There’s a lot of intrigue among the aquarium’s oceangoing primates, as well as rumors of a pearl beyond price. Plus a new romance for our heroine!
Volume 5: OTHER PEOPLE’S SKELETONS
WHAT SHE’S ABOUT TO LEARN WILL ROCK HER WORLD! Rebecca Schwartz, “Jewish feminist lawyer,” as she’s fond of saying, thought she knew her best friend–and her boy friend. Not to mention her family. But everything’s about to change.
Secrets spill out of these pages like hornets out of a nest, each with its own distinct sting, as author Smith weaves a thrill-packed and complicated San Francisco mystery that’s as much about how little we know about our nearest and dearest as it is about whodunit.
Rebecca’s shocked when Chris Nicholson, her glamorous law partner, is arrested for murder–but not nearly so shocked as when she discovers Chris can’t come up with an alibi. What she was doing, Chris says, involves a secret so damaging she’d be drummed out of San Francisco legal circles if anyone knew. Sure enough, when Rebecca uncovers it, her world tilts on its axis—and continues to list, ever more dangerously, as the story picks up speed and this formerly rational lawyer finds her worldview threatened by things she never knew existed. At least not in her circle! And Chris is far from the only one with a skeleton in her closet.
Books 4 and 5 in Edgar-winner Julie Smith’s series featuring funny, lively lawyer Rebecca Schwartz (plus a bonus short story)!
Fans of Nancy Pickard’s delicate psychological probes, Janet Evanovich’s wild romps, and Marcia Muller’s complex yarns will appreciate this one.
Author Alert: I wrote these after I’d written the first book in the Skip Langdon Police Procedural Series, which is a much darker proposition than the Rebecca Schwartz books. Usually. But some readers have remarked that these two are a good deal darker than the three previous titles in the series — edgier, more realistic, and…well, just not as funny. Guilty as charged. (Sorry! They just came out that way.) DEAD IN THE WATER has some scary scenes, and some readers have been offended by the way the characters wrestle with issues of religion and lack of same in OTHER PEOPLE’S SKELETONS. Whatever you decide, we’ve got your back: if you think you’ll like it and you guess wrong, we’ll refund your money and throw in a free book! Just write me at [email protected]. –Julie Smith
BONUS SHORT STORY: BLOOD TYPES
This one’s absolutely shivery. If you’re a lawyer, and someone you haven’t heard from in years calls to ask how to execute a holographic will, what are you to think if he dies the next day? For all fans of Bay Area mysteries, with perhaps more appeal to readers of noir than cozies.
”Nobody gets inside her characters like Julie Smith.” -Linda Barnes, author of the Carlotta Carlyle series
“Julie Smith writes like jazz should sound–cool, complex, and penetrating right to the heart.” -Val McDermid
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Sweet. I wouldn’t read it again though.
Cute characters that are pretty realistic. Ms Schwartz is funny, whitty and not portrayed as a know it all. The supporting characters are also portrayed as real peopIe.
I listened to this series while doing chores and was able to follow the stories.
All five books in this series have great plots and characters. The books are not quick reads and sometimes have too many characters making it difficult to keep them all straight. My main reason for giving them three stars was the language and obsession with sex. It really distracted the reader from the otherwise great story, and was completely unnecessary.
A couple of forgettable tales.
The actual set of books I got was Volumes 1 through 5. I throughly enjoyed every one of the books in the series. The characters are great, the stories each have their own theme with word building surrounding them, which I like. There are great plots with twists and turns, plenty of action, suspense, and plenty of murders and mayhem. I found myself laughing out loud in places and nervous to the point of sitting at the edge of my seat at others. I had a hard time setting the books down to get something to eat or to go to bed at 3 to 5 int the wee hours of the day. The books are page turners. The books are stand alone books, no cliffhangers.
The Rebecca Schwartz series is more of a slightly lighter gathering of characters and plots than the Skip Langdon series.
Set in SanFrancisco, the locations are a great selection of the variety of SF locations that realistic and accurate.
The series is a good read in any order, but starting with the first volume, “Death turns a trick” makes sure you don’t miss a Trick!
I love the Rebecca Schwartz series. They’re all entertaining with twisty little plots, and lots of light-hearted dialogue.
pretty good
Fair–summer reading
Enjoyed learning about sea creatures etc. as well as the mystery.
Reminds me a lot of Stephanie plum ,
Loved the characters and storylines!
Really enjoyable lead character
Good plot, easy to read.
A good cozy mystery read. Very enjoyable.
Very interesting protagonist who learns and grows as the series progresses. Keeps your attention.
Not memorable.
all of Julie Smith’s books are enjoyable, easy reads with nice use of language, good editing and some likeable characters as a fan of oz and the big easy, I enjoy reading books set there
Julie Smith is a great writer.
Love this series!