When Alanis McLachlan learns that her mother’s been murdered, she’s completely unsurprised. Not that Alanis had been given a glimpse into the future. That would be crazy, right? It’s just that her con-woman mom, Barbra, was bound to cross the wrong people sooner or later. It’s why Alanis was lucky to get out of her childhood alive – and why she hadn’t spoken to her mother in decades.But there is … decades.
But there is a surprise in store for Alanis. Barbra left her something in her will: a New Age shop in the tiny tourist trap town of Berdache, Arizona. The White Magic Five & Dime.
After going to Berdache to claim her inheritance, Alanis is drawn into the mystery around her mother’s death. Did one of Barbra’s customers finally get wise to her con-artist ways and take revenge? Alanis thinks she knows how to find out: She’ll make those customers her own until she can find the killer. Alanis McLachlan, cynic and unbeliever, is about to become a tarot card reader.
With a little help from her mother’s teenage apprentice and a snarky tarot how-to book called Infinite Roads to Knowing, Alanis begins bluffing her way through phony readings. But the more she gets to know the cards, the more she sees real meaning in them…and the closer the murderer comes to making her the next victim.
“Hilarious.” -Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“A clever and compelling tale filled with colorful and engaging characters.” -Foreword Reviews
“Hockensmith, author of the award-winning Big Red/Old Red series, and coauthor Falco deliver a charming comic mystery.” -Booklist
“The story is fun and light, and the mystical background and details of tarot reading are treated with good-natured skepticism.” -Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine
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This was a surprisingly clever and very fun read. I found the series by accident while browsing my library’s online collection. I enjoy cozy and cozy-adjacent mysteries, and like when they have some spin on a topic/specialty that I’m not familiar with – in this instance, tarot – as much as when I visit a topic that I am – con men/hustlers. I’ve watched/read a fair amount of con game stories by now, but still found a few new references and even learned a few things. And the tarot stuff was pretty interesting and handled with a sense of humor AND respect that I thought struck a nice balance. All in all this one was just fun – I admit I kind of saw the Big Reveal coming, but that didn’t lessen its enjoyment. I’m definitely moving on to book two!