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The latest in a string of books featuring hairdresser turned reporter Bubbles Yablonsky, BUBBLES ALL THE WAY has our heroine investigating the murder of Debbie Shatsky, who seemed to be despised by many of the women in town. It is the height of the Christmas season, and Bubbles is helping out at the salon. During a hair appointment, Debbie dies before everyone's eyes as she supposedly reacts to glue used for hair extensions. The cops who arrive assume it was an accident, but Bubbles believes this was all a setup. The so-called glue was found in the ladies room of the salon, incriminating Bubbles's best friend Sandy, owner of The House of Beauty.
There seems to be plenty of motive, as Bubbles and probably the rest of the town know that Debbie had always bragged about her perfect husband Phil. He didn't watch sports and loved viewing chick flicks with Debbie and cried along with her. He kept the house clean and was the perfect househusband. Any woman would want to do away with Debbie in order to get their claws into Phil. According to Debbie, there was a lady named Marguerite who wanted to do just that. Is Marguerite the possible murderer? And who is she anyway?
Told in a chatty style of narrative, BUBBLES ALL THE WAY is fun and lighthearted but contains an intriguing mystery as to who in the world would want to murder Debbie. Bubbles discovers there are a lot of people who wanted Debbie gone, as she also finds out that Debbie happened to be involved in some business practices that would have shocked the rest of the ladies at the hair salon.
I personally couldn't guess who killed Debbie, but it was fun to see where the book was taking me as I followed Bubbles's antics and her romance with her one true love, Stiletto, the AP photographer who was involved in one way or another with the mysteries she had to solve in earlier novels. The subplot centers on Bubbles's upcoming marriage to her ex-husband Dan, a man she loathes but is marrying again to help out their daughter, who had a breakdown in the previous book. Bubbles loves Stiletto, but for the sake of her daughter, she is willing to give up her own happiness to marry her sleaze of an ex. This plotline is just as engaging as the mystery and undoubtedly will keep readers interested.
The only problem I had with the novel was the conclusion. It was way over the top, even for a Bubbles book. I was really surprised that it ended the way it did, and I wasn't sure whether to be disappointed or pleasantly surprised. Despite this shortcoming, BUBBLES ALL THE WAY is fun, as all the Bubbles books have been --- somewhat silly but a great escape for those who enjoy light mysteries.
--- Reviewed by Marie Hashima Lofton (Ratmammy@lofton.org)
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