Synopses & Reviews
Meet Annabelle Starkey. Shrewd, sweet, and sexy. A Stephanie Plum without the Jersey girl attitude, plus she's a one-man kind of girl. Loves hats and shoes — notices them in odd situations. Can see when she might need to shoot to kill.
Annabelle Starkey also loves movies. Why does her own life never match up to her favorite Silver-Screen scenarios? One day, by chance, she meets the charming but slightly mysterious and definitely magnetic Mickey Paxton at a book convention and decides it's time to live one of those Cary Grant films and accept Mickey's invitation to fly to Las Vegas for a holiday. Not so much a hook-up as a test flight for romance.
The script takes a surprise turn when they arrive in Sin City and danger knocks. Suddenly Annabelle and Mickey are on the run — from what? And why? Did Mickey lead Annabelle into this mess? Then the brutal murder of Annabelle's BFF in Annabelle's San Francisco apartment sends the couple winging west to that city where, once again, criminals and cops pursue them.
In two frenetic days of fast driving, fast talking, and fast thinking, Annabelle discovers several truths by learning to trust her own instincts. And the significance of an antique hat pin.
Jump the Gun is Zoe Burke's debut mystery and starts a series for a heroine whose cinematic fantasies spur her to take chances but never cloak terrifying realities. No matter what the danger, Annabelle's fresh and funny voice is her best weapon.
Review
"Quickly paced and so clever, Burke's debut is a winning semi-cozy caper, perfect for movie fans. She never misses a beat with her light rom-com banter, multigenerational ensemble, and sense of fun. This title makes a nice pairing with Diane Vallere's 'Mad for Mod' series." Library Journal starred review
Review
"A hilarious romp through 'Sin City' and San Francisco by a shiny bright new pair of Sleuths, Annabelle and Mickey. Movies, old and new, crooked cops, cats, and suspicious deaths combine to drive this first in what one can only hope will be a very long series." Frederick Ramsay, author of The Ike Schwartz Mysteries
Review
"Impulsive Annabelle, speaking her mind sometimes in CAPS, is a winning protagonist, and this smart, snappy, whirlwind romantic mystery kicks off what promises to be an entertaining series." Booklist
Synopsis
Annabelle Starkey loves movies, but her own life by comparison never seems to match up to her favorite Silver-Screen scenarios. So when she meets the charming but slightly mysterious Mickey Paxton at a book convention, she decides its time to take a leap and accept his invitation to fly to Las Vegas on a spur-of-the-moment romantic holiday.
But things don't go according to script. The would-be lovers suddenly find themselves pursued by a thug who might be a policeman and a sweet old lady who might be a swindler. Did Mickey lead her into this mess? Annabelle senses he's holding something back, but at the same time, she finds she must depend on him. When a brutal murder leads them to San Francisco, Annabelle's hometown, she's shaken to her core but grateful for Mickey's help in spite of her misgivings.
As Annabelle and Mickey try to piece together whats happening, an unusual hatpin leads them to investigate a nursing home, where once again, they find themselves pursued by criminals and cops. In two frenetic days of fast driving, fast talking, and fast thinking, Annabelle discovers the truth about Mickey, and in a violent resolution, she finds the answers by learning to trust her own instincts.
In Jump the Gun, Zoe Burke's debut mystery, readers will find a refreshing protagonist in spunky, guileless Annabelle, whose cinematic fantasies and quick-witted tongue offer hilarious counterpoint to the terrifying situation in which she finds herself.
Synopsis
Meet Annabelle Starkey. A shrewd, sweet, and sexy Stephanie Plum without the Jersey girl attitude. She's a one-man kind of girl who loves hats and shoes. Annabelle also loves movies. She can't help but wonder why her own life doesn't match her favorite silver-screen scenarios. Then, one day she meets the charming, slightly mysterious, and definitely magnetic Mickey Paxton and decides it's time to live one of those Cary Grant films. She accepts Mickey's invitation to fly to Las Vegas for a holiday and a test flight forRomance. The script takes a surprising turn when they arrive in Sin City. Suddenly Annabelle and Mickey are on the run, but from what? And why? Did Mickey lead Annabelle into this mess? Then a murder in Annabelle's San Francisco apartment sends the couple winging west to that city where, once again, criminals and cops pursue them. In two frenetic days of fast driving, fast talking, and fast thinking, Annabelle discovers several truths by learning to trust her own instincts. No matter what the danger, Annabelle's fresh and funny voice is her best weapon. Jump the Gun begins a cinematic new series.
Synopsis
"Mystery meets romance meets noir meets caper."--Kirkus Reviews
Annabelle Starkey is a shrewd, sweet, and sexy Stephanie Plum without the Jersey girl attitude. She's a one-man kind of girl who loves hats and shoes.
Annabelle also loves movies. But her own life doesn't match her favorite silver-screen scenarios. Then, one day she meets charming, slightly mysterious, and definitely magnetic Mickey Paxton and decides it's time to live one of those Cary Grant films. They fly to Las Vegas for a holiday and a test flight for romance.
The script takes a surprising turn when they arrive in Sin City. Suddenly Annabelle and Mickey are on the run--from what? And why? Did Mickey lead Annabelle into this mess? Then a murder in Annabelle's San Francisco apartment sends the couple winging west to that city where, once again, criminals and cops pursue them.
In two frenetic days of fast driving, fast talking, and fast thinking, Annabelle learns to trust her instincts. No matter what the danger, Annabelle's fresh and funny voice is her best weapon.
About the Author
Zoe Burke is the author of two children's books, Charley Harper's What's in the Woods: A Nature Discovery Book (Pomegranate, 2013) and Lightning Bug Thunder (Firefly, 1998). This is her first mystery novel. In her day job, she is the vice president and publisher of Pomegranate Communications, an art book publishing company. She enjoyed a brief singer/songwriter career as Katie Burke in the 1990s. She lives in Portland, Oregon, with her husband.