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Aaron Tucker freelance writer, stay-at-home dad, and all-around smart aleck is back! Things are as calm as they ever are in the Tucker household, which is to say life is pretty hectic, but Aaron is used to that. His wife is pressuring him to let their daughter have a pet gecko. (Aaron isn't buying for one minute her assurances that he won't end up caring for any gecko that takes up residence. He especially doesn't want to be responsible for feeding it the worms that make up its diet.) His daughter is developing the mood swings of preteen, even though she's only eight years old. And his son, an "Asperger's kid,” would rather miss a meal with his family than miss an episode of The "The Aaron can't remember why he wanted to attend his 25th high school reunion, but now that he's coerced his best friend into going, there's no backing out. And he is looking forward to seeing the other three members of his old gang. But he honestly hadn't given a thought to the possibility that his old high school crush, Stephanie Jacobs, would be there although he certainly isn't disappointed to see her. (Not that Aaron's wife, Abby, has anything to worry about. Aaron knows how lucky he is to have her.) The happy reunion comes to an unhappy conclusion when Stephanie gets a phone call telling her that her Washington lobbyist husband, Louis "Crazy Legs" Gibson, has been murdered. Theirs wasn't the happiest marriage, but Stephanie is shaken and wants to know why anyone would kill her husband. She's heard about Aaron's previous foray into investigative work and wants him to take on this case, too. When he demurs, she offers to use her contacts to get a national magazine to pay him for an article on Louis's murder. With Abby urging him on, Aaron has no choice but to agree. While investigating Louis's murder is what Aaron is being paid for, he also has an unpaid assignment on his plate someone has been setting off stink bombs at the local school and the principal has begged Aaron to find out who is behind it. Only Aaron would find himself looking into the murder of a nationally-known political figure and looking into a school stink bomb problem at the same time and only Aaron would solve both cases against all odds. A FAREWELL TO LEGS is a worthy successor to FOR WHOM THE MINIVAN ROLLS, the first Aaron Tucker mystery. Cohen hasn't lost his magic touch for snappy, believable dialogue and for perfectly capturing all the nuances of family life in suburbia. Aaron and his family could be your neighbors, if you're lucky enough to have particularly delightful neighbors. Once again, there are laughs on almost every page, but the humor is never forced and the characters are never over the top. (A certain best-selling author of humorous mysteries could take lessons from Jeffrey Cohen.) Best of all, the humor doesn't overshadow the mystery; Cohen doesn't sacrifice plot or suspense while making us laugh. Those who read FOR WHOM THE MINIVAN ROLLS won't need any encouragement to pick up A FAREWELL TO LEGS. Those who missed Cohen's inaugural effort are in for a real treat when they meet Aaron Tucker, his friends, and his family in this latest entry in the series. And after reading A FAREWELL TO LEGS, everyone will be eager for Aaron's next adventure!
Reviewed by Susan Anderson, July 2003
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