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Wanda Nell Culpepper works two jobs and lives in a trailer in her hometown of in Tullahoma Tennessee, with her pre-teen daughter, her 17-year-old daughter and her teenaged daughter's two-year-old child. Her son TJ is living with their recently deceased father's mother in the Culpepper family mansion. Wanda Nell is doing her best to keep her family on the right track. When her long-lost brother Rusty, who lives in Nashville, suddenly shows up, Wanda is happy – at first. But soon he shows that he's still angry with her for some reason. He spends his days going around town and having fights with the men he used to know when they all went to high school together. When one of the men is found murdered, Rusty is the prime suspect to sheriff's deputy Elmer Lee Johnston, a lawman who has been bothering Wanda Nell for a while. But when Rusty is let go after there was evidence that the dead man was seen after their fight, Rusty then disappears without a trace. Wanda Nell is frantic to find her brother and discover what is going on and what brought her brother back to their hometown in the first place. Then when another man is found dead, the tension rises. Where could Rusty be? Was he the one who hurt the dead men, has he gone into hiding or worse, has he been killed or kidnapped by the real killer? With the help of her friend Mayrene and the elderly spinster English teacher that taught everyone involved in high school, Wanda Nell risks harm to herself and her family as she desperately goes around town questioning the men involved as she searches for her brother. I liked this book a lot. The pace is good and the solution to the murder and the mystery is sobering and real and nicely done. The dialogue 'sounds' Southern, with a down home flair and it flows well while being realistic. The characters and their relationships really make this book shine. Wanda Nell is a real woman who has a tough time working two jobs, all while learning to let go of the prejudices she grew up with. Her son is going to move in with his significant other, who just happens to be a wonderful young man Wanda Nell approves of. Her 17-year-old daughter gave birth to a child two years ago, and the baby is of mixed race. But Wanda Nell couldn't love her grandchild more than she already does. Her mother-in-law is a wealthy woman who never lets Wanda Nell forget that Wanda was a teen and pregnant when she married her recently deceased son. Even the secondary characters have a fascinating history. Her best friend and neighbor Mayrene is a big-hearted woman who relies on her beloved shotgun to help her get her opinions across to people who are rude. The spinster schoolteacher is created with just the right level of spirit and toughness and even the owner of the restaurant where Wanda Nell works has been penned with a soft heart and rough exterior that works really well in this cozy. This is the first I've read in this series, and it won't be the last. Wanda Nell Culpepper and her Trailer Park Mysteries are books I want to read.
Reviewed by A. L. Katz, February 2007
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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