Ticket 2 Ride

I’m always on the lookout for a great mystery writer, having an ordinary but thoughtful protagonist, and cases that are exciting and realistic. You’d be surprised how difficult it is to find all of these traits.

Laura Lippman is one. I discovered her quite by accident, looking at new mysteries on display at a local public library. Her protagonist was a woman in her 60’s, Muriel Blossom, traveling to France by way of London. Described as a dowdy widow, and written from her point of view, I struggled to stayed interested, but it became clear a series of events were changing the course of her trip, and she might have been a bit naive about suave men, but she was bright and not easily deterred. I quickly fell into the story of Murder Takes a Vacation (2025, William Morrow).

Muriel Blossom is the retired assistant to private investigator Tess Monaghan, and has been a supporting character in past Monaghan books. She steps out front in this apparent stand-alone mystery. Muriel does contact Tess for investigative assistance during the trip.

Who to trust? A gallant gentleman, Allan, who is also traveling to London and befriends Muriel. Sparks fly. Onto Paris and a younger man, Danny, also appears in her life, but his story keeps changing. Then Allan turns up in Paris unexpectedly, dead. Muriel meets up with her friend from the U.S. for their cruise. Her room is searched, she is followed and many other odd events happen. Jewels, an ancient artifact are missing.

Muriel gains her footing and begins unraveling the mysteries that now surround her. It helps that she did some surveillance work for Tess, but the challenges here are above her pay grade. Muriel, or Mrs. Blossom as she is referred to, comes out of her shell as this trip unfolds. She’s been a widow for ten years and uprooted herself to move close to her daughter and grandkids. After her son-in-law announces that they are moving to Tokyo, Muriel moves back to Baltimore and must restart her life. She unexpectedly comes into some money and hence the trip to France. Often in the book, Muriel reflects on her long marriage, happy, but it wasn’t an exciting life. Her life was stable, but it left her wanting more in her later years.

I was impressed with Lippman’s story plotting and construction, but I found Muriel’s character a bit clunky and difficult to relate to. I kept thinking this was Robin Williams portraying Mrs. Doubtfire. It wasn’t the character’s age, I’m that age, so I understand what’s it’s like to look back and make the future really count. Lippman really understands the London-Paris-Seinne locales that she writes about. It felt like I was there.

Would I recommend this book? Sure, read it for the mystery, less for the characters as written. I was intrigued enough to go from Lippman’s most current book all the way back to the beginning of Tess Monaghan’s character. I do enjoy the way Lippman writes and the complexity of her stories.

Baltimore Blues (1997, William Morrow) follows out of work journalist Tess Monaghan as she assists attorney friend Tyner in defending mutual friend Rock accused of murdering his fiancée’s boss. Tess is not yet a P.I., but her dogged prying into events surrounding the murder unravels the case.

Darryl “Rock” Paxton hires Tess to follow his fiancée because she is acting strange and he wants to know what’s wrong. Tess discovers she’s meeting her boss at a hotel, apparently more than once. The fiancée, Ava, is a piece of work, and tells Rock her version of the story. The next thing is Ava’s boss turns up dead, and Rock is arrested for the murder. Tess is hired to interview potential witnesses, but she jumps in with both feet to pursue various leads, which is well-beyond what she was hired to do.

Tess is highly motivated (on things that interest her), and isn’t hesitant to bend rules and create false impressions to get people to talk to her. It would seem that moving from a reporter to private eye is a lateral move.

Gutsy and determined, two qualities that an investigator must possess in the world of crime fiction. V.I. Warshawski, Stephanie Plum, Kinsey Milhone all have it. Tess Monaghan fits into this group.

Lippman writes Tess as a normal person with flaws. We learn a lot about Tess, and a lot about Baltimore. Tess has interesting taste in men; why she still has old flame Jonathan in her life is difficult to say. Who is this young Crow guy? Really? Relationships figure greatly in this story, there’s an element of trust and loyalty running through the pairs in this story.

Tess is a serious rower, out on the water early each morning. With a frantic life, the discipline and hard work is a helpful pursuit. Working a variety of jobs to make ends meet, Tess can be ethically flexible at times. She helps her uncle by doing some of his governmental work, as he doctors the state time card to get her paid. She’s having a sexual relationship with her ex-boyfriend despite him having a girlfriend. These are real people and we’re all flawed.

Would I recommend this book? Yes, in fact it’s quite an amazing mystery. Twists and turns, new clues and reasons to keep guessing.

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Lippman moved from reporter to mystery writer. Twenty years as a journalist, the last 12 at the Baltimore Sun, she wrote mysteries while working full time, before turning exclusively to fiction in 2001.

She has received a variety of awards for her books: Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Paperback or eBook Original, Shamus Award, Agatha Award for Best Contemporary Novel, Anthony Award for Best Paperback Original, Strand Critics Award for Best Mystery Novel, Macavity Award for Best Novel, Barry Award for Best Novel, Anthony Award for Best Novel, Gumshoe Award, and is a New York Times Best Selling Author