Margarita Nights


Review in DorothyL by American reviewer Shirley Wetzel from Rice University
November 2, 2009


Phyllis Smallman kindly sent me her first published novel, Margarita Nights, the first in what I hope will be a long series featuring Sherri Travis.


McArthur, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-55278 699 4

It was the winner of the first Unhanged Arthur Ellis award - I had to look that up, it's too intriguing not to - from the Arthur Ellis Award website: "the Unhanged Arthur Award for Best Unpublished First Crime Novel, which is designed to launch the writing careers of new Canadian crime writers."
Sherri Travis tends bar in an upscale watering hole in Jacaranda, Florida. She came from the wrong side of the tracks, but her beauty and personality made her popular in high school. She caught the eye, and the heart, of Jimmy Travis, and much to his upper-crust mother's dismay he married her. Sherri loves the guy, but she's finally had enough of his womanizing and irresponsible behavior and has kicked him out of her life. He refuses to believe she means it, and pays her one last visit. Then he takes their beloved boat, the Suncoaster, out for a spin and it blows up, presumably with Jimmy aboard.
Sherri thinks it's another one of his schemes and insists he's still alive, until she's presented with evidence that removes all doubt. She is, of course, the number one suspect. She feels grief for what might have been, and anger for whoever was responsible. The police don't take her seriously when she starts uncovering other suspects with very good reasons for wanting young Jimmy dead, but somebody takes her very seriously, and soon she's running for her life. Jimmy left a cryptic phone message for her, and only their friend Andy can help her figure it out. Andy, unfortunately, is a paranoid schizophrenic who's off his meds, and she has to try to protect him, and protect herself from his erratic behavior, while she tries to sift through his ramblings to find the answer she needs.
Sherri is a likable protagonist, a strong woman with an interesting circle of loyal friends, and one or two who aren't what they seem to be. The plot keeps the reader guessing, with plenty of twists and turns, and the setting is well-drawn, taking us from the most sordid depths of Jacaranda to the heights of the well-heeled with equal ease. This is a very impressive, well-written, tightly constructed first novel, and I look forward to the next book in the series, Sex in a Sidecar.


McArthur 2009
ISBN: 978-155-278-7731