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Pauline Sokol Mystery #5
Nip, Tuck, Dead
Ex-nurse-turned-insurance fraud investigator Pauline Sokol's willing to risk anything to put a bad doc out of business—even her best friend Goldie's near-perfect proboscis! Her cross-dressing compadre has agreed to get his shnozz bobbed so Pauline can pose as his private nurse and gain entry into Highcliff Manor—a posh plastic surgery "spa" making an illegal killing with their repeat clientele.
But when a super-rich "frequent flier" is unexpectedly widowed—and a receptionist who knows too much is given the boot . . . off a nearby cliff!—Pauline realizes she's stuck her own nose into something really nasty. Despite the pleasant distraction of the hunky Dr. Neal—and the unexpected appearance of her sexy cohort, Jagger—Pauline can't shake the feeling she's being closely watched. And if she's not careful, she'll be the next one who goes under the knife!
But when a super-rich "frequent flier" is unexpectedly widowed—and a receptionist who knows too much is given the boot . . . off a nearby cliff!—Pauline realizes she's stuck her own nose into something really nasty. Despite the pleasant distraction of the hunky Dr. Neal—and the unexpected appearance of her sexy cohort, Jagger—Pauline can't shake the feeling she's being closely watched. And if she's not careful, she'll be the next one who goes under the knife!
304 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 28, 2006
About the author
Lori Avocato
26 books63 followersAfter working thirteen years as a registered nurse, four of which she felt like "Hot Lips Houlihan" while serving in the United States Air Force, Lori Avocato picked up a book and said, "Hm. I can write one of these." Yeah right!
Oh, she wrote several all right--twenty-one to be exact--but getting them published proved to be another matter. Throughout the years, she realized it was not an easy task to write a book, much less a short, concise one. Oh how wrong Lori was!
However, now as an award-winning author, Lori is multi-published with twenty-one books currently sold in which her humor lends itself to her comedic voice. She writes contemporary novels and often uses her military, medical, or a combination of both backgrounds in her plots.
Recently Lori has found her niche writing her new series, The Pauline Sokol Mysteries. Her ex-RN character, Pauline Sokol, becomes a medical insurance fraud investigator. Now she is working on a new series called "Lethal in Lace." Yikes! Stay tuned for details.
As an Air Force veteran, Lori belongs to RomVets and The Nathan Hale Chapter of Military Officers Association. As a writer, she belongs to The Author's Guild, Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and Romance Writers of America along with several local chapters.
Lori lives in the New England area, raising two sons (Heaven help her!), and, of course, continuing to write novels. She'd love to hear from you via email at LAvocato@cox.net
Oh, she wrote several all right--twenty-one to be exact--but getting them published proved to be another matter. Throughout the years, she realized it was not an easy task to write a book, much less a short, concise one. Oh how wrong Lori was!
However, now as an award-winning author, Lori is multi-published with twenty-one books currently sold in which her humor lends itself to her comedic voice. She writes contemporary novels and often uses her military, medical, or a combination of both backgrounds in her plots.
Recently Lori has found her niche writing her new series, The Pauline Sokol Mysteries. Her ex-RN character, Pauline Sokol, becomes a medical insurance fraud investigator. Now she is working on a new series called "Lethal in Lace." Yikes! Stay tuned for details.
As an Air Force veteran, Lori belongs to RomVets and The Nathan Hale Chapter of Military Officers Association. As a writer, she belongs to The Author's Guild, Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and Romance Writers of America along with several local chapters.
Lori lives in the New England area, raising two sons (Heaven help her!), and, of course, continuing to write novels. She'd love to hear from you via email at LAvocato@cox.net
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
April 15, 2020
It's been a while since I've read this series but I enjoyed this entry and it was easy to slip back into it. I like the characters and especially enjoy Pauline's personality. I find the insurance fraud to a different story line for investigation. I think I especially enjoyed that this story took place in Newport, RI and I was just there last year so it was fun to see some of where I visited in the story. The ending completely surprised me with lots of things I didn't see coming.
March 23, 2022
I struggled with the rating for this book.
The premise was good; a former nurse turned insurance fraud investigator gets a case at a high class plastic surgery spa, where the number of cases submitted to insurance seems rather high for typically cosmetic procedures. It takes place in Newport RI, which is a town I enjoy visiting. The story line was engaging.
However, when I started reading this book, I had to check it a couple of times. Was this a blatant ripoff of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series? Let's see...each has a scuzzy boss...Jagger in this series = Ranger. Both mom's are cook-a-holics and dinners at the house are a ritual. Dad reads the newspaper and tries to stay out of things. Former Ho Lula = cross dressing Goldie. No hamster, thank goodness. No grandma either. The Stephanie Plum formula works. This one seemed like a copycat.
If the characters had more originality, I might have gone 4 stars. As it is, 3 is the highest.
The premise was good; a former nurse turned insurance fraud investigator gets a case at a high class plastic surgery spa, where the number of cases submitted to insurance seems rather high for typically cosmetic procedures. It takes place in Newport RI, which is a town I enjoy visiting. The story line was engaging.
However, when I started reading this book, I had to check it a couple of times. Was this a blatant ripoff of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series? Let's see...each has a scuzzy boss...Jagger in this series = Ranger. Both mom's are cook-a-holics and dinners at the house are a ritual. Dad reads the newspaper and tries to stay out of things. Former Ho Lula = cross dressing Goldie. No hamster, thank goodness. No grandma either. The Stephanie Plum formula works. This one seemed like a copycat.
If the characters had more originality, I might have gone 4 stars. As it is, 3 is the highest.
November 11, 2017
This one had me guessing until the end.
July 2, 2015
“Ex-nurse-turned-insurance fraud investigator Pauline Sokol's willing to risk anything to put a bad doc out of business—even her best friend Goldie's near-perfect proboscis! Her cross-dressing compadre has agreed to get his shnozz bobbed so Pauline can pose as his private nurse and gain entry into Highcliff Manor—a posh plastic surgery "spa" making an illegal killing with their repeat clientele.
But when a super-rich "frequent flier" is unexpectedly widowed—and a receptionist who knows too much is given the boot . . . off a nearby cliff!—Pauline realizes she's stuck her own nose into something really nasty. Despite the pleasant distraction of the hunky Dr. Neal—and the unexpected appearance of her sexy cohort, Jagger—Pauline can't shake the feeling she's being closely watched. And if she's not careful, she'll be the next one who goes under the knife!”
This is just a fun GREAT mystery to read, they even make me chuckle right out loud and they don’t have to be read in order!
But when a super-rich "frequent flier" is unexpectedly widowed—and a receptionist who knows too much is given the boot . . . off a nearby cliff!—Pauline realizes she's stuck her own nose into something really nasty. Despite the pleasant distraction of the hunky Dr. Neal—and the unexpected appearance of her sexy cohort, Jagger—Pauline can't shake the feeling she's being closely watched. And if she's not careful, she'll be the next one who goes under the knife!”
This is just a fun GREAT mystery to read, they even make me chuckle right out loud and they don’t have to be read in order!
January 10, 2016
I think I am going to give up on this series. I hate it when an author keeps using the same phrasing throughout. I'm amazed that the main character still has a jaw since her is constantly dropping. She does the same thing with re-occurring themes throughout - as in the heroine can't seem to think straight when there is a handsome man around. She also is incapable of taking care of herself and constantly needs to be rescued by the men in her life.
November 12, 2008
Okay. I did not find the characters believable. I couldn't imagine the people having the money to investigate. However, in the world of plastic surgery this sort of thing could indeed happen. The tone of the book is wrong and it just wasn't well written.
May 26, 2013
Good book. It's the first I've read by this author. Definite similarities to Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum. The writing isn't as tight, and there were typos and one sentence spoiler where the story got ahead of itself. I'll try a couple more by this author.
August 14, 2013
I felt that this book tried to compete with Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, and it just didn't make the cut for me. I suppose that someone without prior knowledge of the Plum series might enjoy it.
January 6, 2010
I really liked this book but kinda wanted a bit more between Jagger and Pauline at the end. Just my silly love goosebumps acting up!
January 3, 2015
This one wasn't for me. Conversational, chatty, light and I'm sure quite amusing/funny for some, but I just found it didn't have enough to keep me interested in the "mystery".
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews