Just Add Water
Jinx Schwartz
This delightful book introduces Hetta Coffey in the series that continues with Just Add Salt and several other books that feature a smart and sassy protagonist and her best friend Jan, as they troll for men and adventure.
In Just Add Water, the duo are rebounding from “detestable others” and hoping to find some interesting men along the San Francisco waterfront. Hetta gets the brilliant idea that they need a boat in order to snag one of these yachtsmen with the tanned faces and bulging muscles. In order to buy a boat, the friends must learn how to sail – a rollicking adventure of its own.
The story has a supporting cast that is unique and funny, including the dog, RJ, that I dare anyone not to fall in love with. When Hetta and Jan are off working or cavorting, RJ is tended to by Dr. Craig, a gay veterinarian who is also a good friend. Hetta calls him Dr. Craigosaurus because of his size. He is a BIG man.
This isn’t a book for straight mystery lovers. It is a romp, with mystery elements, and the actual mystery part came later in the story than I would have preferred. There is a prologue that introduces Hudson Williams, a man from Hetta’s past, who is eventually connected to the story, but it takes so long, I started wondering when that was going to happen.
Still, I enjoyed the clever, humorous dialogue and the various sub-plots were interesting and well done. There is a enough to keep the pages turning.
Thank you for your delightful review of Just Add Water. It makes me happy when my books make someone else happy! I will be sharing this all over the place if that is okay with you. jinx