Rating: 
Summary: Too Long a Wait
Review: Claire Malloy's life seems to be back to normal. Caron is overdramatic, her bookstore is just barely afloat, and Lt. Rosen is back in her life. Miss Parchester's life is slightly more exciting, she is living in a tree to protest the extension of a housing developement. Caron finds a baby on the doorstep, and the owner of the development is shot and killed. The mother of the baby is the leading suspect, and Miss Parchester knows more than she is telling.I have waited a long time for this book and I wasn't disappointed. Ms. Hess' quirky characters always make me laugh, particularly Caron and her ongoing battles for popularity with Rhonda Maquire. It did annoy me that Lt. Rosen is back in the picture with little or no explanation. Overall, this was a quick and fun read.
Rating:
Summary: Too Long a Wait
Review: Claire Malloy's life seems to be back to normal. Caron is overdramatic, her bookstore is just barely afloat, and Lt. Rosen is back in her life. Miss Parchester's life is slightly more exciting, she is living in a tree to protest the extension of a housing developement. Caron finds a baby on the doorstep, and the owner of the development is shot and killed. The mother of the baby is the leading suspect, and Miss Parchester knows more than she is telling. I have waited a long time for this book and I wasn't disappointed. Ms. Hess' quirky characters always make me laugh, particularly Caron and her ongoing battles for popularity with Rhonda Maquire. It did annoy me that Lt. Rosen is back in the picture with little or no explanation. Overall, this was a quick and fun read.
Rating: 
Summary: Fun book to read
Review: Claire Malloy, bookseller and amateur sleuth, is a person I would love to have living next door. She is wickedly funny and incredibly sharp. With a cast of supporting characters who weave in and out of the main storyline, her neighborhood seems the most interesting in Farberville, Arkansas. Humor and an intriguing storyline make this a welcome addition to the Claire Malloy series which seems refreshed with every entry. I recommend them all for fun reading.
Rating:
Summary: Great addition to series
Review: Claire Malloy, bookseller and amateur sleuth, is a person I would love to have living next door. She is wickedly funny and incredibly sharp. With a cast of supporting characters who weave in and out of the main storyline, her neighborhood seems the most interesting in Farberville, Arkansas. Humor and an intriguing storyline make this a welcome addition to the Claire Malloy series which seems refreshed with every entry. I recommend them all for fun reading.
Rating:
Summary: entertaining and poignant cozy
Review: Farberville, Arkansas is usually a quiet little town but every once in a while trouble seems to erupt and everyone just knows crime solver Claire Malloy will be in the middle of it. To make way for more housing, a group of trees have to be cut down but environmentalist Miss Emily Parchester plans a protest by living in a tree until she wins her point. Claire, who aided and abetted the elderly woman before with a false murder charge, tries to talk some sense into her but fails in the face of the Emily's determination. When she returns home, Claire finds her sixteen-year-old daughter nearly hysterical. A newborn baby only four weeks old has been put on Claire's doorstep. Clair delivered the baby whose the teenage mother lived in the streets but she has no idea who she was. Anthony Armstrong, the developer who wants to cut the trees down, is murdered and his daughter, arrested for the crime. Claire recognizes her as the baby's mother and enlists her friends into helping her prove the young mother is innocent. OUT ON A LAMB is an entertaining and poignant cozy that intertwines several social issues into the main story line. Joan Hess is a witty writer who uses subtle touches of humor to diffuse the tension when it reaches too high a level. The author is an expert at characterizations and readers are pulled into the plot because they want to know what the characters will do next especially since they are so unpredictable. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: entertaining and poignant cozy
Review: Farberville, Arkansas is usually a quiet little town but every once in a while trouble seems to erupt and everyone just knows crime solver Claire Malloy will be in the middle of it. To make way for more housing, a group of trees have to be cut down but environmentalist Miss Emily Parchester plans a protest by living in a tree until she wins her point. Claire, who aided and abetted the elderly woman before with a false murder charge, tries to talk some sense into her but fails in the face of the Emily's determination. When she returns home, Claire finds her sixteen-year-old daughter nearly hysterical. A newborn baby only four weeks old has been put on Claire's doorstep. Clair delivered the baby whose the teenage mother lived in the streets but she has no idea who she was. Anthony Armstrong, the developer who wants to cut the trees down, is murdered and his daughter, arrested for the crime. Claire recognizes her as the baby's mother and enlists her friends into helping her prove the young mother is innocent. OUT ON A LAMB is an entertaining and poignant cozy that intertwines several social issues into the main story line. Joan Hess is a witty writer who uses subtle touches of humor to diffuse the tension when it reaches too high a level. The author is an expert at characterizations and readers are pulled into the plot because they want to know what the characters will do next especially since they are so unpredictable. Harriet Klausner
Rating: 
Summary: A disappointing addition to the series
Review: Joan Hess is always a great read, but this Claire Malloy adventure wasn't up to her normal standard. Luanne and Caron were the actual stars this time, which was lots of fun, but Claire's lackadaisical parenting and business skills were just too prominently featured for me to enjoy the plot (would China Bayles give her the time of day? A smidge of personal growth wouldn't be too out of place in this series!) -- and the ending didn't make any sense, not because of the "who dunnit," but because the logistics were very questionable. Finally, not a single character mentioned the the baby to the police, even in passing? I guess I'll have to wait for the next installment to have a better "Joan Hess fix".
Rating:
Summary: Unique Storyline
Review: Joan Hess is one of my favorite authors, so my opinion of Out on a Limb is biased by the fact that I was sure I would like it before I bought it. The best part of this book was the unique storyline. As you have no doubt read the description supplied by the publisher, I won't rewrite it here. I will just say that while other humorous mystery writers use the same storylines over and over, Hess comes up with fantastic new ideas each time. I loved this story about the Green Party, and I love the recurring characters in Claire Malloy's life -- in this case, Miss Parchester. Even if I had guessed the ending of Out on a Limb before the last page of the book, I enjoy the style of Hess' writing so greatly that I cannot wait to see what Claire will do next. If you like the Maggody books or have read the other Claire Malloy books, I recommend this one. It's a light, easy read that will at times make you Laugh Out Loud Caron Malloy-style.
Rating:
Summary: Unique Storyline
Review: Joan Hess is one of my favorite authors, so my opinion of Out on a Limb is biased by the fact that I was sure I would like it before I bought it. The best part of this book was the unique storyline. As you have no doubt read the description supplied by the publisher, I won't rewrite it here. I will just say that while other humorous mystery writers use the same storylines over and over, Hess comes up with fantastic new ideas each time. I loved this story about the Green Party, and I love the recurring characters in Claire Malloy's life -- in this case, Miss Parchester. Even if I had guessed the ending of Out on a Limb before the last page of the book, I enjoy the style of Hess' writing so greatly that I cannot wait to see what Claire will do next. If you like the Maggody books or have read the other Claire Malloy books, I recommend this one. It's a light, easy read that will at times make you Laugh Out Loud Caron Malloy-style.
Rating:
Summary: A disappointing addition to the series
Review: Potboiler; passes the time when there was nothing more interesting at the library. The cop boyfriend is a really cardboard character. A bunch of weird excentics. Won't check out any more. Try Ann Cranger or Deborah Crombie for a GOOD read.
| 
