"In Susan McBride's most recent addition to the Debutante Dropout Mystery series, the free-spirited Andy Kendricks is once again knee-deep in murder when two of her mother's friskiest friends are found dead at the upscale Belle Meade retirement community. The tone is as light as angel food cake, with pop culture crowding the pages. Although the mystery itself takes a back seat to the snappy prose and eccentric characters, you'll be as eager as Kendricks' mother to "pin the tail on the murderer" by the book's end."
--Sauce Magazine

"This is an engaging series with likeable characters."
--Deadly Pleasures

"Readers will be anything but bored with THE LONE STAR LONELY HEARTS CLUB. McBride is at her best in this rollicking adventure with surprising heart."
--Wichita Eagle

"Ahh, the simple pleasures of a cozy mystery. This one has it all: suspicious deaths of wealthy widows, a smart-aleck narrator who reluctantly investigates the deaths, and even a little tasty cuisine....this is a fun book with plenty of humor and mystery."
--Lincoln Journal Star

"This is an excellent amateur sleuth mystery. Susan McBride has incorporated a good deal of humor along with a story that has many twists. The plot is believable and makes for an interesting read. Be sure to add this one to your reading list because you will be in for an interesting, entertaining treat."
--Mysteries Galore

"In the delightful third installment in McBride's Debutante Dropout mystery series (Blue Blood, etc.), Andrea Kendricks, the self-deprecating Texas trust-fund baby whose amateur sleuthing usually takes center stage, turns the spotlight on her classy, lovable 60-something mother, Cissy. When two of Cissy's friends drop dead, she refuses to believe it was natural causes; both were residents at Belle Meade, the swankiest retirement community in Texas, and Cissy suspects "something funny's afoot." Against Andrea's wishes, Cissy goes undercover at Belle Meade, determined to prove that a killer exterminated her friends "before their expiration date." Disguised in rhinestones and animal prints, Cissy uncovers pending lawsuits, missing medication and the discreet services of an exclusive matchmaking club for "discerning women over sixty." Soon, nearly everyone at Belle Meade is a suspect, and Andrea must overcome her skepticism before her mom finds out too much for her own good. Chatty, colorful and très Texas, McBride's latest cozy is a pleasure." (Feb.)
--Publishers Weekly
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

"Witty addition to this well-written mystery series."
Reviewed by Paula Myers
Posted January 15, 2006: http://freshfiction.com

"There's more going on at the BelleMeade than you'll find at your typical retirement village. Two of the elderly residents have recently dropped dead, and while their deaths were ruled natural causes, Cissy Kendricks is sure her friends met with foul play and is determined to prove their deaths were anything but natural.

Andrea Kendricks isn't sure her mother is on the right track when Cissy moves into Belle Meade, going undercover as a resident. As Cissy's somewhat unwilling sleuthing sidekick, Andy joins her mom more for moral support and to keep Cissy out of trouble than believing there's actually a crime to solve. Still, Cissy may be on to something as she discovers there's more going on in the victims' lives, including a high-priced dating service for women over 60. Could one of their potential dates have had anything do to with their deaths?

McBride's latest Debutante Dropout Mystery is a witty, well- written who-done-it. Cissy and Andy are terrific foils for one another, with just the right amount of parent-adult child tension and humor in their interactions. The mystery element of the story was believable and made sense. This is the third book in this series (including THE GOOD GIRL'S GUIDE TO MURDER and BLUE BLOOD), and even though this story stands independently, I found myself wishing I knew a bit more of Cissy and Andy's history. McBride's fans are going to enjoy this one!"

"Only for her mother will debutante dropout turned web designer Andy Kendricks attend the funeral of Cissy Kendrick's close friend Bebe Kent. After the funeral, they go to the memorial service held at the dead woman's residence in the exclusive Belle Meade. When Cissy learns that Bebe died in her pajamas, she thinks the death listed as by natural causes was really a homicide because the victim always slept in the nude. The facility is run by Annabelle Meade who knew Andy when they went to an upscale camp for blue blooded rich kids. Annabelle and Cissy's daughter were close friends, two misfits who clung together for security. Cissy maneuvers Annabelle into letting her and Andy investigate Bebe's's death by posing as the new resident and her niece; but on their first day in Bebe's home, another woman close to Cissy is found dead. Cissy believes that Sarah Lee Sewell was also a homicide victim because her make up was smudged, something that she would fix immediately in case someone saw her. At first thinking her mother's grief is making her crazy, Andy finally comes around to her view point because there are too many links between the two dead women. Nobody, least of all Andy, thought that Cissy would be in danger from the killer.

Susan McBride infuses her exciting amateur sleuth mystery with a gallows humor that is both appropriate and funny. Although Andy thinks her mother is wrong in her assertion that murder took the lives of her two friends, the love she feels for Cissy compels her to find out if there is any evidence to support her theory . This down-home Texas mystery is enjoyable, entertaining and riddled with red herrings and unexpected plot twists."