Portland, Oregon and Las Vegas, Nevada - Present Day

Joe Worth is just minding his own business when the man from the newspaper stand tells him the horoscope predicts Joe's in for trouble. Whoa boy, wouldn't you know it, the woman he noticed while walking to his office, well, let's call her "Legs," is waiting for him at his office door, looking for him. The woman calls herself April Worth, says she is his sister, and that she is searching for Phyllis Worth, who has disappeared from Las Vegas. Ah, Phyllis, the mother who dropped him off at an emergency room at three years of age with a melting ice cream sandwich, never to be seen again. Well, Phyllis Worth can just go to h…; what's this, a half sister named Cornelia has also joined the mix? What a mess. Joe has tried to forget his childhood, and nothing this April woman has to say will change his mind and stir up the hurt he suffered, let alone help his "mother." He might be a bodyguard and specialize in family security, but he quickly ushers April out with orders to find someone who gives a damn.

April was raised by Phylly; it's a long, sad, and awful story, and now Phylly's teenage daughter is worried because her mom has just up and left, leaving Cornelia alone. Phylly has had a long life as a stripper, and a varied love life filled with many uncles. But Cornelia knows about Joe and that he's a bodyguard, and she hopes he will help them find Phylly. Joe can think only of his past right then, so it's up to April to step up to the plate. She must now try to figure out what has happened to Phylly and keep Cornelia safe from running after her mom half cocked. Oh Phylly, what hare-brained thing have you done this time?

Phylly is running away from her past and the men whom she took advantage of, well, maybe blackmailed, and now her friends are being murdered, and she goes to the one person on earth in the farthest place she can go to escape, Noah, and their secret, sad past. But murder follows her, and she ends up bringing danger to the people she loves. Of course, Joe finds April and his half-sister Cornelia, and tries his best to insert his sane and reasoned thinking into their dangerous situation and wild ideas. April is easily his mate in most ways and certainly keeps him on his toes. Joe isn't used to being anything but the boss in most situations, something two headstrong girls like April and Cornelia don't always agree with.

KISS ME GOODBYE has several different plots going on here at once. The evil Q and his relationship with Henry Castor means the end of Phylly. Phylly and her relationship with the mysterious Noah is slowly revealed. And Joe, April, and Cornelia must cautiously develop a relationship as they learn each other and try to figure out who is trying to kill Phylly, or is it April, and how can they pull all the pieces together? A well balanced story, KISS ME GOODBYE is a delight to read, and yet the terror keeps us on our toes as evil men perform evil deeds. Ohhh, scary!

This is the first book by E. C. Sheedy that I have read; where have I been hiding? Obviously, she is well known for the variety of the people she writes about and the carefully developed evil and violence that occur. This includes intricately drawn men with twisted minds that will put a scare in you if you are afraid of your shadow. I love the care she takes with each person, and even if you don't like them, you understand the depths of their evil.

If you love quirky, well crafted personalities, Phylly Worth is the quintessential one-of-a-kind. Her daughter Cornelia is just the type of smart mouthed teenager you'd expect from a girl having a former stripper for a mother. There are several other unique people, including Phylly's boss Rusty, a friend to the end, and her brother Tommy, also a loyal friend. Q is an evil man from April's past, and is also mixed up with the dead Victor Allen and his henchman, Henry Castor. Oh please, the many different characters are too numerous to fully explain, but each one is better than the last -- including the mysterious Noah -- what is he to Phylly?

KISS ME GOODBYE is an outstanding, marvelous story that you definitely do not want to miss this month. A meticulously crafted story and intriguing people make this a reading experience you'll love, I promise!

Carolyn Crisher