Renovated To Death
After a successful first season of Domestic Partners chronicling the renovation of their historic Craftsman Colonial, Peter and JP are taking on a renovation of a local Tudor Revival inherited by identical twin brothers Terry and Tom Cash. But linoleum floors and a pink-tiled bathroom aren’t the only unwelcome surprises awaiting inside the house.
Just as the show is set to start filming, Peter and JP discover Tom Cash dead at the foot of the house’s staircase. And when the police ruling changes from accidental death to homicide, the list of suspects grows fast. Could the killer be the crabby next-door neighbor, the Realtor ex-boyfriend, the bartender ex-boyfriend, the other, much younger, ex-boyfriend, or even renovation-reluctant brother, Terry? And what’s that awful smell coming from the basement? Now Peter’s mystery writer skills, and JP’s experience as the former star of a cop show, will be put to the test, as will their relationship while they uncover the secrets of the house and its owners. With a killer on the loose, this is one fixer-upper that may prove deadly.
The Details
Series: A Domestic Partners In Crime Mystery – Book #1
Author: Frank Anthony Polito
Genre/Category: Cozy – Home Renovation/Entertainment
Publisher: Kensington Cozies
ISBN: 1496735587
Page Count: 304
Rating: 
The Review
Renovated To Death is the debut novel in the “A Domestic Partners In Crime Mystery” series by Frank Polito. Having renovated a home for their TV show, PJ and JP need a new house to work on for season two. Along comes the twins, Tom and Terry, to fulfill their needs. But not all is right in the world with the brothers or the house. I will say straight up that I did not care for this book. I am sure for some people, it is a hit. It just didn’t work fo click with me. Not that there aren’t some good parts to this book.
When PJ and JP agree to use a set of twins’ family home as a renovation project for their TV show, they never dreamed they would find a body. But the next day, they find one of the twins at the bottom of the stairs of the soon-to-be renovated house. At first, it is believed to be a tragic accident, but was it, or was it murder? There are quite a few suspects and plenty of red herrings, but nothing adds up and before long, the main characters are involved in finding a killer.
Although some characters are likable, they aren’t well written. The location is wonderful, and Frank does a great job describing the area and the homes they are or have renovated. The relationship between PJ and JP is sweet, and their desire to adopt a puppy is heartwarming. The other characters, such as the twin brothers, are described nicely, but all the characters lack depth. There is little mystery in the story, and it doesn’t take long for readers to figure out what is going on and who is to blame. There is too much modern slang and repeated terms to make the dialogue believable, and the names of the characters are far too common and easy to mix up. The body at the bottom of the stairs has been used so many times in a home renovation-based cozy, that it’s almost an everyday means of murder.
In general, I would have liked to know more about PJ and JP’s backgrounds and more about the twins and their friends. I would love to see more about the renovated homes and the TV series, and less about who is sleeping with, or was sleeping with, whom. I think this series has potential but Renovated To Death wasn’t what I had hoped it would be, or what it could have been.
The Author
Frank Anthony Polito is an award-winning author and playwright. His novels include Band Fags!, Remembering Christmas, and The Spirit of Detroit, among many others, and his plays have been produced around the country. He holds an MFA in Dramatic Writing from Carnegie Mellon and a BFA in Theatre from Wayne State. Currently, he resides in historic Pleasant Ridge, Michigan, with his partner, Craig Bentley, and their two dogs, Jack and Clyde. They live in a 1924 Craftsman Colonial that they purchased on HGTV’s House Hunters and have been renovating together since 2013.
Other home renovation cozies readers may enjoy include Premeditated Mortar from the “A Fixer-Upper Mystery” series by Kate Carlisle or from Judi Lynn’s, A Jazzi Zanders Mystery” series, The Body From The Past.
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