Movie Mogul Mama

Purchase Link

Some people are unable to resist the lure of movie making and being associated with it. In the latest installment of The Heist Ladies - Movie Mogul Mama by Connie Shelton, the ladies are out to catch a con man. The chase leads them to Newport, Rhode Island; California; back to Phoenix and lastly to Mexico.

Gracie Nelson discovers her mother has invested in a movie making scheme and now without seeing any of the profits from her investment, she is about to lose her home. Not wanting her mother, sister and two nieces to move into their already tight home, Gracie calls on her friends to help her mother get the money back. Naturally her mother cannot find a contract or anything that talks about her investment, making the job more difficult.

Using their special skills, Amber, Sandy, Mary and Penelope dig into the scheme and find Rob Williams has been promising huge returns on investments for his latest Hollywood action movie. Penelope and Amber decide to participate in an investor event in Rhode Island the following weekend.

To dazzle investors even more, the event is held in The Breakers, the famous mansion, in Newport.

The audience is filled with excited investors and even some who have invested in the past. Penelope zeroes in on one in particular. Maisie Brown talks about being invited to a premier and rubbing elbows with the stars, but Pen is suspicious of her enthusiasm. The presentation by Rob Williams is filled with excitement and energy and afterwards, people are escorted into a small room to hand over their checks. Pen and Amber follow along.

Pen pretends to be interested in investing. but tells Rob she needs to have her bank send him a check the next day. As they continue to investigate they build a case for fraud, present it to the police in California and wait for Rob's court date. Unfortunately the case doesn't turn out the way they want and Rob is set free.

That sets the Heist Ladies into motion for their own scam. It's incredible to me how gullible a conman becomes as they ensnare him their own con. Another enterprising adventure for the Heist Ladies. 

The Trophy Wife Exchange

Bank manager Sandy Warner is stunned when one of her former customers enters the bank to close her account. In The Trophy Wife Exchange by Connie Shelton, it seems Mary Holbrook has fallen on hard times because of her divorce. When Sandy learns the depths of Mary's husband's deception, she enlists the Heist Ladies to assist Mary.

For over 20 years Mary and her husband Clint owned and operated a small kitchen-and-bath business, but one day left her, took all their money and hooked up with a new trophy wife. Sandy believes her friends can find enough of the money Clint secreted away in other accounts to have the divorce settlement reopened.

Once Penelope Fitzpatrick, Gracie Nelson and Amber Zeckis join forces with Sandy to discuss the situation with Mary, then Amber can use her magical computer skills to locate the accounts and justice can be done to help Mary.

One problem: it seems Clint has expanded his business and has deposited money in banks in China.

He and his local TV news personality second wife take off for China and the fun begins. With Pen's usual skill and maneuvering they are able uncover a sneaky shell game involving Clint and his money as well as his possible issues with the Chinese mob.

Clint leaves his wife at a spa and takes off to go on a fishing trip. When he is presumed dead after falling off the boat, Pen and the Heist Ladies fear all might be lost. This leads them to dig deeper and discover the real game plan.

Another terrific adventure with the Heist Ladies in the middle of stolen money and a scorned ex-wife. I want to be Penelope Fitzpatrick when I grow up.

Diamonds Aren't Forever

In the first book of Connie Shelton's newest series Diamonds Aren't Forever, we meet the Heist Ladies. I want to join their group. First because they are attempting to return stolen jewelry and second because they go to some cool places.

Penelope Fizpatrick anxiously awaits the appearance of a private investigator she hired to find her stolen heirloom necklace. The necklace contained more than 50 carats of diamonds and 28 sparkling emeralds. But the real value was the family legacy. Penelope's grandfather brought it from Russia after the Revolution and it had been in the family ever since.

Originally loaned to a local museum, it was stolen when the museum was robbed. After fruitless attempts by the police to investigate the crime, Penelope hired Dick Stone to find it. When he did she paid him a handsome fee and was thrilled to have it back. But that wasn't the end of the story, as Penelope learns "her necklace" is a fake.

Enraged Penelope calls her bank to stop payment on the check but she is too late. To make matters

worse, the museum claims she gave them a fake necklace before the robbery. When the bank manager Sandy Werner jokingly tells Penelope they should find the person who stole the necklace and steal it back, the caper begins.

Adding a computer geek, Amber and a super organizer, Gracie Nelson to their Heist group, they set out to chase down the fake private investigator and find the original thief. What follows is a chase to the Cayman Islands, Zurich and then the French Riviera.

This was such a fun book and promises fantastic adventures in the subsequent books in the series (I know there will be more.) Please ladies, take me along next time.