Guila Falcone & Frank Driscoll

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Created by Alice Loweecy

Okay, so this ex-nun and a private dick walk into a bar…

Ooops, sorry, that’s actually just one person: GUILA FALCONE, who left the convent at the age of 29, taking a string of small jobs before landing a gig as an assistant at Pittsburgh’s Driscoll Investigations.

She’s still getting used to life outside the convent — dealing with everything from applying makeup to her suddenly rediscovered attraction to men. On top of that, she soon finds herself having to learn new skills: obstensibly hired as an assistant, she’s soon sent out in the field. After the convent, all the deceptions and subterfuge required by her job are alternately baffling and exhilarating.

Suffice it to say Guila’s felling a tad guily…

Meanwhile, FRANK DRISCOLL, who heads the agency, has other things on his mind beyond guilt. He’s your typical hard-boiled ex-cop-turned-P.I., gruff and rough around the edges, overly fond of his own wit, and tougher than a chunk of petrified wood. He is also, of course, one hunky slab of beefcake, and a potential romance between Guila and Frank soon rears its ugly head. (Later in the series, they actually —surprise, surprise — get married).

But then, this was never meant to be a noirish, everybody-is-miserable-and-it’s-always-raining sorta series. Think more along the lines of a lightweight romantic comedy, with the standard quirky supporting characters (notably co-worker Sidney) thrown in for comic relief and the by-now-obligatory (and increasingly) dreadful puns in the titles.

I mean, “Second to Nun”? “Veiled Threats”?

Really?

Thankfully, there’s enough murder and violence to add a little welcome grit and there’s enough wit, originality and compelling characterizations in these books to raise them at least a notch above most of the competition.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

By the way, the issues Guila must deal with come naturally to the author. Alice Loweecey is a former nun herself, who went from the convent to playing prostitutes (on stage) and accepting her husband’s marriage proposal on their second date. She’s a member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime, and lives with her family in Amherst, New York. In one bio, she relates how she grew up watching Hammer horror films and Scooby-Doo mysteries, which explains a whole lot. 

UNDER OATH

  • “Loweecey will have a wonderful opportunity in future books in this series to further develop these characters…[fall] in love with what is sure to be a hit series.”
    — Suspense Magazine on Force of Habit
  • “A spirited debut…her fresh take on crime fighting is a delight.”
    — Publishers Weekly on Force of Habit

NOVELS

SHORT STORIES

  • “Changing Habits” (2014, digital)

FURTHER INVESTIGATION

Respectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith.

Published

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