Review: Crimeucopia - The Not So Frail Detective Agency

  

Recently released by Murderous Ink Press, Crimeucopia - The Not So Frail Detective Agency, is a good read. The entertaining anthology focuses on the female private investigator and does so by way of a variety of tales set across multiple time periods and featuring women often not fully appreciated by others. In other words, just like women experience in real life every single day of the week. In this case, while these ladies may not have the brawn of a man, they also walk down mean streets and get the job done.

 

The anthology contains fifteen solid stories from as many authors. Several tales I personally preferred over others, as you can see below. No doubt your preferences would vary from mine. There is also no doubt that you will find lots of good reading here as you would in any of the long running series of Crimeucopia books.

 

The tales that resonated with me, in order of appearance, are:

 

Steve Liskow’s “Slam Dunk” where Tatiana, known to all as “Tats” for reasons soon made clear, takes a case where the client is sure the husband is cheating on her. He plays basketball for incredible money. AmyLee signed a prenup and she knows the kind of guy she married. But, now she is pregnant, and wants proof of what he is doing so she make sure that the child and her have a secure financial future.

 

It has been decades since she last saw her. Lorriane coming loudly into her office in Detroit was absolutely not a sight for sore eyes. She could have gone the rest of her life never thinking about Lorriane again. In Sandra J. Cady’s “High School Reunion,” she is back in Bonnie’s life and won’t take no for an answer. She wants to hire Bonnie to look into the death of her husband, Harvey Harris. He died a few weeks earlier, in a traffic accident, and the cops are not moving fast enough to suit her as she needs access to his money. She wants Bonnie’s help and is very willing to use her pollical connections to make sure Bonnie never works again as a private investigator should she refuse. It is very clear that in the more than three decades since they last saw each other that Lorriane has not improved one bit as a human being.

 

Kathleen Marple Kalb takes readers to the fall of 1987 with her very young private investigator in “Danno and the Babysitter.” Diana Czednik wants the case. A mutual friend, Gary Bigelow, sent Mark McKinnon to her. Somebody has been killing men in Shadyside, a gay friendly neighborhood in Pittsburgh. The cops, to this point, have done less than nothing. Gary, Mark, and others, have decided it is past time to get some professional help. She’s willing, but the owner of the agency and her boss, Mr. Kozakevich, does not want his rookie investigator on the front lines on a murder case and thus in danger from a serial killer. He severely limits what she can do at the start, but, before long, she is deep into it.

 

Crimeucopia - The Not So Frail Detective Agency has twelve more tales to interest you beyond the three that I highlighted. The read, as these books always do, showcases a variety of authors with varied writing styles, characters, time periods, and more. The read is full of interesting cases. It features female private investigators often dealing with those who do not understand their capabilities. They soon do, one way or another, in the very enjoyable read.

 

Amazon Associate Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/45JBWZQ

 

 

My digital ARC was provided by the publisher with no expectation of a review.

 

Kevin R. Tipple © 2026