Synopsis:
Coupon-clipping Mrs. Frugalicious gets more than she bargained for
After Mr. Frank "Finance" Michaels loses the family's financial nest egg in a Ponzi scheme, his wife Maddie does whatever she can to help keep up the appearance that everything is financially fine. When she starts a bargain hunter's blog under the alias Mrs. Frugalicious, her website becomes a viral hit with a growing "frugarmy" of budget advice seekers.
While Maddie is researching "frugasm"-worthy deals on holiday shopping for teens, Eternally 21 store manager Laila DeSimone mistakenly accuses her of shoplifting. Then her day goes from bad to worse when Laila expires on the floor. Since Laila was a universally disliked manager, the murder suspect list is longer than Maddie's bargain spreadsheet. But when evidence points to Maddie as the prime suspect, she must track down the real culprit. Can she uncover the truth before police throw away her get-out-of-jail-free coupon for good?
After Mr. Frank "Finance" Michaels loses the family's financial nest egg in a Ponzi scheme, his wife Maddie does whatever she can to help keep up the appearance that everything is financially fine. When she starts a bargain hunter's blog under the alias Mrs. Frugalicious, her website becomes a viral hit with a growing "frugarmy" of budget advice seekers.
While Maddie is researching "frugasm"-worthy deals on holiday shopping for teens, Eternally 21 store manager Laila DeSimone mistakenly accuses her of shoplifting. Then her day goes from bad to worse when Laila expires on the floor. Since Laila was a universally disliked manager, the murder suspect list is longer than Maddie's bargain spreadsheet. But when evidence points to Maddie as the prime suspect, she must track down the real culprit. Can she uncover the truth before police throw away her get-out-of-jail-free coupon for good?
My Thoughts:
Maddie Michaels is not your average shopper. Her husband is Frank Michaels, host of his own show and known as The King of Finance, so she knows a thing or two about shopping for luxury items. But when Frank reveals that he has lost all of their money in a Ponzi scheme, Maddie has no choice but to break out the coupons and be as frugal as possible. Realizing there is a lot more to couponing and bargain shopping than meets the eye, Maddie decides to start a website called Mrs. Frugalicious in order to help other people cash in on the great deals.
Unfortunately, Maddie can't let anyone know that she is Mrs. Frugalicious or she and Frank will be forced to admit their troubles and he could lose his job. So when Maddie is unjustly accused of shoplifting and the accuser dies in her presence, Maddie is an immediate suspect. She then forced to take matters into her own hands in order to clear her name and solve the murder with the hopes of keeping her secret identity under wraps.
I need to come right out and say that this book was a very entertaining read. Maddie, our main character and voice of reason, is just trying to make ends meet and keep up the charade of their lives in order to keep their home and the kids fed. This involves couponing, blogging and bargain shopping in order to keep the family afloat. This is something that just about everyone can connect with. Everyone struggles at some point in their lives and are forced to be frugal in order to make it, and even though Maddie was previously extremely rich, she doesn't come off as snooty or pompous, she is genuinely likable and even a little bit crazy. Who doesn't love crazy?
Aside with Maddie, there is no shortage of entertaining characters. Since Eternally 21 is located in the mall and that is where the murder takes place, everyone who shops there or works there become suspects. We meet a lot of the store owners and employees, some who have more than enough reason alone to want to kill Laila, and others who are just plain weird. There's also a monkey who can't seem to stop causing trouble.
The characters along are enough to keep you turning the pages late into the night but the plot is just as addicting. I thought for sure I knew what really happened to Laila and I was shocked at the truth. The author managed to pull one over on me that I just did not see coming. There's also a fun little bonus at the end that was absolutely hilarious and I want to thank the author for the extra giggle. You're my kind of lady!
Lastly though, what kind of coupon-blogging book would this be without some helpful couponing tips? The author has included tips along with Maddie's shopping trips to help save readers some cash. A lot of these tips I had never even though about and I am looking forward to putting them to good use.
I just can't recommend Eternally 21 enough. It's clever, funny, and you learn a few shopping tips too. What more could you ask for?
For more about Linda Joffe Hull and Eternally 21, visit her website here.
Purchase:
*I received this book for free in exchange of my honest review. This did not influence my opinion in any way and all views and opinions expressed are 100% my own.
Glad you enjoyed this book, it looks like a fun read! I will check it out when I'm in the mood for an entertaining mystery read. :)
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