"It's opening night of Nina Zero's first gallery show, and her staged photographs of Hollywood pulp scenes are attracting the interest of actual art connoisseurs, not just the usual gossip rag readership. But the excitement of the evening shifts to alarm when Nina receives an anonymous package containing an amateur bondage video that may have ended in death. As she and her editor at Scandal Times watch the rape and strangling of a young woman, Nina Zero recognizes a distinctive tattoo on the woman's left shoulder, and suddenly realizes why one of her models has missed the opening."

This is my first introduction to photographer and ex-con Nina Zero (formerly Mary Alice Baker), and would prefer to review this as a part of an ongoing series instead of a stand-alone. I like to begin at the beginning instead of walking into the middle of a movie. It detracts from my reading experience as I have no feel for the characters, their motivations, or the author's style. It leaves me with more questions than answers.

As a stand-alone, it is a wonderful collage of the elements I expect of a good modern noir: illicit affairs, 1-900 numbers, S&M, a particularly vicious murder, and various shady characters. The ultra-bright sunshine of Los Angeles and humorous wordplay form the backdrop, but it is a deceiving mixture as this is firmly grounded in the dark underbelly of life.

Nina Zero is a street-smart, funny, and fundamentally good person even though she is an ex-con on parole. But her past is always at hand as she investigates the model's death, deals with her abusive father, and tries to win the trust of her tough-as-nails niece. To complicate matters even further, there is the sudden appearance of a handsome, sexy detective who irrevocably changes Nina's life. For better or worse is left for the next in the series.

Robert Eversz impressed me from the first chapter, easily drawing me into the story despite my reservations about diving into unfamiliar territory. For many years, I've been trying (and failing) to break my nail-biting habit, and this nerve-wracking read ended up costing a thumbnail as a reward for spending time with Nina Zero. Her personality -- coupled with a cadre of interesting secondary characters -- made this book fun, dangerous, and irresistable.

Publisher: Simon & Schuster (February 21, 2006)
ISBN: 0743250176
author's website : www.ninazero.com