Feet of Clay: Ruth Birmingham

Sunny Childs never fails to find herself in the middle of a bad situation. Her life is a chaotic mess (on a good day) and her family is...eccentric. In the sixth installment of the series, the Atlanta-based P.I. is hip-deep in trouble yet again.

Sunny's sister, Lee-Lee, is making a documentary on Dale Weedlow, a convicted murderer scheduled for execution in a matter of days. Upon arriving at the scene of the crime in the small town of Pettigrew, Lee-Lee is thrown in jail on trumped-up charges. After Sunny bails her out, they embark on a Q&A investigation of the local townsfolk only to find they aren't exactly forthcoming -- or nice -- when it comes to this case. As they dig deeper under the surface, they discover there is more than meets the eye...gaping holes in the prosecution's case, and far more likely suspects. Was Weedlow framed?

Sunny Childs is not a delicate little magnolia flower by any stretch. She's tough-talking, and can easily match any detective out there. And she's totally unafraid to kick someone's ass when they deserve it. These qualities alone keep me coming back for every new book in this series. Birmingham's dialogue is funny with its down-home charm, the action is fast, and untangling the mystery of Weedlow's conviction kept my interest to the very end.

And Sunny's nutty family? They could fill out a series of their own.

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Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur (May 2, 2006)
ISBN: 0312284241