Mrs. Walker has been divorced from her husband, Edgar, for several years, but finds herself accused of his murder. Jennifer has been persuaded to go over to Edgar's estate to look for Emma, finding her beside the swimming pool where Edgar's body is floating, and she is holding a knife. Jennifer knows in her heart Emma is not capable of murder, so she sets out to prove it.

Involving her friends from the unpublished novelists' critique group, they all set upon the source of the problem, the Down Home Grill, serving the famous Eddy steak and steak sauce. This is the restaurant that Edgar and Emma own, which in the last few years has become very popular. Two of the group become waitresses; Jennifer has a short stint as the new manager (until Edgar's second wife throws her out); and the others become "food critics" to check out the restaurant. The staff of the Down Home Grill become key players in Jennifer's bid to solve the mystery.

Of course, Jennifer's erstwhile suitor, Sam the reporter, plays a major role in keeping her on track, by pitting her against the second wife and involving them all in family reunions and tracing management consultants who are not who they claim to be.

All in all, Dying to Get Even is a satisfying yarn that develops Jennifer Marsh as someone to reckon with, in spite of herself. This is a promising series on the lines of Lydia Adamson's Alice Nestleton, with a heroine who is trying to carve out her career but keeps getting caught up in murder. The solution makes all the sense in the world, but is not easily guessed by the reader.

This reviewer is eagerly looking forward to the next Jennifer Marsh book.

--Kay Black