Mrs. Plansky is the sun around whom the other members of her family orbit; they all know to come to her when something needs to be fixed, and Mrs. Plansky always does whatever it takes to make their lives easier. Not only is she the caretaker of her 98-year-old father, she also has to worry about her daughter and that woman's parade of husbands, ex-husbands, and live-in boyfriends while trying to be there for her college-aged grandson whenever he needs her. But let's face it, Mrs. Plansky is 70 years old now, and she could stand a break or two from all the action herself.
But that's not going to happen because Mrs. Plansky is about to get a phone call in the middle of the night that will rock her world.
Still half asleep, Mrs. Plansky listens to a voice on the phone claiming to be her grandson Will. The boy on the line, whoever he really is, tells her that he's in trouble with the law and desperately needs ten thousand dollars to get himself released from jail. Mrs. Plansky, always eager to help her grandson, follows "Will's" instructions step-by-step - and the next morning she wakes up to learn that all of her bank accounts and investment accounts suddenly show the same balance: zero.
Mrs. Plansky does what any of us would do; she goes to the authorities for help. It doesn't take long, however, for her to realize that the authorities are not likely ever to get her money back for her, and that's really all she wants. Sure, she'd like to see the scammers brought to justice, but with so many people still depending on her, the lost money is the most important thing to her. So Mrs. Plansky does something that most 70-year-old people would never have the courage to do - she buys a ticket to Romania to confront the thieves face-to-face. She is determined to bring her money home with her.
Mrs. Plansky's Revenge, despite its occasional violence, is a goodhearted feel-good novel, one in which readers can root for the good guys with full confidence that everything will work out in the end. Despite the plot being a tad predictable, the story is so good that I found myself turning pages just to see how the author was going to get the elderly woman out of the latest jam she had managed to wriggle herself into. Mrs. Plansky's Revenge is lots of fun, a nice diversion from the more brutal brand of crime fiction, a novel I feel good about recommending to others.
(Thanks again to CLM and her Staircase Wit blog for turning me on to Mrs. Plansky's Revenge.)
I like the independent action.
ReplyDeleteIt certainly worked out for Mrs. Plansky and her new friends.
DeleteSo glad you enjoyed this as much as I did! I still have a hard time explaining why it was so much fun but it was (although that motorcycle was a bit over the top, he has good suspension of disbelief). I just finished the author's Dog On It, from a mystery series Tracy mentioned - appealing if a bit goofy, told from the perspective of a dog that's the sidekick of a private detective. I enjoyed it but there's something a bit frustrating when the dog knows where the missing person is but can't tell anyone!
ReplyDeleteI have to admit that I thought for a bit that I'd been stretched beyond my limit of believability when a 70-year-old woman was about to go out a hotel window via a rope on her own. I do struggle with those dog novels, even the one that was such a huge hit a few years ago (something about Rain in the title, I think) was too much for me even though I finished it.
DeleteI can't believe she goes to Romania in search of those scammers! What a crazy but very fun premise. She sounds like such a great character.
ReplyDeleteShe really is a great character...but take it from me, she's a very young 70 years old.
DeleteSounds like a good time in Romania for this 70 year old.
ReplyDeleteLet's just say she got the job done and came home with a bunch of new friends she didn't have before she was scammed out of her money. It was fun.
DeleteI will definitely be getting a copy of this someday. I also want to try another book in his Chet and Bernie series.
ReplyDeleteYou'll like this one, Tracy. I still haven't read one from the other series, but from what you say, it sounds like I should fix that.
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