Memphis Reads Archive

Fiction/ Genres: African American Mystery

Inger Upchurch reviews BLANCHE ON THE LAM by Barbara Neely (St. Martin's Press, 1992):

Blanche is a feisty, African-American maid on the run from the local Sheriff for writing bad checks. Hard-working and honest, she wrote the checks to make ends meet after some of her employers "forgot" to pay her. Needing to hide out for a while, she takes a job cooking and caring for Miz Grace and her family at their summer home in Hokeysville, North Carolina. Blanche finds herself in the middle of a murder mystery involving a group of odd characters, each of whom may be trying to kill the others to claim the family fortune. She tries her best to keep her wits about her as she deals with her employer's messy family as well as her own (Mama and two children). Blanche is an endearing character with a rich and colorful approach to life. She is funny, real, loud and totally down to earth. Blanche on the Lam is the first in a series by Barbara Neely.


Inger Upchurch, North Branch Library

Labels: African-American Fiction, Mystery