Book Review: Monkey Wrench by Nancy Martin

By Amanda Linsmeier

Finally! I thought to myself as I put down book C of the Tyler series, a series of books that take place in Wisconsin written by an assortment of authors. Each book has a romantic theme with a murder mystery dwelling underneath. Books B & C were disappointing, to say the least. That’s why I was so excited to pick up book D, titled Monkey Wrench (Harlequin, 1992). It was written by the same author who wrote book A, which I happened to love. Unfortunately, this book fell short.

Monkey Wrench takes place in the charming small town of Tyler, Wisconsin with the same characters gracing its pages as in previous books in the series. In this book, Susannah is the main character. She’s a smart, beautiful woman who has her own TV show in Milwaukee. When she is not teaching crafts or showing her new household hints, she doesn’t have much of a life. But when she gets a call from Joe Santori, she’s quick to return to Tyler to come to the aid of her sick Grandma Rose. Although Rose is in great spirits, Susannah can tell she’s just not feeling well. But Grandma Rose has a plan and it involves Susannah and Joe Santori, her contractor. She thinks that they would be perfect together, and it’s not long before Joe agrees with her. But will Susannah open up her heart to Joe and the possibility of love? Or, is her thrilling career destined to be the only passion in her life?

I had a hard time reading this book. I didn’t get really interested until about half way through and even then, it was sometimes difficult to care what was happening. What Nancy Martin did so wonderfully in Whirlwind (Book A) was create realistic, fun characters. This book did not fair so well. I thought Susannah was dull, old-fashioned (she actually used the term “Gentleman friend” to refer to a man she’d been seeing) and just not that fun to read about. Joe, to be frank, was annoying. Sure, I liked him from time to time, he even grew on me as the book progressed, but did he have to call Susannah “Miss Suzie” in every other breath? I found the language difficult to relate to because in real life I don’t think I’ve ever heard somebody say the words “gee” or “fellow” and if they did, they were at least 80 years old. I also disliked that the characters in the book kept up about how glamorous Susannah’s life in Milwaukee was. It was if they were describing Manhattan or London. I live in Wisconsin, and while Milwaukee certainly has some good points, I would never describe it as being glamorous. If readers are interested in reading the Tyler series, I have to warn that while Whirlwind is a hit, the rest so far have been disappointing. But I know I’ll keep reading just to figure out the murder mystery. I’m just hoping the next book isn’t as hard to swallow as the last three.