One Dead Under The Cuckoo's Nest: A Pauline Sokol Mystery [Mass Market Paperback]

In Avocato's third comic Pauline Sokol mystery (after The Stiff and the Dead), the ex-nurse turned insurance fraud investigator finds herself drugged, kidnapped and locked in a mental institution under a fictitious name. Enter enigmatic Jagger, who's masquerading as a doctor this time around and, as usual, doesn't tell Pauline much except that she's supposed to investigate a scam involving the placement of "mental patients" for insurance bounty money. Surrounded as she is by oddball inmates and "nuns" with French manicures, it's a tough call to determine who's bonkers and who's not. When one of the nuns ends up impaled on a broom handle and a naked patient gets a little too friendly, Jagger tries to pull Pauline from the case, but our spunky heroine has ideas of her own. While there's more perky narrative than actual sleuthing, readers who were charmed by the eccentric characters from previous books—Pauline's cross-dressing roommates, Polish family members and sleazy boss Fabio—will find this entry every bit as delightful.
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“A wonderful debut mystery . . . a solid who-done-it, chick lit style.” (Harriet Klausner )

“A wacky and outright hilarious new mystery series...great sparring dialogue, well-defined characters and comedy galore.” (Curled up with a Good Book Reviews )

“A hilarious roller coaster ride.” (Merline Lovelace, USA Today Bestselling Author )

“A fresh, new voice in mystery . . . great fun and a diverting escape.” (Laura Van Wormer )

“Sexy and sassy . . . a sure prescription for outrageous sleuthing.” (Carolyn Hart )

“Delightful.” (Publishers Weekly )

“An outstanding mix of humor, family relationships, unusual characters, and realistic detecting.” (Florida Sun-Sentinel )

Better Insane Than Slain ...

Former nurse-turned-insurance fraud p.i. Pauline Sokol's current undercover investigation into a sleazy psychiatric scam has hit a small snag: she's been forcibly committed to a mental institution! Pauline's certainly sane, but try telling that to the nuns who run the place. Even her hunky,crime-solving sometime-cohort Jagger is unwilling to spring her, so she's gotnothing better to do than keep digging -- until the strange death of a gender-confused "sister" further complicates matters. Suddenly Pauline realizes she'sin way over her head. And to find an escape from Wacko Town -- and off a busy killer's to-do list -- she may need a little help from Jag, her own very kooky family ... and a few new "sanity-challenged" friends.

After serving in the Air Force as a registered nurse, Lori Avocato decided to give up nursing to write fiction. She lives in New England and is a member of Mystery Writers of America, PASIC, the Author's Guild, and Sisters in Crime. She's raising two teenage sons, one husband, and two dogs. Lori is the author of three previous novels featuring Pauline Sokol -- A Dose of Murder, The Stiff and the Dead, and One Dead Under the Cuckoo's Nest.