Like Jazz by Heather Blackmore

Like Jazz by Heather Blackmore
Pages: 216
Date: December 15 2013
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Series: None

Review
Rating: 4.5 out of 5.0
Read: April 13 to 14 2016
This book here is the first one I’ve read by Heather Blackmore. I admit that I initially added the book, if I recall correctly, to my maybe pile because of the cover. From a distance, it kind of looks like a music instrument; and the book itself includes the word ‘Jazz’. With the sitting woman in a black dress looking like that open area on an instrument, and the road looking like the . . . I need to know music instrument terminology to make this work, right? Heh. Mmphs. Oh, heh. That ‘open area’ is called a sound hole. And the road and cars looks like the fingerboard/neck and frets.

I learned fairly quickly, though, that the book has nothing to do with music. Cassidy Warner tells people, at least her friends, to call her Cazz, like jazz (as opposed, I’m sure, to Cass like ass). I guess it’s a good thing that Cazz likes people to call her that instead of Cass or this book would have been titled ‘Like Ass’. I already admit I came to the book by accident because of Jazz, what would I have expected, I wonder, if it had been called ‘Like Ass’, eh? Heh.

Right, so: The book involves Cassidy “Cazz” Warner and Sarah “no nickname” Perkins. The book opens with a prologue set ten years later in time than chapter 1. Well, whenever it is that the school part starts at least, the beginning of the book starts ten years before that.

Cazz’s family moves a lot. And, apparently, without warning and at the drop of a hat. Meaning that she has a lot of experience moving from school to school. And finds that the easiest thing for her to do is to try to hide in the background – her best experiences are the times when it takes six weeks before anyone even realizes she is there. Well, at her new school, everything kind of gets sabotaged for her in two ways. (1) her attempt to hide is ruined by someone calling attention to them in front of the entire class (more than once); (2) one of her classes has something like a pop test, then reads the list of the top 5 grades, along with names – and Cazz was #1 (which pisses off Sarah, who is always first).

The first class in which she meets Sarah starts off with Cazz hiding out with the teacher going on about some assignment people were supposed to have done. Everything seems to be going Cazz’s way, at least in terms of having the teacher not even make an announcement that she is there, and new. Then the door opens and a late student appears, though she has the allowed excuse that she had student-government business (or something like that). The teacher immediately asks if that newly arrived student had done the assignment; student deflects and asks who the newcomer was; deflected, the teacher introduces Cazz to everyone, and then calls upon her to say what she thought of the reading assignment. And so, (1) Cazz wasn’t able to hide; (2) Cazz and Sarah ‘meet’ for the first time; (3) Cazz is instantly, and confusedly, to herself, really really drawn to Sarah in a drooling kind of way.

Sarah, by the way, is super popular, and dating a hot popular guy named Dirk or some D name. So Cazz is in an awkward situation there. What with her feelings, and the popular girl acting alternating friendly with her and annoyed with her.

The school section was rather riveting, well done. I’m fairly certain that if the book had cut the beginning part, and the end part – i.e., cut the ’10 years later’ parts, and just focused on the school (oh, and kept Cazz’s family from moving), that everything would have probably ended up being close to, and maybe actually a 5 star book. It was rather well done – the nervous girl, the shy awkwardness of learning that you like girls, etc. I’m somewhat sad that that book doesn’t exist.

As it is, the book was quite interesting, good – the ‘ten years later’, as in ‘present time’, finds Cazz working as an investigator with the LAPD (in a civilian capacity), while Sarah works for the charity foundation her father started. Cazz and Sarah meet again, after no communication for 10 years, when Cazz is in the charity offices to do some undercover investigations – and the two bump into each other. Cazz didn’t do her homework, and didn’t realize the charity was connected to the Perkins family.

So the book is a coming of age/romance/investigation-mystery/fraud/action-thriller-danger mix of a book. Everything seemed to work well enough. I didn’t particularly like how reluctant Sarah was to express herself/her feelings. She uses an excuse in ‘present time’ for why she is the way she is now, but she was that way back in high school as well.

Cazz and Sarah are relatively well-rounded, and, for the most part, I like both characters. The others in the book aren’t as well-formed, for the most part (again). There is a mystery, and an investigation, and that was handled well enough. The danger part might have been a little over the top (plus, on one level it didn’t really make sense - The killer wanted to kill Cazz because she ‘knew too much’ – but he took so bloody long to get around to it. Also, he was presented as being this professional hit man, getting paid 100K a pop – what was with the rape-y vibe? – (a) took so long to kill Cazz; (b) professional, but brings rape into it? (or the threat of said); (c) I realize Cazz doesn’t want Sarah to be in danger, but to just follow orders and put herself into the killer’s hands without taking any preventive measures . . . weird).

Overall I enjoyed the book. If the book had been limited to the school part – obviously expanded to a full book length, that section was about 30% of the book; then it’s possible I’d have given that book, that doesn’t exist, a possible 5 stars. No reason to assume that adding 70% more material would not alter the rating off of 5 stars. As it is, this is a solid book. Probably something I’d give a rating of 4.4 to 4.5 stars.

ETA:
Mystery
CCazz worked for the SEC working on investigating crimes involving the financial sector. She moved from the SEC to some pilot program being run by the LAPD (it isn't exactly clear how all that works). With the LAPD, Cazz is called a detective and has a badge, but is still considered a civilian. She works for a Commander Ashby.

Cazz's job with the LAPD involves undercover work. She gets placed with companies that may or may not be involved in crimes involving finance, and she investigates. The book opens with Cazz getting an assignment to insert herself into a charity foundation. Apparently a friend of Ashby's, and the managing director of said foundation, has asked for Ashby's help.

As part of her undercover work, Cazz works at the foundation as an accountant - and must perform the job of an accountant at the same time she conducts an investigation into the foundations finances. The financial investigation parts are actually quite interesting.

I mentioned that Cazz is a civilian investigator. That comes up in an important way when the case turns out to include violent crime - something she isn't trained to handle or deal with.

The mystery/investigation is good, solid. The romance, time in school, etc. is all also good solid work. Altogether I'd give the book a rating of 4.5. But then I already said that. In my non-added section part.

April 14 & 15 2016