AS HUSBANDS GO (Susan Isaacs)

The great Susan Isaacs has done it again, adding an irresistible touch of mystery to her usual Jewish woman-with-a-problem story.  Happily married and the mother of triplets, Susie Gerston is in a state of shock when her husband and best friend, successful Manhattan plastic surgeon Jonah Gerston, is found murdered in the seedy apartment of "escort" Dorinda Dillon, who is eventually tracked down in Vegas and arrested for the crime.  The police are happy with their open and shut case, but Susie won't be satisfied until she is convinced that the real killer is being brought to justice.  She enlists the aid of her look-alike grandmother, Ethel O'Shea, and her best friend Andrea, and husband "Fat Boy", to help her investigate.  Susie thought that Jonah was happy with their life and their three rambunctious boys and cannot believe that he sought out the services of a prostitute.  Adding to her stress are Jonah's parents, who are anxious to see Dorinda convicted, and brother-in-law Theo, who is more concerned with a possible inheritance from Jonah than seeing justice served.  As Susie discovers signs of problems in Jonah's medical practice and reviews evidence gathered by the private investigator that she had hired initially to investigate Jonah's disappearance, she becomes convinced that there is much more to Jonah's murder than meets the eye.  How can she convince the authorities to reopen the case?

The one thing that bothered me about this novel (and it's only a little detail) is the transition just before the ending, whne we see that the killer has been arrested and convicted.  I'm not quite sure how that happened so quickly but, like Susie, I was glad to have all of the pieces of the puzzle finally put together.  One thing that makes this novel stand out from a typical whodunnit is the emotional development of the characters.  I recommend Isaacs' latest wholeheartedly!  Check it out!