Tea & Read: So Over My Head

Title: So Over My Head
Author: Jenny B. Jones
Rating: Spend the Day Sleepy

When the Fritz Family Carnival makes its annual appearance in Truman, Bella's keen reporter instincts tell her the bright lights hide more than they reveal. Her suspicions are confirmed when one of the stars is murdered. Though the police make an immediate arrest, Bella doubts this case is quite that simple.
She needs her crime-solving boyfriend, Luke, more than ever. Problem is, his ex-girlfriend has moved back to town, giving Bella some murderous thoughts of her own. Then again, there's no time for a relationship crisis when Bella's doing her best to derail her father's wedding and stay one step ahead of a killer.


Is God sending her a message in all of this madness? With a murderer on the loose and her boyfriend's ex on the prowl, this undercover clown has never had more to juggle--or more to risk

There is nothing I dislike more than a book series that gets worse with each installment. Like the author ran out of steam after the first book. But that is not the case with the Charmed Life Series by Jenny B. Jones. Each book in the series is better the previous one and the third book of this series, So Over My Head, is a great read.

Jones has a way with character development. I greatly appreciate the way she has metered out Bella’s personality changes over the series of the books. Bella is a very different person than the first book, but her changes are realistic. She changes in the right areas but stays the same in others. Her quirky outlook on her life in Truman and her sense of style are just as strong as they were in the first book. I like the fact that Bella remain the same in the areas that made me fall in love with this book series in the first place.

Trouble finds Bella despite her attempts to avoid it and Jones does a great job of making Bella’s penchant for drama believable. Even some of the stranger personalities, like Ruthie are endearing. Ruthie’s character brings funny and enjoyable new perspective of Bella’s crime fighting exploits. And Cherry, the new addition to the cast, provides a good balance between Bella and Ruthie.

Great pacing is another one of Jones’ accomplishments in this book. The book flowed smoothly from scene to scene, quickly sucking you into the plot. And even though this book is considered YA, the mystery angle is solid. Jones accomplished something that I enjoy when I read a good mystery: she had me guessing about the “whodunit” until the end. And when the protagonist was revealed, it wasn’t a complete shock, but it was a believable surprise. Jones did a great job of hiding the clues in plain sight.

So Over My Head brings to mind the Nancy Drew books I loved in high school, except with a little more spunk and a lot more fashion. And I renew my position that I’ll take Bella Kirkwood over Bella Swann any day.



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