The Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air by Phillip Mottaz

Item: The Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air
Rating: 4
Author: BaronessMom

Posted February 17, 2022 by BaronessMom in Mystery, Paranormal, Review, Series / 0 Comments

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Author. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air

by Phillip Mottaz

Series: Psychic Barber Mystery #1
Series Rating:

Published by Not as Bad Books on September 1, 2021
Genres: Cozy Paranormal Mystery
Pages: 346
Format: Paperback
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Get Your Copy at: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iBooks, IndieBound, Google, Target, Walmart
Also in this series: The Homicidal Hairstyle of the Viral Video Vixen

DANICA LUMAN has used her secret psychic abilities to squeeze by in the San Fernando Valley. Her powers help her give great haircuts — she sees into customers’ minds and knows exactly what styles they want. Things are steady until one day, while giving a strange man a high-and-tight, the image Danica sees is of a dead body.
What Danica lacks in detective training, she makes up for in stubbornness. She takes on the role of amateur detective only to sink deeper into the muddy mystery, with each clue dragging her further into the weird underbelly of Los Angeles. Fighting off unpaid bills, attempts on her life and dangerous family squabbles, Danica gets tangled up trying to solve the murder and discover how it connects to the cops, a college newspaper, and an old man who calls himself “the Mayor of Bel Air.”

The Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air by Phillip Mottaz is filled with secrets, entitlement, and a new cozy detective that does things a little different.

Will Danica figure out who murdered Drake before she loses everything, including her life?

Danica Luman

Our sleuth is Danica Luman, a hairdresser from Illinois, who is now in Los Angeles studying to get her barber’s license. She is down on her luck and about to lose her apartment. Danica has nothing but a special gift and a job at a local salon to keep her going. Well, until that gift gives her a glimpse at a recent murder. Then Danica decides she should use her gift to help people and herself to catch up on her bills and such.

I like Danica. She is different from any of the other detectives that I have read. Danica stands out, but she embraces that as her unique quirks. She has spunk and initiative, which I like.

The Mystery

Danica decides to investigate the murder of one of Bel Air’s wealthy young men. She asks a local private eye for assistance, but he uses her to better his agenda. However, she almost figures out who did it herself by following the evidence and asking questions. Some people don’t want this investigated and want Danica to leave it alone. She is the one who won’t leave it alone, even though there is no foreseeable money to be gained.

Questions That I Have

Did Danica make any money on the investigation? Does she still have her apartment? How did the psychic not realize that Freddie knew her secret? Who will she embrace as a love interest, Freddie or Tommy? Oh, and how can her cell phone battery last all the way from Los Angeles to Leggitt and back without dying?

Four Stars

I enjoyed the story and getting to know Danica. I was impressed with her ability to handle the investigation. However, she is afraid to show her true self to the one person that she seems to care the most about. Her issues are reasonable considering her gift. My rating for The Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air by Phillip Mottaz is four stars. I recommend checking it out.

Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of The Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air by Phillip Mottaz.

Until the next time,

About Phillip Mottaz

Phillip Mottaz wrote his first novel when he was a mere 39 years old. After growing up in Illinois’ smallest city, he studied improv and sketch comedy in Chicago. Since moving to Los Angeles, he has written every kind of script imaginable and produced multiple podcasts.

His debut novel “The Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air” is a cozy mystery in his Psychic Barber Mysteries series.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

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