Gilda Joyce is my kind of girl. Some might describe her as "quirky," but that’s too easy. I like to think that Gilda is more of a combination of Olivia and Harriet the Spy. Gilda loves her typewriter, which was given to her by her late father. She also loves dressing up in outrageous outfits, and trying to communicate with "the spirits" — an activity she took up after her father died. Gilda somehow manages to talk her way into (and sometimes out of) the strangest situations. She invites herself into the home of a distant relative in San Francisco, simply because she told people she would be going to San Francisco over the summer. It turns out this relative has a mystery he needs solving! Well, Gilda thinks it needs to be solved. This can’t be a coincidence! (Or maybe it could.)
Something I love about Gilda is the way she thinks. She’s a dramatic optimist, something the world needs more of. This book is light, but not fluffy; funny, not absurd; and sweet, not saccharine. Gilda also appears in several fantastic sequels by author Jennifer Allison, including Gilda Joyce: The Ladies of the Lake, Gilda Joyce: The Ghost Sonata, and the latest in the series, Gilda Joyce: The Dead Drop, which features Gilda traveling to D.C.’s own International Spy Museum. Pick these books up when you want a fun series to get you through the lull of your favorite author taking three years to come out with a new book.