15 Minutes

A Maizie Albright Star Detective Mystery

De: Larissa Reinhart

Narrado por: Joan Dukore

SHE PLAYED ONE ON TV, BUT NOW THAT HER LIFE DEPENDS ON IT, CAN MAIZIE ALBRIGHT ACT LIKE A DETECTIVE FOR REAL?
For fans of romantic comedy mysteries like Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum and Elle Cosimano’s Finlay Donovan series, The Wall Street Journal bestselling author, Larissa Reinhart, brings her listeners the first in the Maizie Albright Star Detective series. "A great mix of Hollywood and Southern charm." HOT MYSTERY REVIEWS’ "TOP 10 MYSTERIES FOR BOOK CLUBS."

”Child star and hilarious hot mess Maizie Albright trades Hollywood for the backwoods of Georgia and pure delight ensues. Maizie's my new favorite escape from reality.” — Gretchen Archer, USA Today bestselling author of the Davis Way Crime Caper series

#WannabeDetective When ex-teen star Maizie Albright returns to her hometown in Black Pine, Georgia, she hoped to rid herself of Hollywood tabloid and reality show hell for a new career as a private investigator. Instead, Hollyweird follows her home. Maizie’s costar crushing, but now for her gumshoe boss. Her stage-monster mother still demands screen time. Her latest rival wants her kicked off their set, preferably back to a California prison.
When Maizie entangles herself in a missing person's case, she reprises her most famous role — Julia Pinkerton, Teen Detective. The job will demand the performance of a lifetime, but not just because of her age. This time, the stakes are real and may prove deadly.

"Maizie Albright is the kind of fresh, fun, and feisty star detective I love spending time with, a kind of Nancy Drew meets Lucy Ricardo." — Agatha, Macavity, and Anthony award-winning mystery author Penny Warner

"Fans of humorous mysteries like Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum and Elle Cosimano’s Finlay Donovan should pick up this series. We all need some fun in our reading lives!" — Sarah Can't Stop Reading

©2017 Larissa Reinhart (P)2025 Larissa Reinhart

Fun fun fun!

This is a great mystery! These are great characters. You really love them and despise the bad guys! I highly recommend this. You won’t be sorry!

Entertaining

Both the author Larissa Reinhart and narrator Joan Dukore are new to me. This was a fun book that I found entertaining. I was intrigued as I followed the clues all the while chuckling as Maizie Albright tries to follow her dream of becoming a private investigator.

The narrator really brought this book to life for me and did a good job keeping me entertained. This was a a book filled with a fun, intrigue and suspense which kept me riveted as I listened to this story.

Love the book, love the audio more

I have the book form and Maizie and Nash are currently my favorite detecting duo. I love the audio version because I can listen while on walks, in bed when I can't sleep, just anywhere. Some narrators have cringe-worthy interpretations of the material and/or annoying voices. This narrator depicts Maizie just as I invision her. Well done!

Enjoyable Light Read

I received this book for free. I am voluntarily posting this review and any opinions expressed herein are my own.

I am actually somewhere between a 3 and 3 1/2 stars. Parts of this story, I really enjoyed and parts started to grate on me a bit as the book continued. There is some really fun humor and the romantic tension was enjoyable. The premise of a former child star returning back to her hometown to become a PI is a great concept. I really enjoyed the tension between Maizie and her momager - who doesn't want to leave Hollywood behind. What began to bother me about this book was the constant high fashion references and when Maizie declares herself separate from her TV detective character and wanting to leave it all behind but yet, she seemed to almost constantly be asking herself what would her TV detective character do in a situation - it just became a bit one note. Overall, it was an enjoyable light read.

The narrator, Joan Dukore, did a good job in a very light-hearted narration.

A Riot!

The first book in the Maizie Albright Star Detective Mystery series is quite a riot! Never a dull moment; 15 Minutes is brimming with excitement and nervous energy.  Maizie Albright and the rest of the characters are full of personality, humor, and their own unique set of quirks. I thought narrator Joan Dukore was a great fit and did a great job nailing the story. Her voice matched the youthful, frenetic pace of the book, including capturing several eccentric personalities! An absolute riot.

Clueless FUN

Maizie is a washed up Hollywood Valley Girl and a clueless detective wannabe. However, she is also hilarious with she self-dialogs and as she overthinks her "every move is carefully planned." With an equally low IQ group of friends, her grumpy new boss (and semi-love interest), and sheer perseverance, can she survive until the case is "solve-d!?!" Sorry for the Inspector Clouseau references but I had to go there, and if you read/listen you'll get it too.

Good - enjoyed it

This was a cute story, well-narrated. Masie is trying to escape her tabloid past but it keeps following her as she tries to become a private investigator by apprenticing to a private investigator in her old home town. Her Hollywood (shallow?) life has given her a real knowledge of clothing designers and cutsie expressions - both of which she uses a lot (perhaps just a bit too much for my taste, but not a big deal). The pronunciation of Julio with a J really threw me but eventually I picked up that he was Italian so assume the Italian pronounce it with a J rather than the Y sound of Spanish. The mystery was good and the characters interesting. A good listen all in all but not, to be honest, riveting. I received a promotional code for this book.

Where is Sarah??

Wonderfully written and performed! I loved the plot twist! It was funny through out but also kept my interest with the mystery of who actually did what. I highly recommend listening to and or reading this book!!

Fun and Mystery

Author Larissa Reinhart creates an interesting character in the title role. Maizie Albright (Spayberry) started as an actress playing a teenage detective. In her role, she thinks out of the box and solves cases. She is a star who has issues, and multiple therapists advising her on failings.

Celebrity lives tend to beat to a different drum. Those who feed off the fame of the successful always show their unscrupulous sides. It is impossible to understand what portions of their media appearances are fabricated to further their career versus the actual person. Mazie attended and graduated college with a criminal justice degree.

When the actress's former boyfriend is sentenced to jail for illegal activities, the judge offers Mazie an alternative solution. This young woman's option is to leave LA and return to her hometown of Black Pine, Georgia, plus she must get a job with proof via a paycheck. She decides to take advantage of her degree. She moves in with her father and uses her last name of Spayberry to worm her way into a job with a Private Investigator, Nash, of Nash Security Solutions. No one takes Mazie seriously as a real detective.

Nash, Mazie, and Mr. Waverly are developed with very distinct roles and characterizations. The supporting cast is easy to keep track of. The dialogue is uncomplicated and easy to follow, though in some areas feels repetitive. The tug of war on Mazie by her mom and manager to bring her back to Hollywood creates some good tension. Finding Mr. Waverly's wife but losing her threatens to undermine Mazie's desire for independence and freedom of choice. The story has highs and lows, with humor placed at suitable intervals in a somewhat obvious storyline.

Joan Dukore's narration was good, with only a few minor issues with some words and tone. Also, she provides a good rendition of the characters versus the narration with appropriate emphasis on the story's humorous sides. It is a lighthearted young adult cozy mystery and a fun start to a new series.

There were no issues with the production or quality of this audiobook.

Disclaimer: This Audiobook was provided free of charge by the author, narrator, and/or publisher in exchange for a non-bias, honest review.

Edge of your seat story!

Talk about sitting on the edge of your seat reading. This book kept me on my toes on what was going to happen to Maizie next. Maizie is a mess - she just wants to do something different with her life, outside of the controls of her momager but it seems that every time she starts on her detective path, she makes a little mess that her new boss does not seem too thrilled about. I cannot wait to read the next book in this series!