The Jinx    by Jennifer Sturman Order:  USA  Can Red Dress Ink, 2005 (2005) Paperback      Reviewed by Shannon Bigham Rachel Benjamin is in her thirties and leads the busy life of an investment banker in New York's financial sector. While Rachel loves her career, she has worked a lot of all nighters and canceled many weekend plans due to her job. When Rachel travels to Boston to interview and recruit Harvard Business School students, she is thrilled because she will be able to see her boyfriend Peter (he lives in California while Rachel is in New York, but the two squeeze in quality time fairly regularly, considering that they live on opposite sides of the country and both are busy professionals.) She also plans to get together with old college chums for their yearly reunion, conveniently being held in Boston. So, all is well for Rachel and she does not want to think otherwise, especially in regard to her relationship with Peter (which has just hit the six-month mark). Essentially, Rachel is worried that she will jinx herself if she does not have a positive mindset. However, when she arrives in Boston, there are problems. One of her friends is attacked during her morning crew workout and prostitutes are dropping left and right due to a serial killer in the area. Rachel is also concerned about the future of the firm she works for, as a key leader has recently died of a heart attack, and its public stock shares are having unusually high trading activity. Coupled with all this are Rachel's worries about Peter – since he has arrived in Boston, he has spent more time with his new, beautiful co-worker Abigail, during evenings and early mornings that Rachel believes are her time with Peter. Of course, all the bizarre happenings make Rachel wonder if she is jinxing herself again. Being the clever woman that she is, Rachel starts sleuthing to try and find out who attacked her friend and hopes to get to the bottom of what is going on with Peter, as well. This is an entertaining chick lit read with a great mystery angle to it - fans of cozy mysteries will enjoy it also. It was a page-turner for me, with a nice blend of suspense, dry wit, and interesting characters. Rachel also appears in the author’s prior release, The Pact, which I have not read yet but have added to my wish list. Pick up The Jinx if you need a break from the holiday craze or want to settle into the New Year with a light, fun read. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Romance books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews