Something for the Weekend [Paperback]

Already celebrated as one of the finest comic actresses of her generation, Pauline McLynn bids, with her gently witty first novel Something for the Weekend, to be praised as a writer as well. Leonora "Leo" Street is a Dublin private eye, but not the sort of private eye to whom huge adventures happen; she investigates small infidelities and frauds as a commercial business and is quite content with a quiet life.

"Most of my work is mundane--insurance claims, infidelities, fraud and sometimes a missing person. Jealousy, spite, greed and despair, that's my currency, so I don't usually meet people at their best, even if they have one. The cops deal with the glamorous side--murder, drug-dealing, terrorism and sometimes they wear a uniform. I take up whatever they don't, won't or can't do..."

For her, the great attraction is the chance to lead more lives than one--a weekend at a smart residential cookery course, followed by a society ball, is fun in itself, as well as a chance to find out whether a horrid tycoon's sweet wife is cheating on him. Leo is keen to have fun, and also keen to do the right thing; the only suspense in the book is how much fun she will have and what the right thing will turn out to be. The charm, always present, but never laid on thick, makes this quite enough to be going on with; and in the process, we learn as much about the pursuit of investigations as we would have done if people had kept coming through the door with guns. --Roz Kaveney --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

'SOMETHING FOR THE WEEKEND'S strength lies in McLynn's witty character portrayal and a very likeable heroine' (The List - Glasgow )

When private investigator Leo Street is sent to County Kildare to spy on the wife of a loathsome client, she's delighted to be getting away from rainy Dublin and her hopeless, permanently resting actor boyfriend Barry.  The one catch is she has to masquerade as a member of a cookery course and the only piece of culinary equipment Leo can handle is a tin opener - Weekend Entertaining Part 1 is daunting to say the least. As she strips away layers of marital infidelity - not to mention several other scandalous secrets - she battles with bread-making and brûlée. But where will it all end - in triumph or tragedy?

One of Ireland's favourite comedy actresses, Pauline McLynn is best-known for her role as Mrs Doyle in FATHER TED. She lives in Dublin.