The final pages are a letter from a young man who was deported back to a country he can't remember. Still, I laughed at the descriptions of slacker Gary, Jenny's "boyfriend" who really just wants to get stoned and play games. For example, hard-working Felicia is described as "fiercely independent" more than once, but we only really see her asking Jenny for help and asking her what to do next. This doesn't just set the conflict in motion, it helps Jenny discover what she needs, too, and grow from being shruggy and accepting, to a young woman determining her own goals.Īt times, the characters are told, not shown, to the reader. Money is power here, with wealthy men able to make problems disappear, and undocumented workers powerless to get their full paychecks. Jenny, who's just getting by on part-time work, sees both the extreme wealth of CEOs and political candidates, and the constant financials struggles of Felicia, Miguel and other undocumented workers. The plot really highlights the haves and have-nots in our society. Jenny - and the reader - could always tell who's good and who's evil, because there's not a lot of grey here. Selfishness and money motivate the antagonists to do horrible things, a realistic motive, although some of the villains were a little too mustache-twirlingly evil for me. As she investigates, Jenny discovers more strength in herself, too. She keeps uncovering new layers and new connections, turning her look into a missing ex-girlfriend into a high-stakes international drama. But she stumbles into more information, and can't let it go. I felt like she took this challenge mostly because she was bored. With a part-time gig watching surveillance tapes and another watering plants, Jenny's an unlikely sleuth. The story is well-plotted, with plenty of moving pieces and different agendas. What she thinks will be a quick visit to a landlord eventually leads her to discover darker connections between Republican candidates, drug cartels, undocumented workers, and more. "In Brian Finney's novel Money Matters, Jenny agrees to help her coworker look into a missing person. I’m definitely going to be looking into more novels from the author as I found the book to be a page turner in excitement and thrills." If you’re a mystery lover and in need of a good novel that keep you on your toes this is the book for you. The characters and dialogue felt natural and were developed nicely throughout the story. The story was a quick read as you dive deeper into Jenny’s world and that of current events that are going on such as immigration rights. It’s through her willingness to put others before herself that finds her in the mix of corrupt politics, social matters, and dangerous cartel business when her friend Felicia comes to her and asks her to look into finding a missing friend.įinney creates a protagonist that is kind, compassionate and as a strong sense to help those in trouble. The two sisters are complete opposite as Tricia is obsessed with money and status and Jenny is more passive and believes in helping others.
Jenny Carter is 27-year-old living with sister in Venice, California after being evicted from her apartment. "Brian Finney creates a mystery novel that hooks the reader from the opening chapter in Money Matters. Money Matters compels the reader’s attention from beginning to end and is highly recommended to anyone who enjoys reading contemporary fiction." Finney’s narrator Jenny delights us by being lively, interesting, kind and compassionate and she provides an instructive account of how the authorities are persecuting illegal Mexican immigrants. Traditionally, literature has a twofold purpose: to delight and instruct. Jenny finds that money does matter, but so does kindness to others. Jenny seeks the help of Eduardo, the CEO of an immigrant rights organization, to whom she is strongly attracted. A subplot involves Miguel, Felicia’s niece, who runs afoul of the immigration authorities. Todd’s brother is running for Governor and is promising to bring illegal immigration from Mexico to an end.
Jenny is the more likeable of the two, because, unlike the self-centred Tricia, she readily extends a helping hand to friends, one such friend being Felicia, housekeeper to a millionaire businessman named Todd for whom Jenny does part-time flower maintenance. She is happy with this until she is unfairly evicted from her apartment and is obliged to move in with her older sister Tricia, a hard-driving real estate agent who sells houses in Venice, California and has no sympathy for her sister’s lack of ambition. The narrator, Jenny, has two part-time jobs and earns a paltry $30,000 a year. "Does it matter whether you have money? This is the question posed by Brian Finney’s delightfully well-written novel.
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