From Publishers Weekly
If, a quarter of the way into a mystery, the only suggestion of crime is a nasty note and a dead rattlesnake in a cooler, the author had better supply heaps of spirited prose and a barrelful of unforgettable characters. Alas, the fourth in a series from Hall ( Emma Chizzit and the Sacramento Stalker ) has neither. The tale is further encumbered by an excess of mannerisms and an unfocused sense of place--although Buckeye falls somewhere between San Francisco and Sacramento, the folks there have a down-home way of talkin'. Haulage magnate and busybody Emma Chizzit, in Buckeye to help out a friend, witnesses the arrival of bigmouth travel agent Trooper Hadley, whose TV trademark "Who-eee" quickly grates. By the time Trooper cashes in her chips, readers will have figured out what has set Buckeye's town leaders to moving and shaking. The tough language of the end is out of context and the revelation of the guilty party's identity is no surprise. Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Emma Chizzit, the amiable salvage-company owner and part-time sleuth, returns with the usual cast of supporting characters. Emma and friend Frannie become embroiled in a local land scam and murder when they visit a put-upon journalist in Buckeye, California, an old mining town. As soon as a rambunctious tour director enlists their help in adding Buckeye to her itinerary as a gold-panning/stagecoach town, untoward events and repeated threats send Emma investigating. With a simple, not unexpected wrap-up for a cheery, older heroine, this is recommended for larger collections.Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
In a fourth outing, Emma Chizzit, the busybody owner of A-1 Salvage, and her best friend Frannie (Emma Chizzit and the Napa Nemesis, etc.), on a visit to Buckeye, California, quickly bump into two factions with different ideas on how to exploit the old mining site: pretty, aggressive Trooper Hadley, a tour promoter, wants to add it to her expensive tour excursions, and a group of town nabobs wants to level the old gold rush remains and erect a massive shopping mall. Jimmy Simpson, a young reporter chum of Emma's, suspects trouble and is proved right when rattlers are placed in picnic hampers, an old-timer's barn housing gold-mining artifacts is torched, and nasty ``Don't Tread on Me'' notes are found. When Trooper's car careens off the mountain, Jimmy, heir to her Buckeye Foundation, and Emma are determined to foil the real- estate scheme.... Not much mystery and even less characterization. Some interesting gold-mining detail, but, mostly, silly dialogue occurring in improbable situations. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

ANNOTATION

Sixty-something owner of A-1 Salvage and savvy sleuth Emma Chizzit is hired to help with plans to preserve a historic gold mining town. Emma soon discovers that she's not welcome, as rattlesnakes in picnic baskets and threatening notes reveal. But Emma isn't fazed--until a murder occurs. Now, she must expose dirty town secrets before a rush of killing strikes the mother lode.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

If, a quarter of the way into a mystery, the only suggestion of crime is a nasty note and a dead rattlesnake in a cooler, the author had better supply heaps of spirited prose and a barrelful of unforgettable characters. Alas, the fourth in a series from Hall ( Emma Chizzit and the Sacramento Stalker ) has neither. The tale is further encumbered by an excess of mannerisms and an unfocused sense of place--although Buckeye falls somewhere between San Francisco and Sacramento, the folks there have a down-home way of talkin'. Haulage magnate and busybody Emma Chizzit, in Buckeye to help out a friend, witnesses the arrival of bigmouth travel agent Trooper Hadley, whose TV trademark ``Who-eee'' quickly grates. By the time Trooper cashes in her chips, readers will have figured out what has set Buckeye's town leaders to moving and shaking. The tough language of the end is out of context and the revelation of the guilty party's identity is no surprise. (Aug.)

Library Journal