Skid

Reviewed for Front Street Reviews.

If you want some good clean fun, the third installment of the Occupational Hazard series may be just the book you are looking for. The Hazards are a family who started a clown company then disbanded after a freak accident claims the lives of both parents. Each book of this amusing series features one of the seven Hazard children striking out on their own to find his or her unique destiny.

Hank, third of those children, is having a bit of trouble finding that path. Leaving his mime persona behind he worked first as a car mechanic and then in an undercover drug sting with his police officer sister. Now he is applying for a job at a faltering airline to pose as a high maintenance passenger in an effort to improve the quality of service. His first assignment is on a transatlantic flight to Amsterdam.

Traveling with him are some interesting characters. The unmotivated and jittery Jake plays electric guitar for the beloved but struggling Rubber Band and is now going to meet his Dutch grandmother for the first time. Grandma needs five recovered diamonds returned to her and in lieu of a security company asks Jake to smuggle them over. After being jilted the stylish but unlucky in love Lucy Meredith wants to see tulips and windmills but finds her ex-boyfriend on board with his flavor-of-the-month. Rounding out this odd group is a lady with a potbellied pig named Chucky, a charming prisoner being extradited, and a cranky pig-hating lady with her ancient mother in tow.

But the staff is just as colorful. There is a socially inept co-pilot, a cranky flight attendant, and a captain whose claim to fame is landing a full plane in the Bermuda Triangle with no fatalities.
This is not going to be a boring flight. Hilarity and danger lurk side by side and Hank finds he must go well beyond the demanding passenger role. His steadfast faith typifies calm in the midst of the storm as he helps people facing personal trials and heartache. When a diabolical plot is revealed Hank finds himself in the role of a lifetime.

The talented Rene Gutteridge blends the perfect mix of sincere faith and humor with an exciting story. My only disappointment was an incomplete character wrap up. I grew to like these quirky well-drawn characters and was curious how they left this unusual journey. Did it make them more grateful, start them thinking, or lead them down a new path? I would have liked to know. In other words, the story left me wanting more.

Rene Gutteridge is the author of twelve novels including the Boo series, and the Storm series. Scoop and Snitch are the first two books in the Occupational Hazard series.
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