Jelly's Gold is the 6th book in the series about PI Rushmore (Mac) McKenzie by David Housewright. When a graduate student (Ivy) comes to Mac and tells a story about lost gold from a bank robbery from 1933, Mac finds the story plausible and sets off to investigate and quickly finds out that the loot now worth $8 million is also being sought by others. Ivy's boyfriend is murdered outside her apartment just after making the decision to search for the money. Based loosely on a real crime of Frank "Jelly" Nash who robbed a bank in Huron, South Dakota in 1933, the money really was never found. This story is a mixture of real life stories and exploits with a fictional gold chase. The character does a lot of research and finds out a rich and colorful history of the city's infamous past, including that the nickname Jelly came from Nash's use of nytroglycerin to blow up safes. I had no idea that St. Paul Minnesota had been a haven of gangsters in the day. The only downside for me in this book which was a great story and a fairly easy read was the history behind the characters which came from previous novels on this main character. Many authors fill you in on the connections and this one left out a few details. I would love to read more in this series. I enjoyed the blend of history and fact with fiction. Everyone loves a treasure hunt and this one will not dissappoint. I chose this book because it was the Thompson Public Library Mystery Club choice for May. These books are available at many libraries in the area.
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