Book excerpt: A raspberry-blowing, skateboarding ape, dodgy politicians, glamorous much-married mayor, gay ex-rugby player, teenage hoodies, a charismatic police inspector for love interest, third-rate mobsters, and a mariachi band from Bognor. A laugh-aloud book whose opening sets the story off on a trajectory of bizarre characters and quirky humour. Movie buff and community rights worker Kat Shakespeare is one heart-pounding step from insolvency when she lands a contract to troubleshoot a housing makeover project, but when a skeleton is discovered under a demolished tower block she turns detective, determined to both bring in the project on time and solve a thirty-year-old mystery.