Third and last Eva Wylie mystery in which Eva finds herself on the down and outs--her wrestling manager has barred her from the gym and won't speak to her, her Ma was all set to move away and not even tell her, and Anna Lee, the private investigator who sometimes throws her jobs has told her she must stop drinking or their working relationship is done. No money, it's raining, her new pup Milo disrespects her, so Eva is feeling particularly sorry for herself. When she 'borrows' a car that ends up having a sports bag full of money in it, she thinks her luck has changed, but it brings her nothing but trouble, as does the reappearance of her sister Simone in her life. Simone, having been adopted out by a foster family when she was a small girl, hasn't the patience to deal with Eva and her drinking and her bleak lifestyle. However, a pesky fellow-wrestler named Keif wants to be Eva's personal trainer and get her back into fighting shape and he seems to be the one bright spot in her life although she doesn't see it that way.

I have to admit that reading these last two books in this series close together makes me rather glad there isn't another--I think I'd have taken a good long break from the series if there were, as Eva's almost-whiny "poor me, none of this is my fault" attitude really began to grate on my nerves and made me think of all my former mental health patients with Borderline Personality Disorder. Granted, she's had a tough life and survived a lot, but get on with it, already! She made so many poor decisions/choices in this book I can't even begin to count them, and most of them did indeed come back to bite her in the bum. Ah well. I did like the ending and would like to think that if Eva's story ever gets resurrected that there is hope for her. ( )

Third in Cody's Eva Wylie series, Musclebound picks up a year after the events in the last book, which have gotten Eva barred from wrestling. Stripped of her sense of identity, Eva has hit the skids, broke, friendless, and drinking hard. In short order, she acquires a sack full of cash, her long-lost sister Simone, and a handsome personal trainer. Needless to say, it doesn't work out quite the way Eva imagines. I remembered Eva as tough, sassy, and fun, but I'd forgotten how pitiful and deluded she is, so reading about her is simultaneously funny and depressing. Loved the character of Keif (Keith, to those of us without London accents), and good to see Anna Lee make an appearance. ( )