From Publishers Weekly
Departing from the seriousness of their previous novel, Go Close Against the Enemy, which dealt with the lingering effects of racism in the South, the Iakovous' latest cozy takes a light, romantic turn in the sunny state of Florida. When Nick and Julia Lambros are invited to the wedding of some Greek friends, they decide to leave their Georgia restaurant to relax at the Tarpon Springs luxury resort owned by the father of the groom. On their first night there, however, they witness a fatal car accident that looks like murder. Adding to the ominous atmosphere, Kate and Alex, the bride and groom, have been receiving several Greek curses (a severed rooster's head among them) from an anonymous ill-wisher, prompting Alex's superstitious grandmother to plead for the wedding to be called off. Kate's father suspects an ex-business partner looking for revenge, but there are other possible culprits, and when a murder occurs inside the hotel, Nick and Julia begin to sleuth. Though the story is filled with possibility, it's marred by roughly drawn characters and a predictable ending. What sparkles, however, is the Iakovous' fascinating but unobtrusive detailing of Greek culture. Julia, an American in the midst of a Greek family celebration, feels like an outsider, especially when her Greek husband is pursued by a beautiful young compatriot. It's likely that many readers will be more interested in her feelings, and in the outcome of this romantic aside, than in the solution to the crime. (Dec.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
An invitation to a wedding lures Nick and Julia away from their Greek restaurant in Georgia to Tarpon Springs, Florida. They arrive in town just in time for Nick to rescue a young woman from drowning when her car plunges into the water: the driver was not so lucky. They soon find that the bride's father, Manolis, who runs a Greek cafe, and the groom's father, Christos, who rules the huge Greek hotel where the wedding will take place, are bedeviled with problems large and small. Worse, the icy grandmother of the groom feels the impending marriage is cursed. We are plunged into a complicated circle of Greek and Greek-American characters and customs, centered on the Epiphany celebration and the upcoming wedding, with Julia's wry commentary tracking another murder, a weeping icon, a fair amount of double-dealing, treachery, smuggling, and forgery. GraceAnne A. DeCandido

From Kirkus Reviews
Nick and Julia Lambros close their restaurant and travel to Tarpon Springs, Florida, to help celebrate the wedding of children of Greek immigrants who are close friends of Nick's. Naturally, instead of enjoying their rare vacation, they end up having the Greek version of a detective's holiday: Amid the colorful Epiphany and nuptial festivities, someone is perpetrating an ugly series of pranks, complete with a curse delivered by UPS, a weeping icon, and the theft of an ancient coin. At first the pranks appear designed to prevent the wedding, but they soon escalate into murder. Nick and Julia, seasoned by previous adventures (Go Close Against the Enemy, 1998, etc.), investigate the incidents to clear suspicion directed at Nick's friend, the volatile father of the bride. In the meantime, the detective duo will also sort out a matched pair of extramarital flirtations and baby-sit Julia's Scottie in their luxurious hotel room. The plot dances around a number of villains, not necessarily murderers, and a set of compelling motivations: greed, ambition, family pride, and unrequited love. Through it all, Nick remains a scaled-down Zorba figure manfully protecting Julia while she snoops around. Still, many of the secondary characters are well-developed, and the weaknesses and injustices that drive people to murder and lesser crimes are drawn with genuine sympathy. Warning: Julia describes the customs surrounding the festivities and the Greek community of Tarpon Springs with the sometimes tedious thoroughness of a tourist, providing a narrative that relies heavily on details of what people are wearing and how rooms are decorated. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Book Description
When Nick and Julia Lambros hang the "Closed for Vacation" sign on their Delphi, Georgia restaurant, what they've planned is a joyful trip to Tarpon Springs, Florida, for the wedding of Nick's godchild Kate to Alex Kyriakidis, the son of a wealthy hotel owner. A reunion with Greek friends and family and a week's stay at the beautiful Mediterranean-style hotel couldn't be more needed - or deserved. But from the moment Nick and Julia arrive in Florida, it seems like rest and relaxation are just not in the cards. First they witness a car swerving out of control and into the bay, forcing Nick and his cousin Spiros to rush to the sinking passengers' rescue. Then, as a series of ominous warning signs and small disasters begin to close in on the wedding party, superstitious family members insist the pending nuptials are cursed and must be cancelled. Nick and Julia, responding to a desperate plea from Kate's father, once again resume the role of detectives as they try to uncover which of the young couple's family or friends will stop at nothing - not even murder - to stop Kate and Alex from exchanging vows. For Nick and Julia, it's a race to clear the innocent, expose the guilty and hopefully save a wedding that seems destined for catastrophe. Takis and Judy Iakovou's colorful cast of characters and authentic Greek atmosphere make There Lies a Hidden Scorpion a captivating mystery that promises to keep readers spellbound until the very last page.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

When Nick and Julia Lambros hang the "Closed for Vacation" sign on their Delphi, Georgia, resturaunt, what they've planned is a joyful trip to Tarpon Springs, Florida, for the wedding of Nick's godchild Kate to Alex Kyriakidis, the son of a wealthy hotel owner. A reunion with Greek friends and family and a week's stay at the beautiful Mediterranean-style hotel couldn't be more needed - or deserved." "But from the moment Nick and Julia arrive in Florida, it seems like rest and relaxation are just not in the cards. First they witness a car swerving out of control and into the bay, forcing Nick and his cousin Spiros to rush to the sinking passengers' rescue. Then, as a series of ominous warning signs and small disasters begin to close in on the wedding party, superstitious family members insist the pending nuptials are cursed and must be canceled. Nick and Julia, responding to a desperate plea from Kate's father, once again resume the role of detectives as they try to uncover which of the young couple's family or friends will stop at nothing - not even murder - to stop Kate and Alex from exchanging vows.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly