The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line (Veronica Mars #1) reads like the best (although, very chaste) Veronica Mars fanfiction that I’ve ever read. I mean that as a huge compliment — as a great lover of a show that got cancelled way too soon, I have sought out fan fiction as a way to continue Veronica’s story for years. Plus I like the naughty bits with Logan that they never got to in the show (LoVe 4eva!). Logan’s on a boat for most of The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line, but it’s still a great extension of their story and the story of Neptune as a whole.
Picking up right where the movie lets off, The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line begins with Veronica running Mars Investigation as her father recuperates from a horrific car accident. A local businesswoman (Petra Landros, owner of the Nepture Grand hotel) hires Veronica to find a girl that went missing while on spring break in Neptune, as it’s affecting the town’s economy (how sad). Veronica, along with Wallace and Mac and all our old favorites, begins work on the case — and then another girl goes missing.
Rob Thomas co-wrote the novel, and it has exactly the same tone as an episode. You can hear Kristen Bell reading the narration in your head. It’s spectacular. We get to see a lot of minor VMars characters in the background (Norris Clayton, obsessed with samurai swords and played by the beautiful Theo Rossi on the show, is working as a sheriff now!). I don’t know that it would appeal to anyone who hasn’t watched at least the show, but if you haven’t, you really should. Right now.
