DEAD, WHITE, AND BLUE

A sexy homewrecker gets hers.

Despite the blistering temperatures and the glut of tourists, mystery bookstore owner Annie Darling and her problem-solving spouse, Max, are enjoying summer on Broward’s Rock, S.C. The Fourth of July dance at the country club is an event to remember, not just for the fireworks in the sky, but also for the scenes caused by Shell Hurst. A beautiful Hollywood starlet who broke up wealthy Wesley Hurst’s first marriage to Vera, she stirs up trouble at the dance, then vanishes from the scene in her green Porsche. Only her stepdaughter is concerned that she’s disappeared. When she asks Max for help, he’s reluctant to get involved, but a few discreet questions are enough to indicate that no one’s seen Shell since she walked away from the dance. There are certainly plenty of suspects, since Shell was having an affair with at least one of the island residents, and Wesley wants a divorce so he can remarry Vera. Annie’s mother-in-law and her two mystery-solving friends are out of town but keep after Annie and Max to find the body. Before they succeed, another corpse turns up when a waiter from the club is found drowned. Even after the duo finally puzzle out where Shell’s body is, they still have a long way to go to pin down a calculating killer.

Annie and Max (Death Comes Silently, 2012, etc.) tackle multiple suspects and clues reminiscent of the classic mysteries offered at their bookstore. Their fans will enjoy rooting among the suspects in preparation for a denouement straight out of Agatha Christie.