Genealogists and history buffs will delight in the minutiae of this torturous tale of hate and greed.
A Texas-based genealogist takes on a deadly case.
Self-employed genealogist Lucy Lancaster is enjoying her renewed relationship with FBI Special Agent Ben Turner when a former colleague shows up with a problem. Camilla Braithwaite is not Lucy’s favorite person. Abrasive and snarky, she and her two acolytes made Lucy’s life miserable when she worked at a university library. Now a journal has published an article accusing Camilla’s well-respected ancestor Charles Edward Braithwaite of being a coward and deserter who lied about his Civil War service. Camilla wants Lucy to prove the charges false. Lucy agrees to take the job and begins researching—a tough job, as Civil War records are notoriously spotty. Camilla’s family is even facing a frivolous lawsuit by a family who claims that money spent entertaining Charles ruined them financially. The family tree is widely spread, and the branch belonging to Charles’ daughter is hard to track down. But Lucy perseveres in hope of finding part of an ugly triptych that’s a family treasure. Camilla owns one panel. Another belongs to her Uncle Charlie, who by accident discovers under the nondescript panel a stunning depiction of a battlefield. Lucy asks her friend Helen Kim, an art restorer, to take a look at it, but Uncle Charlie is smothered and the panel stolen before Lucy can pick it up. Fortunately, Ben has time off and can help Lucy with what turns out to be a most dangerous search.
Genealogists and history buffs will delight in the minutiae of this torturous tale of hate and greed.Pub Date: July 20, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-2507-8964-8
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Minotaur
Review Posted Online: May 18, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
Scads of red herrings, peeks behind the show-biz curtain, and bountiful appended recipes will leave fans smiling contentedly.
An opportunity to promote the Village Blend coffeehouse turns into a murderous disaster.
Clare Cosi is a big fan of comedian Jerry Sullivan, so she’s thrilled when his popular TV series Only Murders in Gotham chooses the Village Blend as a place to shoot. Another fan is Clare’s barista Tucker, an actor who has a speaking role. The production has already suffered its share of problems. Jerry’s assistant has been injured in an accident, and Lizzy Meeks, the president of Jerry’s fan club, is stalking him. When it appears that the coffee in the craft services truck run by Driftwood Coffee, avowed enemy of the Village Blend, has poisoned the property master, who’s saved by the quick thinking of Clare’s coffee buyer and ex-husband Matt, Jerry cuts Driftwood loose, and Clare and Matt step in. When Jerry shoots Tucker with a gun containing a real bullet instead of blanks, only the fact that Tucker was smart enough to wear a bulletproof vest saves him and the production from disaster. Clare strikes up a friendship with an intern who turns out to be costar Kylee Ferris, who’ll be terrorized by a snake in her trailer. Amid all the other miscues, Clare, who’s helped solve many a murder, follows the property master to Central Park, where he’s shot dead. Though Clare’s fiance, Mike Quinn, is an NYPD detective whose position makes Clare’s own position awkward, he’s willing to ignore minor problems until Clare becomes a target.
Scads of red herrings, peeks behind the show-biz curtain, and bountiful appended recipes will leave fans smiling contentedly.Pub Date: Nov. 14, 2023
ISBN: 9780593197592
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Good friends, good food, and a murder combine in a delightful holiday cozy.
The Seaside Knitters become enmeshed in a murder whose suspects are mostly their friends and neighbors.
The wise Birdie Favazza leads a group of friends and amateur sleuths that includes lobster company owner Cass Halloran Brandley, Yarn studio maven Izzy Perry, and Izzy's aunt, Nell Endicott, all aided and abetted by their husbands. Expectations rise when Oliver Bishop, the husband of Nell’s dearest college friend, who died from cancer, comes to town with his second wife, celebrated chef Lidia Carson. Alas, their visit doesn’t go as planned. Lidia, who’s been hired to cater the mayor’s Christmas party, has brought most of her own crew with her. She promptly raises eyebrows when she attempts to buy the Ocean’s Edge restaurant, a town treasure with an amazing ocean view. The owner’s not interested, but he has several investors who might be, though their number doesn’t include Birdie, the first investor Lidia approaches. In the meantime, there’s a peeping Tom on Cass’ street, and without warning, Molly Flannigan, Cass' perfect nanny/housekeeper, vanishes. The mayor’s party is lovely, and the food Lidia provides is amazing, but things look worse in the kitchen, where new arguments are breaking out every minute. After Nell discovers Lidia dead in a snowdrift in the mayor’s yard, a little snooping into her background reveals a long list of people who may have wished her dead. Sadly, most of them are liked and respected by the sleuths, who nevertheless resolve to track down every clue necessary to find the culprit.
Good friends, good food, and a murder combine in a delightful holiday cozy.Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-4967-2940-8
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Kensington
Review Posted Online: July 7, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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