Overview

Semiretired bookseller and former single parent to a challenging teen, the not-so-newly remarried Claire Malloy finds herself entangled in yet another case of felonious doings in this latest cozy. Claire Malloy, for as long as she can remember, has been the local bookseller and owner of the Book Depot and the widowed mother of teenage Caron, who frequently speaks in all caps. But her life has changed dramatically in recent years. Claire has married her longtime beau, Deputy Police Chief Peter Rosen. Still the owner of the Book Depot, Claire has passed the day-to-day running of it on to her very efficient employees. With Caron inching ever closer to college, there's but one thing that remains steadfastly unchanged-Claire's astonishing ability to attract, find, or even just randomly stumble across trouble. Summoned for jury duty, Claire is humiliated when the prosecutor, harboring a grudge against her husband, dismisses her in a spectacular enough fashion to make the local news. As a result, Claire decides revenge will be the next dish she serves. She hunts down the defendant in the case, a woman accused of murdering her husband, and offers to help prove her innocence. And not just because Claire wants to humiliate the prosecutor. There are only two problems: One, the defendant is looking guiltier by the minute. Two, the worst day imaginable has finally come-Claire's dreaded new mother-in-law is coming to visit, and life in prison is starting to look good.

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9781481520041

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Reviews

If you've never spent time with Claire Malloy and her crew, I feel sorry for you. Stop reading this nonsense and hop to it. You'll see wit and humanity all wrapped up in a nifty murder mystery. -- Harlan Coben, New York Times bestselling author of Missing You, praise for the series Claire Malloy is back with her signature snark in this witty twentieth installment of Joan Hess' series...Her willingness to consider all sides of the story ultimately solves the complex case. -- BookPage The plot is nicely leavened with humor, realistic family vignettes, and diverse characters, some loopy and eccentric, others sympathetic. -- Booklist Prolific mystery writer Hess, who recently won the Malice Domestic Award for Lifetime Achievement, returns with her twentieth book in the Claire Malloy series...Readers of humorous cozies can rejoice that Hess is still turning out entertaining, comical mysteries. -- Library Journal Agatha-finalist Hess smoothly blends humor and detecting in her twentieth Claire Malloy mystery...Spending time with Claire and the other citizens of Farberville is always a treat. -- Publishers Weekly

Agatha-finalist Hess smoothly blends humor and detecting in her twentieth Claire Malloy mystery...Spending time with Claire and the other citizens of Farberville is always a treat. -- Publishers Weekly Prolific mystery writer Hess, who recently won the Malice Domestic Award for Lifetime Achievement, returns with her twentieth book in the Claire Malloy series...Readers of humorous cozies can rejoice that Hess is still turning out entertaining, comical mysteries. -- Library Journal The plot is nicely leavened with humor, realistic family vignettes, and diverse characters, some loopy and eccentric, others sympathetic. -- Booklist Claire Malloy is back with her signature snark in this witty twentieth installment of Joan Hess' series...Her willingness to consider all sides of the story ultimately solves the complex case. -- BookPage If you've never spent time with Claire Malloy and her crew, I feel sorry for you. Stop reading this nonsense and hop to it. You'll see wit and humanity all wrapped up in a nifty murder mystery. -- Harlan Coben, New York Times bestselling author of Missing You, praise for the series

"Agatha-finalist Hess smoothly blends humor and detecting in her twentieth Claire Malloy mystery...Spending time with Claire and the other citizens of Farberville is always a treat. -- ""Publishers Weekly"" Claire Malloy is back with her signature snark in this witty twentieth installment of Joan Hess' series...Her willingness to consider all sides of the story ultimately solves the complex case. -- ""BookPage"" If you've never spent time with Claire Malloy and her crew, I feel sorry for you. Stop reading this nonsense and hop to it. You'll see wit and humanity all wrapped up in a nifty murder mystery. -- ""Harlan Coben, New York Times bestselling author of Missing You, praise for the series"" Prolific mystery writer Hess, who recently won the Malice Domestic Award for Lifetime Achievement, returns with her twentieth book in the Claire Malloy series...Readers of humorous cozies can rejoice that Hess is still turning out entertaining, comical mysteries. -- ""Library Journal"" The plot is nicely leavened with humor, realistic family vignettes, and diverse characters, some loopy and eccentric, others sympathetic. -- ""Booklist"""

Author Information

Joan Hess is the author of both the Claire Malloy and the Maggody mystery series. She is a winner of the Agatha Award, a member of Sisters in Crime, and a former president of the American Crime Writers League. A longtime resident of Fayetteville, Arkansas, she now lives in Austin, Texas. Meredith Mitchell is an actress who has performed in such films as Mona Lisa Smile and The Reunion, on stage with Shakespeare & Company and the New Repertory Theatre, and on television on Good Morning America. She received her BA in psychology from Emory University and her MFA in acting from Brandeis University.

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