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3.7 out of 5 stars
3.7 out of 5
15 global ratings
5 star
19%
4 star
51%
3 star
16%
2 star
7%
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Concord Book Lady
5.0 out of 5 stars If you like small towns and family relationships - this book (and series) is for you
Reviewed in the United States on December 5, 2016
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This is the first in a series I really enjoy. Laura - or Laurie Ann - is a southern-born, small town gal who left her roots, moved to Boston, and is happily married and working in IT. Then she is summoned home when her beloved grandfather is injured. I won't give away the plot. I will say that I really enjoy the characters in the books; she mixes character insight, suspense, and some humor, quite well. If you like Margaret Maron's Deborah Knott books, you will probably like this series as well. The author also writes under the name Leigh Perry - a more humorous "Family Skeleton" series.
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Kindle Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Down Home Murder (A Laura Fleming Mystery Book..
Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2014
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Laura Fleming is the prodigal daughter returning home to Byerly, N.C., from her adopted and very Yankee world of Boston academia. She joins her family at the bedside of Paw, the family patriarch, who was hospitalized following an accident at the textile mill where he, like most of his clan, earns a little extra money doing piecework. Just prior to lapsing into a coma, Paw whispers to Laura that this mishap was no accident. Acting on Paw's final words, Laura and her husband, Richard, a literature professor with an annoying habit of quoting Shakespeare, set out to find the killer. Many suspects including kin arise and then are eliminated from suspicion by the Yankee interlopers. Eventually, the two stumble upon a connection to another crime the recent rape and murder of a local girl which reveals the identity of the old man's killer. Kelner's first novel is replete with stock characters speaking southern (Lord-a-mighty it is so hot out there, and as muggy as all get out). A little slow at the beginning but a good read. I enjoyed it alot. worth your time and money.
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bex
4.0 out of 5 stars Better than average
Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2018
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Nice mystery. Decent writing. I'm sure some people find the family unrealistic. I don't. Except maybe in the very end but it fit with their characters.
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d viney
4.0 out of 5 stars A good down-home read
Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2013
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The main character is from North Carolina and I really enjoy that state. My parents' famililes are born and raised in Louisiana, and we visited with them many times when I was younger, so I recognized many of the expressions the characters used. Felt like home to me.
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Chance Lee
4.0 out of 5 stars Let's Talk About Socks, Baby
Reviewed in the United States on July 14, 2012
I first picked up Toni L.P. Kelner's more recent "Where are They Now?" mysteries after reading some of her short stores in her anthologies with Charlaine Harris. Kelner's stories were always some of my favorite in the books, so I was eager for more. After blazing through the three WATN books, I needed more, so I tracked down these, which I believe are her first series.

I liked this little mystery. While not as engaging as "Where Are They Now?", Laura Fleming still led an intriguing, if a little slow, story. But that's exactly what I was expecting. It helps that I like these small-town Southern mysteries, and this one had much of Kelner's great sense of humor. I also liked Shakespeare professor Richard, Laura's husband and their dynamic, which proves that romance is possible without silly, juvenile love triangles.

The mystery itself centers around a mystery at a sock factory. You read that right: a sock factory. The first time I picked up this book, it just wasn't grabbing me. Then I realized that wasn't the point. The mystery is just a nice little spice (albeit a bit bland in this first installment). The point of these books is the down-home Southern atmosphere and the characters.

There were waaay too many relatives to keep track with in this first book. They just keep coming at you! A little family tree diagram would have helped. I love diagrams! But nothing was stopping me from making my own, I was just too lazy to do so. All the characters have distinct personalities that you feel like you know them, even if you're not quite sure of their names yet. I imagine that's what Richard felt like at the first family reunion.

--chancelee.com
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Moe811
5.0 out of 5 stars A great start for the series
Reviewed in the United States on December 30, 2001
Laura and Richard Fleming are called home to Byerly, North Carolina because Laura's grandfather, Paw, who raised her after her parents death, had a serious accident. Paw is semiconscious in the hospital and tells Laura that he didn't fall, he was pushed. A young local woman also went missing about the same time. Soon after, Paw dies and Laura is determined to bring his killer to justice. Laura has always felt like an outsider in her family and the possibility that one of them murdered her much loved grandfather can either bring the family together or blow them apart completely.
I wish that I had read this mystery first, it explains alot of the family dynamics for the later books. It is also a first rate mystery and I highly recommend it.
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Coppertop
5.0 out of 5 stars Light and funny!
Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2006
I wasn't sure about this mystery, but it turned out be a great read! The characters are fun and interesting and really quite humorous!

Laura and her husband, Richard, live in Boston, but are in her hometown in North Carolina because her grandfather had an "accident." He tells Laura that he was hit before he dies and so she investigates. While the plot is a little slow at times, it is enjoyable. I even managed to figure out "whodonit" - something I seldom do!

I will definitely be picking up another book in this series and recommend you do as well!
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Lynn Demsky
5.0 out of 5 stars a really fun read!
Reviewed in the United States on July 30, 2014
This was a delightful book to read. Laura’s family in North Carolina are truly an amazing group of people who come what may defend each other always! I enjoyed the small town “cozy” part of it, how most of the family truly didn’t get along very well and their love for Paw! The ending truly surprised me and even though it’s an older mystery because Laura and Richard are from Boston --- it’s not totally outdated. Once I started it, I couldn’t put it down!
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Sabine Korsukewitz
3.0 out of 5 stars Eine Familie um Ermorden
Reviewed in Germany on May 12, 2015
Verified Purchase
Erstes Buch einer Serie über die Südstaaten-Ermittlerin Laura Fleming, die einem Mord an einem jungen Mädchen auf die Spur kommt und entdecken muss, dass der Mörder sich unter ihren Familienmitgliedern befindet. Laura und ihr bücherwurmischer Ehemann sind zum Begräbnis der Großmutter angereist, als gleich darauf der zweite Todesfall in der Familie eintritt. Das Ganze ist mit recht nettem Lokalkolorit erzählt, aber trotz dreier Leichen doch recht harmlos. Und die Familie so nervig, dass man sich weitere Todesfälle durchaus wünscht. Da werde ich aber nicht dabei sein - ich hab mich schon beim ersten Buch ein bisschen gelangweilt.
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