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Curiosity just might be the death of Mrs. Murphy - and her human companion, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen. Small towns are like families: Everyone lives very close together. . .and everyone keeps secrets. Crozet, Virginia, is a typical small town - until its secrets explode into murder. Crozet's thirty-something post-mistress, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen, has a tiger cat (Mrs. Murphy) and a Welsh Corgi (Tucker), a pending divorce, and a bad habit of reading postcards not addressed to her.
There's a cat in the stacks...and he makes the purr-fect partner for a librarian-turned-sleuth. Everyone in Athena, Mississippi, knows librarian Charlie Harris - and his Maine coon cat named Diesel that he walks on a leash. They also know his former classmate-turned-famous best-selling novelist, Godfrey Priest. But someone in Athena took Godfrey off the best seller lists - permanently, and with extreme prejudice. Now, Charlie and Diesel must browse through the history section of the town's past to find a killer.
In her first foray into the sleuthing game, resourceful, red-headed Hannah Swensen must find the right ingredients to solve two perplexing murders. One chilly morning on her way to The Cookie Jar, Hannah discovers Ron, the dairy delivery man, shot dead in his truck. When she begins to investigate, she suspects the dairy owner. But when he, too, is murdered, Hannah must look further afield for the culprit.
Sarah Grayson is the happy proprietor of Second Chance, a charming shop in the oceanfront town of North Harbor, Maine. At the shop she sells used items that she has lovingly refurbished and repurposed. But her favorite pet project so far has been adopting a stray cat she names Elvis. The big black cat with a scar across his nose turned up at a local bar when the band was playing the King of Rock and Roll's music and hopped in Sarah's truck.
Co-author of the best-selling Mrs. Murphy novels, Rita Mae Brown launches a new series with this first mystery featuring Baxter the wirehaired dachshund. When Baxter and his owner, Mags, leave New York for Nevada, they find themselves embroiled in a real head scratcher. First, the local water-pumping station is sabotaged. Then, a murdered man’s bones - dating back to the 1800s - are unearthed in a barn owned by Mags’ great-aunt.
When librarian Kathleen Paulson moved to Mayville Heights, Minnesota, she had no idea that two strays would nuzzle their way into her life. Owen is a tabby with a catnip addiction and Hercules is a stocky tuxedo cat who shares Kathleen's fondness for Barry Manilow. But beyond all the fur and purrs, there's something more to these felines. When murder interrupts Mayville's Music Festival, Kathleen finds herself the prime suspect.
Curiosity just might be the death of Mrs. Murphy - and her human companion, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen. Small towns are like families: Everyone lives very close together. . .and everyone keeps secrets. Crozet, Virginia, is a typical small town - until its secrets explode into murder. Crozet's thirty-something post-mistress, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen, has a tiger cat (Mrs. Murphy) and a Welsh Corgi (Tucker), a pending divorce, and a bad habit of reading postcards not addressed to her.
There's a cat in the stacks...and he makes the purr-fect partner for a librarian-turned-sleuth. Everyone in Athena, Mississippi, knows librarian Charlie Harris - and his Maine coon cat named Diesel that he walks on a leash. They also know his former classmate-turned-famous best-selling novelist, Godfrey Priest. But someone in Athena took Godfrey off the best seller lists - permanently, and with extreme prejudice. Now, Charlie and Diesel must browse through the history section of the town's past to find a killer.
In her first foray into the sleuthing game, resourceful, red-headed Hannah Swensen must find the right ingredients to solve two perplexing murders. One chilly morning on her way to The Cookie Jar, Hannah discovers Ron, the dairy delivery man, shot dead in his truck. When she begins to investigate, she suspects the dairy owner. But when he, too, is murdered, Hannah must look further afield for the culprit.
Sarah Grayson is the happy proprietor of Second Chance, a charming shop in the oceanfront town of North Harbor, Maine. At the shop she sells used items that she has lovingly refurbished and repurposed. But her favorite pet project so far has been adopting a stray cat she names Elvis. The big black cat with a scar across his nose turned up at a local bar when the band was playing the King of Rock and Roll's music and hopped in Sarah's truck.
Co-author of the best-selling Mrs. Murphy novels, Rita Mae Brown launches a new series with this first mystery featuring Baxter the wirehaired dachshund. When Baxter and his owner, Mags, leave New York for Nevada, they find themselves embroiled in a real head scratcher. First, the local water-pumping station is sabotaged. Then, a murdered man’s bones - dating back to the 1800s - are unearthed in a barn owned by Mags’ great-aunt.
When librarian Kathleen Paulson moved to Mayville Heights, Minnesota, she had no idea that two strays would nuzzle their way into her life. Owen is a tabby with a catnip addiction and Hercules is a stocky tuxedo cat who shares Kathleen's fondness for Barry Manilow. But beyond all the fur and purrs, there's something more to these felines. When murder interrupts Mayville's Music Festival, Kathleen finds herself the prime suspect.
"Harry" Haristeen and her friends and animal companions pursue the threads of a mystery dating back to Virginia's post-Revolutionary past, introduced in A Hiss Before Dying, while their 18th century predecessors continue to struggle with the challenges of the fledgling country.
With the Mississippi sun beating down, An’gel and Dickce are taking a break to cool off and pet sit their friend Charlie Harris’s cat, Diesel, when their former sorority sister, Rosabelle Sultan, shows up at their door unexpectedly, with her ne'er-do-well adult children not far behind. Rosabelle's selfish offspring are desperate to discover what's in her will, and it soon becomes clear that one of them would kill to get their hands on the inheritance.
Meteorologist Zoe Parker put Everlasting in her rearview mirror as soon as she had her college degree in hand. But when Sapphire, her eccentric great-aunt, takes a tumble down the stairs in her lighthouse home, Zoe returns to the tiny fishing hamlet to look after her. Zoe has barely crossed the county line when strange things start happening with the weather, and she discovers Sapphire's fall was no accident. Someone is searching the lighthouse, but Sapphire has no idea what they're looking for.
A mystery full of colorful characters (both two- and four-legged!), gorgeous country landscapes, timeless traditions, and the breathtaking thrill of the fox hunt. The fox has made short work of the henhouse and is wreaking havoc across the once-peaceful Virginia hunt country. As Master of the Hunt, "Sister" Jane Arnold, her gentleman friend Gray Lorillard, the members of the Jefferson Hunt Club, and their loyal, clever hounds confront a most challenging - and all-too-human - adversary.
Miracle Springs is a place of healing. Strangers flock there hoping that the natural hot springs, five-star cuisine, and renowned spa can cure their ills. And, if none of that works, they often find their way to Miracle Books, where, over a fresh-baked scone from the Gingerbread House bakery, they exchange their stories with owner Nora Pennington in return for a carefully chosen book. That's Nora's special talent: prescribing the perfect novel to ease a person's deepest pain and lighten their heaviest burden.
At the Man with a Load of Mischief, they found the dead body stuck in a keg of beer. At the Jack and Hammer, another body was stuck out on the beam of the pub’s sign, replacing the mechanical man who kept the time. Two pubs. Two murders. One Scotland Yard inspector called in to help. Detective Chief Inspector Richard Jury arrives in Long Piddleton and finds everyone in the postcard village looking outside of town for the killer - except for one Melrose Plant....
New York Times best-selling authors Rita Mae Brown and Sneaky Pie Brown continue their fan-favorite Mrs. Murphy cozies with Tail Gait. Here spring comes to Crozet, Virginia, with a bang when a professor is gunned down in broad daylight. Now it's up to kitty sleuths Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, along with crime-solving corgi Tee Tucker, to sniff out the killer.
narrator was ok. I'm still adjusting to books on audio and it takes sometime to get use to hearing the story from another person's voice. the story itself was good , although I found myself a bit lost in the beginning with the flashback chapters.
Having read every book from her series this far, I can say this is one of my favorites. The characters kept me invested until the very end, and upon the closing of the final chapter, I was smiling with joy. I highly recommend it.
It was a close call between a three or a four star rating. Not the best in this long running series, and a farfetched motive for the murders to put it mildly. It was nice to have Herb Jones back, however briefly, but several things did not make sense. The people in Susan's golf threesome heard the shots of the first murder, but said they had no information when questioned. Why? The homeless denizens of Charlottesville's Downtown Mall are remarkably mobile, getting around the area with little difficulty. There were also multiple mispronounced names that were jarring - Sabato, Taliaferro, Cabell, and, most inexplicably, Monticello. The story lacks the high energy RMB generally brings to her stories. Still, it was enjoyable enough to while away a lazy Saturday.
Great history, but as with last few books in series, too little of animal interaction
Rita Mae Brown is one of my favorite authors. Beautifully grounded in both superior storytelling abilities and classic whodunit construction, this is an extremely entertaining mystery. The narrator is equally excellent
- probably one of the best that I have ever heard. I can hardly wait for Ms. Brown's next book to be available on Audible.
Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?
Yes
How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?
Although I understand why the Revolutionary War part of the book is important, I buy these books because I love Harry and the other main characters. I miss her friends being a big part of the story. I miss Miranda. I miss the others. I did not want so much of the book to be taken up with the War story. Disappointed in that.
What does Kate Forbes bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Yes, I really love her narration.
If this book were a movie would you go see it?
I probably would, but others are better.
Any additional comments?
Get back to the main characters we come to love.
This book was way to slow for my liking. There was nothing exciting or intriguing to keep me interested. I don't believe I will continue on with these books.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful