A Bad Day for Murder, The Stella Hardesty Series 1-4
A Bad Day for Murder, The Stella Hardesty Series 1-4

Author: Sophie Littlefield

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Published: 2016-06-07

Total Pages: 1338

ISBN-13: 1250115620

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Available for the first time in an e-bundle, the first four books in Sophie Littlefield’s Anthony and RT Award-winning and Edgar-nominated series featuring the unforgettable Stella Hardesty, a salty heroine who works outside of the law in rural Missouri. "Crime fiction hasn't seen a character as scrappy, mean, and incredibly appealing as Stella in a long time. (A-)"—Entertainment Weekly on A Bad Day for Sorry A BAD DAY FOR SORRY At first glance, Stella Hardesty looks like a typical housewife. Then she kills her abusive husband with a wrench right before her fiftieth birthday. Now, she's so busy delivering justice, helping other women deal with their own abusive husbands and boyfriends, that she's barely got time to run her sewing shop. When young mother Chrissy Shaw asks Stella for help with her no-good husband, Roy Dean, it looks like an easy case until Roy Dean disappears with Chrissy's two-year-old son, Tucker. Stella quickly learns that Roy Dean was involved with some very scary men, as she tries to sort out who's hiding information and who's merely trying to kill her. It's going to take a hell of a fight to get the little boy back home to his mama, but if anyone can do it, it's Stella Hardesty. A BAD DAY FOR PRETTY When a tornado destroys the snack shack at the demolition derby track, pulling up the concrete foundation and unearthing a woman's body, the main suspect in the woman's murder is Neb Donovan---he laid the foundation, and there's some pretty hard evidence pointing to his guilt. Years ago, Neb's wife asked Stella for help getting him sober. Stella doesn't believe the gentle man could kill anyone, and she promises his frantic wife she'll look into it. A BAD DAY FOR SCANDAL When Prosper homegirl turned big-city businesswoman Priss Porter returns to town with a body in her trunk, she calls Stella Hardesty to dispose of it. Her uppity ways don't convince Stella to take the job, and Priss attempts to blackmail her with a snapshot of Stella doing what she does best: curing woman-beaters by the use of force. A BAD DAY FOR MERCY A call from Stella's little sister brings the news that Stella's step-nephew, Chip, has been threatened with serious bodily harm if he doesn't settle his unpaid gambling debts. So Stella makes the drive to Chip's home in Wisconsin, only to walk in on a wee-hours dismemberment. Chip and his girlfriend, Natalya, insist the man was left, already dead, on their porch. Suspicious but compelled to help family, Stella tracks down other suspects, including the deceased's business partner, a purveyor of black-market Botox, and a jilted violist. Matters are complicated by the unexpected arrival of BJ Broderson, who has picked the worst possible time to pursue his amorous intentions toward Stella.

A Bad Day for Scandal
A Bad Day for Scandal

Author: Sophie Littlefield

Publisher: Macmillan + ORM

Published: 2011-06-21

Total Pages: 301

ISBN-13: 1429983213

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A Bad Day for Scandal is the third in Sophie Littlefield's award-winning, critically acclaimed series. Written with passion, humor, and guts, this is a mystery to be savored. When Prosper homegirl turned big-city businesswoman Priss Porter returns to town with a body in her trunk, she calls Stella Hardesty to dispose of it. Her uppity ways don't convince Stella to take the job, and Priss attempts to blackmail her with a snapshot of Stella doing what she does best: curing woman-beaters by the use of force. Stella refuses to cooperate and goes home, only to hear later that Priss and her brother, Liman, have gone missing after calling in a disturbance. Stella is implicated when Sheriff "Goat" Jones discovers the scarf she left behind at the house. He warns her to stay local but Stella and her partner, Chrissy Shaw, go looking for Priss in Kansas City, where they discover that she runs an unusual business. When Priss herself—along with two other bodies—turns up in a pond belonging to one of Stella's ex-clients, Stella must investigate a host of suspects, including a crooked but libidinous female judge, a coterie of jealous male escorts, and a Marxist ex-professor.

A Bad Day for Sorry
A Bad Day for Sorry

Author: Sophie Littlefield

Publisher: Macmillan + ORM

Published: 2010-05-25

Total Pages: 261

ISBN-13: 1429990406

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Winner of the Anthony Award for Best First Novel! Stella Hardesty dispatched her abusive husband with a wrench shortly before her fiftieth birthday. A few years later, she's so busy delivering home-style justice on her days off, helping other women deal with their own abusive husbands and boyfriends, that she barely has time to run her sewing shop in her rural Missouri hometown. Some men need more convincing than others, but it's usually nothing a little light bondage or old-fashioned whuppin' can't fix. Since Stella works outside of the law, she's free to do whatever it takes to get the job done---as long as she keeps her distance from the handsome devil of a local sheriff, Goat Jones. When young mother Chrissy Shaw asks Stella for help with her no-good husband, Roy Dean, it looks like an easy case. Until Roy Dean disappears with Chrissy's two-year-old son, Tucker. Stella quickly learns that Roy Dean was involved with some very scary men, as she tries to sort out who's hiding information and who's merely trying to kill her. It's going to take a hell of a fight to get the little boy back home to his mama, but if anyone can do it, it's Stella Hardesty. Sophie Littlefield's A Bad Day for Sorry won an Anthony Award for Best First Novel and an RT Book Award for Best First Mystery. It was also shortlisted for Edgar, Barry, Crimespree, and Macavity Awards, and it was named to lists of the year's best mystery debuts by the Chicago Sun-Times and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

A Bad Day for Mercy
A Bad Day for Mercy

Author: Sophie Littlefield

Publisher: Minotaur Books

Published: 2012-06-19

Total Pages: 269

ISBN-13: 1250014956

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A call from Stella Hardesty's little sister brings the news that Stella's step-nephew, Chip, has been threatened with serious bodily harm if he doesn't settle his unpaid gambling debts. Stella makes the drive to Chip's home in Wisconsin, only to walk in on a wee-hours dismemberment. Chip and his Russian girlfriend, Natalya, insist the man was left, already dead, on their porch. Suspicious but compelled to help family, Stella tracks down other suspects, including the deceased's business partner, a purveyor of black-market Botox, and a jilted violist. Matters are complicated by the unexpected arrival of BJ Broderson, who has picked the worst possible time to pursue his amorous intentions toward Stella. Meanwhile, thoughts of Sheriff "Goat" Jones make Stella blush and wonder where, and with whom, she will spend her fifty-first birthday. A Bad Day for Mercy is a terrific addition to this incredibly original and entertaining series. For those who haven't yet discovered the wonder of Sophie Littlefield, it's high time to join the fun!

A Bad Day for Pretty
A Bad Day for Pretty

Author: Sophie Littlefield

Publisher: Macmillan + ORM

Published: 2010-06-02

Total Pages: 304

ISBN-13: 1429924063

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A New York Times Notable Book! A Bad Day for Pretty is the thrilling sequel to A Bad Day for Sorry, Sophie Littlefield's award-winning debut featuring Stella Hardesty, one of the most applauded and exciting new heroines in crime fiction today. Stella Hardesty, avenger of wronged women, is getting cozy with Sheriff "Goat" Jones when a tornado blows none other than Goat's scheming ex-wife, Brandy, through the front door. Adding to the chaos, the tornado destroys the snack shack at the demolition derby track, pulling up the concrete foundation and unearthing a woman's body. The main suspect in the woman's murder is Neb Donovan---he laid the foundation, and there's some pretty hard evidence pointing to his guilt. Years ago, Neb's wife asked Stella for help getting him sober. Stella doesn't believe the gentle man could kill anyone, and she promises his frantic wife she'll look into it. Former client Chrissy Shaw is now employed at Stella's sewing shop and she helps with the snooping as Stella negotiates the unpredictable Brandy and the dangerously magnetic sheriff.

Garden of Stones
Garden of Stones

Author: Sophie Littlefield

Publisher: Harlequin

Published: 2013-02-26

Total Pages: 190

ISBN-13: 1460300300

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“Suspense, mystery, and love” fill a multigenerational “moving drama of women in a Japanese American family. . . . The shocking revelation is unforgettable” (Booklist). In the dark days of World War II, a mother makes the ultimate sacrifice Lucy Takeda is just fourteen years old, living in Los Angeles, when the bombs rain down on Pearl Harbor. Within weeks, she and her mother, Miyako, are ripped from their home, rounded up—along with thousands of other innocent Japanese-Americans—and taken to the Manzanar prison camp. Buffeted by blistering heat and choking dust, Lucy and Miyako must endure the harsh living conditions of the camp. Corruption and abuse creep into every corner of Manzanar, eventually ensnaring beautiful, vulnerable Miyako. Ruined and unwilling to surrender her daughter to the same fate, Miyako soon breaks. Her final act of desperation will stay with Lucy forever . . . and spur her to sins of her own. Bestselling author Sophie Littlefield weaves a powerful tale of stolen innocence and survival that echoes through generations, reverberating between mothers and daughters. It is a moving chronicle of injustice, triumph and the unspeakable acts we commit in the name of love. “Littlefield . . . makes her tale resonant and universal . . . gripping.” —Publishers Weekly “Littlefield shows considerable skills for delving into the depths of her characters and complex plotting as she disarms the reader.” —South Florida Sun-Sentinel

A Bad Day for Romance
A Bad Day for Romance

Author: Sophie Littlefield

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2013-09-02

Total Pages: 229

ISBN-13: 1476710112

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That’s no cupid, it’s a bridesmaid with a crossbow. Stella Hardesty is a seamstress with a sideline job in vigilante justice in this entertaining ebook in the Edgar-nominated and award-winning Bad Day series. Two days before her best friend gets married, Stella Hardesty has nothing more pressing on her mind than fitting into her fluffy pink bridesmaid gown, mixing her next cocktail, and enjoying a romantic weekend with her sometimes beau, BJ Brodersen. Just as she’s headed to the bridal shower, word comes that BJ and smokin’ hot sheriff Goat Jones have gotten into a dustup over Stella’s affections. Before Stella can recover from this startling development, more bad news comes along. The minister’s niece, the hard-to-love pageant princess Divinity Flycock, has been arrested for the murder of her fiancé. The bride begs Stella to clear Divinity’s name so that her minister will be able to perform the nuptials. When Stella starts digging into the case, however, she uncovers a world of jealous nightclub singers, firearms dealers, and the ugly underbelly of reality TV. Hot on the trail of the truth, she’s distracted by the arrival of the sheriff, who finally seems ready to make a claim for her affections.

Save Me from Dangerous Men
Save Me from Dangerous Men

Author: S. A. Lelchuk

Publisher: Flatiron Books

Published: 2019-03-19

Total Pages: 336

ISBN-13: 1250170257

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“An outstanding debut...If you’re a fan of Jack Reacher or Lisbeth Salander, you are gonna love Nikki Griffin.” —New York Times bestselling author Douglas Preston “Action packed and razor sharp - Jack Reacher would love Nikki Griffin.” —Lee Child, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Past Tense Nikki Griffin isn't your typical private investigator. In her office above her bookstore’s shelves and stacks, where she luxuriates in books and the comfort they provide, she also tracks certain men. Dangerous men. Men who have hurt the women they claim to love. And Nikki likes to teach those men a lesson, to teach them what it feels like to be hurt and helpless, so she can be sure that their victims are safe from them forever. When a regular PI job tailing Karen, a tech company's disgruntled employee who might be selling secrets, turns ugly and Karen's life is threatened, Nikki has to break cover and intervene. Karen tells Nikki that there are people after her. Dangerous men. She says she'll tell Nikki what's really going on. But then something goes wrong, and suddenly Nikki is no longer just solving a case—she's trying hard to stay alive. Part Lisbeth Salander, part Jack Reacher, part Jessica Jones, Nikki Griffin is a kickass character who readers will root for as she seeks to right the world's wrongs. S.A. Lelchuk’s Save Me From Dangerous Men marks the beginning of a gripping new series and the launch of a fabulous new character.

Faces of the Gone
Faces of the Gone

Author: Brad Parks

Publisher: Macmillan + ORM

Published: 2009-12-08

Total Pages: 338

ISBN-13: 142998712X

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A rogue reporter investigates a grisly multiple murder in Newark, NJ, in this Shamus and Nero Award–winning mystery series debut. Four bodies, each with a single bullet wound in the back of the head, stacked like cordwood in a weed-choked vacant lot: That’s the front-page news facing Carter Ross, investigative reporter with the Newark Eagle-Examiner. Immediately dispatched to the scene, Carter learns that the four victims—an exotic dancer, a drug dealer, a hustler, and a mama’s boy—came from different parts of the city and didn’t seem to know one another. The police, eager to calm jittery residents, leak a theory that the murders are revenge for a bar stickup, and Carter’s paper, hungry for a scoop, hastily prints it. Carter doesn’t come from the streets, but he understands a thing or two about Newark’s neighborhoods. And he knows there are no quick answers when dealing with a crime like this. Determined to uncover the true story, he enlists the aide of Tina Thompson, the paper’s city editor, to run interference at the office; Tommy Hernandez, the paper’s intern, to help him with legwork on the streets; and Tynesha Dales, a local stripper, to take him to Newark’s underside. It turns out that the four victims have one connection after all, and this knowledge will put Carter on the path of one very ambitious killer.