Swimming into the lifeless body of her husband's mistress tends to ruin a woman's day but becoming a murder suspect can ruin her whole life. It's 1974 and Ellison Russell's life revolves around her daughter and her art. She's long since stopped caring about her cheating husband, Henry, and the women with whom he entertains himself. That is until she becomes a suspect in Madeline Harper's death. The murder forces Ellison to confront her husband's proclivities and his crimes: kinky sex, petty cruelties and blackmail. As the body county approaches par on the seventh hole, Ellison knows she has to catch a killer. But with an interfering mother, an adoring father, a teenage daughter and a cadre of well-meaning friends demanding her attention, can Ellison find the killer before he finds her?
Mandy Carter, the pretty 18-year-old cart girl, is found buried in a sand trap at an upscale country club in New England. Who clubbed her to death ... and why? That's the question haunting Detective Abby Sanders, whose own teenage daughter looks so much like the victim they could have been sisters. A former competitive golfer herself, Abby quickly lets the country club crowd know that no one is above suspicion.
With his dying breath, Bobby Lowell begs Ellison Russell, "Tell her I love her." Unable to refuse, Ellison struggles to find the girl the murdered boy loved. Too bad an epically bad blind date, a vindictive graffiti artist, and multiple trips to the emergency room keep getting in the way. Worse, a killer has Ellison in his sights, her newly rebellious daughter is missing, and there's yet another body in her hostas. Mother won't be pleased. Now Ellison must track down not one but two runaway teenagers, keep her promise to Bobby, and elude the killer-all before her next charity gala committee meeting.
A historical thriller based on the real-life 1941 robbery of a Kentucky golf club that ended in the murder of a young champion golfer and her mother. Today, the name Marion Miley is largely unrecognizable, but in the fall of 1941, she was an internationally renowned golf champion, winning every leading women’s tournament except the elusive national title. This unassuming twenty-seven-year-old woman was beloved by all she met, including celebrities like jazz crooner Bing Crosby. With ambitions to become a doctor, it seemed Marion Miley was headed for greatness. But on September 28, 1941, six gunshots broke through the early morning stillness of the Lexington Country Club. Marion had been brutally murdered. News of her death spread quickly, headlining major papers such as the New York Times. Support flooded in, spurring police in the hunt for her killers. However, the bombing of Pearl Harbor less than two months later would redirect public attention and sweep Marion's story to a forgotten corner of time?until now. The Murder of Marion Miley recounts the ensuing manhunt and trial, exploring the impact of class, family, and opportunity in a world where steely determination is juxtaposed with callous murderous intent. As the narrative voice oscillates between Marion’s father, her best friend, and one of her killers, an ever-present specter of what could have been?not just for Marion, but for all those affected by her tragic death?is conjured. Drawing on intensive research typical of the true crime genre, Beverly Bell produces a passionate homage to one of the greatest golfers of the early twentieth century. Praise for The Murder of Marion Miley “Don’t let Beverly Bell fool you: she must have been reporting live in 1941 from the scene of Lexington’s most notorious crime. Bell writes with a golden erudition and preternatural imagination that keep the wide-eyed reader up all night—think Truman Capote.” —Patty Friedmann, author of Where Do They All Come From? “In The Murder of Marion Miley, author Beverly Bell takes literary crime-writing to new heights. Unearthing the remains of an actual 80-year-old crime—the murder of a world-class golfer in her prime—Bell creates a lyrical, page-turning novel about chance, class, and the strains of family bonds. Set in Kentucky’s Bluegrass region in the weeks before and after Pearl Harbor, Bell’s book recounts the crime while plunging us into the minds of an assortment of American characters of the 1940s. From its riveting opening scene, The Murder of Marion Miley is story-telling excellence.” —Neil Chethik, author of FatherLoss: How Sons of All Ages Come to Terms With the Deaths of Their Dads
Spring is in the air, and Ellison Russell has places to go, people to see, bodies to find. Strike that. For once, Ellison doesn't discover the body.When Detective Anarchy Jones investigates a friend's husband's murder, Ellison can't help but get involved.Now she's waist-deep in toxic gossip, struggling with the soaring heights and nocuous lows of her teenager's mood swings, fending off the advances of her first love, planning a wedding, and (of course) tripping over fresh corpses.With her life a whirlwind of conflict, can Ellison unmask a devious killer, or will death poison her future?
A New York Times bestseller | Soon to be a major motion picture “Witty, endearing and greatly entertaining.” —Wall Street Journal “Don’t trust anyone, including the four septuagenarian sleuths in Osman’s own laugh-out-loud whodunit.” —Parade Four septuagenarians with a few tricks up their sleeves A female cop with her first big case A brutal murder Welcome to... THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends meet weekly in the Jigsaw Room to discuss unsolved crimes; together they call themselves the Thursday Murder Club. When a local developer is found dead with a mysterious photograph left next to the body, the Thursday Murder Club suddenly find themselves in the middle of their first live case. As the bodies begin to pile up, can our unorthodox but brilliant gang catch the killer, before it's too late?
USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR Ellison Russell wanted a decorator, not a corpse. Too bad she finds Mrs. White in the study killed with a revolver. Things go from bad to worse when she finds Mr. White in the dining room killed with a candlestick. With so many bodies, is it any wonder Detective Anarchy Jones' new partner considers Ellison a suspect? With the country club gossips talking a mile a minute, an unexpected cocktail party, a visit from Aunt Sis, and a romantic decision, Ellison hardly has time to think about murder. Unfortunately, the killer has plenty of time to think about her. "This series has become so enjoyable precisely because Ellison strives against the norms no matter how many times she is told how to behave. It is her sharp wit and humor that allows her to prevail, and attempting to teach the same to her daughter further cements her place as an admirable and extraordinarily likable heroine. As entertaining as it is for readers to romp through 1970s country club society, far more enthralling are the adventures of such a resilient and stalwart woman." - Kings River Life Magazine Related subjects include: cozy mysteries, women sleuths, murder mystery series, whodunit mysteries (whodunnit), amateur sleuth books, book club recommendations, humorous murder mysteries, historical mysteries. Books in the Country Club Murders Humorous Mystery Series: THE DEEP END (#1) GUARANTEED TO BLEED (#2) CLOUDS IN MY COFFEE (#3) SEND IN THE CLOWNS (#4) WATCHING THE DETECTIVES (#5) Part of the Henery Press Mystery Series Collection, if you like one, you'll probably like them all... Author Bio: Julie Mulhern is the USA Today bestselling author of The Country Club Murders. She is a Kansas City native who grew up on a steady diet of Agatha Christie. She spends her spare time whipping up gourmet meals for her family, working out at the gym and finding new ways to keep her house spotlessly clean--and she's got an active imagination. Truth is--she's an expert at calling for take-out, she grumbles about walking the dog and the dust bunnies under the bed have grown into dust lions.
Get my to the church on time! Not so much the church as the patio. And not if Ellison can't stop finding bodies. She's finding corpses in pairs now, and planning a wedding, and trying (truly she is) to steer clear of the murder investigation. But when she finds a third body, Ellison becomes a suspect. Will Ellison get her happily ever after or will a devious killer turn her wedding into a funeral?
Another day, another dead woman in Ellison Russell's study.Only this one claimed to be Mrs. Anarchy Jones.As Ellison juggles mothers, daughter, unhappy wives, and near-miss murder attempts, one thing is clear--someone will go to any lengths to hide the truth.Can Ellison and Anarchy catch a killer before the body count rises? Or will Ellison be the next corpse in the study?
"A sparkling comedy of errors tucked inside a clever mystery. I loved it!" - Susan M. Boyer, USA Today Bestselling Author of Lowcountry Bordello "Readers who enjoy the novels of Susan Isaacs will love this series that blends a strong mystery with the demands of living in an exclusive society." - Kings River Life Magazine "From the first page to the last, Julie's mysteries grab the reader and don't let up." - Sally Berneathy, USA Today Bestselling Author of The Ex Who Saw a Ghost When Ellison Russell is nearly killed at a benefactors' party, she brushes the incident aside as an unhappy accident. But when her house is fire-bombed, she's shot at, and the person sitting next to her at a gala is poisoned, she must face facts. Someone wants her dead. But why? And can Ellison find the killer before he strikes again? Add in an estranged sister, a visiting aunt with a shocking secret, and a handsome detective staying in her guesthouse, and Ellison might need more than cream in her coffee.
