A Death on Demand Series #21
Carolyn Hart
William Morrow/Harper
Collins
March 29, 2011/ ISBN 978-0-06-191497-3
Mystery/ Cozy
Amazon
Reviewed
by Laura Hinds
The latest addition
to Carolyn Hart’s wildly successful Death on Demand series
finds Annie Darling, who owns the Death on Demand bookstore, in
disbelief that her recently hired employee, Pat Merridew, has committed
suicide. It just doesn’t add up with what Annie knows about
Pat, but the official ruling is that Pat killed herself and that’s
that. Or is it? Annie believes she can prove otherwise, but when
a big wig lawyer in their hometown of Broward’s Rock, South
Carolina is murdered, there seems little chance of a real investigation
into what may have happened to Pat Merridew.
Despite Annie’s
conviction that the two deaths are somehow related, the police chief
refuses to listen, and predictably, Annie and her husband Max investigate
on their own and Annie launches a trap to bring the killer down.
Annie and Max investigating is the only thing predictable about
this story.
Carolyn Hart
is a marvelous writer, creating characters and places that take
on a life of their own. If you’ve followed this series throughout
the previous 20 books, you’ll feel like you are returning
to a favorite vacation spot to see just what the locals are up to
now. If you’ve never read a book in this series before, once
you read Dead by Midnight, you’ll be clamoring to go back
and read all the others.
One of my favorite
things about these mysteries is how the author liberally sprinkles
in mentions of other books and mystery authors. You see, Annie Darling’s
bookstore is a mystery bookstore stocking real-life books! I always
keep a notepad and pen handy to jot down names of other titles I
find hidden in the pages of the Death
on Demand series.
While highly
acclaimed and already wildly popular amongst mystery buffs, I recommend
this book, and the whole series, to those just beginning to explore
the genre. The novels are appropriate for teens and older, and women
and men will both enjoy them. Annie and Max Darling have a perfect
marital match, and their investigative abilities are well suited
to the plots that Carolyn Hart dreams up for them. All in all, a
five star book in a five star series.
Reviews
of other titles in this series
Sugarplum
Dead #12
April
Fool Dead #13
Engaged
to Die #14
Murder
Walks the Plank #15
Death
of the Party #16
Dead
Days of Summer #17
Death Walked In #18 [review
1] [review
2]
Dare
to Die #19
Laughed
’til He Died #20
Dead
by Midnight #21
Death
Comes Silently #22
Dead,
White and Blue #23
Death
at the Door #24
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