Annie Darling, the owner of the Death on Demand mystery bookstore, along with Max, her husband, face a puzzling case in this latest suspense story in the long-running series. After Pat Merridew loses her job, she’s a bit distraught, but Annie gives the woman a new start at the bookstore. Then Pat is found dead, slumped in an easy chair in her home.
Annie doesn’t buy the “suicide” finding the local authorities come up with, so she does a little informal digging - which is what you would naturally expect of Broward’s Rock’s most famous amateur sleuth. Unraveling the mystery of a towel hidden at midnight in a gazebo, the absence of fingerprints on a crystal mug, blood stains on a teen’s shirt and the secret of a lovers’ tryst, Annie is on her way to solving what she is convinced was a murder.
Then, to make sure she can nail down the culprit with an airtight case, Annie sets what she is convinced is a clever trap for her prime suspect. Unfortunately, her adversary isn’t easily fooled. The only thing getting “nailed down” here might be the lid of Annie’s coffin.
With over twenty titles in the “Death on Demand” series, Carolyn Hart has not only found her niche but has also been recognized with a whole slew of awards as one on the best authors in the mystery genre and hailed as America’s modern-day answer to Agatha Christie.