Part of Death on Demand, book 14
First published 2004
Annie Darling runs the Death on Demand mystery bookstore on Broward's Rock island. Her holiday helper Chloe has been sneaking out for romantic meetings with a mysterious stranger on the pier. Meanwhile, widow Virginia Neville plans to announce her engagement to a talented portraitist at her gallery's new exhibit opening. Virginia's late husband's family objects violently, convinced she will waste their expected inheritance on this younger man. The situation explodes when Chloe discovers her secret lover and Virginia's fiancé are the same person. Someone bludgeons the duplicitous man to death on a fog-shrouded night. Evidence points directly at Chloe, especially after she panics and runs from the scene. The police launch a manhunt while Max, Annie's husband, assists the official investigation. Annie refuses to believe Chloe committed murder and begins her own amateur detective work. Her marriage faces strain as she and Max take opposing sides. Annie must navigate blackmail attempts and direct threats while working to prove Chloe's innocence and find the real killer.
Genres: romance, mystery, cozy-mystery, amateur-sleuth
Vibes: emotional, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Broward's Rock Island
352 pages · Mass Market Paperback · William Morrow Paperbacks