Synopses & Reviews
It's "Corpse ahoy!" when death takes a pleasure cruise -- as we set sail once more with that incomparable, crime-solving duo, the Darlings.
Annie Darling, popular proprietress of the Death on Demand bookstore, has done it again! Her murder-mystery cruise in the waters off her not-always-idyllic isle of Broward's Rock is sure to be a roaring success, with every participant dressing up as a favorite fictional sleuth. And sure enough, everything goes swimmingly -- until one of the revelers plunges overboard. And despite hubby Max Darling's courageous rescue attempt, faux murder turns all too quickly into real-life death.
Over the next few days, the body count rises and Annie strongly suspects that all the victims were murdered most foully and that they are all connected in some unknown way. The trick now will be to prove it, with the able assistance of investigator-spouse Max, best friend and best customer Henny Brawley, local bestselling superstar Emma Lloyd, and even (surprise!) Annie's normally ditsy mother-in-law, Laurel.
But what the intrepid crime solvers do not realize is that the killer they seek is more ingeniously efficient than most -- and the puzzle they wish to solve is, in reality, a time bomb packed with an explosive mix of arson, assault, kidnapping, robbery . . . and homicide, of course. One false step and Annie and her canny cohorts will be blown off Broward's Rock for good . . . and they'll sink like stones into the cold, briny deep.
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“Displays the charm and coziness of Christie.” Chicago Sun-Times
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“The Darling duo is as winning as ever.” Baltimore Sun
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“A superb whodunit.” Publishers Weekly
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“An essential purchase.” Library Journal
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“Ill admit it. Im a sucker for Carolyn Harts Annie and Max series.” Robert Crais
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"Carolyn Hart's craftsmanship makes her mystery's Queen of Cs--cozy, clever, and chock full of charm." Mary Daheim
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“One of the cleverest puzzle plots around.” Toronto Globe and Mail
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“If I were teaching a course on how to write a mystery, Id make Carolyn Hart required reading.” Los Angeles Times
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“The reigning monarch of the amateur sleuth mystery delivers royally.” Cleveland Plain Dealer
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“Carolyn Hart has served up yet another delicious mystery that kept me guessing until the end. YUM!” Diane Mott Davidson
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“Well-plotted.” Dallas Morning News
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“Carolyn Harts large following will likely hail this latest Darling caper as - what else? - simply darling.” San Diego Union-Tribune
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“Hart creates lively, sympathetic characters and interesting locales and maintains a snappy pace.” Booklist
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“A lively tale with well-drawn characters.” Orlando Sentinel on Sugarplum Dead
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“Tantalizing. . . . Keeps the reader guessing all the way.” Denver Post
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“Winning...this latest can only reinforce Harts high standing among the cozy mystery cognoscenti.” Publishers Weekly
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“Carolyn Harts craftsmanship makes her mysterys Queen of Cscozy, clever, and chock full of charm.” Mary Daheim
Synopsis
Readers can set sail for murder on the high seas with this 15th edition of the Death on Demand series.
About the Author
An accomplished master of mystery, Carolyn Hart is the author of fourteen previous Death on Demand novels, which have won multiple Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity Awards. One recent excursion to Broward's Rock, Sugarplum Dead, won the 2000 Oklahoma Book Award for Fiction. In addition, she is the creator of another highly praised mystery series featuring retired-journalist-turned-sleuth Henrietta "Henrie O" O'Dwyer Collins. Hart lives in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and is one of the founders of Sisters in Crime.