About this ebook
”Sara Barton’s books are fun to read. With her quick turn of phrases and lively banter, the stories bring a smile, a chuckle, maybe even a full belly laugh to the reader.”
Scarlet Wilson made a mistake when she quoted Shakespeare. “First thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.” Less than an hour later, a lawyer was murdered in a parking garage in Hartford, Connecticut. Not just any lawyer, her lawyer!
When she discovers C. Philip Grimshaw’s dead body shortly after their meeting, she’s stunned. But while she’s on the phone with the 9-1-1 dispatcher, she unexpectedly comes face-to-face with his killer. Connecticut State Police homicide investigator Laurencia "Larry" Rivera, Scarlet’s long-time friend, just happens to be in the vicinity as part of a task force, working with the Hartford Police, when the call comes in. Do people really believe Miz Scarlet was involved in the murder? Challenged by Larry to solve the case before the Hartford cops can make an arrest, the intrepid “arm chair” amateur sleuth is determined to figure out this "whodunit", lest she lose the bet and be stuck hosting Larry’s opinionated, sharp-tongued mother at the Four Acorns Inn. Scarlet doesn’t believe it was a bungled robbery or an attempted car-jacking gone wrong. She thinks the killer knew C. Philip Grimshaw and came to the parking garage intending to murder the acrimonious attorney. That weapon was a dead giveaway!
Worried that she might be in harm’s way, Kenny Tolliver, Miz Scarlet’s “significant other”, invites her to accompany him to the Florida Keys as his investigative assistant on the case. He hopes the couple will have time for romance. But that will have to wait. How did the killer find her in Florida?
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About the author
I love to write, so you will find I am the author of several fast-paced cozy mysteries featuring lively characters like Scarlet Wilson. These tales are laced with humor and romance, but they are of the traditional style of cozy mysteries. The amateur sleuths typically reside in small towns and villages. The crime could take place in your neck of the woods. It could be your next-door neighbor who is found in a heap on the side of the road. It could be your dog that gets the first whiff of that cadaver and alerts you to its presence.
My determined crime solvers might not be trained to tackle big cases, but they do rub elbows with investigators who are used to dealing with wily criminals…and not exactly enthusiastic about having amateur sleuths along for the ride, even clever ones!
While some of the cases are heinous, there is rarely a need to go into detail about any murder scene. To me, that’s like rubbernecking at a traffic accident. If it’s not pertinent to the case, why get gruesome? Nor will you normally hear my cozy mystery characters swear. That doesn’t mean they won’t bicker or get snarky.
As S. M. Barton, I write espionage thrillers. These are not necessarily for the faint of heart. Spies do what they do to achieve their goals. There is normally a lot of excitement, some very hairy twists and turns, and some unconscionable behavior. These are adventures driven by circumstances beyond the control of the protagonists. Survival is the name of the game. It’s not always easy to know who the good guys are and who the bad guys are, let alone what kind of havoc that will result from all the mayhem, murder, and madness. If intrigue is your thing, you will want to check these out.
