Daughter of Ashes

From Publishers Weekly

An all-star lineup of 13 women mystery authors has produced one madcap, murderous tale in the same serial fashion as Naked Came the Manatee (1996). To some extent, position determines each contributor's role, but each author has ample opportunity to display her unique talents. Nevada Barr, who leads off, deserves credit for introducing heroine Caroline Blessing; her surprising mother, Hilda Finch; and several more of the zany inhabitants of Phoenix Spa, snuggled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. J.D. Robb, in the number two spot, wastes no time shifting the plot into gear with the murder of the spa's flamboyant owner, Claudia de Vries. Those who follow (Nancy Pickard, Lisa Scottoline, Perri O'Shaughnessy, J.A. Jance, Faye Kellerman, Mary Jane Clark, Marcia Talley, Anne Perry, Diana Gabaldon and Val McDermid) each get a crack at muddying the waters or putting a new spin on an already dizzy character or in some cases, adding a new victim to the growing pile. Lucky 13 Laurie King dazzles by weaving a prettily finished quilt from the motley patches created by her comrades. Readers will relish the resulting comic soap-opera murder mystery, taking especial pleasure in watching these pros deftly recast a scene, a clue or a character to keep the story rollicking along. (Aug. 13)Forecast: Together these women command a huge fan base, and if enough of them are willing to promote, this collaborative effort could rack up strong sales.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

The promise of discretion and pampering-and a long-overdue reconciliation with her mother-draws Caroline Blessing, the young wife of a newly-elected Congressman, to the fancy Phoenix Spa. But after her first night in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, Caroline wakes to find the rich and famous guests in turmoil and under suspicion: the spa's flamboyant and ambitious owner has been murdered. As the secrets come out-and the body count rises, can Caroline keep herself from becoming the next victim?

An anthology of stories edited by Donna Andrews, Barb Goffman and Marcia Talley

The latest installment in the Chesapeake Crimes mystery series focuses on working stiffs – literally! Included in this collection are new tales by: Shari Randall, C. Ellett Logan, Karen Cantwell, E. B. Davis, Jill Breslau, David Autry, Harriette Sackler, Barb Goffman, Ellen Herbert, Smita Harish Jain, Leone Ciporin, Cathy Wiley, Donna Andrews, Art Taylor. Foreword by Elaine Viets.

She lost her job. She almost lost her life. Now Hannah Ives is taking her first brave steps back into the world, wearing a wig and her heart on her sleeve after a frightening bout with breast cancer. But in the small Chesapeake Bay town where she came for a vacation, she does not find the relaxation she deserves. Instead Hannah finds a body – of a girl who disappeared eight years before.

A brutal murder draws Hannah Ives into a mystery where to understand the present, she must uncover a dark past.

While at Calvert Colony, a life care community centre in Maryland, and at lunch with her friend, retired mystery author and amateur painter L.K. 'Naddie' Bromley and her neighbour Sophia Milanesi, who survived the closing years of the Second World War in a convent in Italy, Hannah meets Filomena Buccho, a personable young Argentine server. Her brother, Raniero, also works at the Colony as chef. But when Masud Abaza and his wife, Safa, move into the community and Masud is found murdered, his head bashed in by a croquet mallet, suspicion falls on Raniero, who has made no secret of his neo-Fascist sentiments. Hannah and Naddie agree to investigate, uncovering old crimes and reigniting ancient quarrels that know no boundaries of place or time.

Lights, camera, murder… who wrote dying into Hannah Ives' script?-

It doesn't take much arm-twisting to persuade Hannah Ives to join the twelve-strong cast of Patriot House, 1774, a reality show recreating eighteen-century colonial life during the turbulent days leading up to the American Revolution. But when Hannah befriends Amy Cornell, a maid on set and the young widow of a Navy SEAL off it, and the crew's dance master is found murdered, events away from the camera become just as dramatic as those on it…

Hannah is stunned when a stranger stops her on the street to deliver a message from her long-dead mother. Susan Parker, Hannah learns, is a popular television medium whose accurate predictions leave fans and critics alike puzzled and intrigued. In spite of her scepticism, Hannah schedules a private reading. But on the morning they are to meet, Susan is struck by a hit-and-run driver. An accident? Hannah doesn't think so – especially when she discovers that more than one person had good reason to want Susan dead…

This book presents the new Hannah Ives mystery. Hannah's in paradise, enjoying the active, back-to-basics rhythms of Bahamian island life. When controversy arises over the construction of a luxury resort that could devastate the coral reef, Hannah dives in. Acts of vandalism, a deadly wildfire, a missing scientist – Hannah suspects a connection, but her investigation stalls when Hurricane Luis slams into the island. Before the skies clear, a dynasty is threatened by a venomous sibling rivalry, environmentalists face-off against progressive island fathers, and somebody else will die. Gin-clear waters, sand so white you're blinded by the glare, palms rustling in a tropical breeze. Paradise? Sometimes it's just an illusion…

The bride thought they'd live happily ever after – until a murderer struck…

The guests were off the wall. The would-be groom was off the wagon. And the bride certainly wasn't blushing.

Aside from that, it was the perfect occasion: a party for Hannah Ives's widowed father and the younger woman he had suddenly decided to marry. Then the evening takes a strange turn, with a sudden death and disappearance.

For Hannah, the stunning turn of events came after a Christmas season slide into anger and confusion. First her father had found a floozy who had already buried three husbands. Then her late mother's jewelry started showing up around the gold digger's neck.

Now Hannah, who has just put her life together after a bout with cancer, is desperately searching for her missing father. Because this poor man has either made a terrible mistake, committed a terrible crime, or fallen victim to a killer who seized the moment for murder…

Hannah Ives struggled bravely through the ravages of illness, and fellow patient Valerie Stone was at her side. As cancer survivors they have a lot to celebrate when they meet again, but their reunion is short-lived. Soon Valerie is dead, and a suspicious Hannah must sift through a mountain of clues trying to uncover the cause of her friend's untimely death. But there are those in the big business of living and dying who think she's becoming too curious… and it's high time her questions were silenced.

Hannah Ives knows what it means to be a survivor. Now she's about to discover what it means to be a target.

Is the key to a therapist's murder hidden away…in a patient's mind?

Is a shrink's death fall a Freudian slip?

Hannah Ives has every reason to mind her own business. Having survived a recent bout with breast cancer, she's opting for reconstructive surgery and a fresh start. Her Annapolis home is decorated for better feng shui. Her parents are living close by. And her sister, Georgina, is finally getting help for recurring depression. Everything is coming up roses-until her sister's therapist takes a nosedive off a balcony.

Now, with Georgina a prime suspect in the murder, Hannah needs to do some analysis of her own. A few pages torn from an appointment book may hold a crucial clue. And some bizarre memories from her sister's past may point to a motive…if Hannah can keep a clear head and dare to enter the darkness of a killer's twisted mind…

Hannah, her sisters and fourteen-year-old niece Julie set sail from Baltimore on a bonding cruise, and have a dramatic first night when Pia Fanucci, a bubbly bartender magician's assistant whom Hannah befriends, narrowly escapes injury during an illusion. But while Pia may make light of the incident, it's no laughing matter when Julie suddenly disappears. Has she gone overboard, or is she injured somewhere on the enormous ship?

To make matters worse, Hannah meets David Warren, a grieving father whose twenty-two-year-old daughter vanished without trace from an earlier cruise. With claims of a proper investigation proving to be an illusion too far, Hannah teams up with David and Pia in desperation. Can they see through the ship's smoke and mirrors to reveal the identity of a dangerous sea-faring predator?