Cremains of the Day

August 15, 2017
A former rich snob who's transformed her lifestyle and attitude faces further--involuntary--changes.All right, Tallulah "Tallie" Graver was a spoiled brat while married to the insufferable Walden Phillips III, aka Waldo, who left her with nothing after a bitter divorce that she initiated. Now she's cleaning houses for former friends and working part-time at her parents' funeral home while refusing the money her grandchild-obsessed mother urges on her. Still, her life is much happier until she goes in search of sauerkraut for a funeral dinner and finds her frenemy, Katie Mitchner, tied up in a chair in her caterer cousin Gina's store. Katie's story is suspicious, especially the part about Waldo being dead in the alley behind the store. Waldo's there but not dead, only recovering from a stun-gun attack to a very tender part of his anatomy. Although the timeline for her to have done it is tight, Police Chief James Burton considers Tallie a fine suspect. Trouble finds her again when she stumbles on the body of wealthy Darla Hackersham, one of the ex-friends for whom she now cleans house. Now Burton's even more suspicious of Tallie, even when she points out that Darla's husband, maid, and pool boy all had equal opportunities. Meanwhile, Tallie's apparently being stalked by a flower deliveryman who turns out to be her childhood friend Max Bennett, an investigator with the tax bureau who's trying to keep her out of trouble. Evidently Waldo hasn't paid taxes in years, and she may be on the hook for a hefty sum. Although sparks fly between them, Tallie doesn't entirely trust Max, and since Burton still considers her a suspect, she decides to poke around, a decision that could end in her demise. Simon kicks off a new series that combines a bit of humor and romance with a heroine who knows no boundaries while searching for the truth that will keep her out of jail.

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November 1, 2017

Tallie Graver could have gone into the family funeral home business. Instead, she married Walden ("Waldo") Phillips III. Six years later, she's divorced and cleaning houses for the same women she once considered friends, people who, along with Waldo, are happy to rub Tallie's nose in her downfall. When Waldo is mugged and Tallie finds the body of one of her customers on the job, she heads the suspect list. She is also on the IRS radar as an investigator pressures her into searching for the money Waldo has been hiding. Tallie, an inept, reluctant amateur sleuth, only makes matters worse when she arouses the wrong attention and makes herself a target. VERDICT The author of Poison Ivy launches an amusing new series with an engaging, spirited sleuth, who is well aware of her flaws. Fans of cleaning service mysteries by Barbara Colley and Kathy Hogan Trocheck may want to become better acquainted with Tallie Graver.--LH

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