Showing results by narrator "Sandra Murphy" in All Categories

In Whispering Pines, even downtime can be deadly. The quiet time of year as settled over Whispering Pines. For months, Sheriff Jayne O’Shea had been looking forward to a little R&R but now she’s not so sure. What’s she supposed to do with herself? Take up knitting? When a brawl breaks out at the local pub during the Thanksgiving gathering, a patron is critically wounded. Not the kind of distraction Jayne was looking for.

What would you do to save yourself? In the village where “all are welcome and those in need may stay” long-buried secrets keep rising to the surface. With renovations on the house finally complete, Jayne and Tripp are ready to open their B&B. Villagers and tourists gather for their grand opening barbecue. Close friends check in as their first guests. Aside from a minor glitch or two, everything is going to plan...and then someone turns up dead on the side of the road.

Sometimes, what’s needed most is hiding in plain sight. It’s been almost a year since Sheriff Jayne O’Shea arrived in Whispering Pines. Deciding to stay was the best decision she ever made, but the closer the anniversary gets, the gloomier she feels. It doesn’t help that she and Tripp have been arguing. Neither does the dense fog blanketing the village. Or the group of cranky wedding planners staying at the B&B.

With only a smattering of tourists visiting the village for the Samhain feast, Jayne is excited. No. She's looking forward to... no. Jayne is guardedly optimistic about spending a few days with her demanding sister. Then, a boy goes missing during trick-or-treating, and everything changes. The parents aren’t worried. Their son does this, they say. With a storm bearing down on the village, however, Jayne isn’t content to dismiss this as a case of a curious kid off exploring the woods.

The Northwoods village of Whispering Pines used to be a safe haven for outsiders, but after three deaths in two months, it’s become a hotbed of murder. Exhausted from being the only law enforcement official on duty, while also trying to open a bed-and-breakfast, Jayne O’Shea welcomes the escape she finds in her grandmother’s journals. Each entry gives her a deeper understanding of why her grandparents moved to the secluded spot so long ago. But as questions are answered, deeply hidden secrets are unearthed.

No one takes a woman seriously in the Dakotas, least of all a woman of mixed race who owns the only general store in Flats Junction. But Kate has never let her heritage or gender stand in her way. Not even when shy, Boston-bred widow Jane moved to town and stole her beloved. Not even when her Lakota mother was forced to flee after her house mysteriously burned down.

Visitors claim they feel summoned to Whispering Pines, Wisconsin, but can’t explain why. Residents say the same thing. Kitchen witch Reeva Long tried to leave many times, only to have fate call her back. Most recently, a year ago to settle her estranged late husband’s estate.

The new tourist season is about to start. The witches, carnies, fortune tellers, and other lovable outcasts of Whispering Pines are abuzz with excitement. Sheriff Jayne O’Shea, however, is nervous. After their tragic last season, the lakeside hamlet became known as the Murder Capital of Wisconsin, and she would love to redeem their reputation. Everyone has assured her they’re ready and that it’s going to be a great opening weekend, but Jayne can’t shake the feeling that something is wrong.

Mothering with Courage provides guidance for mothers to self-reflect and dig deep to discover what is important to them from their own perspective. Only from that space can a mother discover how to be the best, most authentic mother for her child.

The No-Nonsense Guide to Divorce: Getting Through and Starting Over is the book you need now if you find yourself facing divorce. Written by an experienced family law attorney, the book is an often blunt, sometimes funny, always empathetic look at one of the most challenging times in your life. In a clear, concise, and contemporary voice, Lori Hellis covers the full spectrum of divorce issues from beginning to end, from how to start and what temporary measures to take to deciding child custody and parenting time, calculating child and spousal support, and dividing property.

Abigail’s dream of owning a tearoom in her California beach town is about to come true. She’s got the lease, the start-up funds, and the scone recipes. But she’s out of a tearoom and into hot water when her realtor turns out to be a conman… and then turns up dead. Not even death puts an end to the conman’s mischief. He rented the same space to a tarot reader, Hyperion. Convinced his tarot room is in the cards, he’s not letting go of the building without a fight.

As Whispering Pines’ busiest tourist season ever draws to a close, Reeva Long, Ruby McLaughlin, and the other villagers are ready for things to quiet down. Instead, a break-in and a small fire set near Hearth & Cauldron puts everyone on edge. The only clue, a melted candle stub, gives the amateur sleuths little to work with. Soon other fires flare up, threatening the entire village, so Deputy Jayne O’Shea takes charge of the investigation. Can Jayne, with Reeva’s and Ruby’s help, catch the firestarter before someone gets hurt or worse?

Emma Whitecastle would rather spend time with her boyfriend than help Joanna Reid get rid of her husband's ghost. But when she finds out Joanna's daughter has broken her engagement and attempted suicide, Emma and Granny Apples are compelled to investigate. The multifaceted mystery unfolds in Hollywood, where a vengeful spirit strikes too close for comfort as Emma and Granny unearth a clue hidden in a haunted diamond.

Granny was famous for her award-winning apple pies - and notorious for murdering her husband Jacob at their homestead in Julian, California. The only trouble is, Granny was framed, then murdered. For more than 100 years, Granny's spirit has been searching for someone to help her see that justice is served - and she hits pay dirt when she pops in to a séance attended by her great-great-great-granddaughter, modern-day divorced mom Emma Whitecastle.

When Salem Grimes stumbles onto a dead body on her way to an AA meeting, she does what any self-respecting Christian would do - freaks out and screeches words that would make Jesus blush. However, learning her ex-husband, Tony, stands accused of the murder spurs Salem into action. Eager to help, she makes the bold decision to investigate the case as an amateur sleuth. What she lacks in skills, qualifications, or a general clue on how to find, well, clues, she makes up for with the genuine desire to help.

Spiritual medium Emma Whitecastle knows a good ghost when she feels one - like her own sweet Granny Apples, long gone but still as famous for her apple pies as she is for helping her great-great-great-granddaughter get to the core of the most baffling mysteries...When Emma gets word of a sticky spirit problem in Las Vegas, she and the ghost of Granny Apples hit the road for Sin City. The spooked one is Dolly, a former showgirl. Dolly is haunted by Lenny, a dead Vegas hood worried about an aging mobster named Nemo coming after the leggy old bombshell.

Imagine spending eternity with your backside hanging out! That’s what Emma Whitecastle and Granny Apples can’t help but think when they meet the ghost of Tessa North frolicking in the surf off Cataline Island. Tessa, a young starlet who died on the island in the 1960s wearing nothing but a polka-dot bikini, won’t cross over until “Curtis” comes for her. To help the winsome, bikini-clad spirit, Emma and Granny must find out who Curtis is and how Tessa died.

Nikki Garcia’s company sends her to investigate fraud allegations at the Colombian affiliate. During the investigation, she grapples with high stakes, mega-money corruption while still struggling with the ghosts of her young son’s tragic death a few years earlier. As she conducts her audit, she connects accidental deaths to possible smuggling activities and suspects a much darker plot. After receiving a veiled threat to her life, she hires a former CIA operative to assist her. After she is kidnapped, she wonders if her romantic partner is part of the sinister plot.

It’s time for the annual Whispering Pines Tour of Gardens, and plant lovers are arriving by the busload. Discussions of raised beds, fertilizers, and proper amounts of water and sunlight can be heard all around the village. But just as the tours begin, chaos erupts. Someone has vandalized the gardens.

When a tourist is found dead and a villager is accused of murder, Reeva knows the village has bigger problems than icky ice cream. It’s time for Long and McLaughlin Private Investigators (a.k.a. Reeva and Ruby) to put their sleuthing skills into action and catch the real killer.