A Myrtle Clover Mystery

No one in Bradley, North Carolina, is exactly crying into their sweet tea over the murder of Parke Stockard. Certainly not retired schoolteacher Myrtle Clover. Upon discovering the corpse, Myrtle is struck - not with grief, but a brilliant idea! Solving the murder would prove to everyone - especially her son Red, the police chief - that this 80-something-year-old is still as sharp as a tack. Heck, going from crosswords to crime investigations isn't such a stretch.

When Beauty Box beautician Tammy Smith is discovered with a pair of hair shears in her back, there are suspects and secrets aplenty in her small Southern town. Octogenarian Myrtle Clover, bored by bingo and bridge, is intrigued by the crime...and her neighbors' secrets. But discovering, and blabbing, secrets got Tammy killed and Myrtle soon learns her sleuthing isn't just dangerous...it's deadly.

Retired octogenarian schoolteacher Myrtle Clover is fit to be tied when her book club votes to change to a supper club. Who wants chips and dip when they can have Dickens and Twain? The first supper club is a progressive dinner... where Myrtle loses interest during the hors d'oeuvres. But when a body is discovered during the main course, the evening quickly gets interesting. Myrtle pits her sleuthing skills against her police chief son's to find the killer.... if the killer doesn't find her first.

It’s just an ordinary day for octogenarian sleuth Myrtle Clover - until her yardman discovers a dead body planted in her backyard. Myrtle’s friend Miles recognizes the body and identifies him as Charles Clayborne... reluctantly admitting he’s a cousin. As Myrtle starts digging up dirt to nip the killings in the bud, someone’s focused on scaring her off the case. Myrtle vows to find the murderer... before she’s pushing up daisies, herself.

Cosette Whitlow is a society matron if tiny Bradley, North Carolina, has one. She kindly volunteers for all the town's charities, but isn't nearly as kind to her own family, neighbors, and friends. In fact, Cosette is emphatically disliked by much of the town - including octogenarian Myrtle Clover. And Myrtle knows that dislike in Bradley can quickly turn deadly. No one seems surprised when Cosette's body is discovered during a party she's hosting - she was struck on the head with a croquet mallet.

When octogenarian sleuth Myrtle Clover discovers Naomi Pelter's dead body during a book club meeting, the other members seem shocked. But Myrtle can read between the lines. Naomi had riled everyone up by flirting with other people's husbands, arguing with neighbors, and generally making a nuisance of herself. Murdering troublemakers is the oldest trick in the book.

When psychic (and hubcap retailer) Wanda Alewine pays a late-night visit to Myrtle Clover, she urges the octogenarian sleuth to head straight to Greener Pastures Retirement Home. But Wanda doesn't want Myrtle to consider the Home's dubious amenities - she wants Myrtle to prevent a murder seen in a vision. Reluctant Myrtle investigates with sidekick Miles, who seems a lot more interested in Greener Pastures than she is.

Octogenarian sleuth Myrtle Clover has never heard of the dice game Bunco. Regardless, she steps in as her daughter-in-law's sub and reluctantly puts her game face on. Bunco turns out to be child's play. But when a body is discovered, Myrtle realizes another game is afoot. Before long, she's playing cat and mouse with the killer.

When Myrtle Clover and her friend Miles attend a play in their small town, there's a full house on opening night. It's clear to Myrtle that one of the actresses is a stage hog who loves stealing the spotlight. Nandina Marshall certainly does upstage everyone - when her murder forces an unexpected intermission. Can Myrtle and Miles discover who was behind her final curtain call before murder makes an encore?

Loose lips sink ships...and result in murder. When Myrtle and her friend Miles set out for adventure on the high sea, they assume most of the trip's excitement will result from shore excursions to charming Alaskan villages. They feel as if their ship has come in. But when a fellow passenger disappears, Myrtle realizes she must seize the helm and find the killer...before more souls are lost.

Myrtle has decided that she’s actually a very good cook. In fact, she feels she’s such a good cook that she elects to hone her skills at a cooking school. She persuades her friend Miles to join her, convinced they both could use some inspiration. This cooking school enrolls one rather loud-mouth student who quickly makes everyone fed up. This unfortunate student, fond of telling tales out of school, learns that one man’s meat is another man’s poison. Myrtle and Miles must use their detecting skills to learn who’s been schooled in murder before someone else’s goose gets cooked.

Sometimes taking a spin makes you crash and burn. When a neighbor disappears, Myrtle and Miles shift gears and hit the road to search for him. They discover their neighbor slightly off the beaten track - murdered with a tire iron. Myrtle has no intention of letting the killer give them the slip. She and Miles buckle up for a race against time to find the murderer…before someone else hits a dead end.

Amos Subers isn’t one to tip waiters, pay back a loan, or behave generously with family. When it’s discovered that penny-pinching Amos was actually quite wealthy, it hardly engenders goodwill in the small town...in fact, he’s heartily disliked. Octogenarian sleuth Myrtle Clover’s housekeeper is certainly no fan of his: Amos owes Puddin money for cleaning his house. It’s not too surprising when Amos is later found, murdered, in his kitchen. Myrtle and her senior sidekick, Miles, resolve to track down the killer when Puddin becomes a prime suspect.

Retired English teacher Myrtle Clover is frequently asked to proofread for friends. So she wasn't totally surprised when her friend Pearl asked her to take a look at her memoir and polish it up. But before Myrtle could pull out her red pen, Pearl was found murdered.

Silence is golden, unless you’re permanently hushed up. When Lillian Johnson was found dead one hot summer day, no one in the town of Bradley, North Carolina, was all that surprised. Lillian had always talked about the trials of her various health problems, and was sure to share with everyone exactly how much she suffered. The townspeople were only slightly more surprised to discover that Lillian had been murdered. That’s because Lillian, like most folks, had a dark side. And a fair number of people had experienced this dark side.

Attics can be full of surprises. Who could have murdered Darren Powell? He was a very pleasant man fond of puttering around in his garden and playing chess. He didn't seem at all the type of person who'd find himself murdered in his own attic.