Santa Clawed

Author: Rita Mae Brown
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 0553905929
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 258

Book Description
Bestselling authors Rita Mae Brown and her feline partner, Sneaky Pie Brown, are back for the holidays in a mystery featuring Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen, the sleuthing cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, and corgi Tee Tucker. Can they save the season from a killjoy who’s decided to gift the festive little town . . . with murder? As Harry well knows, there’s hardly a place on earth cozier than Crozet, Virginia, at Christmastime. The snowflakes drifting lazily down, the soft glow of the winter light, the sound of old carols in the streets…even cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter get into the spirit batting ornaments and climbing the holiday tree. In fact, it’s this year’s tree that Harry and her husband, Fair, have gone to fetch when they find the one they’ve chosen grimly decorated with a dead body. The tree farm is run by The Brothers of Love, a semimonastic organization that tends to AIDS patients. The brothers live in a monastery atop the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains. Harry is surprised to find an old high-school friend associated with The Brothers of Love. Christopher Hewitt wasn’t a bad man, but good works weren’t exactly one of his priorities. But then, if even Scrooge could turn over a new leaf, certainly Chris could. And after the scandal that all but destroyed his life, there were probably few in Crozet who needed the gift of a second chance more. Harry knows she shouldn’t take it personally, but it was her tree that someone left the corpse under. Now, as the season grows merrier, a murderer is growing bolder. One by one, prominent men of Crozet are being crossed off Christmas shopping lists and added to the morgue. And if Harry and her four-legged helpers aren’t very good—and very careful—this Christmas may be her last.

Santa Claws

Author: Gabriela Harding
Publisher: Troubador Publishing Ltd
ISBN: 1785891154
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 440

Book Description
Will Christmas ever be the same again? Gabriela Harding’s debut children’s novel, Santa Claws, is set in the London suburbs and the wilderness of the High Arctic. It is a Christmas adventure narrated by Honey, who presents readers with festive terrors and an evil Santa. It’s Christmas Eve and Honey is home alone. Well, alone if she doesn’t count the boring company of her little brother, Teddy, and her grandmother, who is a little too fond of sherry. She doesn’t think Christmas can get any worse. But when Honey and Teddy are brutally kidnapped from their own home, this festive season soon becomes the worst Christmas ever... After waking up in a freezing land of horrors, they are forced into hard labour in a factory of nasty toys amidst evil dwarves and the evil Santa Claws. Honey and her brother fear for their lives in a world of child-eating dogs, murderous chefs and secret passages dripping with all things icky. Worse still, Santa Claws turns out to be a cannibal with a very special dish in mind for the New Year’s celebrations: his own brother, the real Santa Claus. Can Honey and Teddy save Santa from the cooking pot and free themselves from a life of whip-cracking dwarves and slave labour? Santa Claws is aimed at children between 11-14 who enjoy mystery and fantasy fiction with traces of dark humour.

Probable Claws

Author: Rita Mae Brown
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 0425287173
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 434

Book Description
Rita Mae Brown and her feline co-author Sneaky Pie Brown return to Albemarle County, Virgina, as tangled mysteries past and present converge in the bestselling Mrs. Murphy series. “As feline collaborators go, you couldn’t ask for better than Sneaky Pie Brown.”—The New York Times Book Review With the New Year just around the corner, winter has transformed the cozy Blue Ridge Mountain community of Crozet, Virginia, into a living snow globe. It’s the perfect setting for Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen to build a new work shed designed by her dear friend, local architect Gary Gardner. But the natural serenity is shattered when out of the blue, right in front of Harry and Deputy Cynthia Cooper, and in broad daylight, Gary is shot to death by a masked motorcyclist. Outraged by the brazen murder, Harry begins to burrow into her friend’s past—and unearths a pattern of destructive greed reaching far back into Virginia’s post-Revolutionary history. When Harry finds incriminating evidence, the killer strikes again. Heedless of her own safety, Harry follows a trail of clues to a construction site in Richmond, where the discovery of mysterious remains has recently halted work. Aided as always by her loyal, if opinionated, companions, crime-solving cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, and Tee Tucker the Corgi, Harry hunts for a link between the decades-old dead, the recently violently deceased—and ancient secrets that underlie everything. And while other deaths are narrowly averted in a flurry of fur, the killer remains at large—ever more desperate and dangerous. The deep-rooted legacy of corruption that’s been exposed can never be buried again. But if Harry keeps pursuing the terrible truth, she may be digging her own grave. Praise for Probable Claws “Series fans will know exactly what to expect: animals who talk to one another, [Rita Mae] Brown’s personal views on an array of topics, and a healthy dose of Virginia history.”—Publishers Weekly “The animal crew, joined by a surprising new addition, is in rare form. . . . Beautiful illustrations bring the pet personalities to life.”—Kirkus Reviews

Claws for Alarm

Author: Rita Mae Brown
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 0593130111
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 289

Book Description
Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen gets a little help from her veterinarian husband to solve the murder of a young equine vet whose death may be linked to his new clinic in Claws for Alarm, a tantalizing mystery from Rita Mae Brown and her feline co-author Sneaky Pie Brown. Pharamond “Fair” Haristeen is known throughout Crozet, Virginia, as a good horse vet and a better man. So when Benjamin Wagner, a new vet in town, is found dead in his unopened clinic, local police turn to Fair for help getting to the bottom of things. Fair quickly realizes Ben’s clinic has been robbed of ketamine, used by doctors as a horse tranquilizer but also a popular recreational drug. Then Fair’s own ketamine goes missing from the back of his truck. Was Ben killed for his supply? Or was he mixed up in something bigger? Meanwhile, Candida Perez, one of Crozet’s oldest and most beloved citizens, is found dead at her desk. Perhaps not so alarming, given her ninety years of life. But the bickering of Candida’s children, Ballard and Constance, over her will and the family’s valuable collection of historical letters, threatens to drive the rest of the town to madness. Fair’s wife, Harry, tries to play peacemaker, but the bad blood between the two siblings runs deep. Just how far will they take their family squabble? With a little aid from hungry helpers Tee Tucker the corgi and sweet puppy Pirate, as well as feline sleuths Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, Harry and Fair team up to restore justice—and maybe a little peace and quiet—in Claws for Alarm.

Claws and Effect

Author: Rita Mae Brown
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 0553898698
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 336

Book Description
CLAWS AND EFFECT Winter puts tiny Crozet, Virginia, in a deep freeze and everyone seems to be suffering from the winter blahs, including postmistress Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen. So all are ripe for the juicy gossip coming out of Crozet Hospital–until the main source of that gossip turns up dead. It’s not like Harry to resist a mystery, and she soon finds the hospital a hotbed of ego, jealousy, and illicit love. But it’s tiger cat Mrs. Murphy, roaming the netherworld of Crozet Hospital, who sniffs out a secret that dates back to the Underground Railroad. Then Harry is attacked and a doctor is executed in cold blood. Soon only a quick-witted cat and her animal pals feline Pewter and corgi Tee Tucker stand between Harry and a coldly calculating killer with a prescription for murder.

Among the Garifuna

Author: Marilyn McKillop Wells
Publisher: University of Alabama Press
ISBN: 0817318712
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 233

Book Description
Part I, "The Old Ways," consists of vignettes that introduce the family backstory with dialogue as imagined by Wells based on the family history she was told. We meet the family progenitors, Margaret and Cervantes Diego, during their courtship, experience Margaret's pain as Cervantes takes a second wife, witness the death of Cervantes and ensuing mourning rituals, follow the return of Margaret and the children to their previous home in British Honduras, and observe the emergence of the children's personalities. In Part II, "Living There," Wells continues the story when she arrives in Belize and meets the Diego children, including the major protagonist, Tas. In Tas's household Wells learns about foods and manners and watches family squabbles and reconciliations. In these mini-stories, Wells interweaves cultural information on the Garifuna people with first-person narrative and transcription of their words, assembling these into an enthralling slice of life.

Amphibian Declines

Author: Michael J. Lannoo
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 9780520235922
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 1124

Book Description
Documents in comprehensive detail a major environmental crisis: rapidly declining amphibian populations and the disturbing developmental problems that are increasingly prevalent within many amphibian species.

Flashing Here & There

Author: Claire Buss
Publisher: Claire Buss
ISBN:
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 55

Book Description
No time to read? Looking for some short tales to tickle your imagination while on the commute to work? Then look no further! This collection of flash fiction has been specially crafted to ignite your love of stories and encourage you to take five minutes for yourself. Add a cup of tea and a slice of cake and you have the perfect relaxation activity. Award-winning author Claire Buss brings you twenty eclectic flash fiction stories, tales with no more than 1000 words maximum. Delve into her imagination as she explores the everyday rooms in your house, alien auctions and what happens when you meet your fandom in real life.

Hiss of Death

Author: Rita Mae Brown
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 0553591614
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 338

Book Description
Ah, spring! The brighter days and singing birds have a way of lifting people’s spirits, as well as those of their animal companions. But the season can also bring out the first blossoms of murder. As the redbuds open in Crozet, Virginia, Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen is especially excited—until a health crisis sends her reeling into the forbidding world of hospitals and doctors, treatments and procedures. Surviving this journey will be tough, but Harry has her animal friends—and her ever-helpful husband, Fair—to support her. Others are considerably less fortunate: A promising nurse’s lifeless body is discovered without a mark on her. Then another hospital employee, who had seemed in perfect health, is also found dead. There’s a mystery afoot—and that’s one thing Harry and her menagerie can’t keep their noses out of.

The Litter of the Law

Author: Rita Mae Brown
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 0345530497
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 322

Book Description
Rita Mae Brown collaborates with feline co-author Sneaky Pie Brown in a mystery starring Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen, the curious cat detectives Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, and Tee Tucker, the valiant crime-solving corgi. Halloween arrives early this year to rural central Virginia, when a twisted killer will stop at nothing to protect a multimillion-dollar scheme. THE LITTER OF THE LAW Autumn has descended and crops are being harvested all over Crozet, Virginia, ideal conditions for a scenic drive for Harry and husband Fair. Bucolic views are all well and good, but Harry’s nose for trouble leads her straight to a cornfield’s macabre scarecrow—an all too real murder victim that frightens all but the noisy crows. This accountant’s gruesome death is only the first of many disturbing events in this normally pastoral corner of the world. While Harry tends her beloved grapes and sunflowers, a killer edges closer—as does Harry’s protective menagerie of animals. Halloween’s approach brings with it bona fide terror and a beloved local tradition that threatens to become fatal. Rooting out the guilty in the treacherous center of a lucrative conspiracy requires Harry’s farmer’s wisdom—along with the quick wits and extraordinary senses of Sneaky Pie, Pewter, and Tucker. A vicious murderer may know the lay of the land far better than Harry does, but that’s about to change. It’s up to her vigilant four-footed companions to make sure that the unearthing of this plot is not Harry’s last act. Praise for The Litter of the Law and the Mrs. Murphy mysteries “As feline collaborators go, you couldn’t ask for better than Sneaky Pie Brown.”—The New York Times Book Review “Enchanting . . . Brown demonstrates once again why she’s the queen of the talking animal cozy subgenre.”—Publishers Weekly “As usual, the smart animals provide clues without getting in the way of the human interactions and plot. This is a strong addition to the popular series.”—Booklist