Joan Hess – författare

Egypt, 1912—Amelia Peabody and her dashing archeologist husband, Radcliffe Emerson, are once again in danger as they search for a priceless, stolen bust of legendary Queen Nefertiti and Amelia finds herself the target of assassins in this long-awaited, eagerly anticipated final installment of Elizabeth Peters’ bestselling, beloved mystery series.

Arriving in Cairo for another thrilling excavation season, Amelia is relaxing in a well-earned bubble bath in her elegant hotel suite in Cairo, when a man with knife protruding from his back staggers into the bath chamber and utters a single word—"Murder"—before collapsing on the tiled floor, dead. Among the few possessions he carried was a sheet of paper with Amelia’s name and room number, and a curious piece of pasteboard the size of a calling card bearing one word: "Judas." Most peculiarly, the stranger was wearing a gold-rimmed monocle in his left eye.

It quickly becomes apparent that someone saved Amelia from a would-be assassin—someone who is keeping a careful eye on the intrepid Englishwoman. Discovering a terse note clearly meant for Emerson—Where were you?"—pushed under their door, there can be only one answer: the brilliant master of disguise, Sethos.

But neither assassins nor the Genius of Crime will deter Amelia as she and Emerson head to the excavation site at Amarna, where they will witness the discovery of one of the most precious Egyptian artifacts: the iconic Nefertiti bust. In 1345 B.C. the sculptor Thutmose crafted the piece in tribute to the great beauty of this queen who was also the chief consort of Pharaoh Akhenaten and stepmother to King Tutankhamun.

For Amelia, this excavation season will prove to be unforgettable. Throughout her journey, a parade of men in monocles will die under suspicious circumstances, fascinating new relics will be unearthed, a diabolical mystery will be solved, and a brilliant criminal will offer his final challenge . . . and perhaps be unmasked at last.

Joan Hess’s humorous cozy mystery series takes place in the small and colorful town of Farberville, Arkansas, where widow and single mother Claire Malloy struggles with keeping her small local bookstore in the black. But she also must deal with the drama of her young teenage daughter Caron (WHO SPEAKS IN ALL CAPS), being married to Deputy Police Chief Peter Rosen, and murder.Strangled ProseMildred, author of a smutty new romance, is found murdered after a party at Claire’s bookstore. Claire is left wondering who could have hated Mildred with such passion, but soon finds that the romances contained as much fact as fiction—and perhaps hold the clue to the killer’s identity!The Murder at the Mimosa InnClaire brings her petulant daughter Caron along to a mock-murder weekend at the charming Mimosa Inn. But fiction becomes alarmingly real as the mock-victim isn’t just playing dead—he’s really been murdered. More determined than ever to find the killer, Claire combs the grounds of the country inn for this most unwelcome guest.Dear Miss DemeanorThe scandals mount in Farberville when a respected teacher is fired for pilfering petty cash and suggestive letters are sent to the local advice columnist. Claire Malloy, working undercover to investigate the possible embezzlement, finds herself in the thick of it all when the high school principal is murdered and the killer is still on the loose.

Claire Malloy discovers that house-hunting can be murder—literally—in the latest entry in Joan Hess''s "wildly entertaining series." (Mystery Scene)Back from her somewhat unusual honeymoon, Claire Malloy must face the harsh reality of life with her new husband, police chief Peter Rosen, and her teenage daughter Caron—three people simply can''t fit into her cosy two bedroom apartment. After a week of fruitless looking, she finally finds the perfectplace—a well preserved large house on a large plot of land in an area called Hollow Valley. There are only a few problems. Such as the real estate agent disappeared mid-showing and hasn''t been seen since. And the last owner died in circumstances labeled ''accidental'' but were actually both ''mysterious'' and ''dubious''. The family that owned the estate is now suing the lover of the dead owner over the rights to the property. Oh, and it isn''t really for sale. When the previous owner''s lover dies practically at her feet, Claire decides to take matters into her own hands. After all, to get the house of her dreams, first she has to find a killer. And all''s fair in love, war, and real estate.

Since his recent arrival, avant-garde artist Zeno Gorgias has been turning heads and attracting gawkers in the otherwise tame college town of Farberville Arkansas. Zeno''s "interactive" art—featuring an undressed woman lounging beside a coffin on his front yard—is neither welcome by the community nor punishable by law. But as local bookseller and amateur sleuth Claire Malloy is about to find out, sometimes there''s a dark side to one''s freedom of artistic expression…Strange things keep happening to Zeno and his oeuvre. First, his estranged wife comes to town, demanding he be committed to a mental institution. Then Zeno''s house mysteriously goes up in flames. And if that''s not enough, a dead body is found inside of the infamous coffin. Now that Zeno has been arrested for murder, it''s up to Claire to figure out what on earth is going on in Farberville…while the real killer remains on the loose.

Egypt, 1912. Amelia Peabody and her dashing archaeologist husband, Radcliffe Emerson, are once again in danger as they search for a priceless, stolen bust of legendary Queen Nefertiti...Arriving in Cairo for another thrilling excavation season, Amelia is relaxing in her elegant hotel suite when a man with knife protruding from his back staggers into her chamber and utters a single word -''Murder'' - before collapsing on the floor, dead. It soon becomes apparent that someone has saved Amelia from a would-be assassin-someone who is keeping a careful eye on the intrepid archaeologist. And there can be only one answer: the brilliant master of disguise, Sethos. For Amelia, this excavation season will prove to be unforgettable; one where a brilliant criminal will offer his final challenge . . . and perhaps be unmasked at last.''Think Miss Marple with early feminist gloss crossed with Indiana Jones'' The Guardian

Semiretired bookseller and former single parent to a challenging teen, the not-so-newly remarried Claire Malloy finds herself entangled in yet another case of felonious doings in this latest cozy.

Claire Malloy, for as long as she can remember, has been the local bookseller and owner of the Book Depot and the widowed mother of teenage Caron, who frequently speaks in "all caps." But her life has changed dramatically in recent years. Claire has married her longtime beau, Deputy Police Chief Peter Rosen. Still the owner of the Book Depot, Claire has passed the day-to-day running of it on to her very efficient employees. With Caron inching ever closer to college, there''s but one thing that remains steadfastly unchanged—Claire''s astonishing ability to attract, find, or even just randomly stumble across trouble.

Summoned for jury duty, Claire is humiliated when the prosecutor, harboring a grudge against her husband, dismisses her in a spectacular enough fashion to make the local news. As a result, Claire decides revenge will be the next dish she serves. She hunts down the defendant in the case, a woman accused of murdering her husband, and offers to help prove her innocence. And not just because Claire wants to humiliate the prosecutor. There are only two problems: One, the defendant is looking guiltier by the minute. Two, the worst day imaginable has finally come—Claire''s dreaded new mother-in-law is coming to visit, and life in prison is starting to look good.

STRANGLED PROSEIs killing a romance novelist considered a crime of passion? She would have killed for a bestseller-but someone beat her to it . . . Professor of Passion, the smutty new romance from Mildred Twiller-a.k.a. Azalea Twilight-isn''t the kind of book Claire Malloy likes to hock at her bookstore, but Claire agrees to host a book party for her friend''s trashy tale. As torrid as the novel is, it''s nothing compared to the evening. After the party, poor Mildred is found dead in her home-strangled with a tightly knotted silk scarf. Now it''s up to Claire to find Mildred''s killer, and it won''t be easy-the two-bit author had offended nearly every faculty member she worked with at nearby Faber College. But who could have hated Mildred with such smouldering passion? Find out in Joan Hess'' first Claire Malloy mystery novel Strangled Prose.THE MURDER AT THE MURDER AT THE MIMOSA INNWhen you make a game of murder, be careful who the players are . . .Who could resist the mock-murder weekend at the charming Mimosa Inn-certainly not bookstore owner and amateur sleuth Claire Malloy, who decides to bring her petulant daughter Caron along for some detecting. As the guests settle in for a weekend of sleuthing, dressed as their favourite literary detectives, many a Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot stand poised to solve a murder. But fiction becomes alarmingly real, as the mock-murder victim isn''t just playing dead-he''s really been bashed to death. More determined than even to find the killer, Claire combs the grounds of the lovely inn for this most uninvited guest.DEAR MISS DEMEANORAt Farberville High, it''s reading, writing . . . and murder.Who knows what evil lurks in the halls of Farbervilles'' high school-or what blackmail is hidden in Miss Demeanor''s Falcon Crier advice column? Certainly not bookstore owner and amateur sleuth Claire Malloy-until her daughter Caron persuades her to substitute for disgraced column editor and journalism teacher Emily Parchester. Surely Miss Parchester cannot be guilty of embezzlement. But the petty charges graduate to murder when Principal Weiss gets his last licks from Miss Parchester''s peach compote. Miss Parchester herself, last seen at a local sanitarium, is suddenly missing. And now it''s up to Claire to find someone who''s been schooled in the fine art of murder . . .