A Clara and Iris Mystery.
When Atlanta homicide detectives are called in to investigate the murder of a nineteen-year-old girl found dumped in historic Oakland Cemetery, they immediately begin working the case. But with no leads to follow, and their case log growing larger by the day, the murder quickly grows cold.
Desperate to keep the investigation of her deceased sister going, Ginger Baines hires two novice sleuths to solve the case. Widowed, well into their seventies, and new to the world of private investigating, Clara Samples and Iris Hadley aren’t your average private eyes.
When a second body is found in a neighboring cemetery, the plot thickens. With two bodies wrapped, almost lovingly, in a soft blanket before being discarded in a cemetery, could a serial killer be on the loose?
Joined by their young apprentice Quita, Clara and Iris are determined to stop at nothing to find the killer before they can strike again. But, will their bodies be the next ones discovered among the tombstones?
Editorial: Widows on The Case!
Two crafty septuagenarian widows turned private investigators; a crabby Atlanta cop recovering from a gunshot wound, and a cunning killer who dumps his victims rather appropriately in cemeteries. Those are just a few of the zesty ingredients in Murder among the Tombstones, the latest whodunit by Georgia-based mystery writer Kim Carter. It is a fast-paced, twister of a mystery that keeps you turning pages until the very end.
Private Investigators Iris Hadley and Clara Samples may be in their seventies, but don't think they are over the hill. These ladies are witty, wily and with it. A Must Read!"
A former correspondent for The Chicago Tribune and Award Winning Author of The Billy Battles Trilogy ~Ronald Yates.
Multi-Award-Winning Mystery Writer Garnishes Another 5-Star Book Review for "A Clara and Iris Mystery" trilogy...Reviewed by Viga Boland
"After I finished reading Murder Among the Tombstones, the first of the Clara and Iris Mystery Series, I found myself briefly thinking more about the incredible skill of the author, Kim Carter, than the story itself.
How cleverly she hooked me in that exciting opening chapter about a young woman running from a predator in a dense forest! Then, she further reeled me in as police puzzled over why the corpse of a beautiful young woman was found gently wrapped in a pink blanket in a cemetery. All ready for what I anticipated would be a thrilling mystery murder, suddenly everything changed! A pair of delightful old biddies, Clara and Iris, whisked me into their newly acquired Private Eye office and had me in stitches with their humorous banter.
Well, what just happened was a novel approach to murder mystery writing by easing mounting tension with comic relief, not unlike what Shakespeare did in some of his tragedies. Initially, I wasn’t sure I liked this break in the plot, but these two lively seniors, with their chalk-and-cheese personalities, grew on me so much that I looked forward to their intrusions. The reserved, refined Clara was forever embarrassed by that outspoken, colorful flirt, Iris, who delighted in proving she was far from over the hill.
While Clara and Iris are trying to figure out how to run their agency and use their new iPhones, how does Carter manage to bring these two senior sleuths bang smack into the middle of the primary plot, where cops are being shot by drug-addicted felons and yet another young woman is running for her life from a serial killer?
That, dear readers, is due to the remarkable writing skill of Kim Carter. It’s delightful to experience Carter bringing together such diverse characters for a unique spin on a murder mystery. Murder Among the Tombstones is an easy read, with the plot and sub-plots moving quickly thanks to the constant use of clever dialogue. There’s an abundance of colorful characters, dramatic settings, a delightful amount of humor, and enough unexpected twists to keep the most ardent mystery fans guessing. But it’s the personalities of Clara and Iris that will have readers looking forward to the next book in this series.
It gets a big 5-Star's from this reviewer! Enjoy!
Reviewed by Viga Boland for Readers' Favorite
