Carolyn Hart
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Death By Surprise

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DEATH BY SURPRISE pits a savvy young street lawyer against ghosts from the past and a hard-edged blackmailer who knows too much about a gilt-edged family. Publisher: Seventh Street Books
Pages: 200
Price ( Paperback ): $13.95
Publication Date: November 2013
ISBN ( Paperback ): 978-1616148690
Category: Fiction

Available from your favorite bookseller
Amazon | Books a Million | Barnes & Noble  | Indiebound

A woman is out to clear her cousin of murder charges after a blackmailer targeting the wealthy Carlisle family turns up dead.
 

K.C. Carlisle and her cousin Kenneth Carlisle both grew up rich. Kenneth is a corporate lawyer in an exclusive Northern California seaside community while K.C. has a storefront office on the seedy side of town. She takes whatever kind of case walks in her door.

But trouble appears one day when Francine Boutelle shows up pretending she wants to write an expose of the Carlisle family, including some dirt on K.C.'s late and highly respectable father. Francine has visited most of the family and is willing to keep the family secrets in exchange for cash.

When Kenneth is accused of murdering the blackmailer, K.C. is determined to prove his innocence, no matter where the trail of blood and deception leads.






Death by Surprise


Judging by Death by Surprise, Carolyn Hart might have succeeded at hard-boiled private eye novels. But, maybe K.C. Carlisle isn't as hardhearted as she needed to be. Death by Surprise is the story of cagey woman determined to out-maneuver a wily killer. It's just one more piece of proof that Carolyn Hart is a Grand Master.
 -  Lesa Holstine - Read More





Death By Surprise is not only not only a fine mystery it's also in basic English--booth a hoot at times and a dark, compelling look at the shady business of gossip magazines.
- Ed Gorman - Read More


Carolyn Hart has developed a strong female voice with K.C. Carlisle. The novel is well written, has a strong plot, and reminiscent of the best classic detective movies. This is mystery writing at its finest, without today’s formulas or clichés.
-Terry Ambrose - Read More


Carolyn Hart’s early writing here reveals why she would become one of the most popular and successful mystery writers alive; she clearly has fun developing characters who are either deeply flawed or loathsome. Although it pushes the definition to call this a “hard-boiled” mystery, this is definitely less cozy than her usual writing but just as much fun, and a ton of action is packed into a relatively brief novel. The humor has an edge and K.C. is a very engaging, spirited character who easily carries the novel on her shoulders. Fans will enjoy seeing a different side of Hart’s writing without being deprived of her skillful plotting and fun characters that have become her trademark.
-Cynthia Chow for King's River Life - Read More

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