Murder Walks the Plank

I have read most all of Carolyn Hart's "Death on Demand" titles. This particular work was one of the better titles in this series. I liked the pace she set, and the storyline was interesting. No irritating characters, plausible surprises, and a different person to guess the mystery paintings at the end. I highly recommend this title to readers!

Annie Darling likes a good mystery. She runs a bookstore that specializes in mystery books and has organized a "mystery cruise" to promote the store. The cruise involves a scripted play that will interact the guests in a mystery that they will then try to solve. When guests start arriving for the cruise, Annie is surprised to see her friend Pamela Potts. Annie is even more surprised when Pamela thanks her for the free ticket, a ticket that Annie didn't give her. They would have to discuss this when things settled down. Only the evening doesn't settle down - Pamela falls overboard! Luckily Pamela is rescued. However she is unconscious. Annie thinks that foul play is involved, but the police write the occurance off as an accident. Soon after the accident, another guest commits suicide. Or was it suicide? It seems that the woman's children and secretary had a motive to murder her. With a boat full of mystery fans and amateur detectives, soon the guests take over the investigation and try to figure out who is trying to kill off the party guests. Oh boy, "Murder Walks the Plank" was such a fun book to read! I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. While there were clues given throughout, I was guessing until the very end. I would recommend this book highly. It's a great combination of intrugue and humor.

When careful and cautious Pamela Potts falls overboard ,apparently drowned, on a mystery cruise sponsered by Annie Darling Annie has a problem?who pushed her?Sherriff Billy Cameron is ready to rule the death an accident but when Annie discovers Pamela received her invitation from an unidentified source she sets out to hunt Pamelas assailant.The death of Meg Heath ,Aging ex model and millionairess,who Pamela visits regularly convinces Annie that someone wants both Pamela and Meg dead.But why?Coincidentally, according to Sheriff Cameron ,an unidentified stranger turns up dead at the same time as Meg and Pamela .When Annie discovers that Meg was planning a gala dinner for a mystery guest Annie assumes the three deaths are related and the mystery guest holds the key to solving the killings.Who is the mystery guest?All Annie knows is that he looks like Houston second baseman Jeff Kent.While Annie is pursuing the death of the unidentified man a fire at Megs place destroys all evidence of her link to her second husband,Carey Heath.Emma Clyde,Star mystery writer , assumes the motive for the murders is money, casting suspicion on Megs children Jenna and Jason as well as personal secretary Claudette Taylor.Piece by piece Annie ,with help from her devoted husband Max is drawn into a deadly game of murder , greed and rekindled love that threatens the very lives of children near and dear to Annie.This was my first Carolyn Hart mystery but it wont be my last.The book does a masterfulm job of presenting the cozy intimate life of a mystery book seller while simaltaneously involving the reader in a baffling murder mystery.If you love a great mystery MURDER WALKS THE PLANK is a real find.

Mystery book store owner Annie Darling and the Death on Demand crew are back to brainstorm over a new whodunit that once again puts their fiction-obsessed minds to real use. Annie has arranged a mystery cruise complete with hidden treasure and an interactive play meant to entertain and maybe even drum up some extra business. The evening takes a nosedive, however, when a well-loved guest plunges off the deck into the waters below. Annie and her cohorts are unconvinced by the ruling that the fall was an accident. And when it's followed by the apparent suicide of a woman who is found to be acquainted not only with the unfortunate cruise guest, but also a recently murdered man, it seems that the police chief may have to pay closer attention to Annie's ideas. In an almost competitive partnership, the small group of amateur sleuths "take over" the investigation, determined to prove something more sinister is going on than mere coincidence. If the clues aren't pulled together in time, the next victim(s) might be closer than Annie can handle.While Murder Walks the Plank is part of an ongoing series, it has the capability of standing alone at the same time that it awakens curiosity toward, what may be for some, previously unexplored tomes. Characters such as the indomitable Annie with a mind that holds an eternal fount of mystery-book-garnered knowledge, her doting and indulgent husband, and her author friend whose attitude is just as overly-confident, demanding and often-annoying as the protagonist in her own novels pull the reader inexorably into the depths of don`t-stop-`til-the-last-page readability. With the delightful cast and steadily-rising suspense that explodes in a climactic scene, Carolyn Hart's fifteenth "Death on Demand" novel holds firmly to its footing on the "plank" of success.

On the barrier island of Broward's Rock off the coast of South Carolina is the Death on Demand Mystery Bookstore owned and operated by Annie Darling. She is sponsoring a mystery cruise with the proceeds donated to the Island Literacy Fund. On the night of the cruise, things are going smoothly until Pamela Potts falls into the water. Annie's husband Max jumps into the water to rescue her but later the next morning it is announced she died.The sheriff feels that the tragedy was either an accident or suicide but Annie is positive it was murder for a number of reasons. Famous island mystery writer Emma Clyde believes that Pamela was hit on the head because of something she knew and when Annie looks into her activities, she learns that Pamela was visiting Meg Heath, a wealthy widow who didn't have long to live. Both Emma and Annie believe these deaths are linked as is the murder of a tourist found on a deserted part of the island. They intend to prove their theory or die trying.Every book featuring Max and Annie Darling is a pleasure to read but in MURDER WALKS THE PLANK Carolyn Hart even outdoes her usual great work. The mystery is so twisted with some many possible suspects and motives that readers will have a difficult time trying to figure out who the killer is leaving the audience with a big cerebral puzzle to solve.Harriet Klausner