Marlys Millhiser

Charlie, stay out of this. Vegas may be a great place to have fun, but it's a bad place to get involved. If only she's listened to her conscience. But, literary agent Charlie Greene never listens. This time, Charlie needs a break. She's overworked at the office and at home, between placating crotchety clients, trying to sell books during tough times, and dealing with her teenage daughter and widowed mother. So vacationing in Las Vegas sounds like...

Recovering from last year's Las Vegas trip-from-hell, Long Beach literary agent Charlie Greene is looking forward to spending this year's vacation at home. No manuscript reading, no needy clients, no killer commute for a whole week, just some good, old-fashioned rest and relaxation. But, before Charlie's peaceful vacation even starts, her daughter's rambunctious cat, Tuxedo, causes her to stumble across the body of neighbor Jeremy Fielder, murdered...

Literary agent and amateur sleuth Charlie Greene accompanies her mother to her great-great-aunt's funeral under great duress-after all, Charlie herself is adopted, and this part of her extended family has never made her feel that welcome. Plus, it's in Myrtle, Iowa, about as far from Charlie's life as a high-powered California literary agent as one can get. But, she agrees to go. How bad could it be? In one of Marlys Millhiser's quirky, offbeat mysteries,...

Overwhelmed by an ill-fated love affair, an unsatisfactory career as a model, and her mother's crushing suicide, Leah Harper leaves Chicago and tragedy behind and heads west in her battered old Volkswagen. With the Colorado Rockies in sight, the long hours on the highway take their toll and Leah takes refuge in a cabin at a seedy motel. A raging storm moves in while she is showering in the out-building. She dashes back to her cabin only to be shocked...

Charlie has reluctantly returned to her childhood home of Boulder, Colorado to be with her mother who just had major surgery. Boulder evokes decidedly mixed feelings in Charlie. She left after her daughter Libby was conceived 16 years ago, and hasn't returned until now. There's plenty to keep her emotions occupied, though, since her mother seems to be suspected of doing away with one of her neighbors. Charlie has lots to ponder, including: What happened...