New York Times bestselling romance author Jude Deveraux makes her debut in the world of mystery with a story of old secrets, deadly grudges and an improbable group of friends who are determined to uncover the truth regardless of the consequences… been boring her and she’s found herself back in her hometown of Lachlan, Florida, remodeling the grand old mansion she’d admired as a child. It’s much too big for her alone, but she’d die before letting anyone in town know that.
Then Sara’s niece Kate is offered a job in Lachlan—a start in what could be a very successful career in real estate. She accepts immediately, but with so little saved up, she’ll have to approach her estranged yet incredibly famous aunt for a place to stay while she gets herself settled. But when she arrives at Sara’s home, she finds she’s not the only long-term houseguest. Jackson Wyatt already has his own room, and though it’s impossible to deny his good looks and charm—he’s clearly got her aunt wrapped around his finger—she’s also never met anyone who irritates her quite like Jack does.
However, when two skeletons are accidentally uncovered in the quiet town, this unlikely trio is suddenly thrust together by a common goal: to solve a mystery everyone else seems eager to keep under wraps. United by a sense of justice and the desire to right old wrongs, Sara, Kate and Jack will have to dig into Lachlan’s murky past to unravel the small town’s dark secrets and work to bring the awful truth to light.
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Romance superstar Jude Devereux makes her mystery debut with A WILLING MURDER, and what a witty, fun, highly entertaining debut it is!
Have always loved Jude Deveraux and her debut into mysteries is a great start. Great characters and storyline is filled with unsuspecting twists. Hope to read the next installment in what I hope will be another great series.
I reviewed the second one in this series and couldn’t wait to read the first. And I fell into the book and didn’t look up till I finished it.
4.5 stars
Loved meeting the main characters from the beginning,.Sara, Kate and Jack. They come together as a make shift family and think as one when on a mission to solve a crime.
This could be considered a romantic cozy mystery but it is much more. All three characters have survived their parents and the results of living in towns where who you are is determined by your last name and social standing. Small towns can be wonderful and inviting but others are divided between the rich and the poor or those that matter and the others.
The small town Kate moves to in Florida is an old fashion town, down on its luck, but trying for a come back with new housing and opportunities. The romantic undercurrents are between her and Jack and nicely done.
When the remains of two people are found in a scene right out of a Stephen King book the three band together to solve the deaths.
You have plenty of suspects, plus a Sheriff Flynn that seens to hate Jack, a town wary of Sara and her fancy house and Sara is new in town and the gossip mill is working overtime.
Lots of atmosphere, conversations you feel privy to hear, and the tragic story of loves lost. As they investigate, murders follow and they become fearful but determined and justice does prevail. The humor helps with all the scares and bad news that they have to face and it does end on an upbeat ending. Suspenseful, great people, lots of settings, and clues that send you in many directions.
The clues kept me on the right path so I did figure out part of the mystery and that is half the fun!
Nothing can top Jude’s historical romances.
A very good murder mystery, with a just a mysterious backstop. Twenty-three year old Kate takes off to meet her aunt who is a famous author. When she arrives she is delighted to meet her aunt and Jack, the 30 year old man who shares her aunt’s home. Shortly after meeting them they go to check out a tree that has fallen at a house Jack is rehabbing and find the skeletal remains of the girl Jack loved when he was just 11.
Unraveling what happened, why no one seemed to care that two women disappeared 20 years ago, and who is responsible, is a study in small town politics and justice for the rich versus the poor.
This is the first book in a series that I finished within a week. Interesting story plots, wonderful characters. It keeps you guessing until the end.
This a part of a great series. Love the characters.
What would you do if you were a new real estate agent getting ready to show a house when you discovered a couple of skeletons on the property? Worse yet, you know the person who owns the property! In this book you will meet a cast of characters that you can love–or hate. There are twists and turns, and just when you think you know who the culprit is, you realize that you actually don’t! I truly enjoyed this book!
I love her books and while it is different, it is very readable.
As all of her books, it was one I couldn’t put down until I finished in the wee hours…
I like this book
Loved it. Want to know what happens with Kate and Jack.
This is different from the last of Jude Deveraux’s books. I thoroughly enjoy the fantasy and time travel, as well as the Bride Series. This book has a lot of humor and the murderer didn’t turn out to be the person I expected–but not far off. A very different and winding book, no “happily ever after”, so perhaps we continue later?
I really enjoyed this book. The repartee between Kate and Jack was fun.
Liked the character development and the story line.
I kept wondering who did it. I found it interesting that this story gave many different possibilities and it was great finding out who did the murder. It’s always fun trying to figure out who did it- great page turning read.
Easy enough read but it’s not one of my favorites. The story plodded along at times and it was pretty easy to figure out the murderer. I’m not sure if I’ll read the next one.
Very entertaining mystery series.
Great book just ordered the new one!
I’ve always loved Jude Deveraux’s books so I knew I would not be disappointed and I wasn’t!