When the discovery of a body on a vacant lot puts an end to Police Chief Callie Morgan’s surprise birthday party, Christmas week loses some of its charm. Not only does she know the dead man, he’s a relation . . . of sorts.Soon she’s juggling a murder investigation and a rash of burglaries that may have been committed by the mythical Edisto Santa—a holiday secret Santa, who may have taken a page … have taken a page from Robin Hood’s book and begun robbing from the tourist rich and giving to the local poor.
Since the suspects for both crimes are Edisto residents, no matter how delicately Callie treads, this holiday season will pit Callie against her beloved Edisto and leave her feeling like the Grinch, Scrooge, and Old Man Potter rolled into one. But she has no choice. Murder trumps Santa.
This year Callie is making a list and checking it twice.
Praise for C. Hope Clark:“A sparkling Edisto Island setting, a flawed heroine, a riveting mystery.”—Karen White, New York Times bestselling author.
Hope Clark’s books have been honored as winners of the Epic Award, Silver Falcion Award, the Daphne du Maurier Award.
“Murder, corruption, and page-turning intrigue . . . characters that bring a vivid literary element . . . and create a strong emotional response to their tangled lives.”—Susan Cushman, author of Cherry Bomb and editor of Southern Writers on Writing.
About the Author: C. HOPE CLARK has a fascination with the mystery genre and is the author of the Carolina Slade Mystery Series as well as the Edisto Island Mysteries, both set in her home state of South Carolina. In her previous federal life, she performed administrative investigations and married the agent she met on a bribery investigation. She enjoys nothing more than editing her books on the back porch with him, overlooking the lake, with bourbons in hand. She can be found either on the banks of Lake Murray or Edisto Beach with one or two dachshunds in her lap. Hope is also editor of the award-winning FundsforWriters.com.
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Edisto Tidings by C. Hope Clark is cozy, but also one of the best books in the series. Chief Callie Morgan is called from her birthday early to find a body in a lot owned by someone who she’s clashed with many times. Now she is left with a case to wrap up by Christmas and there are no leads except for a string of burglaries that may or may not tie in. Will she be able to crack the case and still spend Christmas with her son? In this installment, as a long-time reader of the series, I found Callie to be at her very best. For one of the first times, she didn’t let emotion take over completely and she was able to focus on what was happening with a clear head despite no sleep for nearly 48 hours! Although I found the backstory to be weeded in without disruption to the story, it was noticeable that there was a lot that happened before this particular book took place. Clark’s writing once again is descriptive and compelling. I really like how she (quite literally) puts herself in the novel. The ending was wrapped up a little too quickly, but you feel satisfied none the less. One can also never go wrong with a new and attractive male prospect for Callie in the picture. Such a great read! I definitely recommend this book for an early Christmas present to anyone.
C. Hope Clark, in Edisto Tidings, has again given the reader a mystery that will keep them guessing till the end. It is Christmas week and Edisto Chief of Police, Callie, is faced not only with a string of Robin Hood burglaries from the homes of residents but also from some of the beach rentals. While dealing with these Callie is faced with the death of a long time Edisto resident. Callie’s preparations for Christmas must wait while she works day and night to solve these crimes. Once again Hope uses Edisto’s local hangouts and street names. If the reader is an Edisto visitor visions of the delightful isand accompany the text.
Edisto Tidings by C. Hope Clark is a wonderful mix of holiday mystery and suspense. Police Chief Callie Morgan spends a hectic two days before Christmas trying to track down what exactly happened in the suspicious death of Ben Rosewood. Until Callie receives the report from the coroner, she has to keep an open mind to the possibility that Ben was murdered. How did his body end up on a vacant lot in the middle of the day? She is also on the trail of home burglaries on the island. Some vacationers have had their home burgled and a wrapped Christmas present is missing from under the tree. One holiday rental has three gifts missing. Is there a connection to the burglaries and the Edisto Santa legend? This Edisto Island mystery is fast-paced with interesting characters, and a very tense scene before the ending!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and post my review of this book
(free copy provided in return for an honest review) I have long been interested in checking out C. Hope Clark’s Edisto books – I love a strong female character and every story synopsis in the Edisto series promises to deliver. Jumping into Edisto Tidings, I got several strong female characters and a couple of hours of great entertainment! In this one, there’s murder, there’s the “island tradition” of an Edisto Santa that leaves Christmas goodies for the less fortunate, and Edisto Island police chief Callie Morgan finds herself dousing the Christmas spirit of pretty much everyone she encounters as she uncovers clues and gets to the bottom of the mystery.
The island characters are so colorful – Sophie, Mark, Stan, Thomas, and the white-haired Marine-turned-real estate mogul Janet Wainright are a pleasure to meet. And don’t worry if you jump into the Edisto series right here in book six, the author catches you up right away on all the goings on (just enough to make you want to read the other five!) By all means, start here if you want a little holiday mystery. This book is perfect for the person looking for some holiday spirit – it’s not a Hallmark love story or a Charlie Brown Christmas, it’s a unique, fun, and exciting alternative. Pick up a copy of Edisto Tidings.
Callie Morgan is all set for a calm Christmas on Edisto Island. That is until her surprise birthday party when she is called away suddenly because a dead body is found. Then some of the tourists staying on the island for Christmas are missing some of their Christmas presents. Callie is racing around trying to figure out who is stealing Christmas presents and who murdered Ben. There are some surprises along the way. Did Edisto Santa steal the presents? What is the new restaurant owner hiding? As Callie spreads her small department thinly and pulls a 48-hour shift investigation herself, she gets some help from the new restaurant owner. Interesting read and I really like it. I would definitely recommend it.
This was an awesome book, it kept me wanting to read more and not put it down. Hope Clark outdid herself on this one. Sometimes after #6 comes out you have lost interest in the characters, but not in this book. Think it was the best one yet. All of her books are great but I can see her getting better with every book! She is an awesome writer and have to say she is my all time favorite author! It is worth buying this book to read.
3 stars
This was a good book with which to spend an afternoon. It was an easy read and made sense as the storyline went along. I found the writing a little simplistic though. It seemed to take off in tangents that really had nothing to do with the main story. I would almost call it a cozy.
It is a police procedural that focuses on a woman police chief on a small island off the coast of the US. Everyone knows everyone and during the summer there is a boom in population due to the tourist season. Many of the homes and cottages on the island are rented out to these visitors.
When a body is found on a vacant lot about to be cleared, Police Chief Callie Morgan is alarmed to realize that she knows the man. In fact she knows him rather more than she would like to. At the same time, there is a spate of burglaries going on. Christmas presents are being opened and stolen.
Unfortunately, the suspects in both cases are islanders, so Callie must be very careful in her investigation not to ruffle any feathers, so to speak. But determined and thorough police worl captures both perpetrators while ruffling only a few feathers.
I want to thank NetGalley and BelleBooks, Inc./ Bell Bridge Books for forwarding to me a copy of this good book for me to read, enjoy and review.