Named Best Mystery Series of 2016 & 2017 by the Association of Texas Authors. Life comes with stipulations.If you want to fit into last year’s swimsuit, you can’t eat ice cream and a Gennydoodle cookie after every meal.If you want to go to Heaven, you can’t raise Hell on Saturday night and show up in the church pew on Sunday morning, hungover and reeking of cheap perfume.And if you want your … reeking of cheap perfume.
And if you want your hundred-year-old mansion completely updated and remodeled for free, you have to sacrifice.
Stipulations, my child.
-Granny Bert Cessna
Now that Madison Reynolds has agreed to be part of a reality-television home remodeling show, she barely recognizes her own life. The show is an instant success, bringing cameras and reporters right to her doorstep, eager to chronicle her every move in the small Texas town.
With In a Pinch Temporary Services hovering on the thin line between prosperity and extinction, Madison takes on another quirky case, this one concerning a property dispute. Complications turn a simple mission into all-out danger, and once again Madison finds herself embroiled in an intriguing mystery.
Between her cantankerous grandmother, a moody teenage daughter, an ever-starving son, townspeople eager to grab their fifteen minutes of fame at her expense, and a mother-in-law appalled by her undignified foray into the public eye, Madison had her hands full, long before the skeleton was discovered. Now work is interrupted at the Big House, ghost stories abound, more secret passages have been unearthed, and someone is trying to scare her away from her new home.
What she needs is another session of Brash deCordova’s unique ‘river therapy’… not to mention the kiss that eludes them with frustrating regularity.
What she gets is another round of stipulations and complications.
Here’s what readers are saying about this popular new amateur sleuth series that delivers clean romance, humor, and true-to-life characters in a small town setting, without sacrificing action-packed excitement and suspense.
“This is one of my new favorite authors.”
“I love this The Sisters, Texas Mystery Series and Stipulations and Complications is my favorite book so far!”
“I loved the book and can’t wait to read the next one in this series. I am not a big fan of mystery, but there is way more to this book than that alone. The mystery was excellent, but mostly I loved the part about small town life, families, and friends in The Sisters. There is so much to this book would be hard to put it all in this review and I just don’t like giving away any of the story. I will tell you this, however, it is about going home…who says you can’t go home again? A lot of humor and love of families and friends made this book very special. Thanks Becki.”
“This is not the kind of book that I would normally read, but it sounded good so I decided to give it a try. I am so glad that I did. From the very beginning I couldn’t put it down. The story flowed along and characters were so likeable. It was so wonderful to find an author who knows that you don’t need to use bad language and sex to sell a book. I would recommend this book to anyone young and old. Thank you Becki Willis.”
“I really love this series! Stipulations and Complications had the right amount of everything: mystery, romance, comedy and of course, a dead body.”
“Another hoorah for Becki Willis! I loved the setting of rural Texas and the characters. They were well developed and the story line kept me guessing until the last page. I look forward to learning more about the main characters past and future in the Sisters!”
“Once again the characters of The Sisters, Texas have won my heart. When the Stars Fall was even better than Chicken Scratch! I hope this series is intended to be a long one.”
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My favorite of the Sisters, Texas series novels so far! Maddie and her twins have finally decided to not return to Dallas, but to take Granny Bert up on her offer and buy Miss Juliet’s home to stay close to her and their friends in Juliet and Naomi, Texas. When Genny engages a high-end televised home improvement makeover producer and cast to completely re-do the mansion, the mysteries begin turning up. Hidden passages, secret stairs, an underground tunnel, and a previously undiscovered small room dug beneath the basement.
All of Ms. Willis’ novels are page-turners, but this one is by far the best written. The tone is even throughout the book, the inexplicable things that are continually happening throughout the novel are brought to a successful conclusion, and the majority of the characters have grown in maturity since the last novel. Would definitely recommend this book!
Books 1 and 2 in this series are completely fabulous, but book 3, Stipulations and Complications, by Becki Willis has the added element of an old mansion with hidden staircases, reminiscent of those beloved Nancy Drew books by Carolyn Keene and Hardy Boys books by Franklin W Dixon. Who doesn’t love a haunted house with secret passageways and hidden cubbyholes?
The Big House, which Granny Bert inherited from Juliet (the town’s namesake), needs extensive and expensive renovations before Maddy can move in with her twin teens. Having the reality show “Home Again: Starting Over” do all the work and hopefully (maybe) pay for it all seems like a great idea, but only if Maddy agrees to have her personal life turned into a weekly show. Is it worth having cameras all over the place and practically no privacy? Only time will tell.
With Derron Mullins as her full-time employee at In a Pinch Professional Services, Maddy has broadened the company’s scope of expertise, including investigating a property dispute that eventually unearths a crazy web of lies and secrets and a modern-day version of bootlegging. Maddy and Derron thoroughly kick that proverbial nest of hornets, and let me tell you, Derron quickly proves his worth as Maddy’s trusty sidekick, friend, employee, and snappy dresser.
Becki Willis expertly builds the tension and suspense to a fever pitch and knows how to make the reader wonder how in the world the protagonist is going to once again extract herself from such a dangerous situation.
But what about murder and all the romances and Granny Bert? Well, why don’t you dive into Stipulations and Complications and find out for yourself. You definitely won’t be disappointed.
Chicken Scratch #1 – This is my first book by this author and I was greatly surprised at how well written, well thought out and laced with humor and intrigue; this little gem is packed. The area is near and dear to my heart since I was born in the area. The people, while not as easily identifiable as in a Jeff Abbott novel, are locals I know. The Texas speak is just as if Ms. Willis and I were at the Creamery (TAMU) sharing milk shakes and local gossip. The kinks and knots in the plot made it hard to put down the book, even to get a tea refill. You can’t help but like the characters and root for them. The story, filled with life stories, is actually pretty substantial, not fluff, and Ms. W is an entertaining storyteller. 5*
When The Stars Fall #2 – This book is better than Chicken Scratch (#1), which is a good book, too. A lot of suspense, along with developing romances amongst several characters, keeps the reader immersed in this substantial story. Like the first book, the baddie is easily figured out, but the story is well worth reading. There are too many of the well rounded, well developed characters to shout out separately, but they’re all interesting, funny, sincere and just plain folk. The Big House becomes a prominent character and helps the family with a huge change to their lives, maybe. Not a cliffhanger, but there’s a tease about the future of Big and Madison. 5*
Stipulations and Complications #3 – This is a heavy, suspense filled book full of dark secrets and mysteries with the past and the present colliding and the darkness is felt by all involved. Yet, there’s plenty of good and love along with the humor. This intriguing, substantial read is hard to put down with its interesting storylines and well thought out characters. This book is on the level with DeMille, Follette, Grisham and Ludlum. 5*
Home Again: Starting Over #4 – Amen Sister to that comment about Texans and wannabes! This series must be read in order; they keep getting better and better. I love the fact that what happens in the earlier books are just slightly mentioned, instead of being retold. All the characters keep growing and their past and secrets coming to light as the books go on. Multiple storylines in this book and the twists and surprises just keep the reader glued to the pages. I’ve chain read the first four books and don’t have the next two available to me. But I’m diving into book seven, the newly released The Lilac Code. 5*
The Lilac Code #7 – Trouble even finds them outside of Texas! I missed the two books before this one, but it was still an interesting read. I was disappointed with the ending – the gun in her hand was forgotten. But the pages were full of intrigue and suspense, and the characters were intense. Again, there were multiple stories occurring, along with the main story. Current events were featured, which isn’t surprising with all that’s happened in Texas and other U.S. locations in the past year alone. While not a cliffhanger, there’s definitely more books in the future. I chain read five books in three days and never once was bored with this series. 5*
Absolutely am in love with this series. The characters are so likeable and believable. There is a dark mystery here and of course, a body . This page turner had me reading it in one sitting. Cannot wait to read more.
a good story Maddie is getting the big house fixed up , a tv shop is doing it and the hunky man in charge like Maddie, if you have read either of the other books you know something will go wrong and it does. love the story.