Bones To Pick (Southern Belle Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Carolyn Haines (Author)

Book Description

Series: Southern Belle Mysteries | Publication Date: July 1, 2006

Wickedly witty and full of more dirt than a debutante's diary, the mysteries of Carolyn Haines bring the southern Delta to roaring, rollicking life...

Intrepid P.I. Sarah Booth Delaney has been known to single-handedly save her family's Mississippi plantation, converse with Dahlia House's ghost, and capture a killer or two. But when a local girl is found dead in a cotton field, it's enough to make a lady toss back a Bloody Mary before noon on Sunday.

Someone held twenty-three-year-old Quentin McGee's face down in the rich Southern soil until she suffocated. The lawmen think Quentin's lover killed her. When the suspect's brother hires Sarah to prove his sibling innocent, Sarah quickly learns that the victim had plenty of wealthy, powerful enemies. Each had a bone to pick with Quentin for writing a scandalous exposé on her hometown. Adding spice to the gumbo is the news that Quentin was due to inherit the family fortune the day after she was killed...and that a second book was in the works. From illicit lovers and outraged families to slandered aristocrats, everyone is a suspect--and no one is safe...

"Carolyn Haines has done for the Delta what Janet Evanovich has done for New Jersey." --The State

"Wickedly funny. Devilishly clever. Scintillatingly Southern. Carolyn Haines is an author to die for." --Carolyn Hart

--This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Kensington; First Edition edition (July 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758210906
• ISBN-13: 978-0758210906
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,178,741 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Carolyn Haines is the author of eighteen novels, including the acclaimed Sarah Booth Delaney mystery series. She was honored with the prestigious 2009 Richard Wright Award for Literary Excellence. Haines was also 2010 recipient of the Harper Lee Award. Born and raised in Mississippi, she now lives in Alabama on a farm with more dogs, cats, and horses than she can possibly keep track of!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars charming crime caper, July 5, 2006

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bones To Pick (Southern Belle Mysteries) (Hardcover)

After her failure to attain her dream of becoming an actress, Sarah Booth Delaney returned to her hometown of Zinnia, Mississippi to try and save her childhood home Dahlia House. She succeeds after stealing her future partner's dog and collecting the fee. Now the business is doing will and the business is gaining recognition and rich clients. Except for her love life, Sara Booth's life is perfect even if the household haunt Jitty, a servant of a former Delaney occupant, nags her to get married and have children.

Her latest case is to find out who killed Quentin McGee, a writer who dished out the dirt on the rich and powerful in her tell-all book. The police have arrested Allison Tatum whose shoeprint were found at the murder scene and witnesses reported a lover's quarrel believe the victim and the suspect shortly before she died. The problem in this case is that there are so many other people who wanted Quentin dead because she laid bare their secrets for the whole world to know. As with every case involving Sarah Booth, she winds up in danger but this time her partner is also in the hands of a dangerous serial killer.

Carolyn Haines is a writer that always delivers a charming crime caper that is a combination delightful and humorous regional mystery inside a foreboding southern gothic. Readers will enjoy this terrific tale whether they solve the case or not because BONES TO PICK is a beguiling tale. A fast paced plot, a creative storyline and excellent drawn characters make this cozy something out of the ordinary.

Harriet Klausner

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Series!, February 15, 2008

By 

Samantha Augustus (Southwick, Massachusetts USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bones To Pick (Southern Belle Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

When I started "Them Bones", I had to run out and purchase the rest of Ms. Haines series. I absolutely love her style of writing and her ability to keep the reader glued to the storyline is without question. She is on a par with no other. I'm eagerly anticipating "Wishbones". The only flaw -and one I've noticed with the last three authors I've read - is that the previous book's "killer" in a succession of books that carry over the storyline into the next book is given away or told in the book you're currently reading. If you've read the books in order, there's no problem. If you're new to an author and you pick up a book out of sequence, you're going to find out who did what to whom in the last story and have no reason to read it! That was my only disappointment in this author as well as as a few others I've recently read. Mentioning a prior book is fine but why blow the chance for a sale of a book or ruin the read for a possible new fan of the author by giving too much away in a current book from the one before it?! Is this the new trend of authors? I really enjoy Ms. Haines and that I'm reading her books in order. I hope these authors read some of these reviews so they'll know what NOT to divulge. It will ensure keeping loyal readers and it won't turn away new ones who don't have to read the author's other books because they'll already know the outcome of a previous book because the author gave away who dunnit! As already stated, not everyone can always read a series in chronological order. Other than that one negative observation, this reader is looking forward to and anticipating any and all new books by Ms. Haines. I love the personal storyline of Sarah Booth Delaney and I can always count on the author to keep me guessing to the very end of the book as to who the culprit is. Keep those "twists" and "turns" in the narrative coming!!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Daddy's Girls Rule Delta!, January 23, 2007

By 

Mysteryheel "Ms Mystery" (North Carolina) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bones To Pick (Southern Belle Mysteries) (Hardcover)

Sarah Booth Delaney's mama "raised her right," but she also taught her to think for herself. It's hard for Sarah Booth to conform to Southern Belle standards, but when a finishing school graduate is horribly murdered (Quentin McGee had just launched a scandalous tell-all book before her death), Sarah Booth has to resort to conservative clothing and panty hose. Sunflower County (Mississippi) Sheriff Coleman Peters is on leave, the acting sheriff arrests Quentin's lesbian lover for murder, and the suspect's brother hires Sarah Booth to prove her innocence. This is one of the Delta Darling's most dangerous cases, but, in my humble opinion, one of her most rewarding. Sarah Booth is my kind of gal!