Little Lamb Lost [Hardcover]

Margaret Fenton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2009

Social worker Claire Conover honestly believed she could make a difference in the world until she gets the phone call she's dreaded her entire career. One of her young clients, Michael, has been found dead and his mother, Ashley, has been arrested for his murder. And who made the decision to return Michael to Ashley? Claire Conover.Ashley had seemingly done everything right-gotten clean, found a place to live, worked two jobs, and earned back custody of her son. Devastated but determined to discover where her instincts failed her, Claire vows to find the truth about what really happened to Michael.What Claire finds is no shortage of suspects. Ashley's boyfriend made no secret that he didn't want children. And Ashley's stepfather, an alcoholic and chronic gambler, has a shady past. And what about Michael's mysterious father and his family? Or Ashley herself? Was she really using again? Amidst a heap of unanswered questions, one thing is for certain: Claire Conover is about to uncover secrets that could ruin lives-or end her own.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Fenton puts her experiences as a social worker to good use in her promising debut. After toddler Michael Hennessy dies of a drug overdose, Claire Conover, of the Birmingham, Ala., Department of Human Services, doesn't believe the boy's mother, Ashley, spiked his sippy cup. Ashley, who has a history of hardcore drugs and booze, had been working too hard to get clean in order to regain custody of Michael. Determined to find the real killer, Claire sets out on a course that could cost her career or even her life. Fenton paces her straightforward plot well, but her real strength is in the way she develops her characters' relationships. A number of secondary players—an investigative reporter and a guy who knows his way around a computer—pave the way for a sequel. With her fine ear for regional speech, Fenton may do for Birmingham what Margaret Maron has done for rural North Carolina. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

When two-year-old Michael Hennessey dies from a suspicious drug overdose, with his ex-addict single mother, Ashley, a client of the Jefferson County, Alabama, Department of Human Services, social worker Claire Conover finds her faith in her own judgment crumbling. As Ashley’s case worker, Claire is blindsided by Michael’s death, loathe to believe Ashley’s confession of the negligent homicide of her son and unable to let the case go despite being ordered to do so. Suspicious that Michael was murdered and feeling obligated to the child, Claire doggedly pursues leads that take her to the top echelons of Birmingham society, helped by computer whiz Grant Summerville, who becomes more than a friend. Warned repeatedly to leave the case alone, Claire puts more than her career in jeopardy. A relentless social worker makes an intriguing amateur sleuth, and Birmingham offers a fresh take on the New South as a setting for crime fiction. With this solid debut, Fenton—herself a social worker—has set the stage for a promising new series. --Michele Leber

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 264 pages
• Publisher: Oceanview Pub; SIGNED COPY! edition (June 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1933515511
• ISBN-13: 978-1933515519
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,277,702 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent read, October 26, 2009

By 

Alice Heath-Gladden (Newnan, Georgia, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Little Lamb Lost (Hardcover)

I'm glad I found this book; it's a great read--excellent writing, great mystery, and an interesting story. I'll watch for your next one. Alice Heath-Gladden

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fabulous regional amateur sleuth, June 6, 2009

By 

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

This review is from: Little Lamb Lost (Hardcover)

In Birmingham, Alabama, the police arrest Ashley Hennessy in the death of her infant son Michael, who died from a drug overdose. Although the evidence seems overwhelming especially with Ashley's track record with drugs and alcohol, social worker Claire Conover does not believe her client would even accidentally kill her son. Claire also admits feeling some guilt since she persuaded the court to return Michael to his mother.

Convinced the woman is innocent as she worked extraordinarily hard to become clean, to be a good mother and hold two jobs, Claire investigates the crime believing someone murdered the child. The social worker knows the personal cost could be her job as she crosses the line, but does not care as guilt and justice motivate her to find the killer although she never anticipated the number of viable suspects she would uncover.

LITTLE LAMB LOST is a fabulous regional amateur sleuth starring a caring protagonist who goes way beyond the extra kilometers to prove her instincts re her client is right. The story line is fast-paced while also bringing out a taste of Birmingham. However, the tale is totally owned by the dedicated heroine who risks her career and her life because she believed her client had changed while the cops assumed the culprit remained a trashy drug using loser. Readers will enjoy this intriguing Alabama whodunit.

Harriet Klausner

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Little Lamb Lost, August 22, 2009

By 

Martha Ramirez - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Little Lamb Lost (Hardcover)

Author, Margaret Fenton was born in Florence, Alabama, and grew up on the Gulf Coast in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. Cozy Mystery writer, Anne George, encouraged Margaret to write a mystery since she loved reading them so much.

She received her B.A. in English from Newcomb College of Tulane University in New Orleans, and her Master of Social Work from Tulane. She is a breast cancer survivor and is the current President of Birmingham Chapter of Sisters Crime.

Margaret is married to her high school sweetheart and resides in Birmingham, Alabama.
Social worker Claire Conover is about to live through one of her deepest fears. What would she do if one of her clients was found dead? What can she do? She truly believed she could make a difference in the world until she received the call that changed her life forever. Detective Ed Brighton confronts Claire. "I'm sorry. Michael's dead." Images of the curly blond, blue-eyed two-year-old, Michael Hennessy rushed her mind.

She was now on a hunt to find Michael's murderer. On a quest to find answers.
Fingers start to point to Michael's mother, Ashley. But Claire isn't convinced. Ashley had sobered up and earned back custody of Michael. She worked two jobs just to make ends meet.
Mac McAlister, Claire's supervisor, has a get-over-it kind of attitude. She feels Michael is just another number to him, but for her, Michael was more than a statistic. He was a victim, someone who deserved justice. Claire becomes Michael's voice.

Did Ashley murder Michael? It just didn't seem to fit the picture. Claire becomes her own detective and questions every possibility.

Were Alexander and Karen Madison capable of murdering their own grandson? Did being owners of a huge corporation have anything to do with it?

Could it have been Zander Madison, little Michael's father? How far would he go for drugs? Would he kill his own son if his parents told him to?

Why is Al Mackey curious if Michael and Ashley have life insurance? Would he commit murder for money? Does Al's prior physical abuse have anything to do with the care of Michael's murder?

Who exactly is Jimmy Shelton, Ashley's mysterious boyfriend?
Could Flash, Ashley's ex-boyfriend have a motive for killing poor little Michael?

The possibilities are endless and Claire is about to find out the truth.

New Mystery writer Margaret Fenton keeps the questions coming, making Little Lamb Lost a riveting read. She does a fascinating job at creating a "whodunit" mystery from the get go. A truly mesmerizing tale filled with a whole lot of drama and suspense. It will leave you wanting more up until the very last page.

This is only the beginning for debut author Margaret Fenton.

Reviewed by Martha Ramirez of Bookpleasures