Memories Can Be Murder: A Charlie Parker Mystery [Paperback]

Connie Shelton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2002

Down Murder Lane.

While stowing boxes away in her attic, Albuquerque CPA Charlie Parker uncovers chilling information about her father -- and his work as a scientist during the Cold War years. Worse, she now suspects the fatal plane crash that killed both her parents was murder, and that her father's employer squashed the investigation.

Determined to solve the fifteen-year-old crime, Charlie quickly learns that asking questions is dangerous. Soon, dead ends -- and dead bodies -- have her worried she's next on the hit list. But what secret is worth killing for after all this time? And who is worried enough to go to murderous lengths to keep the door to the truth closed? The shocking answers are tied inexorably with the past -- and present -- and just might cost Charlie her future.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Charlie is slick, appealing, and nobody's fool -- just what readers want in an amateur sleuth" -- Booklist

"Shelton has created a female sleuth with an original slant to her methods" -- Small Press magazine

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Worldwide Library (March 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373264143
• ISBN-13: 978-0373264148
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,320,871 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

...Every 5 minutes, 24 hours a day, somewhere in the world, someone downloads a Connie Shelton mystery...

A personal Thank You to all my readers who make this little statistic possible. Having fun with my writing, and connecting with readers--that's what being a mystery writer means to me. And I LOVE what I do!

It began in 1985 when I started writing my first novel, without much clue how to go about it. Two years and 500 pages later, when I finally typed 'The End,' I felt a huge rush of excitement. That book took third place in the Southwest Writers competition and began making the rounds of publishers. I simply started writing my second, and then my third books.

After publishing ten of my Charlie Parker mysteries, I decided to branch out with a second series and I created the character of Samantha Sweet. One of the ways in which I earned a little extra pocket money during my high school years was to bake and decorate cakes--hence, a career for Samantha based on my own experiences.

In 2009 I switched publishers and was off on a new adventure, seeing all of my books made available for Kindle and the other ebook devices that were just beginning to take off in the book world. It's been an exciting time in publishing and I'm loving the new formats and the ability to personally connect with readers all over the world via my newsletter and my website at connieshelton.com.


* * *

Besides writing the Charlie Parker and Samantha Sweet mysteries, Connie is an award-winning essayist. Her work has been published in both small and major anthologies, like Chicken Soup For the Writer's Soul, and her short stories have won several prizes. She has also been a commercial hot air balloon pilot and holds the women's world altitude record for size AX-4 balloons. She has been featured in Who's Who and The World Who's Who of Women. She and her husband live in northern New Mexico.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars She finds danger in trying to find out why her parents died, July 11, 2003

By 

Dawn Dowdle "Mystery Lovers Corner reviewer" (Lynchburg, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Memories Can Be Murder: A Charlie Parker Mystery (Paperback)

Charlie Parker, Albuquerque CPA, is cleaning out her house to make room for her fiance Drake and all his things. They met in Hawaii where he was a helicopter tour guide. Now he is moving in with her and hoping to start his own helicopter business.

While Charlie is going through boxes of her dad's, she finds his old leather notebook. He always carried it with him. She wonders how it ended up in a box in the attic instead of in the rubble of the plane crash that killed him and her mother approximately 15 years before. He was a scientist during the Cold War years. She reads the entries made the day he died. It starts her looking into what was going on back then and how and why they died.

Charlie and her brother Ron run an investigation firm. Ron agrees to try to get a copy of the NTSB report about the crash. Charlie set up a meeting with Jim, an NTSB official, who calls and says he has important information to give her.

The deeper Charlie gets into the investigation, the more dangerous things become for her and those involved around the investigation. There is also danger for those who are close to Charlie. Who could have caused her parents plane crash and why. What secret can be worth killing for after so many years? Who is next?

This is the first book I have read by Connie Shelton, but I don't expect it to be the last. I enjoyed it. I found Charlie to be a very likeable sleuth. Her brother Ron and fiance Drake are also well constructed and believable characters.

She did a great job with the setting and bringing forth the concern of danger from the investigation.

I definitely recommend this book.