Retirement Can Be Murder [Paperback]

Susan Santangelo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2009

Every wife has a story. Retirement Can Be Murder is the story of Carol Andrews and her Beloved Husband, Jim, members of the fastest growing demographic in history, the Baby Boomer generation. Carol dreads her husband Jim's upcoming retirement more than a root canal without Novocain. She can't imagine anything worse than having an at-home husband with time on his hands and nothing to fill it -- except interfering in the day-to-day activities of their household and driving her crazy. Until her plans to stall Jim's retirement result in her husband being suspected of murdering his retirement coach.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Susan Santangelo captures the everyday lives of Baby Boomers in Retirement Can Be Murder. How refreshing to read fiction knowing the author understands what life is like for a generation embracing midlife while facing retirement. Be prepared to feel at home. --Dotsie Bregel, Founder, National Association of Baby Boomer Women.

A delightful, energetic and fun read. Susan knows how to weave a tale, and takes the reader along on a hilarious ride. Retirement Can Be Murder made me laugh out loud from the first chapter! --Sheryl Kraft, author of Midlife Matters: The Blog for Baby Boomers

About the Author

Susan Santangelo has been a feature writer, drama critic and editor for daily and weekly newspapers and magazines in the New York metropolitan area, including a stint at Cosmopolitan magazine. A member of Sisters in Crime and The Cape Cod Writers Center, she shares her life with her Personal Beloved and three English cocker spaniels, and divides her time between Connecticut and Cape Cod.

Product Details

• Paperback: 231 pages
• Publisher: Baby Boomer Mysteries Press (April 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0615273149
• ISBN-13: 978-0615273143
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #839,951 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Hello! Thanks for visiting my author page on Amazon. Here's a little information about me. I've been a feature writer, drama critic and editor for daily and weekly newspapers and magazines in the NY metro area. I'm a member of Sisters in Crime and the Cape Cod Writers Center, both great resources for writers. My first Baby Boomer mystery,Retirement Can Be Murder, has been suggested for a tv series, and is available on Amazon in traditional format and also on Kindle, where it's a best-seller. In addition to writing the Baby Boomer mysteries, I'm also a book reviewer for Suspense magazine. You can find out more about me in the February 2011 issue, because I'm the profiled author in the Contributors' Corner. Lucky me! And you'll get to see my dogs, too! Sadly, our sweet English Cocker Spaniel, Lucy, who appears in the books, passed away in the spring. I miss her every day, and I promised her she'd always be part of the books. The second book in this series, Moving Can Be Murder, was released May 1 in traditional format, and is available on Amazon. And now, it's on Kindle too, where it's selling like crazy! Thanks to everybody who've purchased the first two Baby Boomer mysteries. That's more than 10,000 readers so far, and growing every day. And to everyone who's posted a review, thank you. All your comments are valuable. I'm hard at work on the third book in the series, Marriage Can Be Murder. And having lots of fun! And in case you didn't know this about me, I'm also a 13-year breast cancer survivor, and a portion of the sales of all the books goes to support the Breast Cancer Survival Center, a non-profit I founded in 1999 to provide post-treatment education and support for survivors. Again, thanks for your support. It means a lot.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Baby Boomer mysteries promise to be as germane as Murder She Wrote...it would make a great television series, June 10, 2009

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Retirement Can Be Murder (Paperback)

Susan Santangelo has spent her life as a feature writer; drama critic; and editor in the New York area, including Cosmopolitan magazine. She is a breast cancer survivor, and was one of the founders of the Breast Cancer Survival Center in Connecticut. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, as well as The Cape Cod Writers' Center.

Most baby boomers haven't had as illustrious a life as Susan Santangelo, but that doesn't stop her from grasping the major source of party conversations; weekend negotiating by husbands and wives; and the nervous perusal of accounts...retirement. It seems that everyone has their "breaking point," and Carol and Jim Andrews have reached theirs. Jim is demoralized by a young and clueless new manager at his public relations firm. He threatens to retire, and wife Carol goes into action. She locates a retirement counselor for her husband, but unfortunately that counselor winds up dead. As the unlucky person who found the body, Jim is high up on the police department's "persons of interest:"

"Jim's face had turned to stone. 'You should have called and told me the police had been there. What's the matter with you?'

'What's the matter with me? What's the matter with you? Why won't you tell me what's going on? I'm your wife, for God's sake,' I shot back.

'Larry said it wasn't necessary to get specific with anyone, including you, about what the police asked me,' Jim answered defensively. 'I did give the police truthful answers to their questions, but I didn't mention my doing some P.R. work for Rhodes, or how I'd come to his office yesterday to confront him. I didn't lie to them. I just didn't offer any additional information..."

Susan Santangelo uses great characters; humor; and sort of a "Desperate Housewives" backdrop to create a hilarious mystery. When we aren't laughing, we're groaning at the absurdity of it all. At the same time, we're relating to many of the nuances to long-suffering married folks coming to a crossroads in their lives. An entertaining and light-hearted read from a real pro. The Baby Boomer mysteries promise to be as germane as Murder She Wrote...it would make a great television series.

Shelley Glodowski

Senior Reviewer

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars charming enough, August 5, 2011

By 

Ezlypist (earth) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Retirement Can Be Murder (Every Wife Has A Story) (Baby Boomer Mysteries) (Kindle Edition)

Yes, the relationship between the husband and wife started off bad...he was a jerk and she was, as another reviewer said, 'a doormat'. And she kept referring to him as her beloved...ALOT. I was screaming 'stop the beloved crap' half way thru but as the story unfolded, so did the relationship between them. He was charged with murder after all and that would stress out anyone. The husband lightened up and the wife...well, she stayed the same. Every relationship is different and survives and thrives for different reasons.

It was a great, easy, breezy story with enough suspense to make it a page turner.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Aged to Perfection, May 17, 2009

By 

Linda Bily "Patient Advocate" (Selden, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Retirement Can Be Murder (Paperback)

Retirement Can Be Murder

For baby boomers in particular, and for all others who have a sense of humor, and a bit of adventure in their souls, Santangelo has hit the nail on the head. The retirement jokes at the top of each chapter are hilarious and honest. The characters are people I'd like to be friends with. The daily woes, and activities, of the 50+ crowd ring true. I loved the protagonist, and her posse of gal pals. I found myself nodding in agreement with her pronouncements about men and admiring her convoluted, by very effective, style of reasoning. Carol may be my new literary heroine. I can't wait for the next book in the series. Go, boomers!