Tie Dyed and Dead: A Stain-busting Mystery (Stain-Busting Mysteries) [Mass Market Paperback]

Sharon Short (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 26, 2008 | Series: Stain-Busting Mysteries

As if running a successful laundromat and writing a perennially popular (and soon to be national!) household tips column weren't enough to keep Josie Toadfern busy, she's taken a gig on the side. The Mayfair Sisters, a local singing group from way back when, are reuniting for a benefit, and they need Josie to perform her stain-busting magic on their old tie-dyed costumes. But the dresses go missing, only to reappear in a fashion more deadly than retro.

Although Josie's the prime suspect in the murder and mayhem that ensue, she's not about to allow her squeaky-clean reputation to be soiled by some false accusations. But this time, her snooping will land her in some very hot water . . .

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Sharon Short’s clever and amusing mystery, DEATH BY DEEP DISH PIE, is a delicious read!...sure to satisfy” (Earlene Fowler, praise for DEATH BY DEEP DISH PIE )

About the Author

Sharon Short's humor column, "Sanity Check," appears every Monday in the Dayton Daily News. Her fiction credits include several short mysteries published in Murderous Intent Mystery Magazine and Orchard Press Online Mystery Magazine. In addition, Ms. Short is a principal of her own marketing communications firm and has a bachelor's and a master's degree in English. She lives in Miamisburg, Ohio, with her husband and two daughters.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Avon (February 26, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060793287
• ISBN-13: 978-0060793289
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,125,722 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I had only one ambition as a child--to be a writer. When everyone told me hardly anyone ever makes a living as a writer, I briefly considered becoming a policewoman (because the trench coats looked so cool in all those '70's police dramas) or a psychologist (with the hope of finally understanding my family). Nevertheless, heart won out over practicality, and I became a writer. The police and psychology bits, though, come through in my mystery writing.

Now, I delight in mixing humor with mystery in my Stain-Busting Mystery Series, published by Avon Books. The series features Josie Toadfern, self-taught stain expert and Laundromat owner, and is set in fictional Paradise, Ohio. Josie cleans up crime one hilarious load at a time, while sharing changes, advances and set-backs in her personal life. She's guardian to her cousin Guy, an adult with autism, and her best friends are Sally and Cherry. Her love life is currently a roller-coaster!

I am also a humor columnist; my column, Sanity Check appears every Monday in the Dayton Daily News (Dayton, Ohio) and covers everything from shredding pantyhose for stress relief, to talking refrigerators. My fiction credits include short mysteries published in Murderous Intent Mystery Magazine, Futures Mysterious Anthology Magazine, and Orchard Press Online Mystery Magazine.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Confusing plot, characters still charming, March 2, 2008

By 

Trixie Belle (California) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Tie Dyed and Dead: A Stain-busting Mystery (Stain-Busting Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

Josie Toadfern is in charge of cleaning the costumes for the Mayfair sisters benefit concert. The Mayfairs were a 1960's girl group, and one of the most famous former natives of Paradise, Ohio. The Mayfair sisters have gotten back together to stage a benefit concert for their Alzheimer's stricken mother. Everything seems to be going well when the Mayfair sisters old manager appears in town. He insists that 80% of the profits from any concert belong to him. Before the matter can be worked out, the manager is found stabbed to death in Toadfern's laundry, and Josie is suspected of committing the crime.

The mystery in this book was a little difficult for me to follow. The characters were as charming as ever. Cherry plans her wedding to Deputy Dean. Sally betrays Josie's trust. Elroy's Mom makes chicken and sells it at the gas station. Suzy Woo is still making crab rangoon. Josie meets a new handsome stranger at the town's bar. Ms. Olgelvee makes some appearances but they are not as enagaging as they were in previous books. Aspergbers and autism debates occur in a gentle and informative way. The book has some excellent laundry, cleaning and domestic tips thrown in. Based on the ending, I am wondering if this is the last book in the series. If so, it has been a pleasure getting to know Josie. I look forward to whatever series Ms. Short starts next.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't Miss this Stain-Busting Mystery - It Just Might be the Last!, May 2, 2008

By 

C. A. Hopkins (The gorgeous Rockies) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Tie Dyed and Dead: A Stain-busting Mystery (Stain-Busting Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

After having just finished Tie Dyed and Dead, Sharon Short's newest Josie Toadfern Stain-Busting Mystery, I can't help but feel that I've just enjoyed the final installment of Josie and friends. No new Stain-Busting Mystery to look forward to? Aack! As a fan of Sharon Short's funny and evocative writing style, I'll just have to bide my time with her newspaper column until she graces us with a new mystery series (at least I'm hoping that's what she's planning!).

In this sixth installment of Josie Toadfern's Stain-Busting Mystery series, Josie has been hired by the Mayfair sisters to clean and repair their old costumes in preparation for a benefit concert they'll be giving in Paradise - being held to raise money to care for their ailing mother with Alzheimer's disease. The Mayfair Sisters were just about the biggest thing to ever come out of Paradise, having been a successful singing group in the `60s. The entire town is caught up in the hype of the upcoming concert and auction.

Josie has her hands full just with getting the costumes ready, never mind everyone she knows asking her to get them an `in' with the sisters or the auction. She does her best, but when someone is brutally murdered inside her laundromat and the evidence points toward Josie as the culprit, the gloves come off! Because of the Mayfair Sisters, the sleepy town of Paradise is full of out-of-towners - and likely suspects. Josie and her entourage, with some help from the omnipresent Mrs. Oglevee, must use quite a bit of ingenuity to solve the mystery, with time of the essence as the killer seems to be just getting started.

In addition to her stain and crime busting, Josie finally meets Levi Applegate, the new director of Stillwater Farms, the assisted-living center where Guy, Josie's autistic cousin, resides. Mr. Applegate figures prominently in this mystery, in more ways than one.

The main reason that this feels like the end of the Josie Toadfern Stain-Busting series is that in addition to the loose ends of the mystery being neatly tied up, the disposition of Josie and all of her quirky friends is also given. While I suppose it's possible that Josie et al. might return sometime in the future, I think it likely that Ms. Short is busy cooking up something entirely different for Josie's fans. I'll be waiting, anxiously, to see what's in store!

Carol Ann Hopkins 5/2/2008

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Laundry Blues!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!, April 21, 2008

By 

Sassy girl "Sassy" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tie Dyed and Dead: A Stain-busting Mystery (Stain-Busting Mysteries) (Mass Market Paperback)

I have read all of Sharon short's laundry mysteries. I have enjoyed them all. I like her stain buster comments too! If you want a quick likeable book... Here it is. It not a 5 star, but it works for me!!!!