Showing results by author "Elaine Orr" in All Categories

Kate, a recent college graduate, is still reeling from the deaths of her beloved parents when the discovery of hidden letters forces her to re-examine everything she knew about her family. Tacker, a young engineering student and all-around boy-hero, has returned from a West African odyssey where he fell in love with the local culture but was sent home in shame. Kate's and Tacker's stories come together when, on the same day and in different moments, they encounter a young African American man named Gaines. The relationship that develops between the three is complicated, as each one searches for love, freedom, and new beginnings.

The daughter of medical missionaries, Elaine Neil Orr was born in Nigeria in 1954, in the midst of the national movement that would lead to independence from Great Britain. But as she tells it in her captivating memoir, Orr did not grow up feeling American, but rather identified with Nigerian culture. Orr came back to America to attend high school, feeling the loss of Nigeria keenly. It was only in her forties, in the crisis of kidney failure, that she began to recover her African life.

Least Trodden Ground. Digger Browning looked forward to spending time with Uncle Benjamin after damaged pipes put her kitchen ceiling on the floor. She didn't expect to find his body at his Western Maryland home, the Ancestral Sanctuary. Who would kill the parsimonious octogenarian? Sure, some people were mad about him pushing the historical society to find a new abode, but they got over it, right? And then she finds out he had a new 'foxy lady,' and she's not his usual type. Antsy before the funeral, Digger delves into family history, but makes an unexpected find. Between trying to figure ...

A dinner invitation for Digger, who is accompanied by the very pale Uncle Benjamin, gets her involved with a recently discovered relative of their elderly friend Thelma, whose brother died during World War II. DNA testing has led his until-now-unknown great-grandson, Peter, to Maple Grove in the Western Maryland Mountains. Thelma enlists Digger's help as she gets to know Peter. But his presence is not the only surprise. Letters Thelma recently received from another brother’s estate raise questions about what happened to some of her parents’ prized possessions. Were they submerged with ...

Jolie never liked the idea of sitting on the plank above the dunk tank for the food pantry's fundraiser at the carnival. Even so, she never dreamed what Scoobie saw that day would leave him battling for his life. Scoobie's ex-con mother shows up and there's a murder to add to the mix. Soon Jolie is doing a lot more than appraising real estate, though even that is complicated by home burglars. Jolie reluctantly seeks help from her nemesis - reporter George Winters - and tries to stay a step ahead of a kidnapper and murderer so she can take charge of her world again.

Jolie Gentil gets tapped for some appraisal work at 10th reunion of her Ocean Alley High School class. When appraising the vacant Tillotson-Fisher house, she finds the skeleton of Richard Tillotson hidden in an antique attic wardrobe. He vanished just after his sister married his business partner in 1929. Jolie sees a link to the Fisher family's Prohibition era business and works with friends Scoobie and Ramona to gather clues from old photo albums and ledgers. The photo albums lead her to Mary Doris Milner, Richard's girlfriend, who has fond memories of him and is certain of who murdered him. But, there was nothing to link her suspect to the murder then, and he's long dead himself.

What if you lived in a small town, lose your job, and don't see other employment options nearby? That was Melanie Perkins' predicament when grouchy news publisher Hal Morris fired her because she took too many photos of flowers when she was supposed to concentrate on the story at hand. She lands work as a landscaper, but there's an ugly surprise her first day at the new job. At first no one thinks Melanie could be a killer. But when her hoe turns up in the same mulch pile as a body, the local sheriff isn't so sure. Mel’s initially willing to let law enforcement clear her name, but the hoe...

Remember when candidates were polite and talked about issues? Well in Ocean Alley at the Jersey Shore, they still do. Well, there was the issue with the fire at the garage... If this is your first book in the Jolie Gentil series, it’s a bit different than the others. In fact, it’s called an Aunt Madge Story in the Jolie series. In terms of story chronology, it follows "Underground in Ocean Alley" (book 11). In that book, Jolie solves a murder while Aunt Madge happens to be running for mayor of Ocean Alley. In "Aunt Madge and The Civil Election," events of the crime-solving are muted and...

The reverberating bangs shake Melanie Perkin's nerves. Either someone's aiming at her truck, or they don't know fireworks are supposed to go upward. Could things get any worse? Yes. The next day she discovers a dead body in the barn on her late parents' farm, Sheriff's Deputy Granger's gun pointed at the chest of a primary suspect - someone she holds dear.

It's fun to buy a house. Unless, there is something hidden behind the walls and someone wants it. Someone who is willing to kill for it. Jolie is pursued by a purse thief and a burglar, but the guy she's most worried about is the one who left an elderly auctioneer dead on her porch swing. In between appraising houses and planning a fund-raiser for the food pantry (can you say liquid string contest?), Jolie, Scoobie, and friends need to figure who left a cache of jewelry behind the walls in her house.

Scoobie never knew much about his family - and after the way he grew up, who could blame him for liking it that way? A 9-1-1 call during the wedding changes everything. Suddenly, Jolie has to help Scoobie figure out what he wants to know and determine who seems to want someone in his family dead. Knowing more about Scoobie's past could change their future together. But a special wedding arrival may cause even more complications.

Bad enough that Jolie ends up in the Emergency Room because she tried to avoid hitting a deer. Worse to find a dead woman in the hospital restroom. Jolie is on the lookout for a runaway teenager and whoever planted the dead hospital budget cutter in her path. Just when Jolie's ready to leave the murder investigation to the police, she gets a surprise - and it's not a good one. Will her need to know see her hurt - or worse?

When the owner of the Bully Pulpit Diner decided to stop letting servers accept tips, he figured the raise he gave them would keep them happy. Apparently not. Or were some of his other hobbies what got poor Ben Addison killed? Police Chief Elizabeth Friedman contends with angry food servers, rowdy frat brothers at Sweathog Agricultural College, a batch of customers who seem to know nothing, and a thief who must have really wanted something from Ben. One of them keeps a good secret in the small town of Logland, Illinois.

Opening your apartment door to see a woman sliding down it is distressing. Especially when that woman has a knife in her chest. How could a murderer be roaming the halls in the middle of the night? After all the times she has encouraged Jolie to mind her own business, Aunt Madge has had a change of heart. It's Jolie's boyfriend Scoobie Madge turns to help her figure out who the murderer is.

Jolie always has her hands full appraising houses, running the food pantry, and enjoying her family. Enter Buck Brock — an annoying landlord who likes to skimp on amenities and wants Jolie to lowball appraisals on properties he’s buying. He makes Lester Argrow -- usually Ocean Alley's most annoying realtor -- look like a polite uncle. She and Scoobie also decide to let a troubled Iraq War vet back into their lives, and Jolie finds him work cleaning units for Buck. Will Josh’s presence help or hurt her family — especially Scoobie? Jolie’s in the Java Jolt Coffee Shop when Buck’s ...

Sticky-Fingered Books 12th Jolie Gentil Cozy Mystery It isn't every day that you find a body at your kids' school. Unless you're Jolie Gentil. Then it's more of an option. Someone broke into Sand and Sea Daycare, leaving a broken window and plenty of rain in the director's office. When Jolie hears an angry man say the intruder must have been looking for some books, she wonders what's up. But that's not her business. Her job at the co-op center is to place orders for the food the kids gobble. Scoobie's contribution, as a poet, is to lead a rhyming session with the kids. It's bedlam and they ...

4th in the Family History Mystery Series When a Maple Grove resident discovers some old gold coins in the woods near town, it's an intriguing event -- but not one that seems dangerous. However, the article Digger's friend, Marty, wrote for the Maple Grove News, seems to have attracted unwarranted attention. Did the coins come from a long-ago bank robbery or burglary, or was someone passing through murdered in the early 20th century? No matter the source, it leads to a fresh murder today. Sheriff Montgomery asks Digger for help in tracing descendants of possible owners of the stash of coins....

B.R.A.G. Medallion Honoree Digger is bouncing back from a tough year. With the new graphic design firm she and her friend Holly started, things are looking up. But then life throws her a curve when she trips over a body while she and her friend Marty are taking photos at an abandoned train depot. As she tries to piece things together, Digger begins to think the body she found is linked to a long-ago disappearance in her town of Maple Grove. Did Daniel Stevens abandon his family in 1963, or is there a more sinister explanation? When she tries to learn more about Daniel’s life, Digger ends ...

Mountain Rails of Old, third book in the Family History Mystery Series. Digger Browning never paid much attention to the abandoned cottage and its long-gone occupants until she accompanied her friend Marty, who wanted to photograph it for a news story. Everything changed when Uncle Benjamin made a huge discovery nearby. What really happened to Samantha and her eight-year old daughter twelve years ago? If it hadn’t been for a growling raccoon, Digger might not have badgered enough people to find out. Her friend Holly doesn’t like the ancestors Digger found for her, and Marty thinks ...

From Hurricane Sandy to B&B repairs to Aunt Madge's wedding in three weeks. If Jolie can handle that surely she can deal with a sobbing woman who shows up at midnight. When the next morning Jolie learns that Pooki's husband is missing and his partner is dead, it seems there may be a connection to some shady hurricane repairs at Ocean Alley's senior complex.