This is one of my most favorite cozy heroines in a long time. A woman who is damaged physically and mentally and working hard to keep it together. She is strong, intelligent and reserved. The mystery and solution are believable. The secondary characters are an interesting collection that I can see growing over time. Looking forward to more in this series. ( )

Caustically sharp social commentary disguised as a murder mystery. ( )

3.5 stars. Lily Bard is quite a switch from Sookie Stackhouse. While Sookie gets darker and more cynical as the series progresses, Lily starts out that way, and with good reason. This was a quick read and a decent mystery. I didn't figure it out, but I don't read a lot of mysteries, so that may be why. I'm not a big fan of her current love interest, but I have a feeling that's going to change in the next book or so. Harris's attention to mundane detail (which eventually got old with the Sookie books) is present here, but not to a vexing degree. I'm up for reading another. ( )

Cleaning woman Lily Bard is trying to build a new life for herself in Shakespeare, Arkansas, after some traumatic events elsewhere. She keeps herself busy with her housecleaning jobs, body building and martial arts. Even so, some nights she just can't sleep because of the memories.

One night, she discovers someone she doesn't recognize hauling something to the arboretum across the street from her house. She notices because they are using her garbage can cart! After they leave and go into the nearby apartment building, Lily decides to investigate. She finds the body of Pardon Albee who owns the apartment building and sold Lily her house. Not wanting to get involved, she makes an anonymous phone call the Police Chief Claude Friedrich.

She doesn't want to get involved, but she cleans for most of the residents of the apartment building among others in town and her curiosity is engaged. But she does more than investigate. She's also beginning a romantic relationship with her almost-divorced karate instructor and having confrontations with a drunk who lives in the apartment building and is supposed to clean the church Lily is also hired to clean.

I enjoyed getting to know Lily and gradually learning about her traumatic past. Julia Gibson did a good job with all the Southern accents and also did a good job with the pacing of the story. ( )

Cleaning woman Lily Bard is trying to build a new life for herself in Shakespeare, Arkansas, after some traumatic events elsewhere. She keeps herself busy with her housecleaning jobs, body building and martial arts. Even so, some nights she just can't sleep because of the memories.

One night, she discovers someone she doesn't recognize hauling something to the arboretum across the street from her house. She notices because they are using her garbage can cart! After they leave and go into the nearby apartment building, Lily decides to investigate. She finds the body of Pardon Albee who owns the apartment building and sold Lily her house. Not wanting to get involved, she makes an anonymous phone call the Police Chief Claude Friedrich.

She doesn't want to get involved, but she cleans for most of the residents of the apartment building among others in town and her curiosity is engaged. But she does more than investigate. She's also beginning a romantic relationship with her almost-divorced karate instructor and having confrontations with a drunk who lives in the apartment building and is supposed to clean the church Lily is also hired to clean.

I enjoyed getting to know Lily and gradually learning about her traumatic past. Julia Gibson did a good job with all the Southern accents and also did a good job with the pacing of the story. ( )