Hung Out to Die: A Stain-busting Mystery (Stain-busting Mysteries) - Softcover

Short, Sharon

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0060793244 ISBN 13: 9780060793241

Publisher: Avon, 2006

Synopsis

There's no fun in dysfunctional

Small-town laundress Josie Toadfern has her own fair share of dirty laundry—namely the Toadfern clan! Ostracized from the family unit ever since her parents dumped eight-year-old Josie in a local orphanage, the stain-busting dynamo's stunned to find herself invited to crabby old family matriarch "Mamaw" Toadfern's Thanksgiving celebration—and too curious to refuse.

But an even bigger shock is waiting for her there: Josie's long lost mom and pop, blandly unapologetic and full of new—probably illegal—get-rich-quick schemes. And when a dead body is tossed into the already explosive chaos of bitter feelings, intra-family feuding, and incinerated turkey meat, Josie finds herself in the most uncomfortable position of having to prove her disreputable dad innocent of murder. But cleaning up messes is Josie's business. And sometimes blood is thicker than cranberry sauce—and a much more difficult stain to eliminate.

About this title

About the Author

Sharon Short is also the author of the novel My One Square Inch of Alaska (Penguin Plume) in which a pair of siblings escape the strictures of the 1950s industrial Ohio town on the adventure of a lifetime. Opening chapters of this novel earned Sharon an Ohio Arts Council individual artist's grant and a Montgomery County (Ohio) Arts & Cultural District Literary Artist Fellowship. Sharon is the Literary Life columnist for the Dayton Daily News and is the Executive Director of the renowned Antioch Writers' Workshop in Yellow Springs, Ohio. Additionally, Sharon's book Sanity Check: A Collection of Columns includes 100 reader-favorites of her weekly humor and lifestyle column that ran in the Dayton Daily News for more than a decade. Sharon has also published two mystery series (Josie Toadfern and Patricia Delaney) as well as short stories and essays.  Sharon holds a B.A. in English from Wright State University and an M.A. in English from Bowling Green State University. She makes her home in her native state of Ohio.

Review

"...Short's books about [Josie Toadfern]... save a lot of smarts for character and plot." -- Chicago Tribune, Feb. 5, 2006

"...a delightful and entertaining read." -- Mysteries Galore

"...entertains you with [a] plausible mystery plot while keeping you rolling on the floor laughing." -- New Mystery Reader Magazine

"...funny, fast read for anyone who likes their mysteries liberally sprinkled with humor.... Josie makes a charming heroine..." -- Romantic Times Bookclub Magazine, February 2006

"...never laughed so much while reading a mystery ...loved every minute of it... could not put this book down." -- Myshelf.com

Edition details

• Publisher: Avon
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0060793244
• ISBN 13: 9780060793241
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 272