Deborah Sharp

Deborah Sharp, a former USA Today reporter, traded sad news stories for light fiction with her ''Mace Bauer Mysteries.'' Set in a sweet-tea-and-barbecue slice of her native Florida, Deborah's books are funny, with a soft Southern edge: Think Carl Hiaasen on estrogen.

The fifth book in the series is MAMA GETS TRASHED (Midnight Ink, Sept. 2013). A scandalously clad murder victim in the city dump leads Mace to unmask a secret sex ring. Bondage and boinking in little Himmarshee? Good Gravy! Mama's blushing pinker than her favorite sweet wine. The series debuted in 2008 with MAMA DOES TIME. To research the trail-ride setting of 2009's MAMA RIDES SHOTGUN, Deborah saddled up for a 120-mile trek across Florida. What was she thinking? In MAMA GETS HITCHED (2010), Mama's fifth shot at tying the sacred knot is derailed when her caterer gets whacked before the first pig-in-a-blanket is passed. In 2011's MAMA SEES STARS, a Hollywood film crew comes a callin,' but Mama's big close-up may be with murder.

Deborah's short fiction and essays have appeared nationally. Her humor has been heard on NPR. She's chatted with Al Roker on TODAY about the wacky MAMA.

She lives in south Florida with husband Kerry Sanders, an NBC-TV reporter. No kids. No pets. They had goldfish once. Turned out badly.