Gone Missin'

by Peggy O'Neal Peden

Overview

“Fans of Diane Mott Davidson and Donna Andrews will enjoy this new series” – Booklist

Nosy, warm-hearted travel agent Campbell Hale gets mixed up in a missing persons case when beloved Nashville socialite Bitsy Carter vanishes during her Mexican vacation.

Travel agent Campbell Hale isn’t surprised when she hears her good friend, socialite and talented artist Bitsy Carter, has booked a luxury Mexican spa vacation through her agency. Bitsy often takes solo trips abroad, and who’d want to spend February in grey Nashville when they could avoid it?

She is, however, extremely surprised – and extremely worried – when Bitsy doesn’t come back.

What could compel warm, friendly Bitsy to run away without telling anyone her plans? And most puzzling of all: what could make her leave her small children behind?

The answers lie in Zihuatanejo, and Campbell barely needs to twist new boyfriend Detective Sam Davis’ arm to get him to agree to accompany her there. Campbell’s determined to uncover the truth, but will this be a vacation to remember . . . or one to die for?

“Fans of Tonya Kappes's books and readers who enjoy humorous whodunits with a strong sense of place will find this one delightful” – Library Journal (starred review) of the first Nashville mystery, Your Killin’ Heart

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780727850843
Publisher:	Severn House
Publication date:	01/04/2022
Series:	A Nashville mystery , #2
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Peggy O’Neal Peden grew up in Middle Tennessee and has lived in and around Nashville for most of her life. She has taught English at high school and college levels, owned a travel agency, been published in regional magazines, and written award-winning advertising copy. She has a bachelor's degree from Lipscomb Universityand a master's degree from the University of Kentucky. A talented artist as well as writer, Peggy is a member of the Nashville Artist Guild.



Your Killin’ Heart, the first book in the Nashville mystery series, won the Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award.

Editorial Reviews

11/15/2021

Early in Peden’s so-so sequel to 2017’s Your Killin’ Heart, Campbell Hale, manager of a Nashville travel agency, is a little surprised when her good friend and client, rich former debutante Bitsy Carter, books a short holiday at a five-star spa in Zihuatanejo, Mexico, on a day when Campbell isn’t in the office. After two weeks pass with no word from Bitsy, her husband and parents report her missing. Campbell then sets off for Mexico with handsome but irascible Nashville police detective Sam Davis in tow. In addition to investigating, Campbell is secretly hoping to ramp up her relationship with Sam, a reluctant suitor given to fits of pique when Campbell’s detecting methods reap real clues or when she offers obvious suggestions that he overlooked. A spunky heroine and smooth prose compensate somewhat for a plot with few surprises, and red herring suspects who are underdeveloped. Cozy fans have seen this all before. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

'Will the clever, reckless heroine’s relationship with the detective survive her resistance to warnings of danger? Stay tuned.'  – Kirkus Reviews

'Peden’s debut vividly captures the Nashville music scene and the city’s Southern atmosphere. Campbell is a charming amateur sleuth, loyal to a fault ... Fans of TONYA KAPPES’s books and readers who enjoy humorous whodunits with a strong sense of place will find this one delightful’  – Library Journal Starred Review of Your Killin’ Heart

'Campbell is a plucky contemporary heroine ... Fans of DIANE MOTT DAVIDSON and DONNA ANDREWS will enjoy this new series'  – Booklist on Your Killin’ Heart

'Peden’s debut paints a matter-of-fact picture of the city that lives for music. Her heroine is a typical cozy sleuth, bright and gutsy'  – Kirkus Reviews on Your Killin’ Heart

From the Publisher

2021-10-13
The disappearance of a wealthy young Nashville socialite puzzles the woman who’s booked all her trips but this one.

Travel agent Campbell Hale isn’t a close friend of Bitsy Carter, but she’s planned all her vacations, and she respects and admires the young mother. So she thinks it odd that Bitsy came in on Campbell's regular day off and asked another agent to book her tickets to Mexico. It’s only when the police arrive weeks later asking about Bitsy, who’s gone missing from a luxury spa resort, that Campbell gets involved. Detective Sam Davis, whom Campbell met when she was involved in another murder and occasionally dates, asks for Bitsy’s travel information. The ever curious Campbell can’t resist snooping. She doesn't get many answers, but she does spot a picture of Bitsy on the website of a sport fishing company—so, naturally, she decides to go to Mexico herself to see what she can learn. She asks Sam to join her, and they share a suite at the spa, whose workers are polite but uninformative. The boat captain doesn’t have much to say either, but an accident that befalls Campbell while she’s aboard arouses her suspicions. Back in Nashville, Campbell wonders about Bitsy’s stepfather, who has money problems, and her husband, who has a reputation as a cheater. When the children’s nanny dies in another suspicious accident, Campbell courts danger to find a killer.

Will the clever, reckless heroine’s relationship with the detective survive her resistance to warnings of danger? Stay tuned.

Kirkus Reviews

A realistic heroine of warmth and honor, Campbell Hale gets caught up in dangerous doings surrounding a country music icon's legacy. A Nashville hit!

author of the Thistle & Twigg mysteries Mary Saums

Campbell is a plucky contemporary heroine ... Fans of DIANE MOTT DAVIDSON and DONNA ANDREWS will enjoy this new series