Publishers Weekly
02/19/2018
Madge Taylor and slightly self-righteous pastor Robert Rucker decide Abbotsville, N.C., needs a group home for teenage boys, but Madge’s do-gooder activities soon land her in hot water, in bestseller Ross’s gratifying 19th series mystery (after 2017’s Miss Julia Weathers the Storm). Miss Julia Murdoch hears about it from Hazel Marie, who lives next door to the property in question with her PI husband, J.D. Pickens. Indignant that her pastor is ramming the plan through as though the church supports it, Miss Julia sets out to put a stop to this ill-conceived idea, with all the more urgency when she finds out that even Madge and the pastor have no idea what the developer’s true scheme is. Political corruption, rumors, and generally nefarious goings-on just make Miss Julia and her cohorts more determined than ever to turn a bad notion into one that will protect homes and help the boys. Miss Julia’s usual kindness and sense of what’s right are front and center in an entry sure to please series fans and newcomers with a taste for light detection. Author tour. Agent: Deborah Schneider, Gelfman Schneider Literary Agents. (Apr.)
From the Publisher
"The main pleasure lies not in the mystery, a comfortable puzzler, but in the time spent among engaging small-town characters as they cope with the joys and demands of day-to-day life." —Publisher's Weekly
"Readers familiar with Miss Julia's previous outings will feel right at home." —Booklist
Praise for Ann B. Ross and the Miss Julia series:
"Ross has a gift for elevating such everyday matters as marital strife and the hazards of middle age to high comedy, while painting her beautifully drawn characters with wit and sympathy."
-Publishers Weekly
“A charming, fun adventure with new relatives, old secrets and a will putting Miss Julia and the Abbotsville regulars in a true Southern mess. I loved it!” —Duffy Brown, bestselling author of the Consignment Shop Mysteries
"Ann B. Ross develops characters so expertly, through quirks, names, and mannerisms, that they easily feel familiar as the reader is gently immersed into the world Miss Ross has created. . . . A delightful read." —Winston-Salem Journal
"Miss Julia is one of the most delightful characters to come along in years. Ann B. Ross has created what is sure to become a classic Southern comic novel. Hooray for Miss Julia, I could not have liked it more." —Fannie Flagg, author of The All-Girl Filling Station's Last Reunion
"Yes, Miss Julia is back, and I, for one, am one happy camper." —J. A. Jance, author of Cold Betrayal
Kirkus Reviews
2018-01-23
Do-gooders who are smugly pleased with their newest plan roil the waters in a quiet Southern town.Miss Julia is feeling her age. With her husband, Sam, away in Europe, she's bored until her friend Hazel Marie calls in a state of shock because she's learned that someone's bought the house next door and plans to use it as a group home for troubled boys. The house, rather small and located in a historic residential neighborhood, is entirely unsuitable for that purpose, but Madge Taylor has influenced the new pastor and many members of the local church to help. Outraged that the whole plan has been conceived in secrecy for an area that isn't even zoned for such a project, Miss Julia decides to rally a few friends to stop it. As a woman who's done many good works in her life, she's furious to be verbally attacked as an un-Christian NIMBY Scrooge by newcomers who live in gated communities that forbid group homes. With the help of a few close friends and an excellent lawyer who helps her investigate, Miss Julia learns that the anonymous group that bought the house is using it as a wedge to lower the value of nearby houses they want to buy up at bargain prices. Realizing there's a lot more to this story than the sanctimonious drivel Madge Taylor's promoting, Miss Julia resolves to find the truth.The hunt for the troublemakers is surprisingly captivating for so slight a mystery. And of course fans of Ross' long-running series (Miss Julia Inherits a Mess, 2016, etc.) will be eager to learn the latest about many of their favorite characters.
