Something Buried, Something Blue (Lily Dale Mystery Series #2)

by Wendy Corsi Staub

Overview

New York Times bestselling author Wendy Corsi Staub is back with the second in her critically-acclaimed cozy mystery series.

After agreeing to stay in Lily Dale through the winter as caretakers of the Valley View Guesthouse and its feline residents, widowed mom Bella Jordan and her son Max are looking forward to the peaceful off-season after a hectic summer. That is until the medium next door, Odelia Lauder, recruits Bella to host a destination wedding for the world's most petulant bride, Johneen Maynard, a friend of Odelia's granddaughter.

Things take an even more stressful turn as the wedding day looms amidst an October blizzard, when suddenly the Spirits start giving Odelia a major heads up that the bride might be fated for death. And if there's any truth to her premonitions, the wedding is off—and that's the least of their problems.

It's a race to figure out who would want to kill Johneen before her attacker has a chance to strike in Something Buried, Something Blue.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781629538020
Publisher:	CROOKED LANE BOOKS
Publication date:	10/11/2016
Series:	Lily Dale Mystery Series , #2
Sold by:	Penguin Random House Publisher Services
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	265,029
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

New York Times and USA Today bestseller Wendy Corsi Staub is the award-winning author of more than eighty novels and has twice been nominated for the Mary Higgins Clark Award. She lives in the New York City suburbs with her husband, their two sons, and a pair of rescued stray cats named Chance and Li’l Chap. This is her second Lily Dale mystery after Nine Lives.

Editorial Reviews

08/15/2016
Bestseller Staub’s charming second Lily Dale Mystery (after 2015’s Nine Lives) finds widowed Isabella Jordan and her five-year-old son, Max, settled in Lily Dale, N.Y., a spiritualist center. Her neighbors are eccentric but warmhearted, and Bella loves managing the Valley View Guesthouse. If the guesthouse can turn a profit in the off season, Bella hopes that she and Max will be able to live there permanently, so she agrees to host a destination wedding at the inn. But it will be hard to pull off the perfect outdoor wedding when her loathed mother-in-law unexpectedly shows up, a blizzard is brewing, and a spirit guide is warning Bella that something is sorely amiss—not that Bella believes in that sort of thing, or so she tells herself, until the bride turns blue and collapses. Perhaps it was heart failure, or perhaps there’s a murderer in the house. A touch of the paranormal, a hint of romance, and a sweet and sympathetic protagonist will lure readers to enchanting Lily Dale again and again. Agent: Laura Blake Peterson, Curtis Brown. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Something Buried, Something Blue:
“A touch of the paranormal, a hint of romance, and a sweet and sympathetic protagonist will lure readers to enchanting Lily Dale again and again.”
—Publishers Weekly

"Charming... Anyone who enjoys Nancy Atherton's "Aunt Dimity" mysteries will be drawn to this cozy."
—Library Journal

"A rousing success."
—Kirkus Reviews

"Laced with humor... Staub conveys Bella's frustrations well as she deals with an unusual series of circumstances."
—RT Book Reviews, four stars

Praise for the Nine Lives:
“[A] charming series launch...[Staub] introduces a host of warmly appealing characters and throws in a touch of the otherworldly. Recommend for readers who enjoy the TV show Charmed.”
—Library Journal

"Bestselling author Staub takes readers...on a spooky journey into the unknown while lightening the mood by weaving in sweet, heartfelt, hopeful moments."
—Booklist

"Staub doesn’t overplay the quirkiness of the guesthouse residents for color, nor does she rely on ghosts and psychics to solve the murder, opting instead to pull the heartstrings of readers."
—Publishers Weekly

"Wendy Corsi Staub’s writing sparkles and the book fairly crackles with suspense. Her characterizations are spot on and you are sucked in from page one...If you’re looking for a different type of cozy, then this one’s for you!"
—Night Owl Reviews, Top Pick

"A tantalizing tale mixed with small-town politics and secrets, while also capturing the authentic feel of a woman struggling through desperate times...This is a terrific start to what is hopefully going to be a series featuring Bella Jordan and her son."
—RT Book Reviews

"Nine Lives has everything...Wendy Corsi Staub has done it again."
—New York Times bestselling author Charles Todd

"Wendy Corsi Staub's Nine Lives hooked me from page one. In fact I didn't want to put it down: with warm characters, an intriguing setting and just a touch of the unexplainable it's a thoroughly satisfying read.
—Rhys Bowen, New York Times bestselling author of the Molly Murphy and Royal Spyness mysteries

“I loved visiting Corsi Staub's magical world, cover to cover, and can't wait for the next in the series.”
—Juliet Blackwell, New York Times bestselling author of Give Up the Ghost

“Wendy Corsi Staub weaves a spectacular tale of suspense ... Lily Dale would definitely be on my must visit list. It’s an appropriately quirky town with an even quirkier cast of characters—and a cat, Chance, who’s adept at pulling Houdini acts. Who could ask for anything more? Definitely a must read.”
—T. C. LoTempio, national bestselling author of the Nick and Nora mysteries

Praise for New York Times and USA Today bestseller Wendy Corsi Staub:
"If you like Mary Higgins Clark, you'll love Wendy Corsi Staub."
—New York Times bestselling author Lisa Jackson

"Once Staub's brilliant characterizations and top-notch narrative skills grab hold, they don't let go."
—Publishers Weekly

"As always, Staub leaves us wanting more."
—RT Book Reviews

"When it comes to mysteries of the home and hearth, Wendy Corsi Staub is unrivaled. Just when you think you've figured her out...think again!"
—John Valeri, Hartford Book Examiner

From the Publisher

10/01/2016
Isabella Jordan and her son, Max, have agreed to stay in Lily Dale, NY, and care for the Valley View Guesthouse at the behest of the owner. It's the end of tourist season, and Lily Dale, home of the spiritualist movement, is dead in the fall and winter. Then Bella's next-door neighbor Odelia Lauder persuades Bella to host a destination wedding for a friend. Johneen Maynard is a bridezilla of the first degree and as the wedding looms, the spirits begin to tell Odelia that fate is about to intervene. As a blizzard ramps up and a murder attempt is made on Johneen, Bella is caught in the house with a killer. VERDICT In this charming sequel to Nine Lives, Bella is doing her best to recover from her husband's death and make a new life for her son. Some days she feels stronger than others. Anyone who enjoys Nancy Atherton's "Aunt Dimity" mysteries will be drawn to this cozy.

Library Journal

2016-07-20
Turning an upstate New York bed-and-breakfast into a destination-wedding spot is made even harder by a troublesome bride whose life may be in danger.Young widow Bella Jordan is just getting the hang of running the Valley View Guesthouse in the little town of Lily Dale when her friend and neighbor Odelia suggests the two get into the wedding business. Odelia’s granddaughter has a friend who’s looking for an out-of-the-way place for her upcoming nuptials, and Lily Dale fits the bill. Never mind that Lily Dale is also a spiritualist hub, with many residents claiming to have a connection to the psychic world. The bride, Johneen Maynard, is more focused on the flowers than the town’s history. Her fiance, Parker Langley, is marginally more personable, though when the two descend on Lily Dale, they threaten to overwhelm the normally calm Bella and her young son, Max. Having supplied the idea, Odelia leaves Bella on her own when it comes to the execution. Well, perhaps not completely on her own: she has the help of local veterinarian Drew Bailey. Although Drew, with whom Bella is only recently on a first-name basis, is helpful when it comes to Bella’s cat, Chance, and her many kittens, Bella isn’t sure that he can do much to alleviate wedding stress. And although Odelia means to help, the only concrete step she takes is to antagonize the bride when she delivers a message from the spirit world that Johneen may be in danger. Matters are only made worse with a surprise visit from Bella’s mother-in- law, who’s determined to drag Bella and Max off to Chicago. By playing down Lily Dale’s residents, Staub misses an opportunity to flesh out more of Bella’s everyday life (Nine Lives, 2015). But the introduction of more ongoing characters is a rousing success.

Kirkus Reviews