Deadwood Mysteries Books
NEARLY DEPARTED IN DEADWOOD , the Top-Rated #1 Kindle Bestseller in BOTH Women Sleuth and Ghost genres! WINNER of the 2010 Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense WINNER of the 2011 Romance Writers of America® Golden Heart Award for Best Novel with Strong Romantic Elements Praise for NEARLY DEPARTED IN DEADWOOD ... "Full of thrills and chills, a fun rollercoaster ride of a book!" ~Susan Andersen, New York Times Bestselling author of Burning Up "Ann Charles has written an intriguing mystery laced with a wicked sense of humor. Watch out Stephanie Plum, because Violet Parker is coming your way." ~Deborah Schneider, RWA Librarian of the Year 2009 & author of Beneath a Silver Moon Other 5 out of 5 star reviews... "Nearly Departed In Deadwood was a contemporary mystery romance with a touch of paranormal that kept me enthralled with goosebump-creepiness and belly aching laughter." ***** FIVE STARS! ~Escape Between the Pages Book Reviews "It's no wonder Ann won an award for this story. Her storytelling capabilities are tremendous." ***** FIVE STARS! ~ParaYourNormal Book Reviews "Ann Charles weaves a fun romp of humor, romance, mystery, and the occult. The pages are brimming with eccentric small town characters." ~Angela Spencer, Reviewer for Rise Reviews "I loved the sexual tension that Charles portrayed and built along with a phenomenal plot." ~Immortality and Beyond Book Reviews "With colorful characters and witty dialogue, this is a book sure to please all fans of mystery, romance and the paranormal." ~The Pen & Muse Book Reviews "If you like romantic mysteries with a tinge of paranormal creepiness, this one is well worth your time." ~To Publish or Not to Publish Book Reviews Overview of NEARLY DEPARTED IN DEADWOOD ... "The first time I came to Deadwood, I got shot in the ass."--Violet Parker Little girls are vanishing from Deadwood, South Dakota, and Violet Parker's daughter could be next. She's desperate to find the monster behind the abductions. But if she's not careful, Violet just might end up as one of Deadwood's dearly departed. More Praise... "Mystery, humor, and romance--Nearly Departed in Deadwood is a fabulous book from a talented author! ~Jacquie Rogers, award-winning author of Much Ado About Marshals If you laughed and cringed your way through Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, you are going to love NEARLY DEPARTED IN DEADWOOD ! Other Books in the Deadwood Mystery Series **Don't forget to pick up the second book in the Deadwood Mystery series, Optical Delusions in Deadwood : "Hilarious, original, and genuinely wonderful!" --Hank Phillippi Ryan, Anthony, Agatha and Macavity winning author **Available NOW!-- Dead Case in Deadwood (Book 3)..."Masterful storytelling. Masterful suspense. Masterful humor. You name it, Ms. Charles has mastered it. And to have such tension and mystery in a third book in a series? Like I said...Masterful." --Carolyn McCray, author of 30 Pieces of Silver, #1 Kindle Bestseller in Men's Adventure/War genres Other Works **If you were looking for Ann's Bestselling Jackrabbit Junction Mystery series full of more laughs, suspense, and romance, search for Dance of the Winnebagos ...where digging up secrets from the past becomes deadly. Nearly Departed in Deadwood Cover Art by C.S. Kunkle (cskunkle.com), Cover Design by Kathy Thomas and Mona Weiss (facebook.com/monaweissfans)
From the Multiple National Award-winning Author of Nearly Departed in Deadwood! "What a voice! Hilarious, original, and genuinely wonderful. This fresh and feisty mystery will instantly win your heart. Loved it!" ~HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN, Anthony, Agatha and Macavity winning author "Ann Charles writes a top-notch mystery that is fast-paced, complex, and laugh out loud funny! A genuinely exciting and sexually suspenseful mystery, Charles delivers in her second Violet Parker novel set in Deadwood, South Dakota. Fast-moving with twists even a seasoned Mystery Reader won't see coming, this is a can't-put-it-down book." ~MARY BUCKHAM, award-winning Romantic Suspense author "A smart, sassy, sexy and wonderfully resourceful heroine. Move over Stephanie Plum--Vi Parker is here!" ~JOHN KLAWITTER, award-winning Tinseltown writer/director, and author of the award-winning Hollywood Havoc action thriller novels ***You'll laugh. You'll cringe. You'll want even more!*** Someone is spreading rumors around Deadwood that Violet Parker likes to chat with dead folks. With her reputation endangered, her bank account on the verge of extinction, and her career at risk of going up in flames, Violet is desperate. When the opportunity to sell another vintage home materializes, she grabs it, even though this "haunted" house was recently the stage for a two-act, murder-suicide tragedy. Ghost or no ghost, Violet knows this can't be as bad as the last house of horrors she tried to sell, but sexy Doc Nyce has serious doubts. Her only hope of hanging on to her job is to prove that the so-called, ghostly sightings are merely the eccentric owner's optical delusions. But someone--or something--in the house wants Violet stopped...dead. "... sexy, spunky Violet Parker will blow you away." ~LUCY BURDETTE, author & Sisters in Crime past-president "... mystery, humor, romance, and fun all wrapped up in a great book." ~BOOKS R US REVIEWS Optical Delusions in Deadwood Cover Design by Mona Weiss (facebook.com/monaweissfans); Cover Art by C.S. Kunkle (cskunkle.com) Want more mystery, laughs, and suspense? Check out Ann Charles' newest ebook, DANCE OF THE WINNEBAGOS, available now! This is the first book in her new Jackrabbit Junction Mystery series, starring Claire Morgan, Violet Parker's childhood friend from Rapid City, South Dakota.
"Nothing good ever happens at the butt-crack of dawn. No doubt, the headless corpse on the autopsy table in front of me would agree."—Violet Parker Real estate agent, Violet "Spooky" Parker stumbles upon a body-part theft ring at the local funeral parlor and suspects her caustic coworker has a hand in it—or maybe a foot. Can Violet discover what's in the crates the crooks are sneaking out of the mortuary in the dark of night? Or will she end up in one of them herself ... in pieces?
One dead body. One century-old, haunted opera house. One zombie musical. One pissed-off detective. Will Violet "Spooky" Parker keep her tail out of trouble or will she end up as one of Deadwood's walking dead?
Something has gone foul in the Black Hills … something gravely unnatural. Leave it to Violet Parker to stumble into the middle of it. A creepy phone call. A dead body. Two meddling detectives. A glut of trouble-making ex-partners. Can things get any worse? Violet swears to keep her nose out of police business this time. But when her son is linked to the victim, she returns to the scene of the crime. More than just a mystery to solve, now her son might be in mortal danger.
Meanwhile, Back in Deadwood… the mystery and mayhem continue. Between the butchered body parts, creepy killers, dogged detectives, ghoulish ghosts, and ever-present TV cameras, Violet Parker’s purple boots are itching to skedaddle. But there is no escaping another murder investigation or her new deadly reputation. Not even if both risk the lives of those she loves most.
Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned ... especially a dead one holding a grudge.Back on Deadwood's list of Usual Suspects, Violet Parker is hip deep in wild frights and fired-up females. After juggling bitter threats, haunted buildings, and vengeful ghosts, the last thing she needs is a pair of bullheaded detectives trying to pin another murder on her tail. Can Violet find the real killer before she ends up behind bars? Or worse, on a slab at the morgue.
A scrappy, hot-blooded woman can only take so much! Violet Parker is on fire … or rather under fire yet again. New evidence has fanned the embers of a cold murder case, and her alibi is smoldering at the corners. While battling a dogged detective determined to pin the murder on her, Violet scrambles to find the real killer. Will she escape “the heat” with singed tail feathers? Or will Violet go down in flames?
Trespassers will be gutted and hung!—Slagton’s Town MottoNormally, not even drunk on a bet would Violet Parker go to Slagton, a creepy ghost town inhabited by those too stubborn—or deranged—to leave.But a certain bullheaded Deadwood detective has a problem—his informant from Slagton has gone missing. When Violet is shanghaied into taking a hunting trip to the ghost town to search for the missing snitch, she stumbles into trouble that will take more than a double-barreled shotgun to escape.Will Violet survive this new Hell that haunts her, or will she end up on Slagton’s growing list of those gutted and hung?
"I laughed (a lot), cried (a little), and wanted to stab a certain family member. This story brings all the feels!” --Renee George, USA Today Bestselling AuthorIt’s Christmas Eve and Violet Parker has one request on her list for Santa—to make it home to her kids. Unfortunately, “home” is also the lair of her life-long nemesis, her sister Susan (aka the devil’s concubine).Standing in Violet’s way is Old Man Winter, who slammed the Black Hills with a show-stopping blizzard. However, a little snow isn’t going to ground her sleigh, not with family counting on her to deliver Santa’s goods.Trying to keep Christmas from turning into a candy cane calamity, Violet battles her demons and struggles through the chaos storming around her. Can she make it through the holiday without cracking anyone’s nut?"Keep your fingers crossed this whole holiday doesn't blow up in our faces." --Violet Parker
“ Hell is empty and all the devils are here .” ~William Shakespeare Violet Parker knows better than to play with devils. They always cheat, especially when lives are at stake. Deadwood’s charming, troublemaking, and soul-sucking devils are no different, and they’re biting at her heels. But the clock is ticking and Violet has no choice—she must risk her life to save her treasured Aunt Zoe. With any luck, she might be able to trick the devils and beat the old terrors at their own game. If not, Deadwood could end up short one Executioner. “Executioners don't duck, they swing.” ~Violet Parker
All Violet Parker wants is a day off. Better yet, just a “normal” day. But things never go as planned, especially in Deadwood . Someone—or rather something—broke into the local taxidermy shop and took bites out of the critter displays before racing off into the dark. But this is no random crime and Violet knows it. With a bounty on her head and troublemakers zeroing in on her, she soon goes from being the hunter to the hunted. “Burly muscled and rawhide tough don’t matter. Never tangle with a Scharfrichter !” ~Violet Parker
Violet Parker has big troubles these days—the ticking kind. To duck the Grim Reaper, she needs to get her hands on eighty-plus rare, mystical clocks locked up tight by a thick-headed detective. The solution? Hijack the truckload of ticking time bombs out from under Johnny Law’s nose. But no caper ever goes according to plan. What starts out as a game of clocks and robbers twists and turns into a chaos of cops and clobbers. Will Violet beat the detective in time? Or will she spend Valentine’s Day behind bars?