A Carol for a Corpse

Table of Contents

 

 

A WINNING RECIPE FOR MYSTERY LOVERS

Murder doesn’t stop the Inn’s pet food conventioneers from fighting like cats and dogs—but it does bring business to a grinding halt.

Less-than-friendly professional competition. A serious case of cold feet. And, oh yes, a local murder. Could things go worse on Meg’s wedding day?

The leader of a raucous group of protestors turns up dead— and the Quilliams must quell fears and catch a killer before another local V.I.P. is greeted with an untimely R.I.P.

While residents celebrate the 133rd anniversary of the Battle of Hemlock Falls, the Quilliam sisters investigate the deaths of three people who dined at the Inn before checking out.

Two rival fried chicken restaurants are about to set up shop in Hemlock Falls—and the Quilliams have to turn up the heat when the competition turns deadly.

There’s a meteorologist convention coming to the Inn, and it’s up to Quill and Meg to make sure an elusive killer doesn’t make murder part of the forecast.

The Quilliams’ plans for the future of the Inn may end up on the cutting-room floor when a group of TV cartoon writers checks in—and the producer checks out.

While trying to sell the locals on the idea of raising their own herds, a visiting Texas cattleman gets sent to that big trail drive in the sky. The Quilliams set out to catch the culprit and reclaim their precious Inn . . . without getting stampeded themselves!

Five women jewelry makers are a welcome change from the tourist slump the Inn is having. All that changes when two of the ladies end up dead, and the Quilliams are on the hunt for a crafty killer.

While working for a charity in Palm Beach, the Quilliam sisters uncover a vengeful plot that has a wealthy socialite out to humiliate her husband. Now the sleuths must convince the couple to bury the hatchet—before they bury each other.

When the Inn hosts the wedding rehearsal dinner for an ex-senator, someone begins cutting down the guest list in a deadly way. And Quill and Meg have to catch a killer before the rehearsal dinner ends up being someone’s last meal.

Hendrick Conway is a nosy newsman who thinks something funny is going on at a local development project. But when two of his relatives are killed, the Quilliam sisters race against a deadline of their own.

Quill and Meg are on the trail of the murderer of two local women who won a design contest. Helena Houndswood, a noted expert on stylish living, was furious when she lost. But mad enough to kill?

The annual History Days festival takes a deadly turn when a reenactment of a seventeenth-century witch trial leads to twentieth-century murder. Since the victim is a paying guest, the least Quill and Meg could do is investigate.

A TASTE FOR MURDER
A DASH OF DEATH
A PINCH OF POISON
MURDER WELL-DONE
DEATH DINES OUT
A TOUCH OF THE GRAPE
A STEAK IN MURDER
MARINADE FOR MURDER
JUST DESSERTS
FRIED BY JURY
A PUREE OF POISON
BURIED BY BREAKFAST
A DINNER TO DIE FOR
GROUND TO A HALT
A CAROL FOR A CORPSE

THE CASE OF THE ROASTED ONION
THE CASE OF THE TOUGH-TALKING TURKEY

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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

PUBLISHER’S NOTE: The recipes contained in this book are to be followed exactly as written. The publisher is not responsible for your specific health or allergy needs that may require medical supervision. The publisher is not responsible for any adverse reactions to the recipes contained in this book.

A CAROL FOR A CORPSE

A Berkley Prime Crime Book / published by arrangement with the author

PRINTING HISTORY
Berkley Prime Crime mass-market edition / November 2007

Copyright © 2007 by Mary Stanton.

All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form
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ISBN: 978-0-425-21834-1

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If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

For Julie

And other members of the Hemlock Falls Chamber of Commerce

PROLOGUE

Everyone was gone. The meeting room still held a faintly congratulatory air, enhanced by the professionally decorated Christmas tree standing to the right of the wet bar. Two empty bottles of Moët et Chandon lay abandoned at the coffee station, jammed onto the plate of pâté, caviar, and the remains of soft French cheeses. The C-SPAN people had left an orange extension cord coiled under the windows overlooking Times Square.

A brightly colored array of advertising brochures sprawled across the conference table, all that was left after the contracts had been signed, sealed, and notarized, the copies initialed, the files tucked away into the lawyers’ briefcases.

The brochure read: