Murder on Pea Pike

Listed and Lethal Mystery #1

by Jean Harrington

Fresh off her ex-boyfriend’s Harley and determined to remake herself, Honey Ingersoll snags a job with handsome Sam Ridley, Eureka Falls’ biggest realtor. She’s thrilled, but her troubles are far from over.
During the sale of an abandoned farmhouse, she stumbles over the body of a young woman with big hair, silver stilettos and a bullet hole in her chest. A few days later, she discovers uncut diamonds on neighboring farmland. The owner turns up dead soon after—and once again Honey finds the body.
Sheriff Matt Rameros, who’s sweet on Honey, believes the two incidents are unrelated. Honey, now a person of interest in the murders, thinks otherwise. Why else would Sam Ridley, a big Fayetteville financial concern, and a U.S. senator all have an interest in these hardscrabble properties? Honey has to find out, or she may have fled a double-wide only to end up in a jail cell. Or worse.
Book 1 in the Listed and Lethal series.

Genres: Mystery

248 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 2017

About the author

Writing has me hooked though the realization was a long time coming. As a child I wanted to be a foreign correspondent when I grew up. I must have been a romantic even then, but reality set in and instead I went to the exotic University of Rhode Island for a degree in English literature and stayed on as a teaching assistant while I earned my master’s degree.
In the meantime, I had married John (he loves it when I give my heroes his name), and we have two grown children, Mary Lee and Chris, and three granddaughters, Amy, Laura and Carolyn.
Following URI and a stint writing PR and advertising copy, I taught writing and lit for sixteen years at Becker College in Worcester, Massachusetts. I enjoyed this period of my life tremendously, but when I think back, I realize that always simmering on the back burner of my brain was the old adage, “Those who can do; those who can’t teach.”
Not necessarily true, but after I raised my children, left Becker and moved to Florida with Big John, the gig was up. I began to write, and write, and write, and, well, you get the picture . . . .
My debut novel tells the tale of the captivating, defiant Grace O’Malley, THE BAREFOOT QUEEN, who risks everything she loves for a vow she holds dearer than life itself.

Reviews

[Danielle The Book Huntress · Rating 3 out of 5]

A refreshingly different cozy mystery with a lead character whose trailer park origins are nothing to be ashamed of. Small town Arkansas with murder. I liked Honey as a lead character. I'd read more of this series.

Overall rating: 3.5/5.0 stars.

Reviewed for Affaire de Coeur Magazine. http://affairedecoeur.com

[Laura Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun book. I like the lighter mysteries. You can say I’m addicted to them. They are the perfect fun stories when I need something lighter than the horror I usually read.

Murder On Pea Pike was a happy surprise. As were some of the characters I met. Hands down, my favorite was Honey. After breaking up with her boyfriend she lands on her feet, getting a job with a big time realtors office. Too bad she runs into a snag. A big one. She finds not one but two dead bodies, and a cache of diamonds. This puts her on the list of suspects. Good thing the sheriff has a crush on her and she’s free to do some sleuthing. Otherwise, there’s a cell with her name on it, or worse.

Honey just stole my heart. She’s smart, plucky, and it was pure fun to walk in her shoes. As I mentioned, the sheriff has a crush on her, but she has a crush on her sexy boss. All through the book I wanted her to choose the guy I thought she should be with it. Not able to tell you how that turned out without spoiling things. It sure heightened my anticipation as I turned each page.

The mystery isn’t an easy one to solve. I had a couple of those ‘I see’ moments once the bad guy was revealed. The author did a great job of seeding clues throughout the book and disguising them so well you skim right past them with nary a clue yourself.

Loads of fun, strong writing that just flows right along and one of the most satisfying and surprising endings I’ve read in quite a while.

I received a complimentary copy. My review is voluntarily given.

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Murder on Pea Pike is A Listed and Lethal Mystery. The main character is Honey Ingersoll who has just been dumped by her boyfriend from his Harley and is left in Eureka Falls. She manages to find a job with the town's largest realtor. During the sale of an empty farmhouse, she finds the body of a young woman with big hair, stilettos, and a bullet hole in her chest. Honey, as her name suggests, is beautiful with long blond hair and a very friendly disposition. The town sheriff is interested in her, but Honey has a bad track record with men and she won't commit to another possible failure. She has a friend who is in jeopardy of losing her home because her husband has left her alone with three small children. The women take the children on a picnic and, while wading in the creek, they find small nuggets that sparkle like diamonds. Honey takes them to a larger town to be evaluated and is told they are real. When she returns home, she discovers the owner of the property where the diamonds were found, has been murdered. The Sherriff believes she is innocent,but, she realizes she can not count on anyone but herself and sets about finding the guilty person. Honey will go to any lengths to prove her innocence. But, when a second murder occurs, Honey is suspected and must go to the extreme to protect herself.

[Nancy H · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent first entry in a new series which takes place in Arkansas. The main character, Honey Ingersoll, is a refreshingly different realtor heroine, who has to figure out who killed the two women whose bodies she accidentally stumbles upon when she is going to show a house (first one) and talk to a land-owner (second one). The story is intriguing and fast-moving, and fun to read. I am looking forward to more in this series.

[InD'tale Magazine · Rating 4 out of 5]

With a heroine with a name like Honey, how can one not be drawn in by her antics?

Read full review in the 2017 October issue of InD'tale Magazine.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Have you ever considered how placement of books can affect your opinion of them? This is a pleasant rom-com mystery, but immediately before it I read two clearly superior books. Maybe that dropped it a star? Or I might have read a few others of its type before it, and might have been impressed by the different background and raised it a star--who knows? At any rate, Honey has been abused by men all her life, and has sworn off them--except for dreams about her handsome boss--to concentrate on her career as a real estate broker. But when she discovers two bodies, she knows something is wrong, and even if handsome sheriff Matt believes she's innocent, the state police find her actions suspicious.

[Vicki Gooding · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jean Harrington has a series prior to this I fell in love with. This series is nothing like the other series but just as gripping. The main character came from a bit of a trashy background, dumped by her boyfriend in a town where she becomes a high end realtor. For many of us, real life didn't start with a wealthy family. We've had to learn acceptable human professionalism mixed with some street smarts to become the best at what we do. This is the description of the main character Honey who works with different clients, but with the same charm. The mystery is fun, and tastefully written, brought to a great conclusion. Great start to a new series.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

***4.5***

If you enjoy Charlaine Harris, you will love Jean Harrington.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know how to really describe this book. Great murder mystery, with a lot of down home humor. This is the first in the series and I do want to read the next one. Fast read.

[Harlequin Books]

Categories
Mystery & Detective
Miniseries
A Listed and Lethal Mystery

[Tambra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrifc book, First time reading her, Loved the book.

[Astrid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun book !
Detailed and descriptions are really good . You get to meet each character . It’s a great mystery that will keep you guessing

[WHPL Reference]

Find it at the West Hempstead Public Library https://encore.alisweb.org/iii/encore...