About this item
A jittery bride-to-be draws the Boston PI into an "utterly compelling" case of betrayal and dangerous love (Publisher Weekly, starred review) . Six-foot-tall, redheaded ex-cop and Boston-based private eye Carlotta Carlyle is "the genuine article: a straightforward, funny, thoroughly American mystery heroine" (New York Post) . On the outs with her secretive mob boss lover, Sam Gianelli, Carlotta occupies herself with a seemingly routine case. She feels an immediate bond with her new client, Jessie Franklin. Right now, both women are dealing with issues of trust. For Jessie, its the man shes soon to marry. Tipped off that hes cheating on her, she wants Carlotta to tail him. No sooner does Carlotta get a track on the likely cad, than Jessie is killed by a hit-and-run driver. But when the accident is ruled a homicide, Carlotta discovers that Jessie has being lying about everything - including her name and her fiancé. But its the reason for roping Carlotta into the deception that has the sleuth on edge. Because Carlottas the number one suspect in the murder. Now she must investigate her own past - and Gianellis - to save her neck. Only one thing is certain: "The course of mobbed-up love never runs smooth [in this] startling new chapter in the heroines checkered personal life" (Kirkus Reviews) . Lie Down with the Devil is the 12th book in the Carlotta Carlyle Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.
About the Author
I was born in Detroit; I always say it's where I learned about crime, but I mean no disrespect to a great city. It's also where I learned to love Motown music and do the Stroll. Came to Boston for college, and like so many, stayed, awed by the Atlantic Ocean and accessible public transportation. I still love walking Boston's cobbled streets, riding the T, breathing the history. I started writing while teaching high school theater. Required to enter a one-act play festival sponsored by the Boston Globe, I posted the cast list before I selected the play. (I had great students that year, and 12 of them certainly deserved to be in the festival cast.) When I couldn't find a one-act with 12 roles, I had to write one myself. The festival was a competition, and darned if we didn't keep winning, right up until the state finals, where a man introduced himself to me and inquired whether he might publish that play. I said yes, wrote more plays, then segued into crime fiction. My first Carlotta Carlyle short story, "Lucky Penny," won an Anthony Award. The first Carlyle novel, A TROUBLE OF FOOLS, was nominated for an Edgar and a Shamus, and won the American Mystery Award. Eleven books later, the most recent Carlyle, LIE DOWN WITH THE DEVIL, was named one of the Best Mysteries of 2008 by Publisher's Weekly. In April my first stand alone novel, THE PERFECT GHOST, comes out. It was exciting to work with brand new characters in a wonderfully scenic Cape Cod locale. Please check my website at lindabarnes.com for upcoming appearances and follow me on Facebook.
