by Sandra Murphy

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of the book, and a link to purchase it from Amazon and from an indie bookstore.

Florrie Fox is the manager of Color Me Read, a Georgetown bookstore. For Halloween, the store is going all out with a presentation by psychic author Hilda Rattenhorst. Before her talk is barely underway, Hilda has a vision of a rolled up rug with a foot sticking out. She also feels a violent presence in the room and faints. Florrie and her police officer boyfriend, Eric, go to the location where Hilda says she ‘saw’ the body, but there’s no sign of it.

In the meantime, a mysterious box is delivered to the store containing a skull identified only as Harry and accompanied by a note from a man named Ellis. As Halloween gets closer, Harry travels throughout the store, sometimes appearing in the front window, on a newel post, or the counter. No one will admit to moving him.

Hilda predicted there would be more violence, a killing to be precise. There’s an attempted murder, an actual murder, a disappearance, a phone call from someone who wasn’t there, a stalker, and mysterious noises to worry about. Florrie manages to hear gossip the neighbors won’t tell the police, but is it enough to stop a killer?

This is book three in the series. Florrie and Eric have a good relationship even with both of them working a lot of hours. Readers will want to pay close attention to the character’s names as there are a quite a few of them to remember: employees, customers, neighbors, businesses along the street, friends, and spouses of those friends. A particular favorite is Mr. DuBois, the butler who works for Florrie’s employer and landlord. There’s also a cat and several dogs—always a plus.

Find recipes at the back of the book—Russian tea (part black tea, part orange juice), cinnamon apple pancakes, pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, and French apple cake with sweetened whipped cream.

Look for A Colorful Scheme, fourth in the series, coming in the fall of 2022. The first chapter follows the recipes, just to make you want more!

To enter to win a copy of Murder Outside the Lines, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “lines,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen October 23, 2021. U.S. residents only, and you must be 18 or older to enter. If you are entering via email please include you mailing address in case you win, it will be deleted after the contest. You can read our privacy statement here if you like. BE AWARE THAT IT WILL TAKE MUCH LONGER THAN USUAL FOR WINNERS TO GET THEIR BOOKS DUE TO THE CURRENT CRISIS.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section. And join our mystery Facebook group to keep up with everything mystery we post, and have a chance at some extra giveaways. Also listen to our new mystery podcast where mystery short stories and first chapters are read by actors! They are also available on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, and Spotify. A new episode goes up next week.

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Murder Outside the Lines (Pen & Ink #3)

Sandra Murphy lives in the shadow of the Arch in St. Louis Missouri. She’s editor for Peace, Love, and Crime: Crime Stories Inspired by the Songs of the ’60s, with twenty-two cozy stories. She also edited A Murder of Crows, twenty-one stories featuring animals and crime (no animals were harmed). She also writes for magazines, newsletters, and the occasional guest blog. Both anthologies are available at the usual outlets, print or ebook.

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.