by Sandra Murphy

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of Shades of Wrath. We also have a link to order it from Amazon, and from an indie bookstore where a portion goes to help support KRL.

Caprice DeLuca leads a busy life. She’s a home stager, although she does do some decorating jobs too. She rescues animals and finds homes for them, and she acts as matchmaker on occasion. Her family is close, some say too close, but it’s what she’s used to and loves.

She’s on hand during open houses to help the agents show the special features. Each house has its own theme. Caprice’s sister, Nikki, caters the open houses with fabulous snacks and much more.

Caprice’s contract with a local builder to stage his display homes has run out. She’s delighted to be asked to do a local television show with three other designers to see who can win the chance to stage homes for another builder. It will take time away from her business, but it’s fairly close by and her assistant can cover the four days she’s gone.

Another big project is furnishing a rehabbed home that will now house abused women. The main facility is mostly for overnight stays, but the mansion will allow women and their children to stay for longer times as they take classes so they can get jobs. There’s also the possibility of working on the main facility once the mansion is done.

Wendy is the force behind the shelter. She’s not always tactful, in fact, sometimes a little too in-your-face when needed. She will do anything to protect the women. When she’s found dead in the mansion, the only witness seems to be a stray cat.

Caprice is fairly fearless herself, interviewing people she suspects of Wendy’s murder. She says there are other people around since she’s talking to them at their work place. On the other hand, they’re not at work all the time which can put her in danger too.

Wendy’s life was a complicated one. She never talks about her past or her reasons for being so adamant about the women she helps. She’s not above threatening a bit of blackmail to do so. This can earn a person a lot of enemies.

Although Caprice puts herself into dangerous situations to confront her suspects, her heart is in the right place. Speaking of her heart, her romantic life seems to be doing well too. Look for many changes in the next in the series.

The town is one you’d like to visit and when you did, you’d be taken in as part of the family by Caprice and her relatives. They might get a little overbearing at times but the food Nikki cooks is worth the risk. There are recipes too—shredded potato, ground beef, sausage bake; a feta, olive and tomato salad; and an old-fashioned coconut cake. As an added bonus, there’s an excerpt from Slay Bells Ring, the next book in the series.

To enter to win a copy of Shades of Wrath, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “wrath,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen December 24, 2016. U.S. residents only. If entering via email please include your mailing address, and if via comment please include your email address.

Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & short stories in our mystery section.

Use this link to purchase the book & a portion goes to help support KRL & indie bookstore Mysterious Galaxy:

Shades of Wrath

You can also use this link to purchase the book on Amazon. If you have ad blocker on you may not see the link:

Sandra Murphy lives in the shadow of the Arch, in the land of blues, booze and shoes—St Louis, Missouri. While writing magazine articles to support her mystery book habit, she secretly polishes mystery books of her own, hoping, someday, they will see the light of Barnes and Noble and a Kindle. You can find several of Sandra’s short stories at Untreed Reads including her newest, “Arthur,” included in the anthology titled, Flash and Bang, available now. Look for Denali, in the anthology Dogs and Dragons.

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.