Recommendations based on "Prairie Hardball"

Convinced that the tomb of the little-known king Tutankhamon lies somewhere in the Valley of the Kings, eminent Egyptologist Radcliffe Emerson and his intrepid wife, Amelia Peabody, seem to have hit a wall. Having been banned forever from the East Valley, Emerson, against Amelia's advice, has tried desperately to persuade Lord Carnarvon and Howard Carter to relinquish their digging rights. But Emerson's trickery has backfired, and his insistent interest in the site has made his rivals all the more determined to keep the Emerson clan away.Powerless to intervene but determined to stay close to the unattainable tomb, the family returns to Luxor and prepares to continue their dig in the less promising West Valley—and to watch from the sidelines as Carter and Carnarvon "discover" the greatest Egyptian treasure of all time: King Tut's tomb. But before their own excavation can get underway, Emerson and his son, Ramses, find themselves lured into a trap by a strange group of villains ominously demanding "Where is he?" Driven by distress—and, of course, Amelia's insatiable curiosity—the Emersons embark on a quest to uncover who "he" is and why "he" must be found, only to discover that the answer is uncomfortably close to home. Now Amelia must find a way to protect her family—and perhaps even her would-be nemesis—from the sinister forces that will stop at nothing to succeed in the nefarious plot that threatens the peace of the entire region.Filled with heart-stopping suspense, political intrigue, and Amelia Peabody's trademark wit and wisdom, Tomb of the Golden Bird is the latest thrilling installment from the renowned and beloved "grande dame of historical mystery" (Washington Post).

A New York Times Book Review Editor’s Choice • Rex Stout meets Agatha Christie with a fresh twist in the new Pentecost and Parker Mystery, a delightfully hardboiled high-wire act starring two daring women sleuths dead set on justice as they set out to solve a murder at a traveling circus“A delight.... It’s a pleasure to watch [Pentecost and Parker] sifting through red herrings and peeling secrets back like layers of an onion.” The New York Times Book ReviewSomeone’s put a blade in the back of the Amazing Tattooed Woman, and Willowjean “Will” Parker’s former knife-throwing mentor has been stitched up for the crime. To uncover the truth, Will and her boss, world-famous detective Lillian Pentecost, travel to the circus, where they find a snake pit of old grudges, small-town crime, and secrets worth killing for.Will called Hart & Halloway’s Traveling Circus and Sideshow home for five years, and Ruby Donner, the circus’s tattooed ingenue, was her friend. To make matters worse, the prime suspect is Valentin Kalishenko, the man who taught Will everything she knows about putting a knife where it needs to go.To uncover the real killer and keep Kalishenko from a date with the electric chair, Will and Ms. Pentecost join the circus in sleepy Stoppard, Virginia, where the locals like their cocktails mild, the past buried, and big-city detectives not at all. The two swiftly find themselves lost in a funhouse of lies as Will begins to realize that her former circus compatriots aren’t playing it straight, and that her murdered friend might have been hiding a lot of secrets beneath all that ink.

From the author of the Wishcraft MysteriesCarly Bell Hartwell’s love potions are always in demand in Hitching Post, Alabama, the wedding capital of the South.…When Katie Sue Perrywinkle walks into the Little Shop of Potions, Carly is surprised and delighted to see her old childhood friend. Katie Sue fled her hometown and a troubled family over a decade ago. But she’s not back for a social visit. She’s come to settle a score with Senator Warren Calhoun, who is in town for his son’s high-profile wedding.But before Katie Sue has a chance to voice any objections, she’s forced to forever hold her peace. After finding her friend dead, Carly vows to find her murderer. Were the corrupt Calhouns willing to go to any lengths to avoid a scandal? Did Katie Sue’s family take the term “bad blood” to a whole new level? And why did the bride-to-be come to Carly for a love potion? As Carly gets closer to the truth, a killer is planning a very chilly reception.…

Murder under the stars... Nora Blackbird--pregnant at last --is spending summer afternoons wallowing in the Bucks County pool of her best friend, Lexie Paine, who has just been released from prison. At night, Nora is covering Philadelphia's high-society events for the local newspaper. And this time she doesn't have to look far for a good story. Next door, a Broadway show is in rehearsal at the estate of Toodles Tuttle, the long-deceased but ever-legendary composer. Reigning over the estate is Toodles's diva widow, Boom Boom. The demanding old broad still rules with an iron fist, and considering the chorus line of enemies she's racked up over the years, her death has been a hotly anticipated event. So imagine everyone's dismay when it's her beloved daughter, Jenny, who drops dead--from a cause that is anything but natural--just as the lights are set to go on for the lucrative new Toodles musical. Yet murder is only an overture to the drama to come.... Nora's sister Libby, a soon-to-be-grandmother, has gotten herself into a sticky situation, wooed by both a lowly bug exterminator and a cheesecake-loving Broadway impresario. Edgy sister Emma has a dangerous new boyfriend who may jeopardize her show-jumping exploits. And the love of Nora's life, Mick Abruzzo, has been desperate to prevent Nora from meeting the most notorious member of his mobbed-up family--his mother. Now Nora has to deal with the bump-and-grind of her personal life, and also bring the curtain down on a daring killer--before he forces her to exit stage left, permanently.

In this delightful Scumble River Mystery, a school psychologist has her hands full after a school board sourpuss meets a bitter end...  With her morning sickness finally abated, Skye Denison-Boyd is ready to pounce on the pertinent problems she faces as Scumble River Elementary School’s psychologist. After trying almost every trick in the book to aid a handful of socially awkward fourth grade boys, Skye opts for the innovative approach of pet therapy with the assistance of the local vet, a Siberian husky, and a Maine coon cat.   Unfortunately, the first session only breeds disaster and draws the ire of cantankerous school board member Palmer Lynch. But Skye’s worry over the episode changes to dread after Lynch is found dead in his home with the therapy cat hidden in his garage. With a clowder of questions unleashed, Skye finds herself dealing with a killer who isn’t pussyfooting around...

Commemorating 75 years since the Empress of Crime's first book, the tenth volume in a set of omnibus editions presenting the complete run of 32 Inspector Alleyn mysteries. BLACK AS HE'S PAINTED Called in to help with security arrangements for a presidential reception at a London embassy, Chief Superintendent Alleyn ensures the house and grounds are stiff with police. Nevertheless, an assassin strikes, and Alleyn finds no shortage of help, from Special Branch to a tribal court - and a small black cat named Lucy Lockett... LAST DITCH Young Rickie Alleyn has come to the Channel Islands to write, but village life seems tedious - until he finds the stablehand in a ditch, dead from an unlucky jump. But Rickie notices something strange and his father, Chief Superintendent Roderick Alleyn, is discreetly summoned to the scene, when Rickie disappears... GRAVE MISTAKE With two husbands dead, a daughter marrying the wrong man and a debilitating disease, it is no wonder that Sybil Foster took her own life. But Chief Superintendent Roderick Alleyn doesn't believe she was the type to kill herself - and he thinks someone else has made a very grave mistake...

The key to an unsolved mystery… Lies buried in the past. When the body of a missing teenager is found buried near a small Kentucky church, Detective TJ Douglas must track down the killer. Lawyer Carlie Fenton’s late father is the prime suspect and, determined to clear his name, she offers to join the investigation. Can TJ trust Carlie to help find the truth—even if digging into the past uncovers secrets powerful enough to shatter her world?

Local politics gets nasty when Rosewood, Georgia, elects a new mayor, and the honorable Spence Jefferies makes it his first order of business to replace Diane Fallon with an incompetent crony as head of the crime lab. But just as Diane is adjusting to life without murder, a double whammy hits - Within a twenty-four-hour period, the newly appointed chief of police and the mayor himself are shot dead.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Scandal Above Stairs Kat Holloway steps out from beneath the stairs and into international intrigue, where murder and stolen treasure lurk among the upper echelons of Victorian London. In return for a random act of kindness, scholar Li Bai Chang presents young cook Kat Holloway with a rare and precious gift—a box of tea. Kat thinks no more of her unusual visitor until two days later when the kitchen erupts with the news that Lady Cynthia's next-door neighbor has been murdered. Known about London as an "Old China Hand," the victim claimed to be an expert in the language and customs of China, acting as intermediary for merchants and government officials. But Sir Jacob's dealings were not what they seemed, and when the authorities accuse Mr. Li of the crime, Kat and Daniel find themselves embroiled in a world of deadly secrets that reach from the gilded homes of Mayfair to the beautiful wonder of Kew Gardens.

A blackmailer targeting wealthy members of “Sister” Jane Arnold’s club has turned the hunters into the hunted in this thrilling mystery from New York Times bestselling author Rita Mae Brown. “Cunning foxes, sensible hounds, and sweet-tempered horses are among the sparkling conversationalists in this charming series.”—The New York Times Book Review It’s the start of fox-hunting season and Sister is training a new generation of hounds in eager anticipation of Opening Hunt. But before they make it to that exciting day, several members of the hunt club receive ominous videos in which they appear to be doing scandalous, career-ending deeds. The videos are doctored, but does it matter? The unknown blackmailer promises to publish the clips if they don’t get paid, and even the most upstanding citizen can be brought down by the court of public opinion. While Sister and her friends try to unmask the dastardly mind behind the videos, mysteries abound in their beautiful Blue Ridge Mountain town home. Two men die, apparently by suicide, shocking a community that never saw their deaths coming. And rumors abound that Old Paradise, the estate being lovingly restored by Crawford Howard, houses a secret stash of gold from its original owner. Does someone want the treasure badly enough to kill for? Sister and her fellow Jefferson Hunt Club members, including friends both two- and four-legged, are on the case—and with any luck, they’ll catch the criminals before the first horn sounds on opening day.