Lilly Cleary might just be one of the savviest lawyers in
Sarasota, Florida, but presumably she's no match for the
little town of Bugfest, Georgia. If truth be told, the
reason for her success may very well lie in the fact that
Sarasota lacks the one element that sends Lilly to the
edge of despair... her family. So why then has she dropped
everything in her overly structured life to head back home
to the town she swore she'd never step foot in again?
Well, perhaps it has something to do with the fact that
her somewhat insane and highly peculiar mother has just
been accused of murder. Now had she been told that her
mom had finally flown the coop so to speak, well then
Lilly could have accepted that, but murder? No way!
When Lilly arrives on the scene, she quickly discovers
that she has encountered much more than she has bargained
for! Her mother's house is on the verge of being condemned
(should anyone get a peek inside) and there is talk of a
resort community taking over the town's land. To make
matters worse, her mother is being heavily sedated while
kept under police supervision and no one seems to know how
some mysterious bruises wound up on the woman's face.
As always, Lilly does her best detective work to single
out the prime suspects. As she takes a closer look at her
former townsfolk, she gets more and more confused as to
who may be behind it all. Everyone seems to have a
motive. How can that be? Who would want to destroy her
family and why? Better yet, what has her mother kept
hidden all these years that would make someone resort to
such mayhem and possibly even murder?
SWEETHEART DEAL is the fourth novel by the talented author
Claire Matturro. Her knack for humor and ability to
engage the reader through her characters' adventures make
this novel a sure hit. Entertaining, whimsical, and down-
right charming! SWEETHEART DEAL is one not to be
missed.
Sarasota lawyer Lilly Cleary has had her share of odd
cases. She's defended everyone from a pet psychic to an
orange libeler, and she's done so with finesse. But it's
another situation entirely when she finds out that her
phobic and dysfunctional mother has been accused of murder.
Although she's been estranged from her family for
years, Lilly drops everything to return to the little town
of Bugfest, Georgia, and steps into more than she bargained
for. For one thing, her mother's house is beyond a mess.
Important papers are missing, and on the back porch there's
a freezer whose contents are very odd. Bugfest itself is
under attack by developers who want to turn it into a resort
community, a plan that would displace many of the longtime
residents.
And then someone tries to murder Lilly's
mother with red ants while she's strangely oversedated in
the hospital.
Lilly has come to the rescue, but can
she get to the root of these mysterious doings in time to
save her mother's life?