Eastern Shore Mysteries Series by Cheril Thomas

Who is buried in the backyard? There's a grave in the woods behind the grandest house in town. Three hundred years of history are in the beams and crumbling plaster of Delaney House. Seven thousand square feet of trash and dirt cover secrets, lies and at least one murder. Julia Reagan dreamed of saving her family home but time ran out... moreWho is buried in the backyard? There's a grave in the woods behind the grandest house in town. Three hundred years of history are in the beams and crumbling plaster of Delaney House. Seven thousand square feet of trash and dirt cover secrets, lies and at least one murder. Julia Reagan dreamed of saving her family home but time ran out. Her dying wish sends her daughter, a Washington attorney, to Maryland's Eastern Shore to renovate the decaying mansion and deal with the relatives who never left the sleepy village on the Chesapeake Bay. Before she can buy the first can of paint, Grace finds a grave, a murder and tantalizing clues to her own hidden past. less

The old farmhouse on Little Wye Creek is creepy enough to be a murder scene, and there's even a dead man on the lawn, but Grace Reagan hopes the infamous Garret Bishop is just pulling another lame publicity stunt. Wealthy, eccentric Bishop has 'survived' an avalanche, a hijacking, and a kidnapping plot... moreThe old farmhouse on Little Wye Creek is creepy enough to be a murder scene, and there's even a dead man on the lawn, but Grace Reagan hopes the infamous Garret Bishop is just pulling another lame publicity stunt. Wealthy, eccentric Bishop has 'survived' an avalanche, a hijacking, and a kidnapping plot. Did he die for real this time in a tragic accident, or was he helped along to his last headline? Bishop's death shocks everyone, especially Grace, who's so close to escaping the village of Mallard Bay she can nearly taste the lime in a Key West daiquiri. She has a few things to do before she goes, though, and selling the old Morgan farm is on the list. Even though the purchase contract in Bishop's coat pocket has a bullet hole in it, Grace isn't giving up. She's leaving Mallard Bay for good, and nothing's going to stop her, not even a murder. A COMMISSION ON MURDER is the exciting sequel to SQUATTER'S RIGHTS. Come back to Mallard Bay, the village where history and gossip live hand in hand. Everyone can find something to their liking in the little town on the eastern side of the Chesapeake Bay. Sailing, fishing, antiquing and great food draw visitors down to the Eastern Shore where the occasional murder will also keep them entertained. Reviews for SQUATTER'S RIGHTS: “When the heroine buys a crumbling family house in a small Eastern Shore town, she also buys a lot more trouble than she bargained for, from the police, the locals and her own, estranged and angry family. It kept me turning pages right up to the end… a great beach read.” – Helen Chappell, author of THE OYSTERBACK TALES, CHESAPEAKE BOOK OF THE DEAD, and the Hollis Ball and Sam Westcott mystery series. Cheril Thomas is the author of the Eastern Shore Mysteries series: SQUATTER'S RIGHTS, A COMMISSION ON MURDER, and BAD INTENT. She is also the co-author of a mystery novel/serial, WHISPERS, and is a published short fiction author. Cheril lives on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. less