The murder of a Southern literary icon sends Annie Darling's seaside town spinning in New York Times bestselling author Carolyn Hart's 25th Death on Demand Mystery... Bookstore owner Annie Darling is hosting a party to celebrate former Broward’s Rock resident Alex Griffith and his bestselling new novel, Don’t Go Home . But after the local paper announces that Griffith aims to reveal the real-life inspirations behind his characters, perhaps the author should take his own advice. Not everyone in town is ready to give him a glowing review.   As Annie attempts damage control, her friend Marian Kenyon gets in a heated argument with Griffith. It’s a fight Annie won’t soon forget—especially after the author turns up dead.   Despite an array of suspects to match Griffith’s cast of characters—and a promise to her husband, Max, to steer clear of sleuthing—Annie’s not about to let the police throw the book at her friend when the real killer remains at large... “MWA Grand Master Hart shows no sign of slowing down in her lively 25th Death on Demand mystery...Descriptions of the sultry climate and island life enhance the smart whodunit plot.”— Publishers Weekly   “This book is a terrific page-turner right from the start, and readers will be waiting to see what exactly Ms. Hart has in store for Annie this time, as well as the next time around.”— Suspense Magazine   “Another well-written tale in the series with suspense, clues and motives throughout. Be sure to read them all because it’s surprising how much trouble a book seller can get into!”—Kings River Life Magazine More Praise for Carolyn Hart, Winner of Multiple Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity Awards and the Death on Demand Mysteries “Carolyn Hart’s work is both utterly reliable and utterly unpredictable.”—Charlaine Harris, #1 New York Times bestselling author  “One of the most popular practitioners of the traditional mystery.”— The Cleveland Plain Dealer “The Annie Darling books are masterpieces of construction and characterization.”— Connecticut Post “These books are charming, fun, funny, clever and kind of like comfort food without the calories, but instead with a great mystery!”—Kings River Life Magazine “Annie Darling is a great character...a one-of-a-kind heroine in cozy fiction.”—Cozy Library “Any book by Hart is guaranteed to include a top-notch mystery delivering an enjoyable reading experience.”— RT Book Reviews An accomplished master of mystery, Carolyn Hart is the New York Times bestselling author of more than fifty-five novels of mystery and suspense including the Bailey Ruth Ghost Novels and the Death on Demand Mysteries. Her books have won multiple Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity awards. She has also been honored with the Amelia Award for significant contributions to the traditional mystery from Malice Domestic and was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America. One of the founders of Sisters in Crime, Hart lives in Oklahoma City, where she enjoys mysteries, walking in the park, and cats. She and her husband, Phil, serve as staff—cat owners will understand—to brother and sister brown tabbies. Death on Demand Mysteries Bailey Ruth Ghost Mysteries 1 Rae Griffith welcomed the caress of the ocean breeze. Tiny fish formed a dark cloud near her bare feet. Despite the shimmering loveliness of the aquamarine water, she wasn’t enchanted. A few years ago to be here with Alex would have been glorious . . . Alex was farther out. A gentle wave crested near his chest. He turned and was caught in a moment of perfection, chestnut hair golden in the sun, finely chiseled features, deep-set dark brown eyes, muscular and tanned. Extraordinary good looks, boyish charm, and riveting prose had made his novel a smash success. Descriptive phrases drifted through her mind: smoldering emotion . . . a hint of danger . . . sex and lies . . . a literary Ryan Gosling . . . Her lips twisted in wry amusement. She easily churned out apt slogans. Alex had been her first big client, put her on the map of the best Atlanta publicists. She’d crafted plenty of releases for Alex. The one she liked best, the one that now defined him, came in the first flush of their relationship: The South Rises Again in the Pre-eminence of Alex Griffith, Golden Boy of a New Golden Age in Southern Literature. Alex’s reckless F. Scott Fitzgerald aura dazzled readers and critics, dimmed those around him to shadowy figures. But the brightest comets burn out and even huge best sellers finally begin a slow slide down the sales charts. The clamor grew. When will there be a new Alex Griffith novel? Alex gave her his old impudent, gonna-knock-’em-dead grin. “Come on, Rae. Look happy. We’ll go to the island. The Prodigal returns. All hell breaks loose. The morning shows will go nuts. Like you’ve always said, sex and lies sell.” He was sure of himself and his judgment. For an instant something flickered in his eyes. Not uncertainty. Never uncertainty with Alex. More a suggest