Deadly Sins: Sloth

Sloane Monroe Stories #1

by Cheryl Bradshaw

Fed up with her her lazy, unruly neighbor, Mary Pritchard sprints across the street, determined to give Darryl a piece of her mind. She arrives to find he's been shot, the bullet piercing the center of his forehead. He's been executed, and that's not all. A mysterious woman is sprawled out on the floor in Darryl's hallway. She's dead too. Who is the woman? Why is she there? And why have they both been murdered?

Genres: Mystery, Mystery Thriller, Fiction, Short Stories, Thriller

50 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 7, 2017

About the author

Cheryl Bradshaw is a New York Times and 11-time USA Today bestselling author writing in multiple genres, including mystery, thriller, romantic suspense, supernatural suspense, and poetry. She is a Shamus Award finalist for best private eye novel of the year, an eFestival of Words winner for best thriller, and has published over fifty books since 2011.

Raised in Southern California, she now lives in North Texas. When she's not writing, she loves jet-setting to new countries, exploring the outdoors, and playing with her grandbabies.

For a free eBook, click here: http://cherylbradshaw.com/get-a-free-...

Book series in order by Cheryl Bradshaw:

Georgiana Germaine (Mystery Series)

1. Little Girl Lost - USA Today Bestseller
2. Little Lost Secrets
3. Little Broken Things
4. Little White Lies
5. Little Tangled Webs
6. Little Shattered Dreams
7. Little Last Words
8. Little Buried Secrets
9. Little Stolen Memories
10. Little Empty Promises
11. Little Hidden Fears

Sloane Monroe Mystery/Thriller Series

0. Silent As the Grave (prequel to series)
1. Black Diamond Death
2. Murder in Mind
3. I Have a Secret
4. Stranger in Town - Shamus Award Finalist
5. Bed of Bones - USA Today Bestseller
6. Hush Now Baby - USA Today Bestseller
7. Gone Daddy Gone - USA Today Bestseller
8. Smoke and Mirrors - USA Today Bestseller

Sloane Monroe Stories - Mystery Novella Series
(with characters from the main series)

1. Deadly Sins: Sloth
2. Deadly Sins: Wrath
3. Deadly Sins: Lust
4. Deadly Sins: Greed
5. Deadly Sins: Envy
6. Deadly Sins: Pride

Sloane & Maddie Peril Awaits - Mystery Series
(Spinoff Series with Sloane Monroe & her sidekick Maddie)

1. The Silent Boy
2. The Shadow Children
3. The Broken Soul
4. The Widow Maker
5. The Familiar Stranger

Addison Lockhart Ghost Mystery Series

1. Grayson Manor Haunting
2. Rosecliff Manor Haunting
3. Blackthorn Manor Haunting
4. Belle Manor Haunting
5. Crawley Manor Haunting

Stand Alone Mystery/Thriller Novels

1. Eye for Revenge - USA Today Bestseller
2. The Perfect Lie
3. Hickory Dickory Dead - USA Today Bestseller
4. Roadkill - USA Today Bestseller

Reviews

[Susan Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short Sloane Monroe story.

I liked the premise of the book. Older lady likes her well maintained neighborhood. Neighbor dies ,and his brother, the sloth, moves in. Older lady goes Rambo. Normally, I'm not a short story fan. It was like watching a t.v. show. Boom! Done. Well written. But, I didn't believe an obese man who was a sloth would move in and have sex partners available so easily.

[Will Decker · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was kinda disappointed in this short story. I've read others in the series and have really like the main character, but she just didn't seem to really have a handle on this case. In fact, the ending felt rather contrived with little of her efforts contributing to it. Still, it's a good series and if you enjoyed this story, you'll definitely want to read more in the series.

[Joe King · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun quick private investigator story. Will likely read more in the series

[Annette Sullivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A stark dark story

I suppose this was a well written story of much less than 1 hour, but it left a bad taste in my mouth.

[Kristy Moore · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just didn't care for it. I suppose for a short story, one must cut out all the ins and outs of doing an investigation and conducting interrogations, but this PI did no work other than breaking into a house that multiple other people had broken into (what kind of locks did this drug dealer dude use on his house?) and ask a few direct questions that the suspects immediately answered despite not being required to at all. Then ran into a parking lot shooting at the killer who showed up out of nowhere in the last three pages to confess. Apparently she had also broken into the dealer's house to commit the murders. Again, was this drug dealer using one of those childhood diary locks to secure his stash of pot?

One extra star for no egregious spelling and grammar errors. I'm not a complete monster.

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick and Easy Short Story



This 71 page short story is an easy read which took about half an hour or so. The plot is straightforward, but for a short story, there are many secondary characters. None were difficult to remember, because most of them were identified by a given name and no surname—Tammy, Ricky, Molly, etc. Most were flawed and not likable, so it was a good thing I enjoyed the MC and her POV.
I would have preferred a cleaner ending, without the characters having any questions. I’ll leave it at that so this review is spoiler-free.

[Carla · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this short read I did not expect a well developed plot or fully developed characters. However I was impressed by how much Cheryl Bradshaw could accomplish in such a short read. The main character was quite well developed and the plot, though short, did include a number of secondary characters who were adequately described for their roles.

[Marsha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short story featuring P.I. Sloane Monroe (from the Sloane Monroe mystery series.) There's a double homicide and the person the police suspect was found unconscious at the scene, and happens to be an elderly woman. Sloane has her work cut out for her. She has to figure out of both victims were the intended targets, or if one was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and work backwards to find a motive and thus any other possible suspects. If you are familiar with the series, you know what you can expect. If you are not familiar with the series, or this author, this would be a good introduction. It is a short story, so it doesn't go into as much detail nor is it as complex as the full novels do but you do get a complete mystery that isn't as easy to solve as you might expect, given the limited number of characters involved. It's well written. With the exception of the first chapter when the crime happens, it's written from Sloane's POV. It reads in about an hour or less. There is minimal violence and no sexual content.

[Bev · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sloane is called in by a lady who is accused of killing her next door neighbor and an unknown woman in his house. Sloane looks into the case even though she is living with the Chief of Police, Cade McCoy. Sloane learns from Mary Pritchard that she didn't like her neighbor. He was the brother of the previous owner, who she liked very well, but this one is nothing like his brother. He doesn't take care of anything, and Mary has had her fill and decides to kill him, buy the property and take care of the lawn. Unfortunely, when she goes in the house she trips over a body of a woman, finds Hector shot. When she turns to go get help, she is knocked out. The police find her with the gun laying on the floor in Hector's house. Her fingerprints are the only ones on the gun. Can Sloane figure out exactly what happened and why? Read the book to find out.

[KimberlyDawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mary Pritchard's neighbor proved sometimes siblings can be polar opposites. Her current neighbor is nothing like his brother that used to live there, whom she liked. Tired of dealing with him, she headed over to take care of things once and for all. When she arrived, she was the one surprised when she found him and an unknown woman both dead. Before she had a chance to leave, she was knocked out, left laying there with her fingerprints being the only one on the murder weapon.

Sloane Monroe is a private investigator, whose boyfriend is the Sheriff, and is called by Mary to look into her case. Will she be able to help? Can she figure out what happened and who did it?

Deadly Sins: Sloth is the first book in the Sloane Monroe Stories series. Even though this book is very short, it is full of surprises. I highly recommend this book!

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a short story, not even a novella, in the world of Sloan Monroe. Very quick read.
Mary Pritchard, an older OCD woman, decides she must kill her obnoxious neighbor. He is a fat, lazy, boor who doesn't take care of the house or the lawn, previously so well tended with Mary's help. She takes her gun and goes to his house, only to find a dead girl in the hallway and her nearly dead neighbor in his bedroom, both shot. She turns to go home to fetch her phone to call for help, and gets hit of the head and knocked out. When she is suspected of the crime (her gun has disappeared and the murder weapon is found near her unconscious body), she hires Sloan to help her prove her innocence.
It was a good, if very short, story. Having some familiarity with the Sloan Monroe series helps, but is not really necessary. Don't spend too much money on it - it's really short!

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a interesting and fast-paced short story about a woman falsely accused of killing her neighbor who she hated. For all her hate, she couldn't do it though and actually interrupts someone doing it for her. The race is now on to prove the neighbor's innocence and figure out who wanted the sloth-like man dead more than she did.
I liked the false leads sprinkled here and a quick twist there that turned this two hour read into less than an hour and a half consumption. I do wish some parts were flushed out a bit better, but I understand it was a novella trying to fit a complicated yet entertaining tale together. Easily could see it being a full novel and hope to read more from this author in the future.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deadly Sins: Slot ( Sloane Monroe stories-Book 1 )
By: Cheryl Bradshaw
Deadly Sins is part of the Sloane Monroe stories, a prequel to Gone Daddy Gone. This is a short story, but if you love Sloane Monroe you will love it. When Mary finds her next door neighbor, Darryl ,and a mystery woman dead , who is their first suspect? This is one of those murder mystery suspense stories that keeps you guessing till the end. Is Mary guilty because she did not like her neighbor? Bradshaw has you on the edge of your seat trying to read faster to see who did it.
I was given a copy of this book , but was not told that I had to give positive review.

[Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sloane Monroe takes on a case where a neighbor has been accused of a double homicide. Mary Pritchard had went over during the night with the intention of killing him. When she got there, she tripped over the body of an unknown female, then went into the neighbors bedroom. When she saw he was already injured, she went to call the police. Bad luck for her, the killer was still there, and she makes a great scapegoat.

This is a great short story, my only complaint is it is very short.

[Lillian Cummings · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mary wanted her lazy as neighbour died but someone beat her to it, unfortunately, the cops that she did it as she was there unconscious when they arrived. How can she prove that she never killed him and the young woman? Can Sloane Monroe the local PI help Mary with her case? The dead neighbour seemed to have alot of enemies and Sloane just needs to figure out which one wanted him dead? Will she be able to find out the truth and save her client? A good read.

[Paul Mendez · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars: Cheryl Bradshaw is my new favorite author. I am a fan of the private-investigator-mystery-novel. I like Sloane Monroe, the P.I. character Bradshaw has created and the supporting characters and their dialogue. The story flows smoothly without unnecessary detail and just enough graphic detail which makes it fun to read.
Deadly Sins (Sloan Monroe short story) was my first Bradshaw novel, and I plan to read more.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This wonderful short story is part of the Sloane Monroe series is and very good. A very quick read but also gives you an idea of the main character, PI Sloane Monroe. Author, Cheryl Bradshaw, does a great job in her character developments and the plot has many twist and turns. This was another great book that I highly recommend along with all others in the Sloane Monroe series.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute little book. A old lady saw everything in the neighborhood that went on all the time. She had a neighbor who kept his home clean. He died and the next man who moved in was a slob according to her. She hated it so much she would try to sneak over at night and water the brown grass. She hated this man so much she wanted to kill him. Did she?

[Lee Simpson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Short Story.

I read this story because it was recommended to me for a prompt on a reading challenge I am doing. It is a short story, but a good one. The story does not bother with a bunch of useless extras, but gets right to the point. I look forward to reading more in this series.

[Murrel Lowry · Rating 5 out of 5]

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Nicely done by author Cheryl Bradshaw. Short and sweet but grabs you from the opening pages and the end comes before you even realize you’ve read it all. Fortunately for me, I have more of her writings in my library to be read at my leisure. My thanks to this author for the works of her mind.

[Jan Causey Hinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great short story

I gave this short story 4 stars because it was a complete story even though it was very short. Only thing I did not like about it was I wish that I had read this before I read daddy gone Daddy. It is still a good Standalone short story.

[Carolyn Wylie-mcelroy · Rating 5 out of 5]

QUICK READ!!!!

I do like these new stories that Cheryl Bradshaw have been releasing!!! They are quick, easy reads that does have the whole story. You aren't left hanging or missing things. Give them a try!!!!

[Tamara Gross · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome

I absolutely love the characters in this books. I love d how she described Mary Pritchard and her displeasure of her neighbor. She described everything so you feel like you are watching the events unfold. Cheryl Bradshaw is an amazing author. Great book.

[Reba · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better take good care of your yard!

An angry, elderly woman decides to kill her neighbor...why? Because he's doesn't take care of his lawn. And he's a slob. But when she creeps into his house to shoot him, she finds that someone has beaten her to it. But she's the only suspect.

[rebecca O. webber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick read and a fill in while I wait for the next full length version of a Sloane Monroe book comes out. She’s not always my favorite P.I. and in this book she did not do much detecting at all. She was in the right place at the right time and it just fell into her lap.

[Marian Cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Sioane Monroe

I love Sloane series! I was so excited when I received email about the " Deadly Sins!! Just finished book one and can wait to start book two! I highly recommend!

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

As Always- A page turner!

I should have known not to start this book when I only have a few minutes a day to read. I should save this for when I have time to NOT put it down. Short but very sweet!

[hesham · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick story that you can finish on the go.
Cheryl Bradshow is one of the writers that will never get you bored. Quick pace and nice flow.
I was hoping that it was a bit longer with more crisp details.

[Mandi Newbold · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a short! (Novella) but still with Sloane Monroe characters! Bradshaw is my favorite mystery author. What I love most about Bradshaw's books, is that they move quickly. Easy to get hooked, and not want to put them down.

[Liz Burke · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have enjoyed all of the books in the series of Sloane Monroe. But this one is my least favorite. I just felt that she didn't have control of her investigation and facts that were more or less right in front of her were missed until much later in the story.