Murder Unfolds

Stain-Busting Mystery #5

by Sharon Short

As her big 3-0 approaches, Josie Toadfern's life seems more or less wrinkle-free. Since the laundromat owner, stain removal expert, and confirmed snoop's local stain-busting column went regional, she's become a true small-town celeb. And now she's been asked to give a speech in honor of her deceased junior high school teacher, Mrs. Oglevee—even though Josie remembers finding herself in hot water with the dour disciplinarian on numerous occasions.

But then the late educator's alleged long-lost daughter hands her a note claiming that Mrs. O was murdered. Suddenly more than unpleasant middle school memories keep Josie up nights, as her unauthorized investigation begins turning up some very interesting dirt. Mrs. O, apparently, was more than just a tight-lipped prude who ruled detention with an iron fist. And when an Oglevee relative ends up dead, Josie realizes she'll have to air all of the family's dirty laundry . . . or she'll be spending her thirtieth birthday removing bloodstains.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Fiction

256 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Sharon Short is the author of sixteen published books.

Her newest, Trouble Island, is historical suspense and will be published by Minotaur Books on December 3, 2024.

As Jess Montgomery, she writes the historical Kinship Mysteries set in the 1920s and inspired by Ohio’s true first female sheriff.

Sharon is a contributing editor to Writer’s Digest, for which she writes the column, “Level Up Your Writing (Life)” and teaches for Writer’s Digest University.

She is also a three-time recipient of the Individual Excellence Award in Literary Arts from Ohio Arts Council and has been a John E. Nance Writer in Residence at Thurber House (Columbus, Ohio).

When not writing, Sharon enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading, swimming, and occasionally hiking.

Reviews

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun adventure. I enjoyed digging into Mrs. Oglevee’s past with Josie and it was fun going to Port Clinton with everyone. Trying to keep all the past events and all the extra characters (past and present) straight was a challenge at times. Looking forward to the next adventure.

[Sallee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another Josie Toadfern mystery. She has a possible new love interest in Caleb Loudermilk who has helped Josie get her column in all the regional papers. In this story, Josie gives a speech at the local library to open up the a history collection bequeathed by the late Mrs. Oglevee, Josie's jr. hi history teacher who she detested. At this gathering she is given a note claiming Mrs. Oglevee was murdered and did not die of a heart attack as everyone thought. As Josie looks into her former teacher's life, she finds out that Mrs. Oglevee was not always a prim, prudish, and dour woman. As Mrs. Oglevee appears in Josie's dreams she asked Josie to find out if she was murdered or indeed, died of heart failure. This task Josie undertakes as Mrs. Oglevee says that if she finds out the truth, she will stop appearing in Josie;s dreams. This task takes Josie, her friends Sherry and Sally to Port Clinton, Ohio to celebrate Josie's 30th birthday at the Great Walleye Drop on New Years Eve. It just so happens that Port Clinton is Mrs. Oglevee's home town. The story moves rapildly from there. A fun read!

[Susie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Takes place in northern Ohio, near Lake Erie. Josie gives tips on removing laundry stains.

[Pat Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun light read. A little bit on the order of Evanovich or Sneaky Pie Brown. Will pick up some of the other mysteries.

[Mohamed Maaty · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first bought the book I didn't even know who the Author is. I bought because it only because I saw it on a used books market & it had a discount among other books, so when decided to read the book I wasn't that excited about it BUT the Author's AMAZING &Professional style of writing just quickly grabbed my attention from Chapter 1 & Now I'm searching for more books of "Sharon Short".
Amazing writing, Good comedy, A story that quickly attract the Reader.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute little mystery. It’s the 5th in a series that I haven’t read, so there were a lot of references I missed. I found the voice to be cloying sometimes and the mystery to be silly, but I thought the Ohio facts were cute. Josie is a likable character, even if her merry band was annoying.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent series

I love the plot of this story. I know the places it took place in. I'm close to port Clinton myself. Sharon writes and good mystery. Kept me guessing. And yes on top of ferris wheel you can see Lake Erie.

[Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

The main characters and her adult friends are depicted as catty, shallow women wondering how the men in their lives can save them emotionally. Oh yeah, and I guess there is a murder mystery in there some where. I could get past page 73.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love a cozy mystery. Great little read, very enjoyable. I like the characters, and the story line kept things moving. A good who done it.

[Jamie Howerton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just alright. Probably wouldn't recommend, just because its not my thing. Also, I felt like the author really tried to add more characters than it was possible to keep track off. The author probably meant to make the book more interesting this way, but instead it made it frustrating for me.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute!

[Johnna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love Josie Toadfern!