"A sassy heroine . . . [Henrie O] says what she thinks (when it serves her purposes) and pulls no punches."—Chicago Sun-Times When arrogant media magnate Chase Prescott is nearly killed by a box of cyanide-laced candy, he dials his long-ago lover, retired newshound Henrietta O'Dwyer Collins, with a simple request: He'll assemble all the suspects if Henrie O will kindly point out the would-be murderer. It's a case—her first—that fills Henrie O with grave misgivings, especially when she arrives on Chase's private island off the South Carolina coast to meet the players in this deadly drama. Among Prescott's unstable young wife, his sullen stepson, and his toady of a secretary, she has trouble narrowing the field of suspects—even when a second attempt is made on Chase's life. As Henrie O unearths a will and fascinating new evidence, a killer hurricane sweeps up from Cuba, threatening to maroon them in this vacation hell . . . where the trappings of luxury are put to lethal use and the secrets of the past have the power to engulf them all.

Book 1 in a series of traditional mystery stories showcasing various mystery writers. Malice "domestic" refers to crimes that occur to people they know and love (or hate). This anthology includes authors Charlotte MacLeod (The Perplexing Puzzle of the Perfidious Pigeon Poisoner), D.R. Meredith (Windkill), Diane Mott Davidson (The Cottonwood Creek Caper), Valerie Frankel (Angel on the Loose), L.B. Greenwood (The Ties that Bind), Charlotte and Aaron Elkins (Nice Gorilla), Janel LaPierre (Take Care of Yourself), Joan Hess (The Last to Know), Carolyn G. Hart (Henrie O's Holiday), Audrey Peterson (Night Visitor), Barbara Paul (Homebodies), Sharyn McCrumb (Happiness is a Dead Poet) and P.M. Carlson (They Jersey Lily or Make Me Immortal with a Kiss).

When Hart's latest sleuth, 60-ish widow Henrietta O'Dwyer Collins, a.k.a. Henrie O, made her debut in Dead Man's Island, readers everywhere were delighted. In this mystery, Henrie O returns in a classic, teasing puzzler.

When ambitious, abrasive Maggie Winslow announces her intentions to investigate a trio of unsolved local crimes, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter-turned-journalism teacher, Henrietta "Henrie O" Collins, urges her talented student to pursue the story with uncommon vigor. But when Maggie's corpse is discovered the next day in Lovers' Lane—the site of one of the crimes the budding reporter was exploring—the guilt-stricken, sixty-something sleuth vows to get to the bottom of Maggie's murder, even if it means dredging up a past everyone seems to want to keep buried and placing herself firmly in a relentless killer's path.

Six years ago, Henrie O's beloved newspaperman husband Richard lost his life on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Now, on a brisk March morning, a chilling message has arrived by Priority Mail claiming Richard's fatal fall from a towering island cliff was no accident—it was murder. Following cryptic clues and her infallible instincts to a lush and verdant tropical Eden—and to the lavish mountaintop estate of wealthy matriarch Belle Ericcson, where Richard spent his final days—the determined sexagenarian sleuth becoems privy to terrible allegations of greed and jealousy, adultery and abuse...and of a mystery surrounding the kidnap-slaying of Belle's eldes child CeeCee. But now that her search for the truth has brought Henrie O to this lethal paradise where giant palm fronds hide evil deeds from inquisitive eyes, she may never be allowed to leave alive. Because the deaths did no begin or end with Richard Collins...and someone's dark and enduring homicidal passions have yet to be fully satisfied.

Pulitzer Prize-winning ex-reporter Henrietta O'Dwyer Collins no longer chases hot stories all over the world, but murderous mysteries seem to find her. This time, a frantic phone call from an old and dear friend on the other side of the world sends Henrie O rushing to the fabled city of San Antonio to check out the baffling disappearance of her friend's devoted granddaughter, Iris Chavez. Iris, employed at the Tesoros Gallery on San Antonio's famous River Walk, has suddenly dropped from sight without a word. Soon Henrie O discovers that amidst the exquisite objects in the prestigious gallery and among the family members is hidden a dark secret—one Henrie O must uncover if she is to find Iris. Late one dark night on the River Walk, Henrie O sees a sprawled body...and realizes that treachery and disgrace lurk in the shadows of an old and respected business...and death awaits anyone daring to uncover the truth. Pulitzer Prize-winning ex-reporter Henrietta O'Dwyer Collins no longer chases hot stories all over the world, but murderous mysteries seem to find her.This time, a frantic phone call from an old and dear friend on the other side of the world sends Henrie O rushing to the fabled city of San Antonio to check out the baffling disappearance of her friend's devoted granddaughter, Iris Chavez.Iris, employed at the Tesoros Gallery on San Antonio's famous River Walk, has suddenly dropped from sight without a word. Soon Henrie O discovers that amidst the exquisite objects in the prestigious gallery and among the family members is hidden a dark secret—one Henrie O must uncover if she is to find Iris. Late one dark night on the River Walk, Henrie O sees a sprawled body...and realizes that treachery and disgrace lurk in the shadows of an old and respected business...and death awaits anyone daring to uncover the truth.

Retired Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Henrietta Collins no longer races around the globe in pursuit of news. But her talent for troubleshooting and her zest for life are much needed at a family gathering in sunny Bermuda, where murder prowls the halls of a luxury hotel. Henrie 0 has come to the island with her grandchildren for the remarriage of their father, Lloyd Drake. Henrie O's former son-in-law plans to marry Connor Bailey, a beautiful widow with a dark past and a knack for attracting men. Only a year earlier, the resort manager's husband fell from a tower to his death after quarreling with Connor. And now it seems that his restless spirit is haunting the hotel and perhaps seeking revenge.Henrie 0 has no patience for bogus supernatural appearances, no matter how artfully done. But when she sets out to unmask the "ghost's" creator, she soon realizes there's much more at stake. A second death, a fatal fall from a cliff, makes it clear to Henrie 0 that great evil is afoot in this elegant enclave kissed by warm turquoise water, glistening pink sands, and balmy ocean breezes. With everyone connected with the once-joyous planned union of Lloyd and Connor now both a suspect and a potential target of a fiendishly relentless killer, Henrie 0 is gravely concerned for the well-being of her loved ones. It is more than motivation enough for the accomplished amateur sleuth to take investigative matters into her own able hands despite the risks. Decades of experience have taught her that there are some lethal secrets that haunt both the innocent and the guilty alike, vengeful spirits who will not rest until some terrible blood debt has been repaid in full.

“Three cheers for Henrie O, an intelligent, engaging sleuth!”–Mary Higgins Clark When retired newspaper reporter Henrietta O’Dwyer Collins, Henrie O to her friends, receives a call for help, she discovers that love once kindled never burns to ashes. Although she refused Jimmy Lennox’s marriage proposal, there is still a special place for him in her heart. She wished him well when he found happiness with Sophia Montgomery, world-famous documentary filmmaker and stepmother to the now grown heirs of a great fortune. Sophia is at odds with the heirs, and Jimmy fears for her safety. He asks Henrie O to come along with the family on a Baltic cruise. Henrie O can’t turn down her old friend, though old passions are stirred when he calls. On the voyage she soon realizes this dysfunctional family is plunging toward destruction and one of the travelers has murder in mind. As the ports of call pass–Copenhagen, Gdynia, Tallinn, St. Petersburg–death inexorably approaches. Henrie O works desperately to save Jimmy and to bring hope to lives blighted by anger, resentment, and heartbreak.