Lovely Lethal Gardens (eBook Series)

After her ex-husband leaves her high and dry, former socialite Doreen Montgomery's chance at a new life comes in the form of her grandmother, Nan's, dilapidated old house in picturesque Kelowna … and the added job of caring for the animals Nan couldn’t take into assisted living with her: Thaddeus, the loquacious African gray parrot with a ripe vocabulary, and his buddy, Goliath, a monster-size cat with an equally monstrous attitude.

It’s the new start Doreen and her beloved basset hound, Mugs, desperately need. But, just as things start to look up for Doreen, Goliath the cat and Mugs the dog find a human finger in Nan’s overrun garden.

And not just a finger. Once the police start digging, the rest of the body turns up and turns out to be connected to an old unsolved crime.

With her grandmother as the prime suspect, Doreen soon finds herself stumbling over clues and getting on Corporal Mack Moreau’s last nerve, as she does her best to prove her beloved Nan innocent of murder.

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Doreen Montgomery’s new life in Kelowna was supposed to be a fresh start after a nasty split from her husband of fourteen years, plus a chance to get her bearings and her life back on track. Instead her first week in her new hometown was spent digging up dead bodies, chasing clues, and getting in Corporal Mack Moreau’s way.

But now that the old cold case has been solved, and the murderer brought to justice, Doreen believes things might go her way this week. When Mack hires her to whip his mother’s garden into shape, it seems like a second chance, both for Doreen’s new beginning in Kelowna and for her budding relationship with Mack.

But, instead of digging up Mrs. Moreau’s struggling begonias and planting them in a better location, Doreen discovers another set of bones … and another mystery to solve. As the clues pile up, Mack makes it abundantly clear that he doesn’t want or need her help, but Doreen can’t resist the lure of another whodunit. As she and Mack butt heads and chase red herrings, Doreen’s grandmother, Nan, sets odds and places bets on who solves the crime first.

All while a murderer is watching …

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After getting involved in two murder cases in the short time she’s lived in picturesque Kelowna, divorcee and gardener Doreen Montgomery has developed a reputation almost as notorious as her Nan’s. The only way to stop people from speculating, is to live a life of unrelieved boredom until the media and the neighbors forget about her. And Doreen aims to do just that with a tour of Kelowna’s famed Carnation Gardens. Plants, more plants, and nothing whatsoever that anyone could object to. 

But when she sees a fight between a beautiful young woman and her boyfriend, she can’t help but be concerned. Concerned enough that she follows the couple out of the parking lot and through town. And when gunshots interrupt the placid afternoon, it’s too late to worry about how her nemesis, Corporal Mack Moreau, will feel about her getting involved in yet another of his cases. 

With bodies turning up in the carnations, and a connection to a cold case of a missing child from long ago, Doreen has her hands full, not least with trying to keep her involvement in the investigations a secret from her Nan, Mack Moreau, and especially the media. But someone’s keeping up with Doreen’s doings… and that someone can’t afford for her to find the answers to the questions she’s asking.

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After almost a month in picturesque Kelowna, Doreen Montgomery still can’t keep her notoriety to a minimum or her nose out of other people’s business. Now those suffering from the loss of a loved one seek her out, wanting her help. While the last thing Doreen wants is to have the media discover she’s involved in another cold case, she is already hooked on the details …

But even more is going on.News has gotten out that Nan’s old house is brimming over with valuable antiques, antiques Nan collected and left for Doreen, and the seedier elements of their lovely town are circling like vultures. With her animals in full assistant mode, Doreen must investigate the cold case, right the wrongs of the past, and keep her home safe, all while evading the media—and Corporal Mack Moreau.

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Doreen’s success at solving murders has hit the newswires across the country, but all Doreen wants is to be left alone. She has antiques to get to the auction house and a relationship with Corporal Mack Moreau to work out, not to mention a new friendship to nurture with Penny, Doreen’s first friend in Kelowna, and Doreen doesn’t want to ruin things.

But when a surprise accusation won’t leave Doreen alone—about Penny’s late husband George’s death and made by one of the men Doreen helped put away—she thinks that maybe it can’t hurt to just take a quick look into her new friend’s past.

Before Doreen knows it, she’s juggling a cold case, a closed case, and a possible mercy killing … along with cultivating her relationships with Penny, Mack, and Doreen’s pets: Mugs, the basset hound; Goliath, the Maine coon cat, and Thaddeus, the far-too-talkative African gray parrot. And while Mack should be used to Doreen’s antics by now, when she dives into yet another of his cases it’s becoming increasingly hard to take ...

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One night 10 years ago, 8-year-old Crystal, vanished from her bed in her parents’ house, the only clue a footprint in the flowerbed below the girl’s window. 

Now that footprint’s reappeared, this time at the scene of another crime, and Doreen is under strict orders not to stick her nose into Corporal Mack Moreau’s new investigation.

But while Mack is busy with the new case, Doreen figures it can’t hurt if she just takes a quick look at the old one. Her house is empty, her antiques removed, and she has time on her hands. She’s finished working on Penny’s garden and needs a new project to keep her busy – and allow her to avoid the heavy work waiting in her own garden. And with the help of her assistants, Thaddeus the parrot, Goliath the Maine Coon, and Mugs the Basset, soon Doreen is busy navigating the world of pawn shops and blackmail as she looks for clues as to what happened to the girl stolen from her bedroom so many years ago. 

Surely, it’s not her fault when her case butts up against the new one – is it?

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Flush with success from solving a decade-old kidnapping case, Doreen can’t wait to find out what’s next in her one-woman crusade to clean up Kelowna’s cold crimes. But, before she can unearth another old case to sink her teeth into, she must tie up some loose ends from the last one.

Steve Albright, fixer for the local biker gang, has made it clear that he blames Doreen for sending his friend Penny Jordan to prison. Steve even suggests that Doreen might have set up Penny Jordan. While Doreen wouldn’t do that, she’s afraid that other people might believe Steve. He’s a popular figure in town and has a lot of friends, many of whom Doreen doesn’t want to get any closer to than she must.

At least Steve doesn’t have his gun anymore, having dropped that in Doreen’s neighbor’s gardenia bed while she chased him from her yard. Which makes Doreen think that maybe it’s safe to dig into Steve’s past. Until she uncovers a connection to three arson cases from years ago and is warned off by Corporal Mack Moreau.

But Doreen’s never listened to Mack before, and it has all worked out thus far, so it’s not like she has to listen to him now. Right?

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The four boxes of files Doreen inherited from journalist Bridgeman Solomon have already helped her solve one crime, and Doreen hopes they’ll continue to assist her as she sticks her nose into future cases. But, when she stumbles over a pair of pink satin handcuffs in her standoffish neighbor Richard de Genaro’s heather patch, it’s hard to believe that those reporter’s files could have anything useful to offer regarding that.

Doreen takes a look though, and soon she’s headed down a merry trail of prostitution, embezzlement, and, of course, murder. But the minute the files suggest a connection to Doreen’s specialty, a cold case, her beau and partner in crime, Corporal Mack Moreau, starts breathing down her neck.

With her trusty animals leading the way, Doreen sets out to find the connection between the reputable banker who died in an unsolved hit-and-run and the prostitute who owned the pink satin handcuffs. As Doreen puts it all together, even she is surprised at the outcome of her latest investigation.

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Who knew two small maker’s marks could lead to such chaos? Doreen has been enjoying a few well-earned days of peace and quiet after solving her last mystery. But all good things must come to an end. Like when Thaddeus, her independently minded African gray parrot, digs up two rectangular metal pieces from the path along the creek. Then Doreen is sent down another rabbit hole of the past: connecting the dots from a long-defunct tool repair company and a young girl who disappeared at the same time.

Corporal Mack Moreau doesn’t think these events are connected. He doesn’t believe the spate of recent deaths is suspiciously tied in either. Mack wants Doreen to focus on the materials and the cost analysis to replace her backyard deck and to leave the detecting to him. But how can she, when she knows so much more is going on than Mack believes?

Heart attacks, unfair wills, and a missing ice pick are all related. She just needs to understand how …

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The problem with notoriety is unfair expectations. When Mack’s mother, Millicent Moreau, requests Doreen’s help with a small problem she’s kept hidden for decades, Doreen feels obligated to help. And what harm could it do, after all? Worst-case scenario? It’ll annoy Mack, but that’s something she does on a regular basis anyway.

But when Millicent’s “small problem” turns out to involve a failed marriage, a bag of jewels from a jewelry store that mysteriously burned down decades ago, possible insurance fraud, and maybe even a case of murder, … Doreen will admit that she’s in way over her head.

With her trusty trio of furry and feathered cohorts, she brings an old case into the present—and finds it’s more current than ever …

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Doreen is overwhelmed with joy when she sees all the volunteers who show up to help get her deck addition built. Most of the men are cops, friends of Corporal Mack Moreau’s, and are happy to help Mack’s special friend and the lady who has helped solve so many crimes for them with a spot of home renovation.

But before the deck improvement can be finished, duty calls, and the cops are called away on a case. Another gray-haired lady has dropped dead. Yet another heart attack victim is added to the long line of previous ones. And, of course, neither of these recently deceased women had a heart condition that would explain their sudden demise.

With her animals at her side, Doreen is determined to figure out what the ladies had in common, plus why and how kiwis keep popping up in this case. As she digs into the ladies’ lives, the things Doreen discover are shocking, … but not as shocking as the answer is to this riddle …

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What was supposed to be a leisurely stroll through a peaceful cemetery after a recent funeral turns into the start of a new case. Someone clobbers Doreen over the head and leaves her facedown among the funeral flowers.

Is it random violence? Revenge? A warning of worse to come?

No one knows, not even Doreen, but one thing is certain: the attack enabled the disappearance—perhaps the abduction?—of Doreen’s beloved African gray parrot, Thaddeus. Frantic, Doreen foregoes a trip to the emergency room in favor of heading straight home, where she hopes Thaddeus will return sooner rather than later.

When he does show up, riding a branch down the river, coming right home, he’s different, and all he can talk about is Big Guy. He’s also sporting an SOS message fastened around his ankle… Doreen sets out to retrace Thaddeus’s path, while Mack hunts down her attacker.

Between birds and boys and Corporal Mack Moreau’s brother, the lawyer looking into her divorce situation, Doreen has her hands full. And that’s before her former lawyer shows up unexpectedly at her home! Off-balance by all these events, Doreen opens her door to someone with a serious grudge to take her down …

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Being a suspect in the murder of her ex-lawyer is not the fun Doreen thought it would be. And, of course, she’s been ordered to stay away from the case, … but she can’t help being interested. So she enlists Mack’s brother, Nick—her new lawyer—to help.

Mack’s first priority is to clear Doreen as a suspect. No one in their right mind would seriously believe she’d done the deed, of course. … But, the fact is, she had both motive and opportunity, so clearing her of suspicion isn’t the walk in the park that Mack would like it to be. Especially not when she insists on sticking her nose into his case, where it doesn’t belong.

And just when Doreen is certain things can’t get any worse, answering her doorbell shows her that this nightmare has just started. Who just walked into her life? None other than her soon-to-be-ex-husband, … Mathew …

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It’s been a tough few weeks since Robin and Mathew, Doreen’s ex-lawyer and her ex-husband, slid back into her life.

Okay, so maybe Robin isn’t here any longer to cause torment, but Mathew is. And he’s not planning to leave Doreen alone anytime soon, although thankfully he’s gone back home for a while. Trying to recuperate looks doubtful for Doreen, when a local gardener is kidnapped, while picking nasturtiums for dinner.

The case heats up when the missing man’s niece appears on Doreen’s doorstep, looking for help, including asking Doreen to accompany her to the police station.

Not at all sure what’s going on, but willing to help someone in need—particularly after having been a suspect herself—Doreen tags along, looking to do her good deed for the day.

But no good deed goes unpunished, and, when Mathew calls, Doreen gets more than she bargained for, including all the usual suspects: love, jealousy, and … greed. It takes everything from her feathered and furred critter team to keep her safe, as she digs to the bottom of yet another crazy case …

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Needing a break from all the murder and mayhem, Doreen and Mack plan an outing to see the local orchid show. Some of the displays are in the community center, but the more prized specimens of this genus require a visit to some of the gardeners’ homes, a rare opportunity not afforded to everyone.

This trip, not quite a date, affords Doreen a chance to enjoy not only the company of Mack but to get to know a few more of the colorful locals. But, when one of these locals ends up dead just after their visit, the dark underbelly of orchid growing is exposed and, with it, an old murder, … not to mention another new one.

Doreen and Mack just can’t catch a break. But can they catch a killer before he kills again?

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Enjoying a beautiful day on the lake, while Doreen tries her hand at paddleboarding, ends up on an odd note after finding poison in a bed of pansies. She garners a tidbit of information out of her BFF, Corporal Mack Moreau, about a man who’d recently walked into the emergency room, complaining he’d been poisoned.

Only on a threat of good behavior (surely it doesn’t count if given under duress), Doreen agrees to stay out of his case. But, as it happens, the mention of poison to her beloved Nan brings up another recent death and an old woman who’d been saying someone was poisoning her for months. Only no one listened. Now she is dead.

When Doreen’s case and Mack’s collide, she’s delighted, and so is he. Not. But, when Nan decides to join in the sleuthing, with her pal, Richie, it’s Doreen’s turn to worry—and with good reason!

Who knew a simple trip to the consignment store would find Wendy being strong-armed by two strangers? So not allowed—especially as it could affect Doreen getting her month-end check! Trying to get to the bottom of this is one convoluted story to sort out. It involves Bernard—an eccentric and handsome older man, who had a very young fiancée in his life—the breakup, and the resulting theft.

Corporal Mack Moreau is not at all happy with Doreen’s new male friend, Bernard, who has the money to keep her in the style she was accustomed to. However, Mack is happy Doreen is staying out of his cases, if only she could stay out of trouble! Then again, Doreen can find trouble like this without any effort on her part. At least this time she also befriends another Kelowna icon, who lives behind Wendy’s store and who is well-known for her quince jams and jellies.

Yet a big shiny reward from Bernard awaits someone who solves the theft and how it involves Wendy and the jam icon. Maybe—just maybe—that someone could be Doreen.

When the journey to Rosemoor for a celebratory evening turns deadly, Doreen’s life is flipped on her head. She can only watch in horror as Mack is shot right in front of her. Horrified, she vows to solve this case and fast, before the shooter realizes he failed and comes back for a second attempt.

Corporal Mack Moreau has been shot before, but this time it’s way worse because Doreen watched it all happen. Now she’s planning to catch the shooter before Mack even starts to heal. That’s not a good idea. She’s yet to consider that maybe the shooter wasn’t after Mack but really wanted to shoot her. After all, the cases she’s been involved in have created a whole new level of acquaintances in her life. How many of them are gunning for her?

But Doreen is not deterred, and, with her trusty team at her side, she’s determined to keep Mack safe by finding his shooter before he tries again.

Doreen knows her relationship with the police captain has always been on thin ground. She has helped them solve a lot of cases, but she’s quadrupled their work and constantly gets in their way. So no one is more surprised than Doreen when the captain stops by and asks for a personal favor, concerning a cold case from his own childhood.

Slowly recovering from his injury, Corporal Mack Moreau learns that the captain has stopped by Doreen’s house, asking for a moment of her time. Curious, Mack’s even more stunned to hear the details about his captain’s visit. Mack wants to help, but investigating a case from forty years ago doesn’t leave much behind to go on.

Doreen knows that failing to solve a case has to happen sometime. But she’d do a lot to not have that happen here, not when the captain had personally asked for her help. So, with her critters in tow, Doreen is off and running, … leaving Mack watching—and worrying—in her wake.

After helping the captain solve his long overdue case, Doreen’s reputation is well and truly cemented in Kelowna. That’s proven out when a young woman is murdered in her own apartment, and the police start looking at the boyfriend. With the town on edge, this young man seeks out Doreen’s help to prove his innocence.

Corporal Mack Moreau is back to light duty work—mostly keeping an eye on Doreen, if the captain has any say in it. It’s hardly a hardship, as he loves being around her, when she’s not dipping her toes in his active cases. And yet somehow she manages to find old cases that dovetail with his ongoing ones, giving her an exaggerated opinion of where her boundaries are.

What seems simple on the surface goes back into history to a case that was done and dusted, with the killer now out free, looking for revenge. But, of course, it’s not that simple or that easy; and, by the time Doreen and her animal crew are done, the world has shifted for more than just one person in this case.