TWICE DEAD by Elizabeth Dearl
A Taylor Madison Mystery
Avid Press - August 2001
ISBN: 1931419183 - Paperback & eBook
Amateur Sleuth Mystery

Reviewed by Jo Rogers, MyShelf.com
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The saga of loveable, blonde, mystery writer Taylor Madison, begun in DIAMONDBACK, continues in TWICE DEAD. She has published three novels now, and is financially comfortable if not rich. So, when she hears that Bonita "Bo" Posey, owner of the grocery store in Perdue, Texas, is having a yard sale, her thrifty nature surfaces, and she can't resist taking a peek at Bo's stuff. So she cons her boyfriend, Deputy Cal Arnette, into going with her to check out the merchandise.

Taylor still hasn't bought herself a real coat, and she is freezing in the little cottage where Bo stores her junk and her treasures, including a mahogany desk Taylor wants, but can't afford. When Cal suggests building a fire in the fireplace, Bo says no, because the chimney hasn't been cleaned in thirty years. Cal looks up the chimney and says it is indeed blocked. While he goes after his flashlight, Taylor pokes at the blockage with a broom handle. Nothing could have prepared her for the skeleton that plopped into the grate. It is the skeleton of Ralph Posey, Bo's husband, who vanished that very day thirty-five years ago.

TWICE DEAD is a gem of a mystery, and Taylor Madison grows ever more loveable as she stumbles over and through a mountain of evidence as she tries to find the killer. She jumps to many wrong conclusions before she finally reaches the right one. This is a quick read, so you might not have to put it down if you start early enough! I enjoyed this one thoroughly and look forward to the next Taylor Madison caper.