High Heels Are Murder

From the Agatha Award-Winning Author of Dying In Style Every job has its pluses and minuses. Josie Marcus gets to shoe-shop-but she also must deal with men like Mel Poulaine, who's too interested in handling women's feet. Soon Josie's been hired by Mel's boss to mystery-shop the store, but one step leads to another and Josie finds herself in St. Louis's seedy underbelly. Caught up in a web of crime, Josie hopes against hope that she won't end up murdered in Manolos.

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling series! L.A. shoe designer Maddie Springer hasn't seen her father since he reportedly ran off to Las Vegas with a showgirl named Lola. So she's shocked when he leaves a desperate plea for help on her answering machine—ending in a loud bang. Gunshot? Car backfire? Never one to leave her curiosity unsatisfied, Maddie straps on her stilettos and, along with her trigger-happy best friend, makes tracks for Sin City in search of her MIA dad. Maddie hits the jackpot, all right. She finds not only her dad, but also a handful of aging drag queens, an organized crime ring smuggling fake Prada pumps, and one relentless killer. Plus, it seems the LAPD's sexiest cop is doing a little Vegas moonlighting of his own. In a town where odds are everything, Maddie bets it all on her ability to out-step a vicious murderer. She just hopes her gamble pays off…before her own luck runs out. Other Books in the High Heels Series: #1 Spying in High Heels #2 Killer in High Heels #3 Undercover in High Heels #3.5 Christmas in High Heels (short story) #4 Alibi in High Heels #5 Mayhem in High Heels #5.5 Honeymoon in High Heels (short story) #5.75 Sweetheart in High Heels (novella) #6 Fearless in High Heels #7 Danger in High Heels #8 Homicide in High Heels #9 Deadly in High Heels What critics are saying about Killer in High Heels: "This amusing whodunit scores big. Maddie's winning return, with her bold comical voice and knack for thinking fast on her strappy slingbacks, will elicit cheers from fans of the growing chick mystery field." ~ Publishers' Weekly "Blending romance and humor, Maddie and her madcap friends are an enjoyable treat." ~ Parkersburg Sentinel "Readers who crave light mystery mixed with romance will love this book!" ~ Fresh Fiction "KILLER IN HIGH HEELS is 'packing' with action, hilarity, danger, almost-sex, and fashion wows and woes. Gemma Halliday gives the reader nothing but pure indulgence and fabulous fun!" ~ Once Upon a Romance "This is a first-rate, humorous mystery and one you can't help but grin and giggle all the way through." ~ Romance Reader at Heart "KILLER IN HIGH HEELS is a humorous, delectable romp you won't want to miss!" ~ Romance Junkies

L.A. shoe designer, Maddie Springer, lives her life by three rules: Fashion. Fashion. Fashion. But when she stumbles upon the work of a brutal killer, her life takes an unexpected turn from Manolos to murder. And things only get worse when her boyfriend disappears - along with $20 million in embezzled funds - and her every move is suddenly under scrutiny by the LAPD's sexiest cop. With the help of her post-menopausal bridezilla of a mother, a 300 pound psychic and one seriously oversexed best friend, Maddie finds herself stepping out of her stilettos and onto the trail of a murderer. But can she catch a killer before the killer catches up to her.

New York Times & USA Today Bestselling series! Death at an antiques show has this fashion designer turned amateur sleuth on the case again... When Maddie Springer—shoe designer turned amateur sleuth—tags along with her mother to the Antiques Extravaganza road show, the last thing she expects to have to do is pull her mom off of a celebrity appraiser after he calls her prized antique hatpin a phony. But things go from harried to homicide when the same appraiser is found dead just moments later—killed by Mom's hatpin! Now not even Maddie's husband, LAPD Detective Jack Ramirez, can save Mom as the force's two most bumbling detectives are assigned to the case. As if Maddie doesn't have enough on her plate, her best friends, Dana and Marco, enlist her help to plan the most over-the-top Hollywood surprise party ever for Dana's fiancé (who has a little surprise of his own up his sleeve), Maddie's adorable twin toddlers are always up to no good, and the only thing that can calm her fashion-challenged and suddenly-a-suspect mom down are aura cleansing from her favorite Venice Beach psychic, Mrs. Rosenblatt. Whether they help or hurt, Maddie's friends assist her in wading through a slew of murder suspects—none of whom are telling the truth and all of whom have ample motive to want the appraiser dead. Was it the frigid business partner with questionable ethics? The clown-collecting fan-turned-stalker? The auction house owner with a grudge? Or was the appraiser's real business something much more sinister than his TV personality let on…and much more deadly? Maddie and her eccentric gang of unlikely sleuths are under the gun to find out before the real killer strikes again…and Mom takes the fall! The High Heels Mysteries: #1 Spying in High Heels #2 Killer in High Heels #3 Undercover in High Heels #3.5 Christmas in High Heels (short story) #4 Alibi in High Heels #5 Mayhem in High Heels #5.5 Honeymoon in High Heels (novella) #5.75 Sweetheart in High Heels (short story) #6 Fearless in High Heels #7 Danger in High Heels #8 Homicide in High Heels #9 Deadly in High Heels #10 Suspect in High Heels #11 Peril in High Heels What critics are saying: "Ms. Halliday is the undisputed queen of the genre: she knows how to blend fashion, suspense, laughter, and romance in all the right doses." ~ Fresh Fiction "A saucy combination of romance and suspense that is simply irresistible." ~ Chicago Tribune "Stylish... nonstop action...guaranteed to keep chick lit and mystery fans happy!" ~ Publishers’ Weekly, *starred review* "A roller coaster ride full of fun and excitement!" ~ Romance Reviews Today Rating: This story does not contain any graphic violence, language, or sexual encounters. Its rating would be similar to PG-13 or what you would find on a Hallmark Channel movie or TV series.

When mystery author Maggie Kelly pops across the pond for a movie shoot--accompanied by her once-fictional, now all-too-real (not to mention sexy) hero, Alexandre, Viscount Saint Just--she's in for a jolly good time. We are not amused ... Don't get me wrong--there was plenty to laugh about when we first arrived in Merry Olde England to watch one of my novels being shot as a TV movie. Alex was delighted with the location (a seventeenth-century manor house), but horrified with the surfer-dude mimbo playing him. I, personally, found the situation hilarious ... until the scriptwriter showed up. Dead. Lights, camera ... action! No, not that kind of action. Hmmmm ... on second thought ... Okay, so things are suddenly getting hot and heavy between Alex and me--and our timing is atrocious as usual, what with the murder and mayhem. Suspects? Don't get me started. There's Mr. Contemptuous Director, Ms. Man-Crazy Production Assistant, Mr. Fancy Pants English Actor, Ms. Diva Leading Lady, and ... yours truly. Yep, I was seen arguing with the victim right before his unfortunate demise, so I am, as the Brits would say, in a bit of a pickle.

Death Wore High Heels exposes the symbiosis of the needs of the of today's fashion marketers with the arrogance of today's fashion designers. Shoe manufacturer Barry Howard has a fascinating conversation with the very famous Oscar de la Renta where they form an extremely unlikely business partnership, and makes Barry feel dizzy at his first experience with Oscar's haute couture. The book's centerpiece is the party that Barry has at the famous New York City's Plaza Hotel's Presidential Suite. Here, Barry has presented a new line of shoes together with Oscar's new dress line that requires Barry's shoes to have extremely high heels. The party's unique oleo of designers from Italy, Spain and Singapore and famous marketers of the great stores of the United States and Europe all of whom become involved one way or another in the murder of Ellen Hahoney, the world's most recognized merchandise manager,