Murder In The Ball Park

Wolfe earns a big league call-up after a senator gets taken out at the ball game Archie Goodwin and Saul Panzer have ventured into the wilds of northern Manhattan to watch the Giants take on the Dodgers at the Polo Grounds. The national anthem is just winding down when Panzer spies a notable in the box seats: state senator Orson Milbank, a silver-haired scoundrel with enemies in every corner of upstate New York. In the fourth inning, a monstrous line drive brings every fan in the grandstand to his feet—every fan save for one silver-haired senator, who has been shot dead by a sniper in the upper deck. Archie’s employer—the rotund genius Nero Wolfe—has no interest in investigating the stadium slaying, but Archie is swayed by the senator’s suspiciously lovely widow. Her husband was mired hip-deep in corruption, and sorting out who killed him will be a task far less pleasant than an afternoon at the ball park.

A killer hiding among the crowd at a Dodgers-Giants game forces Nero Wolfe to step up to the plate in this “superb” mystery (Publishers Weekly, starred review). Archie Goodwin and Saul Panzer have ventured into the wilds of northern Manhattan to watch the Giants take on the Dodgers at the Polo Grounds. The national anthem is just winding down when Panzer spies a notable in the box seats: state senator Orson Milbank, a silver-haired scoundrel with enemies in every corner of upstate New York. In the fourth inning, a monstrous line drive brings every fan in the grandstand to his feet—every fan save for one silver-haired senator, who has been shot dead by a sniper in the upper deck. Archie’s employer—the rotund genius Nero Wolfe—has no interest in investigating the stadium slaying, but Archie is swayed by the senator’s suspiciously lovely widow. Her husband was mired hip-deep in corruption, and sorting out who killed him will be a task far less pleasant than an afternoon at the ball park.

"When a sniper kills a senator at ballgame, Nero Wolfe is called upon to solve the murder"--

Paige Smith is back-the detective hero for people who aren't cut out to be detective heroes. For the editor of the Arlington weekly Spectator, one front-row seat for a hair-raising scoop had been enough for a lifetime, thank you. All he wanted now was safe, dull predictability, and maybe the hope of a Saturday night date. Alas, dull wasn't in the cards. Arlington County was simmering over a ballpark plan that was welcomed by no one or everyone, depending on whom you asked. The upcoming election was ugly with racism and hints of corruption. Now, the county's first marathon was jeopardized when its most prominent runner crossed his own personal finish line. And as for women, "Smitty" would soon be far out of his league, with the hyperactive athlete who taught him how to sprint; the single mom with short skirts and a long-barreled pistol; the no-nonsense cop who knew too much for comfort-and the jailbird blonde who still tugged at his heart. Which one was going to save him or sink him?

32-year-old Madeline Boucher's Grandfather instilled a love in the Boston Red Sox into her from an early age and increased that love by purchasing a local Independent League Baseball team, the Abington Armadillos. After losing her corporate job in Boston, Madeline realizes her best option is to join the family baseball business. As the new "Social Media Director" for the team, Madeline attends her first business function and witnesses an argument between her brother Ben, and a strange man. A few days later when walking the ballpark during her early morning hours, she finds the body of a man beaten to death with a baseball bat in the Visitor's Dugout. It was the man her brother was arguing with at the party. Madeline is concerned that her brother would be considered a suspect. Through the local Detectives and Davis - the head of security for the ballpark she learns the victim is Christopher Dailey, a local baseball scout and prior felon. When her brother is arrested and taken to the police station, she realizes she needs to figure out who the real culprit is, so her brother doesn't take the fall for something she knows he didn't do.

When we think of baseball, we think of sunny days and leisurely outings at the ballpark--rarely do thoughts of death come to mind. Yet during the game's history, hundreds of players, coaches and spectators have died while playing or watching the National Pastime. In its second edition, this ground-breaking study provides the known details for 150 years of game-related deaths, identifies contributing factors and discusses resulting changes to game rules, protective equipment, crowd control and stadium structures and grounds. Topics covered include pitched and batted-ball fatalities, weather and field condition accidents, structural failures, fatalities from violent or risky behavior and deaths from natural causes.

Getting inside is easy; the stress comes in getting out clean. A case of breaking and entering escalates after Émile Cinq-Mars transfers from the Night Patrol. Montreal, 1975. Detective Émile Cinq-Mars is transferring from the Night Patrol – the notoriously tough department of officers in charge of watching over the city as it sleeps – to the day shift. His old superior has seen to it that he’s assigned to partner Yves Giroux, another ex-Night Patrol detective some say isn’t on the ‘up and up’. Getting in a house is easy for thief Quinn Tanner. The stress comes in getting out clean. On finding her getaway driver dead after her latest heist, she goes underground. For his first case on the day shift, Émile is sent to the property that Quinn has just visited, and their paths are set to cross. But has she stolen something more valuable than she realizes . . . and who is hunting for her now?

HOTDOG, CRACKERJACK, BEER, and MURDER. PLAY BALL!MADELINE BOUCHER is still reeling from her first few weeks of working for her family's Independent League Baseball Team, the Abington Armadillos. She found a dead body and survived a kidnapping before finally clearing her brother of a murder. She didn't think anything could be as dramatic as that, but she was wrong.Her parents have given her more responsibility in running ballpark events in the hopes that they could retire and leave the team in her hands. Her brother is moving on to the big leagues, so this is her time to shine. Her first task? Deal with a concession stand kerfuffle. Redmond Brewery heiress, Alaska Redmond, storms her way into the ballpark making demands.The next day, the son of the concession's manager finds the Redmond's body in one of the beer stands along the ballpark concourse. Again, Madeline finds herself immersed in an investigation. While the suspects start piling up, including a promising young player on the team, Madeline knows she must get involved. With the help of Davis, her new love interest and head of the security department, she delves deeper into the death of the heiress. Trying to run team events, solve a murder, and have a normal life take their toll as Madeline comes to depend on those in her baseball loving community, including Bronia, her old family friend who runs a garden center who helps her make sense of things. She even chances a physic for advice while at a Salem Warlock's away game. Will anyone of help her untangle the mess of suspects including the victim's family?Can she clear the name of the Abington Armadillos and focus on the season?