Bøker av Misty Simon

Her number is up . . . This Christmas, Tallie Graver would like to take a break from running her cleaning business to be with her boyfriend, Max, and enjoy their first holiday together-alone. Instead, she's stuck keeping her mother and grandmother from duking it out during the town's annual Christmas Eve bingo game. As for festive spirit, she'll have to settle for her mean-spirited Aunt Ronda, whose mouth could use some soap. The night only gets worse after Tallie discovers Ronda's body. It seems someone cleaned her clock with a can of varnish. While all the evidence points to Ronda's husband, Tallie doesn't believe her beloved Uncle Hoagie could do such a dirty deed. Of course, his sudden disappearance doesn't help his case. If Tallie hopes to clear his name, she'll need to dig up some dirt to locate the real killer. Otherwise, someone else could get rubbed out . . . Praise for Cremains of the Day "Simon kicks off a new series that combines a bit of humor and romance with a heroine who knows no boundaries while searching for the truth that will keep her out of jail."-Kirkus Reviews "An amusing new series with an engaging, spirited sleuth." -Library Journal "You'll be cheering as the clues pile up in this creative cozy mystery." -New York Times bestselling author Lynn Cahoon

Ivy Morris never thought she'd be walking her new stepmother down the aisle to her father. Not a flawless event, because, really, when is anything in Ivy's life flawless? At least she avoids tripping. It's the reception that has the flaw. The wedding singer nearly chokes to death on a glass of water, and then Ivy's sister finds something unexpected in the parking lot. And that's not all. Something odd is going on in the sleepy little town of Martha's Point - for some reason, no female under the age of fifty can keep her hands off Ivy's boyfriend. Ivy's little shop enjoys a tremendous increase in business as those women keep running in to buy more new sexy lingerie, but her heart is anything but happy. What will it take to solve these mysteries? Is Ivy up to it? Well, she's about to find out.

Cake maker and single mom Claudia Bradley thinks she has life all figured out -- until her best friend Nate starts looking like a mouth-watering dessert and her son's father comes strolling back into the picture as if he'd never left ten years ago. Throw in a case of preteen angst and a family with lots of well-meant advice, and, well, she's whipping up a recipe for chaos! Nate West has always been there for Claudia, a basic ingredient in her life, but suddenly she is flirting outrageously with him when she's never looked that way at him before -- despite his dreams. With her ex-lover back in town, Nate isn't about to renege on his years-old promise to always be the friend Claudia needs, but does she want more? She's as tempting as butter cream frosting with sprinkles, and he's mighty tempted...

Single mom Chelsea Moore may not have had a happy marriage herself, but she's bound and determined to pull off the wedding of the year for her sister. It should be a piece of cake as long as she can keep her mother from trying to hook her up with every eligible guy in the county. Jack Barton has no qualms about hosting his sister's best friend for the final week before the wedding, along with said best friend's adorable daughter. But when Chelsea asks him to be a shield against the impending bachelor parade, he doesn't think it through before agreeing. That's when he finds out how little it feels like pretend and how much he wants to make room for these two wonderful females in his life and at his inn.

Olivia Jameson runs a summer camp called Breathe, giving inner-city kids a chance to see a different life. When the man who owned the camp died, leaving his dream to his son, Liv took charge, and the work means the world to her. As far as Alex Campbell is concerned, the camp is a hands-off tax write-off. But when Liv calls because her boys are accused of property damage, Alex returns to the place he hasn't called home since age twelve...and to a girl he barely remembers, now a woman who stirs him like no city sophisticates ever have. This is Liv's livelihood, her mission, her dream. Sharing it with a man who doesn't understand the impact is frustrating. But as he begins learning truths that were hidden from him, both Liv and Alex may have a change of heart. Can Liv open up her life one more time to love?

Absolutely No Returns or Exchanges Years ago Jocelyn Moreland fled to Kissinger with a broken heart. When she's asked to choreograph a surprise dance for an upcoming wedding, she has no idea it will lead to Sam Locke turning her life upside down. Designs on a Dame Logan West's had his eye on Adele Dame but fears it'll cause issues if he pursues her. When they catch the garter and the bouquet, respectively, at a wedding, he starts reconsidering. Now if he could only find the right time to ask her out. Maybe This Time A set of unfortunate events led to Mason Nottingham missing the "Christmas" he'd hoped would get his life back on track. He wants to see his son and have another chance with his ex, Paige Barton, but he's messed up a lot. First, he has to convince her to at least give him a chance to start making amends.

Dexter Zegray is up to his eyeballs in diapers and formula. That's what happens when a baby that isn't even his gets dropped off on his doorstep and his teenage brother - the father - decides to run off to "figure stuff out." Dex wishes he could run away, too, but that's not an option. Zoe Bradley has for months successfully avoided getting caught in the Casanova trap that is Dex Zegray. But when he comes into Decadence with baby in tow, asking for help, she can't resist the little girl or the man who might just be more than the philanderer name tag she's assigned him. Dex needs a nanny, and Zoe's the only one with the time to do it. But will forced togetherness open Zoe's eyes to his true charms? And why does it have to be precisely when he's unavailable?

Live and let dust . . .   Now that Tallie Graver’s cleaning business is starting to shine, she’s ready to go squeegee to squeegee against Audra McNeal for a major contract at the Astercromb mansion. Tallie’s not afraid of a little friendly competition from the new cleaner in town. In fact, Tallie likes Audra, though she wonders how her glamorous rival manages to clean house and maintain her fancy manicure. Tallie has her rubber-gloves full staying one step ahead of her nemesis. Until she finds a well-polished hand poking out of a rolled-up carpet, rendering her competition . . . dead.   Though it lands Tallie the big job, there’s nothing tidy about Audra’s death. So between polishing and scrubbing, Tallie’s determined to find the killer. Hopefully the police chief doesn’t mind her cluttering up his investigation with the filthy dealings she discovers. Turns out Audra was not as squeaky clean as she appeared. And confronting her killer could bring Tallie to a very foul end indeed . . .   Praise for Cremains of the Day   “Simon kicks off a new series that combines a bit of humor and romance with a heroine who knows no boundaries while searching for the truth that will keep her out of jail.”—Kirkus Reviews   “An amusing new series with an engaging, spirited sleuth.” —Library Journal   “You’ll be cheering as the clues pile up in this creative cozy mystery.” —New York Times bestselling author Lynn Cahoon

Window of opportunity . . . Most housecleaners don't do windows, but Tallie Graver loves leaving a pane of glass streak-free and sparkling. After a dirty divorce from a filthy-rich jerk, she's started her own cleaning business to make ends meet. On her latest job, prepping a renovated bed and breakfast for a grand re-opening, she's standing outside on a ladder, wiping off a grimy pane, when she spies a man on a bed through the glass. But the B&B isn't open for business yet-and the man's not sleeping. Her family owns the Graver Funeral Home, so Tallie knows a corpse when she sees one. The victim is a shady building inspector with a reputation for handing out passing grades for a greased palm. With the local police resistant, Tallie launches her own investigation, before she gets a rep as a town crank. But it's going to take more than a squirt bottle and a squeegee to clean up this mess. With the help of her gal pal Gina, Tallie searches for a killer's motive. But she'd better be careful, or it'll be curtains for this window cleaner . . . "An amusing new series with an engaging, spirited sleuth." -Library Journal

No more cheating . . .   Best friends Tallie Graver and Gina Laudermilch both seem to spend a lot of time around urns. For Tallie, they''re part and parcel of the family business, Graver''s Funeral Home. Even though she''s traded ashes for dusting with her own cleaning business, she still works part-time for her folks and lives above the funeral parlor. For Gina, they''re the vessels that contain her heavenly brew at her coffee shop, Bean There, Done That. And both women are learning that owning a business can make finding time for romance challenging.   But when Gina''s new beau turns out to have a wife, who barges into the coffee shop to take him home, she can''t contain her bitterness and loudly threatens to poison his cup or boil him in a vat of coffee. So when Mr. Wrong turns up dead at the bottom of a staircase inside Gina''s locked home, she finds herself at the top of the police''s suspect list. Tallie needs to sweep in to save her friend. But she''ll need to watch her step, or she may go from being a funeral home employee to becoming their next client . . .