Published 1997
Anne George is a former English teacher, now author, from my hometown of Birmingham, Alabama. She writes about her neighborhood, which happens to sit beneath the bare bottom of our iron man statue, Vulcan. Anne’s mysteries are solved by the narrator, Patricia Ann and her sister Mary Alice, who are polar opposites in almost every way. Patricia Ann is petite and quiet, happily married to the same man for forty years, Mary Alice, six feet tall and imposing by anyone’s standard, widowed three times. This mystery involves the murder of a friend at the beach in Destin, Florida, a popular spot for Birminghamians to vacation. It’s a lighthearted read, if murder can be said to be lighthearted, it would be a good book to take to the beach. Especially if you are familiar with any of the areas, you will recognize some of the place names she refers to. Appropriately enough, the murder involves development of real estate on the coast, and a struggle between profit and the environment.
All of the stories by this author involve the same main characters. Sadly, Ms. George passed away some years ago so we will not be seeing any more of her work.