Murder on a Hot Tin Roof

Read Murder on a Hot Tin Roof Online

Authors: Amanda Matetsky

Table of Contents
Praise for
HOW TO MARRY A MURDERER
“The author has successfully evoked the spirit of the people and the times of the 1950s and New York. The characters are delightful, especially Paige who is hardworking, energetic, clever, and funny.”
 
“A rich and satisfying story.”
—The Romance Reader’s Connection
 
 
“This book grabbed me and held me right to the end.”
—Roundtable Reviews
Praise for
MURDER IS A GIRL’S
BEST FRIEND
 
“December 1954 in Manhattan is a trip down memory lane and Amanda Matetsky captures the ambience of the era to perfection. The heroine’s friend Abby makes a perfect crime-solving partner and some of their adventures are funny. Readers will thoroughly enjoy
Murder Is a Girl’s Best Friend
because of Paige, Abby, and 1950s New York.”
—Midwest Book Reviews
 
“This book is a great example of fun fiction that uses much of the style of film noir . . . Paige is a clever, interesting heroine who’s well-balanced by her Bohemian artist neighbor, Abby. This is an excellent book to read in any venue because it immediately transports the reader to New York in 1954.”
—The Best Reviews
Praise for
MURDERERS PREFER BLONDES
“A beautifully realized evocation of time and place; 1950s
New York City comes alive for those of us who were there
and even those who weren’t. Amanda Matetsky has created
a very funny and interesting female protagonist, Paige
Turner, and put her in the repressed and male-dominated
year of 1954, which works like a charm. This is more than
a murder mystery; this is great writing by a fresh talent.”

Nelson DeMille, author of
Night Fall
 
“Prepare to be utterly charmed by the irrepressible Paige
Turner, and take an enchanting trip back in time to New
York City, circa 1954 . . . A thoroughly fun read.”

Dorothy Cannell, author of
The Importance of Being Ernestine
 
“Amanda Matetsky has created a wonderfully sassy character in the unfortunately named Paige Turner. In her 1950s world where gals are peachy and cigarettes dangle from the lips of every private dick, a busty platinum blonde finds herself at the wrong end of a rope and Paige is on the case of a swell whodunit, sweetheart. Delightfully nostalgic and gripping. Irresistible.”
—Sarah Strohmeyer, author of
Bubbles All the Way
 
“A great idea well-executed—funny, fast, and suspenseful.”
—Max Allan Collins, author of
Road to Perdition

Murderers Prefer Blondes
is a gas; full of vivid characters and so sharp in its depiction of the fifties when you read it you’ll feel like you’re sipping champagne in the Copacabana.”
—Betsy Thornton, author of
Dead for the Winter
 
“Paige Turner is the liveliest, most charming detective to emerge in crime fiction in a long time. She is the product of her time and place—New York in the fifties—with a little Betty Boop and a little Brenda Starr in her makeup, but she is also her own woman, funny, smart, energetic, brave, hard-working, and determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. She is irresistible, a force of nature.”
—Ann Waldron, author of
A Rare Murder in Princeton
 
“Matetsky adeptly captures the atmosphere of the 1950s, and her characters—especially Paige and her friend Abby—are a delight. This journey back to a time that now seems innocent is refreshing.”
—Romantic Times
 
“A fun new mystery series . . . a real page-turner.”
—BookBrowser
 
“A fast-paced, smart debut with a feisty heroine that entertains and keeps readers eagerly turning Paiges.”
—The Mystery Reader
Paige Turner Mysteries by Amanda Matetsky
MURDERERS PREFER BLONDES
MURDER IS A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND
HOW TO MARRY A MURDERER
MURDER ON A HOT TIN ROOF
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
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Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
 
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
 
MURDER ON A HOT TIN ROOF
 
A Berkley Prime Crime Book / published by arrangement with the author
 
PRINTING HISTORY
Berkley Prime Crime mass-market edition / November 2006
 
Copyright © 2006 by Amanda Matetsky.
 
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
For information, address: The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
 
eISBN : 978-1-101-08794-7
 
BERKLEY
®
PRIME CRIME
Berkley Prime Crime Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
The name BERKLEY PRIME CRIME and the BERKLEY PRIME CRIME design are trademarks
belonging to Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
 
 
 
 

http://us.penguingroup.com

For Harry, Sylvia, Matthew, Molly, Rae, Joel, Ira,
Liza, Tim, Tara, Kate, Mary Lou, and Dick—
my favorite cast of characters
Acknowledgments
I am, as always, most grateful to family and friends—especially Harry Matetsky
1
, Molly Murrah, Liza, Tim, Tara and Kate Clancy, Ira Matetsky, Matthew Greitzer, Rae and Joel Frank, Sylvia Cohen, Mary Lou and Dick Clancy, Susan Frank, Ann Waldron, Nelson DeMille, Dianne Francis, Dorothy Newmark, Craig Hughes, Art Scott, Betsy Thornton, Santa and Tom De Haven, Nikki and Bert Miller, Herta Puleo, Esther Schoenhorn, Marte Cameron, Mirella Rongo, Al Faust, Cameron Joy, Sandra Thompson and Chris Sherman, Donna and Michael Steinhorn, Stephanie and Burt Klein, Mark Voger, Gayle Rawlings and Debbie Marshall, Judy Capriglione, Martha Cevasco, Judy Dini, Betty Fitzsimmons, Nancy Francese, Jane Gudapati, Carleen Kierce, April Margolin, Margaret Ray, Doris Schweitzer, Carol Smith, Roberta Waugh and her heavenly helpmate, Joseph.
My good friends at Literacy Nassau are a source of much-needed encouragement, as are my fellow mystery writers and readers at Sisters in Crime-Central Jersey. And my co-agents, Annelise Robey and Meg Ruley of the Jane Rotrosen Agency, and my editor at Penguin Group (USA), Martha Bushko, are the most inspiring and indulgent supporters any writer could ask for. A million thanks to them and every one of my readers.
Prologue

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