Heard It Through the Grapevine

Lipperman (Liver Let Die and two other Clueless Cook mysteries) introduces Lainey Garcia, a TV talk show hostess in Savannah, Ga., in the promising first of her Dead Sister Talking series. Lainey is contemplating an offer to fill an anchor slot with a network affiliate in Tampa, Fla., when she receives word that her estranged sister, Tessa, has died in an explosion, possibly caused by a gas leak in Tessa’s house. Back home in Vineyard, Tex., Lainey reunites with her three surviving sisters and learns that Tessa was murdered. At the funeral home, while Lainey is trying to hide her conflicted feelings about her deceased sister, Tessa’s ghost appears to her—but not to the other sisters. Soon, Lainey and Tessa’s shade set out to identify the killer and stop him before he can strike again. Conflict between Lainey’s current beau, who visits from Savannah, and an old boyfriend add romantic tension. Agent: Christine Witthohn, Book Cents Literary Agency. (May)