Read by Courtney Patterson

From New York Times bestselling, award-winning author Margaret Maron--winner of the Edgar Award, Agatha Award, Anthony Award, and Macavity Award for her classic mystery The Bootlegger's Daughter--comes a stunning mystery featuring NYPD Detective Sigrid Harald. "Every Margaret Maron is a celebration of something remarkable." -- New York Times Book Review "Maron writes with wit and sophistication." -- USA Today "There's nobody better." -- Chicago Tribune NYPD Detective Sigrid Harald is still reeling from the untimely death of her lover, acclaimed painter Oscar Nauman, when she is called to investigate the poisoning of two homeless men in the West Village. As she examines the mysterious deaths, Sigrid uncovers a grim neighborhood scandal surrounding two influential women: one a haughty mafia widow, the other a retired opera prima donna, both with dark secrets they've kept under wraps for decades. Was the poison really meant for the homeless men, or were they merely unintended victims as the decades-long feud between the two women comes to a head? And still, Sigrid can't stop wondering what brought her late lover so urgently across the country to the winding mountain road that took his life--until she meets a man who may hold the answers she seeks . . . . "Opening a new Margaret Maron is like unwrapping a Christmas gift." -- Cleveland Plain Dealer "Of today's series writers none has been more successful at weaving the bond between star and audience than Margaret Maron." -- San Diego Union-Tribune Margaret Maron grew up in the country near Raleigh, North Carolina, but for many years lived in Brooklyn, New York. When she and her artist husband returned to the farm that had been in her family for a hundred years, she began a series based on her own background. The first book, Bootlegger's Daughter, became a Washington Post bestseller that swept the major mystery awards for its year -- winning the Edgar, Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity Awards for Best Novel -- and is among the 100 Favorite Mysteries of the Century as selected by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association. Later, her Deborah Knott novels Up Jumps the Devil, Storm Track, and Three-Day Town each also won the Agatha Award for Best Novel. Margaret is also the author of the Sigrid Harald series of detective novels. In 2008, Maron received the North Carolina Award for Literature, the highest civilian honor the state bestows on its authors. And in 2013, the Mystery Writers of America celebrated Maron's contributions to the mystery genre by naming her a Grand Master -- an honor first bestowed on Agatha Christie. To find out more about her, you can visit MargaretMaron.com. "Margaret Maron is one of those authors whose devoted fans would follow them anywhere."-The New York Times "Excellent...If this is indeed Maron's final book, as she has announced, she is quitting while still in top form."-Publishers Weekly (STARRED REVIEW) "Maron's series finale and last book ends her distinguished writing career on a high note. Her many fans will enjoy this while wiping away tears of farewell."-Library Journal (STARRED REVIEW) "Every Margaret Maron is a celebration of something remarkable."-New York Times Book Review "Maron writes with wit and sophistication."-USA Today "Sigrid Harald is smart, efficient, and sympathetic."-Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine "There's nobody better."-Chicago Tribune "Opening a new Margaret Maron is like unwrapping a Christmas gift."-Cleveland Plain Dealer "You read a Maron mystery for the rich back stories of her main characters as much as for the whodunit, and she doesn't disappoint here."-The News & Observer PRAISE FOR MARGARET MARON'S DEBORAH KNOTT SERIES:"Bestseller Maron's 20th Deborah Knott mystery (after 2014's Designated Daughters) combines strong plotting, a superb cast of recurring characters, and a rare sense of place that transports readers to rural North Carolina. District court judge Deborah

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