Nothing ruins a marriage faster than finding your football star husband holding private cheerleading tryouts in your bedroom—especially when the three woman on top of him are wearing nothing but high heels and using pompoms in ways so dirty they’d make a stripper blush. Can you believe that actually happened to me? I mean, Bryan and I had been drifting apart for a while, but seeing him at the bottom of a pile of busty twenty-two year-olds in naked pyramid formation was the last straw.
Needless to say, I kicked the floozies out of our condo and gave my cheating hubby my spirit finger. After a whirlwind—and, thanks to Bryan’s NFL stardom, very public—divorce, I left my job at a clothing store in Atlanta, packed my life into an oversized Prada duffel bag, and came back to the one place that’s ever truly felt like home. So, now here I am: Kaley Kalua, twenty-seven year-old divorcee and Aloha Lagoon’s newest permanent resident.
Bless my Aunt Rikki; not only did she welcome me home with open arms, but she offered me a job as the manager of the Happy Hula Dress Boutique, the shop she owns in the merchant area of the Aloha Lagoon Resort. You’d really like Rikki—from her funky blue and black hair to her to her infectious energy and generous spirit, there’s no one else quite like her. After my parents were killed when I was twelve, she took me in and raised me like her own child. I don’t know where I’d be without her. That’s why, when one of her employees was recently murdered and Rikki found herself at the top of the suspect list, I swore I’d do whatever it took to prove her innocence.
Between juggling my day-to-day responsibilities at Happy Hula and trying not to strangle my high school rival, Harmony Kane (seriously, what was Aunt Rikki thinking hiring her?), I’ve been spending most of my days lately trying to track down the person who really killed Happy Hula’s former assistant manager, Louana Watson. It seems the woman had no shortage of enemies, not that I’m surprised—the one time I met her, she was screaming at my aunt and threatening to sue her. As it turns out, Rikki isn’t the only person that Louana treated horribly. Nearly everywhere I look, I find a new person who may have wanted her dead.
Lucky for me, I’ve got help following up on all these leads. There’s my new gal pal, Jamie Parker, the resort scuba instructor. She moved to the islands from the South, just like me, and in the few days since we met, she’s already proven to be a fiercely loyal friend. Sure, Jamie’s inhumanly perky after a night of drinking, and she’s about as subtle as a foghorn when it comes to being my wing woman—but hey, she means well. Plus, our shared love of shopping and mani pedis makes her my one of my new favorite people on the island.
Then there’s my childhood best friend, Noa Kahele, who also recently moved back to Aloha Lagoon. Noa’s funny, modest, and looks like he climbed out of the pages of a surf shop catalog—long, dark hair, rock hard abs, and dimples for days. Picture Jason Mamoa, and you’re on the right track. Mmm.
I wish I could chat for longer, but I’ve got to get back to work. After all, there’s still a killer loose on the island. That, and Detective Ray of the Aloha Lagoon Police Department seems to be building a strong case against Aunt Rikki. The deeper I pry into the lives of my potential suspects, the more danger I’m finding myself in. If I don’t find out the truth soon, I could wind up the next victim.
You can read more about Kaley in Bikinis and Bloodshed, the first book in the “Kaley Kalua” mystery series.
After a very painful—and very public—divorce from her cheating football star husband, Kaley Kalua just wants some peace and privacy. Cramming only the essentials (clothes, shoes, and makeup) into her Prada duffel bag, Kaley returns to her hometown of Aloha Lagoon to manage her Aunt Rikki’s clothing shop, the Happy Hula Dress Boutique. A new job, new friends, and a change of scenery are just what she needs to turn her life around. It doesn’t hurt that Kaley’s handsome childhood best friend, Noa Kahele, has also moved back to the small resort town.
Unfortunately, life on the island isn’t quite the peaceful paradise that Kaley was expecting. Not everyone is thrilled about her return—especially the Happy Hula’s assistant manager, who thinks that she deserves Kaley’s new job. And when the woman is found strangled by a bikini top from the boutique, the police make it clear that Aunt Rikki is their main suspect. But Kaley is determined to prove her aunt’s innocence! Between dodging a nosy local reporter and sparring with her high school nemesis, Kaley compiles her own list of suspects. In the process, she also attracts the attention of a dangerous killer. If Kaley isn’t careful, she could wind up trading her colorful wardrobe for funeral black. . .
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About the author
Anne Marie Stoddard is a USA TODAY Bestselling Author, iBooks Bestseller, Amazon Mover & Shaker, and former Amazon Top 100 Author. She writes supernatural thrillers and cozy mysteries with an edge, many of which are based on her experience working in radio and at music festivals across the U.S. Aside from writing, Anne Marie loves college football, hula hoops, music, coffee, and anything pumpkin-flavored. Connect with Anne Marie at amstoddardbooks.com.
All comments are welcomed.
Hey, y’all! My name is Amelia, but my friends call me Ame (like Amy without the y). I’m here to tell you what a day in my life is like as the general manager and booking agent for Atlanta’s hottest concert venue, Castle Rock. A typical day for me involves processing show contracts for some of the country’s biggest bands, grabbing pizza and sangria for lunch with my best friend, Kat Taylor, and hanging out backstage in one of our two show rooms, rocking out to awesome live music.
University of Georgia, Anne Marie worked for several music venues, radio stations, and large festivals before trading in her backstage pass for a pen and paper (Okay, so she might have kept the pass, too…). Her debut novel, Murder at Castle Rock, was the winner of the 2012 AJC Decatur Book Festival Writing Contest, and the 2013 Book Junkie’s Choice Award Winner for Best Debut Fiction Novel. It was also a finalist for Best Mystery/Thriller in the 2014 RONE Awards.
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