Midwest Book Review
“A deftly crafted, original, fun and fascinating read that will have a special appeal to the legions of cozy mystery fans, “Crime on the Coast” by author Marty Eberhardt will prove to be an immediate and enduringly popular addition to both personal reading lists and community/public library Contemporary Mystery/Suspense collections. It should be noted that this paperback edition of “Crime on the Coast” from Artemesia Publishing is also readily available in a digital book format.”
“If you harbor a secret wish to stroll along La Jolla’s sunny shores, you’re going to love Marty Eberhardt’s latest Bea Rivers Mystery, Crime on the Coast. Shandley Gardens Executive Director Bea jumps at the chance to join a gathering of other garden leaders there. Walks on the beach, lush garden blooms, so different from Bea’s beloved desert plants, but just as grand — what’s not to like? Too bad the tension between La Jolla’s über-haves and the disgruntled have-nots who serve them lays an uncomfortable pall over the group. Add in a murder, or maybe two, and Bea’s amateur sleuth chops are pressed to their limit, as this mystery builds to a stunning climax that ramps the stakes higher than the coastal palm trees swaying in the ocean breezes. Crime on the Coast will keep you guessing.”
- Award-winning Kris Neri, author of Magical Mushrooms, a Samantha Brennan & Annabelle Haggerty Magical Mystery
“The La Jolla setting is beautifully described and, although this book isn’t a culinary, your mouth will water at the descriptions of the food. The botanical descriptions are superb, as well; I made a list of new plants for our Southwestern garden…”
- Suzanne Stauffer, award-winning author of Fried Chicken Castañeda
“When Bea accepts an invitation to join fellow botanical garden directors in San Diego, she plunges into a new ecosystem of plants and personalities. The board members at the host garden are a quirky bunch, but is one of them a killer? You’ll hold your breath that Bea will help find the killer before he comes for the rest of the party. Or her.
- Carolyn Niethammer, author of cookbooks, history, and fiction set i In the Southwest. www.cniethammer.com
“Crime on the Coast is an intriguing and satisfying whodunnit, wrapped in a botanical cozy, set among the old-money elite of La Jolla. In Marty Eberhardt’s third novel, heroine Bea Rivers travels from the desert to the shore to meet with a handful of Southwest garden directors and board members. Their agenda: to discuss problems facing their nonprofit gardens. But personal and professional conflicts lead to flaring tempers… and, of course, to murder.”
- Susan Cummins Miller, author of My Body Lies Under and theFrankie MacFarlane, Geologist, Mysteries
“In Crime on the Coast, Marty Eberhardt’s third book in the Bea Rivers mystery series, we are once again drawn into an interestingly layered intrigue. In the midst of a tutorial on Southwest flora and fauna, relatable characters usher us into and through the unexpected twists and turns of the nuanced plot. Will Bea resolve the question? Murder or suicide? Is it black and white or hazy gray? Not convinced or trusting the local authority’s investigative conclusions, amateur sleuth Bea is compelled to determine the truth, no matter how darkly cunning those answers may prove to be.”
- Lynn Zotalis, award-winning poet and novelist