A Bad Day for Murder, The Stella Hardesty Series 1-4

Book 0: Stella Hardesty Crime Novels

by Sophie Littlefield

Genres: Hard-Boiled; Female Sleuths

Synopsis

Available for the first time in an e-bundle, the first four books in Sophie Littlefield’s Anthony and RT Award-winning and Edgar-nominated series featuring the unforgettable Stella Hardesty, a salty heroine who works outside of the law in rural Missouri.

"Crime fiction hasn't seen a character as scrappy, mean, and incredibly appealing as Stella in a long time. (A-)"—Entertainment Weekly on A Bad Day for Sorry

A BAD DAY FOR SORRY
At first glance, Stella Hardesty looks like a typical housewife. Then she kills her abusive husband with a wrench right before her fiftieth birthday. Now, she's so busy delivering justice, helping other women deal with their own abusive husbands and boyfriends, that she's barely got time to run her sewing shop.

When young mother Chrissy Shaw asks Stella for help with her no-good husband, Roy Dean, it looks like an easy case until Roy Dean disappears with Chrissy's two-year-old son, Tucker. Stella quickly learns that Roy Dean was involved with some very scary men, as she tries to sort out who's hiding information and who's merely trying to kill her. It's going to take a hell of a fight to get the little boy back home to his mama, but if anyone can do it, it's Stella Hardesty.

A BAD DAY FOR PRETTY
When a tornado destroys the snack shack at the demolition derby track, pulling up the concrete foundation and unearthing a woman's body, the main suspect in the woman's murder is Neb Donovan---he laid the foundation, and there's some pretty hard evidence pointing to his guilt. Years ago, Neb's wife asked Stella for help getting him sober. Stella doesn't believe the gentle man could kill anyone, and she promises his frantic wife she'll look into it.

A BAD DAY FOR SCANDAL
When Prosper homegirl turned big-city businesswoman Priss Porter returns to town with a body in her trunk, she calls Stella Hardesty to dispose of it. Her uppity ways don't convince Stella to take the job, and Priss attempts to blackmail her with a snapshot of Stella doing what she does best: curing woman-beaters by the use of force.

A BAD DAY FOR MERCY
A call from Stella's little sister brings the news that Stella's step-nephew, Chip, has been threatened with serious bodily harm if he doesn't settle his unpaid gambling debts. So Stella makes the drive to Chip's home in Wisconsin, only to walk in on a wee-hours dismemberment. Chip and his girlfriend, Natalya, insist the man was left, already dead, on their porch. Suspicious but compelled to help family, Stella tracks down other suspects, including the deceased's business partner, a purveyor of black-market Botox, and a jilted violist. Matters are complicated by the unexpected arrival of BJ Broderson, who has picked the worst possible time to pursue his amorous intentions toward Stella.

Release date: June 7, 2016

Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group

Print pages: 1168