Claire Malloy Books In Order

Publication Order of Claire Malloy Books

The Claire Malloy series is an interesting story whose setting is in Farberville in Arkansas. The series explores the life of one Claire Malloy who is the owner of a bookstore across a campus of the Farberville college. Claire Malloy is a widow whose late husband used to teach at the Farber college. It is unfortunate that Claire Malloy did not know that her late husband used to be among the professors in Farber College who used to coerce female students into sleeping with them. Claire’s late husband died while with a female student in his car near a motel, while driving on an icy road. However, the female student in his car survived the accident and it is her father’s diligence that managed to keep her name out of the news and police reports. Alone, Claire delves deeper into establishing her book store which gets adequate profits. Claire has a daughter called Caron who admires the luxuries enjoyed by her peers to an extent of coming up with creative schemes to raise money. It is worth noting that Claire protects Caron from the truth pertaining the circumstances of his father’s death. What gets one hooked to the story as a reader is the fact that both Claire and Caron are like one side of the same coin as both are independent, imaginative and impulsive. The story keeps unfolding with each page like an undiscovered adventure in a far away land.

The mystery in the story is exciting, with plausible murder motives that keeps it interesting. One can relate with the narrator of the story, a widow who turns out to be a bookseller. You also love her critical and humerous attitude towards authors, readers, cutsomers and murder mysteries alike. The plot of the claire malloy series feels you with excitement and suspense. The story makes you laugh even without expecting it and the mystery is amazing. Anyone who loves detective and mystery stories should definitely get hold of it.

THE CHARACTER OF CLAIRE MALLOY

Claire Malloy strikes you as a humerous narrator who can joke at herself. She is a determined and stubborn character who attendfs the mock murder event at the minosa inn despite protestations from her daughter and skeptism from Peter Rosen. She is also a loving mother who does not want her daughter Caron to find out the bitter truth about the circumstances surrounding her father’s death. She is also cautious as she does not want to be committed to Peter Rosen as a result of what had happened in her former marriage. Claire is capable and strong, one cannot help but appreciate her wit. Surely, she is an excellent company to read about and clearly, the fact that she can admit to host the launch of Mildred’s book shows that she is considerate and sympathetic.Claire passes as a strong woman who wants to prove her worth or that she is right in what she does, more like a know-it-all kind of person who keeps you hooked to the story as a reader because of her strong spirit.

EARLY BOOKS IN THE SERIES

‘Strangled prose’, being the first book in the Claire Malloy series introduces one to a sad widow who has just lost her husband. She is considering a favor from a romance novel writer called Mildred Twiller who would like Claire to host an autograph party in respect to the publication of her new book, ‘professor of passion’. Claire feels she has no choice but to say yes to Mildred since she feels sympathy for her because Mildred’s husband is one of the most notorious womanizers in the Farber college. The Farber Women’s organization threaten to protest violently against the sexism of Mildred’s novel but Claire decides to go ahead with granting Mildred her favor. Things take a dramatic twist when one member of the Farber Women’s organization decides to read out loud some passages from Mildred’s romance novel. It therefore comes to light that Mildred’s novel exposes the sexual stories of the male professors of Farber college who coerce female students to have sex with them and even the bitter truth surrounding the death of Claire’s late husband. Claire is embarrassed and impulsively flees, causing her to be the murder suspect when Mildred is later found dead. A new character is introduced into the story in the name of Peter Rosen who is the Police Lieutenant who investigates the murder of Mildred. Peter Rosen fascinatingly becomes interested in Claire who on the other hand, does not want commitment. The story becomes captivating when other women convince Claire to join them in the murder investigations.

The ‘Murder at the murder at the Mimosa inn’ opens up a new page in the life of Claire Malloy. Claire decides to attend a mock murder weekend event at the lovely minosa inn and takes her daughter along with her to solve a murder mystery with other women. This is despite protestations from her daughter and skeptism from Peter Rosen. Claire feels that she has a knack for the detective profession and wants to prove herself right and stubbornly secures a tickecket to the minosa inn for the mock murder event. It looks like a staged murder, with clues and suspects and an award to be given to the first person who would solve the crime. That was what was to be expected at the event. shockingly, at the minosa inn, the leader of the group staging the event turns up as a corpse and fiction gets intertwined with reality. The story unravels as a mystery and a suspense as one keeps wondering who committed the murder.

OTHER INFORMATION ON THE CLAIRE MALLOY SERIES

The first book of the claire malloy series, ‘Strangled prose’, was picked as the best novel in 1986 by the Drood Review Readers Poll and it was nominated for the Anthony award. Also, ‘mischief in maggody’ another book in the series was nominated for the Agatha award in 1988 in Washington, D.C at the Malice Domestic Convention.