Lie Like a Rug

Escorting an incorrigible student downtown to be "scared straight" by a Federal judge, Ginger Barnes discovers her childhood babysitter, textile professor Charlie Finnemeyer, on trial for fraudulently aging an Oriental rug. After a second witness against the defendant dies a little too conveniently, the experienced amateur sleuth initiates a private investigation she hopes will prevent her elderly friend from spending his retirement years in prison. Alternate suspects include a TV craft show host; a college president; a trendy art dealer; and Charlie's suspiciously overprotective wife, whose skill at being in the wrong place at the wrong time isn't helping her husband's case one bit. As eager as Gin is to persuade the court that her beloved "Uncle Wunk" is innocent, she must first convince herself. Cameos by Benjamin Franklin and Betsy Ross. Real life doesn't always offer a satisfying outcome, but Donna Huston Murray's mysteries do. STRANGER DANGER, the third in her female sleuth, crime/thriller series was awarded the Global Book Awards' Silver Medal for thrillers and became a Finalist in the National Indie Excellence Awards. The first two novels in the series received Honorable Mentions in genre fiction from Writer's Digest.Her cozy Ginger Barnes whodunits feature an amateur sleuth much like herself, a DIY headmaster's wife with a troubling interest in crime. The eighth, FOR BETTER OR WORSE, became a Finalist in the National Indie Excellence Awards.When she isn't plotting mayhem, Donna assumes she can fix anything until proven wrong, calls trash-picking recycling, and, even though she should know better by now, got a new puppy. Check her socials and you'll understand.Donna and husband, Hench, live in Gwynedd, PA, USA.Book descriptions, reviews, and more at donnahustonmurray.com When amateur sleuth and DIY enthusiast Ginger Barnes gets transplanted from the "wrong side of the river" to Philadelphia's tony "Main Line" by her husband's job, she quickly learns crime can strike very close to home, no matter where home is.