Claire Conover Mysteries

A social worker turns amateur sleuth when a teen in her care goes missing, and the girl's mother is found murdered, in this southern domestic thriller.   Claire Conover is in a bind. The thirteen-year-old girl who had been taken into custody for sleeping behind a grocery store has disappeared without a trace. Worse, her mother's dead body is discovered on a construction site. Is it possible the runaway daughter pulled the trigger? Or is the girl a victim of her murdered mother's shady lifestyle? The only thing Claire knows is she needs to find the girl-fast-even if it means teaming up with an investigative reporter whose intentions toward her may be more than platonic. Prowling the streets of Birmingham, Claire works to solve the dark puzzle of the girl's life, desperate to find her alive and keep her safe, once and for all.   Praise for Little Lamb Lost, Book 1 of the Claire Conover Mysteries:   "Fenton puts her experiences as a social worker to good use in her promising debut. . . . With her fine ear for regional speech, Fenton may do for Birmingham what Margaret Maron has done for rural North Carolina." -Publishers Weekly   "A relentless social worker makes an intriguing amateur sleuth, and Birmingham offers a fresh take on the New South as a setting for crime fiction. . . . [A] promising new series." -Booklist

A social worker turns amateur sleuth when the child in her care is endangered in this southern domestic thriller.   Claire Conover's first instinct is always to keep children safe. So when the social worker's latest case involves a biracial baby orphaned by what looks like a racially-motivated attack, Claire works night and day to find a family to take in the eight month old. But the only relatives she uncovers could put the baby's life into more danger. The case quickly upends her personal life, and the home she is making with her boyfriend, Grant. Things get even more complicated when the teen runaway Claire has been worrying about turns up, brutalized and homeless. Of course, Claire takes her in, even though the move puts her job-and her relationship-at risk. Keeping the children in her care out of harm's way is second nature for Claire. But this time, it could cost her everything.   Praise for Little Lamb Lost, Book 1 of the Claire Conover Mysteries:   "Fenton puts her experiences as a social worker to good use in her promising debut. . . . With her fine ear for regional speech, Fenton may do for Birmingham what Margaret Maron has done for rural North Carolina." -Publishers Weekly   "A relentless social worker makes an intriguing amateur sleuth, and Birmingham offers a fresh take on the New South as a setting for crime fiction. . . . [A] promising new series." -Booklist

"A relentless social worker makes an intriguing amateur sleuth" in this southern crime novel, the first in a "promising new series" (Booklist).   Two-year-old Michael Hennessey is found dead and his mother, Ashley is arrested. The only person who doesn't believe Ashley Hennessey killed her son is Claire Conover, the social worker who put Michael back in his mother's home. Claire believes Ashley has recovered from a life of booze and drugs and turned over a new leaf for the sake of her child.   Now Claire just has to prove Ashley's innocence to the police. There's no shortage of other suspects. There's the boyfriend who didn't like being saddled with his girlfriend's kid, and Ashley's alcoholic stepfather with a shady past. And what about the boy's mysterious father?     But the search for answers is fraught with uncertainty as Claire comes up against her own doubts. Maybe she got it wrong. Maybe Ashley was using again. Maybe reuniting mother and son was a misjudgment Claire would regret for the rest of her life.   Whatever the truth is, one thing is certain: Claire is about to uncover secrets that could ruin lives-or end her own.   "Fenton puts her experiences as a social worker to good use in her promising debut. . . . With her fine ear for regional speech, Fenton may do for Birmingham what Margaret Maron has done for rural North Carolina." -Publishers Weekly   "A riveting story . . . Little Lamb Lost is highly recommended reading." -Midwest Book Review   "Well done." -Library Journal