Murder Is the Ultimate Power Move

Ann Audrey Pickering wanted a quieter life. Instead, she is pulled into an Atlanta mystery built on Southern manners, social ambition, and murder.

When a beautiful widow loses her second husband under suspicious circumstances, rumors begin to spread. Is Kathryn Pomeroy unlucky in love, or has she built her future on a trail of dead husbands?

Ann Audrey is skeptical. A former lawyer who once helped the FBI take down her own husband for fraud, she knows how easily appearances can deceive. But when her longtime friend Flynn Reynolds asks her to investigate his family’s suspicions, Ann Audrey enters a case where suspicious deaths, family secrets, and social ambition hide beneath carefully managed appearances.

Set in Atlanta in January 2000, as the city prepares for the Super Bowl, Ann Audrey follows a twisting trail through private clubs, high-rise offices, beloved local landmarks, and the city’s frenetic bar scene. With help from Flynn, her voluptuous friend Theo, and the return of sexy detective Mike Bristol, she uncovers a world of wealthy families, hidden motives, and deceptive appearances where gossip is currency and murder may be the price of social climbing.

Then an ice storm shuts down Atlanta’s roads and power.

And suddenly, no one has anywhere left to hide.

Death and the Social Climber is the second Ann Audrey Mystery, perfect for readers who enjoy Southern mysteries, smart female sleuths, wealthy family secrets, and twist-filled investigations.