Home at Night - (A Mercy Carr Mystery) by Paula Munier

About the Book

"Beware the blackbirds... It's Halloween in Vermont, winter is coming, and five humans, two dogs, and a cat are a crowd in Mercy Carr's small cabin. She needs more room-and she knows just the place: Grackle Tree Farm, with thirty acres of woods and wetlands and a Victorian manor to die for. They say it's haunted by the ghosts of missing children and lost poets and a murderer or two, but Mercy loves it anyway. Even when Elvis finds a dead body in the library. There's something about Grackle Tree Farm that people are willing to kill for-and Mercy needs to figure out what before they move in. A coded letter found on the victim points to a hidden treasure that may be worth a fortune-if it's real. She and Captain Thrasher conduct a search of the old place-and end up at the wrong end of a Glock. A masked man shoots Thrasher, and she and Elvis must take him down before he murders them all. Under fire, she and Elvis manage to run the guy off, but not before they are wounded, leaving Thrasher fighting for his life in the hospital, Mercy on crutches, and Elvis on the mend. Now it's up to Mercy and Troy and the dogs to track down the masked murderer in a county overflowing with leaf peepers, Halloween revelers, and treasure hunters and bring him to justice before he strikes again and the treasure is lost forever, along with the good name of Grackle Tree Farm..."--

Book Synopsis

Beware the blackbirds...

It's Halloween in Vermont, winter is coming, and five humans, two dogs, and a cat are a crowd in Mercy Carr's small cabin. She needs more room--and she knows just the place: Grackle Tree Farm, with thirty acres of woods and wetlands and a Victorian manor to die for. They say it's haunted by the ghosts of missing children and lost poets and a murderer or two, but Mercy loves it anyway. Even when Elvis finds a dead body in the library.

There's something about Grackle Tree Farm that people are willing to kill for--and Mercy needs to figure out what before they move in. A coded letter found on the victim points to a hidden treasure that may be worth a fortune--if it's real. She and Captain Thrasher conduct a search of the old place--and end up at the wrong end of a Glock. A masked man shoots Thrasher, and she and Elvis must take him down before he murders them all. Under fire, she and Elvis manage to run the guy off, but not before they are wounded, leaving Thrasher fighting for his life in the hospital, Mercy on crutches, and Elvis on the mend.

Now it's up to Mercy and Troy and the dogs to track down the masked murderer in a county overflowing with leaf peepers, Halloween revelers, and treasure hunters and bring him to justice before he strikes again and the treasure is lost forever, along with the good name of Grackle Tree Farm....

Review Quotes

Praise for Home at Night:

"The fifth Mercy Carr mystery (following The Wedding Plot) combines Halloween, a gothic house, two working dogs, and environmental issues in a superb mystery that emphasizes the search for home." ― Library Journal (Mystery Pick of the Month)

"A thrilling combination of physical and mental feats by human and beast." ― Kirkus Reviews

"Munier writes like a modern-day Agatha Christie, and her latest takes her storytelling acumen to a whole new level." ― Jon Land, Book Trib

Praise for the Mercy Carr series:

"Enjoyable... distinctive characters... This is a fine escapist fare for a hot summer day." --Publishers Weekly on The Wedding Plot

"I love books where the story and the characters grow out of the place that they're set, and that couldn't be more true of The Hiding Place, which delivers a satisfying, twisty plot, an entertaining ensemble of locals and, of course, a pair of intelligent and heroic dogs." ― Ann Cleeves, New York Times Bestselling Author of the Vera and Shetland series

"[The] characters of both Mercy and Elvis are quickly developing into classics." ―Aunt Agatha's Bookstore

"There's so much to praise here: Munier's deep knowledge of the culture of hunting (especially the bow-and-arrow variety); her brisk, incisive characterizations; the way she maintains a taut line of suspense throughout; and, best of all, her portrayals of wounded yet still courageous pairs of humans and dogs. A not-to-be-missed K-9 mystery." ― Booklist on Blind Search

"The portrayal of working dogs will appeal to fans of David Rosenfelt and Margaret Mizushima. The blend of lovingly detailed setting and lively characters, both human and canine, makes this a series to watch." ― Publisher's Weekly on A Borrowing of Bones

About the Author

PAULA MUNIER is the USA TODAY bestselling author of the Mercy Carr mysteries. A Borrowing of Bones, the first in the series, was nominated for the Mary Higgins Clark Award and named the Dogwise Book of the Year. Blind Search also won a Dogwise Award. The Hiding Place and The Wedding Plot both appeared on several "Best Of" lists. HOME AT NIGHT, the fifth book in the series, was inspired by her volunteer work as a Natural Resources Steward of New Hampshire. Along with her love of nature, Paula credits the hero dogs of Mission K9 Rescue, her own rescue dogs, and a deep affection for New England as her series' major influences. A literary agent by day, she's also written three popular books on writing: Plot Perfect, The Writer's Guide to Beginnings, and Writing with Quiet Hands, as well as Happier Every Day and the memoir Fixing Freddie: The True Story of a Boy, a Mom, and a Very, Very Bad Beagle. She lives in New England with her family and Bear the Newfoundland-retriever rescue, Bliss the Great Pyrenees-Australian cattle dog rescue, pandemic puppy Blondie, a Malinois rescue (much like Elvis in her books), and Ursula The Cat, a rescue torbie tabby who does not think much of the dogs. For more, check out www.paulamunier.com.