The Josie Toadfern Stain-Busting Mystery Series
Laundromat owner and stain-removal expert Josie Toadfern cleans up crime, one hilarious load at a time, in small-town Paradise, Ohio. The series as good clean fun, but read between the lines for social commentary. The series was published by Avon Books, a division of Harper Collins. (Thorndike released large print editions of the first four novels; I have a slideshow of those covers at the bottom of the page.)
The 'hook' for this series is that Josie owns a laundromat, and solves crimes in her small hometown--ironically named Paradise--using her wits, her inherent nosiness, and her stain-removal expertise. Or, as the tag line went, "Josie cleans up crime, one load at a time." Recurring characters and subplots carry from book to book in the series: Josie is the caretaker for her autistic cousin Guy; her love life is chaotic; her friends, especially Cherry, can be goofballs; her extended family is definitely trying. (An exploding Thanksgiving turkey. That's all I'm giving away here.) Funny and poignant, just like my Sanity Check column. (Apparently, there was something about rearing children that brought out the funny and poignant in me.)
Reviewers wrote nice things about the series, including:
The 'hook' for this series is that Josie owns a laundromat, and solves crimes in her small hometown--ironically named Paradise--using her wits, her inherent nosiness, and her stain-removal expertise. Or, as the tag line went, "Josie cleans up crime, one load at a time." Recurring characters and subplots carry from book to book in the series: Josie is the caretaker for her autistic cousin Guy; her love life is chaotic; her friends, especially Cherry, can be goofballs; her extended family is definitely trying. (An exploding Thanksgiving turkey. That's all I'm giving away here.) Funny and poignant, just like my Sanity Check column. (Apparently, there was something about rearing children that brought out the funny and poignant in me.)
Reviewers wrote nice things about the series, including:
- "The characters are quirky to the point of being bizarre, the heroine is extremely likeable and the mystery is one the reader can really get her teeth into... it will test your brain, as well as your funny bone..." Coffee Time Romance
- "Readers will chuckle over this series of cozy mysteries, with its oddball characters, story twists, and dirty laundry. " Futures Mystery Anthology Magazine
- "Josie Toadfern is certainly one of the funniest detectives on the bookshelves." New Mystery Reader Magazine
- "Many cozies use up all their cleverness in their titles, but Sharon Short's books about stain-removal expert Josie Toadfern of Paradise, Ohio, save a lot of smarts for character and plot. Her latest is a fine example..." Chicago Tribune
- "...a funny, fast read for anyone who likes their mysteries liberally sprinkled with humor. Josie makes a charming heroine... You'll be hungry for more of Josie's adventures." Romantic Times Bookclub magazine
First in Series
Second in Series
Third in Series
Fourth in series
Fifth in Series
Sixth (and Final) in Series
Collection of three Josie short stories and 30 of her stain-busting tips
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Introducing Josie as she battles domestic diva/media star Tyra Grimes.
Buy the Book (Print): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins IndieBound Buy the Book (eBook): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins Josie's hometown July 4 celebration plunges into murderous mayhem after a pie-eating contest turns deadly.
Buy the Book (Print): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins IndieBound Buy the Book (eBook): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins Josie discovers that predicting the conflict between New Age and conservative views might turn deadly isn't difficult, but figuring out the resulting murder is quite a challenge.
Buy the Book (Print): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins IndieBound Buy the Book (eBook): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins Josie spends a Thanksgiving holiday putting up with... and, in spite of an exploding turkey and other deadly events, finally making peace with... her cantankerous family clan.
Buy the Book (Print): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins IndieBound Buy the Book (eBook): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins Josie's buddies friend-nap her off to The Great Walleye Drop New Year's Eve celebration on Lake Erie (yes, this is a real celebration, and yes, I made my family go with me one New Year's Eve as research, and no, they haven't entirely forgiven me) to celebrate Josie turning 30 and, of course, solve a murder--this time, about a long-gone school teacher, Mrs. Oglevee, who tortured Josie during junior high and haunts her dreams as an adult.
Buy the Book (Print): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins IndieBound Buy the Book (eBook): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins The final book in the Josie series, in which Josie uncovers the truth behind the painful past of a local 1960s family singing group and, in the process, finds true love.
Buy the Book (Print): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins IndieBound Buy the Book (eBook): Amazon Barnes & Noble HarperCollins Short story collection includes the two Josie stories (published in mystery magazines) that preceded the series, an original short story available only in this collection, and thirty stain-removal tips used throughout the series.
Buy the Book (eBook): Amazon Barnes & Noble Smashwords Print and Audio Editions Coming Soon |