Cleaning woman and karate expert Lily Bard is back in Charlaine Harris's latest cozy-but-noirish mystery about the dark secrets of a small Southern town In Shakespeare’s Christmas, Lily heads home to Bartley, Arkansas--always an uncomfortable scenario for the introverted Lily--for her sister Varena’s Christmas wedding. But Lily has more to worry about than being a bridesmaid for a sister to whom she’s no longer close. Soon after she arrives in Bartley, Lily’s private-detective boyfriend shows up too, and not just for moral support: He’s investigating a four-year-old unsolved kidnapping. Try as she might, Lily can’t help but get involved when she discovers that the case hits dangerously close to home--for Varena’s new husband is the widowed father of a girl bearing a remarkable resemblance to the vanished child.

From Charlaine Harris, the #1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author behind HBO’s hit series True Blood and NBC’s Midnight, Texas, the third in a series that proves death never takes a holiday... For Lily Bard, the idea of “going home for Christmas” summons nothing but dread. She wants to stay in her real home in Shakespeare, Arkansas, where her friendships are blooming, nobody dares mess with her, and her new private-eye boyfriend could make it a very cozy holiday indeed. Back in Bartley, all people see when they look at Lily is a victim. But her sister is getting married, and Lily’s determined to give her family what they want. She’ll be present, be pleasant, and let her sister have the spotlight. Or so she thinks, until she discovers her boyfriend in town on a case, chasing a lead that could blow up the whole celebration. One of the little girls in Bartley isn’t who she thinks she is. And one of the town’s respectable parents is a cold-blooded kidnapper ready to kill to hide their secrets. For her sister—and her sister’s eight-year-old stepdaughter-to-be—Lily will find the truth. Even if it means she’ll never go home again...

Shakespeare's Christmas is a collection of historical adventure tales: Shakespeare's Christmas Ye Sexes, Give Ear! Captain Wyvern's Adventures Frenchman's Creek The Man Behind the Curtain Rain of Dollars The Lamp and the Guitar

Shakespeare's Christmas Ye Sexes, Give Ear! Captain Wyvern's Adventures Frenchman's Creek The Man Behind the Curtain Rain of Dollars The Lamp and the Guitar

Shakespeare's Christmas and Other Stories is a collection of historical adventure tales:_x000D_ Shakespeare's Christmas_x000D_ Ye Sexes, Give Ear!_x000D_ Captain Wyvern's Adventures_x000D_ Frenchman's Creek_x000D_ The Man Behind the Curtain_x000D_ Rain of Dollars_x000D_ The Lamp and the Guitar