Libby Madsen Cozy Mysteries

Libby Madsen, professional massage therapist and co-owner of the luxurious Dharma Inspired Day Spa, has probably heard it all. During what she thinks of as ‘tabletop confessions’ her clients often talk about way more of their personal lives than she really wants to hear. So when a regular, Maggie Crenshaw, talks about how her daughter went away on a camping trip with friends, it’s just so much chatter. But when Maggie says Isobel didn’t return home on time, is not answering her phone, and that the young woman is diabetic and really needs her meds.

Libby’s world is rocked to the core when her business partner Alexis—working late one night—is attacked by an intruder at their spa. JJ shows up in full cop mode, terrified that his wife has barely escaped the serial rapist who’s been plaguing the city in recent months. But Lexi isn’t convinced. Too many seemingly unrelated incidents occur before they realize a decades-old murder and pact between two then-juvenile delinquents could be tied to everything going on now.

With all the recent turmoil in their lives, it’s time for vacation! Libby, Shadow, Greg, Alexis, and JJ load up in their RVs and caravan to Utah. It doesn’t take long before they meet the quirkiest couple. 95-year-old Eugene Walker and his third wife, 85-year-old Agatha. While enjoying live music one evening at Lake Powell, the group cannot help but admire the infectious energy and spunk of this elderly pair as they dance the night away.

It becomes apparent that millions of dollars are being funneled through the organization, and encounters with a couple of unsavory characters have Libby wondering—is this a legitimate religious group or some kind of cult? What’s behind the disappearances? And where are those windowless white vans going? Can Libby and Shadow figure it out before something terrible happens to Bella—or to themselves?

The haunted hotel—from its creepy old elevator, to the resident ghosts, and whoever is wreaking havoc on the massage therapy room every time Libby leaves it unattended—is the spooky backdrop for more than one crime. And Libby, Shadow, and Greg find themselves right in the thick of the mystery.