The Mystic Cafe
2 primary works
Book 2
The indomitable Annie Szabo has lost too many friends and loved ones, so the death of neighbour Margo Spanger hits hard. Margo was a cultural icon with money and fame - maybe too much. When Margo's partner Lili goes missing the day of Margo's death, the New Age circus and women's shelter Margo had funded fall into disarray. Annie's world is also turning upside down: not only is her daughter a resident of the women's shelter, but Annie's mother-in-law, the Gypsy fortuneteller Madame Mina, decides to plant her trailer in Annie's yard, right next to Annie's pet giraffes. Aided by an ex-cop and Madame Mina's plant medicine, Annie uncovers Margo's past. She'd rattled the power elite, a trapeze flyer, one jealous lover, a captain of industry, a long-lost son, and an ice-blonde philanthropist. As Annie delves into their surprisingly tangled lives, one thing becomes clear-the killer is a master of disguises and time is running out. However, when Annie and Madame Mina stop arguing long enough to put their heads together, the truth can't hide. A treacherous tightrope to save a new lover, her home. and her life.
Book 3
Annie Szabo has discovered a miracle: Jimmy Qi, a kid from Chinatown with the power to heal using music. He's dazzling, he's a scoundrel, he's wise, and he makes a great newspaper article. Now everyone wants Jimmy. Feeling responsible for creating San Francisco's latest hot commodity, Annie enlists her mother-in-law, the audacious fortune-teller Madame Mina, to help keep Jimmy safe from his avid pursuers: an evangelist, an ex-hero with a troubled past, a tong society, a CDC doctor, a dolphin fanatic, and an FBI agent who seems too good to be true. Then the bodies start turning up. Annie grabs Jimmy and runs, luring the killer through a tangle of Chinese New Year celebrations and north up the deserted coast where she forces the killer to face justice. Once again, though the spicy Szabo women would like to kick back with a lover, a good movie, and a few laughs, life has something else in mind. One meeting with an extraordinary boy leads them headlong into another wild adventure. Annie and Mina won't back down until their world is set right.