Mira James Mystery
12 primary works • 13 total works
Book 1
Minneapolitan Mira James has been taking it easy since college graduation--too easy. Due to a dead-end job and a cheating boyfriend, the Twin Cities have lost their charm, and Mira decides to begin a new life in rural Battle Lake. Right away she is offered jobs as an assistant librarian and part-time reporter, and falls into an unexpected romance with a guy who seems to be the perfect man until he turns up dead between the reference stacks her tenth day on the job.
Anxious to learn more about the man who had briefly stolen her heart, Mira delves into the hidden mysteries of Battle Lake, including a old land deed with ancient Ojibwe secrets, an obscure octogenarian crowd with freaky social lives, and a handful of thirtysomething high school buddies who hold bitter, decades-old grudges. Mira soon discovers that unknown dangers are concealed under the polite exterior of this quirky small town, and revenge is a tator-tot hotdish best served cold.
A hip, humorous, and gripping account of small-town murder, this novel is the first in a series of cozies featuring Mira James, an urban woman with rural Minnesota roots.
Praise:
"Jess Lourey writes about a small-town assistant librarian, but this is no genteel traditional mystery. Mira James likes guys in a big way, likes booze, and isn't afraid of motorcycles. She flees a deadend job and a deadend boyfriend in Minneapolis and lands up in Battle Lake, a little town with plenty of dirty secrets. The first person narrative in May Day is fresh, the characters quirky. Minnesota has many fine crime writers, and Jess Lourey has just entered their ranks!"--Ellen Hart, Lamda Award-winning author of Jane Lawless & Sophie Greenway Series
Book 2
Mira James never imagined life after college would be a doublewide trailer outside Battle Lake, Minnesota. Then again, maybe the North Country has more to offer than mosquitoes and broasted chicken.
Local legend claims that a diamond necklace was lost nearly a century ago in Whiskey Lake, not far from the present day Shangri-La resort. Mira, a part-time reporter, goes fishing for the story behind the legend, but her dives turn up more than missing jewelry. Buoyed by frozen Nut Goodies and a diminutive circus performer, the exhilarating search leads to a new mystery to unravel, and puts her face to face with the surfacing of a menacing foe from her past.
Praise:
"Move over, Stephanie Plum. There's a new bad girl in town, and her name is Mira James. The funny, earthy heroine of June Bug is sure to stumble her way into the hearts of readers everywhere. With a keen eye to the bawdy side of life, Jess Lourey delivers a story that's loonier than our state bird; with a deft hand, she both celebrates and skewers the myths about strait-laced life in small-town Minnesota. Don't miss this one-it's a hoot!"--Wlliam Kent Krueger, Anthony Award winning author of Copper River
"With just the right amount of insouciance, tongue-in-cheek sexiness, and plain common sense, Jess Lourey offers up a funny, well written, engaging story."--Carl Brookins, author of The Case of the Greedy Lawyers
"Mira is young, sexy, enthusiastic, and -- like all amateur sleuths -- forever doomed to find the bodies of the recently departed. Even when they aren't always bodies. Or recently departed. Jess Lourey is a talented, witty, and clever writer."--Monica Ferris, best-selling author of the Needlecraft Mysteries
Book 3
Book 4
Book 5
Book 6
Book 7
Book 8
Book 9
Book 10
Book 11
Book 12
