The Charleston Challenge (Mah Jongg Mysteries, #7) / Mah Jongg Mysteries (ePub)

Oh, her aching feet! Micki Demetrius questions her sanity for agreeing to compete in Serendipity Springs' Annual Charleston Challenge when clearly she and her partner, Guy Whitney, have no chance of winning or even placing. Just ask the reigning champion, who points out their low odds of taking home the trophy every chance she gets.

But then, Micki's only dancing in this contest because Guy wouldn't enter without her, and the poor man needs something to occupy his days. Retirement hasn't come easy for him. Not that there's anything special going on between them, as much as Guy would like or his daughter suspects. There isn't, is there?

Micki can't wait to put their performance behind them-until one of the top competitors is found dead on the ballroom floor. The sheriff warns Micki and her three mah jongg pals not to play amateur sleuth again, but he can't stop this persistent freelance journalist from pursuing her inside scoop, with a little help from her friends. The trouble with being on the inside, though, is that being so close to her sketchy subjects might just let the killer get dangerously close to her.

The Mah Jongg Mystery Series is set in the fictional central Florida town of Serendipity Springs. It features four retired women who meet playing the game of Mah Jongg and from there develop a strong friendship. Two have been married several years and have grown children and grandchildren, one is divorced and one has never been married. In their earlier lives, all had rewarding careers, but that doesn't mean they're content to sit back and relax now. As the series progresses, each pursues new interests, Kat Faulkner as a songstress, Marianne Putnam writing one-act plays, Micki Demetrius as a freelance journalist and Sydney Bonner interior design.

In their community they engage in such activities as a social group for those over 50, numerous stops at the local coffeehouse, classes and other activities at the community center and even a shopping trip to Naples. Syd's husband, Trip, and Marianne's husband, Beau, are golf buddies who spend many a day on the course. When not there, Trip is busy seeking to build a new post retirement life, and Beau, a former botanist, is often prevailed upon to join in Trip's latest activity. Sheriff Rick Formero, a widower, intrigued by Kat, presses for her to make more of their relationship and Kat slowly comes around. Micki, burned by her former spouse, isn't ready for a serious relationship, at least that's what she claims, but retired attorney, Guy Whitney, also a widower, tries to convince her to think otherwise.

Kat has lived a frugal life until winning big in a lottery shortly after her mother's death; suddenly, Kat has money and doesn't know how to spend it. But her pal, Micki, does, even if it's to guide Kat through a makeover and wardrobe change for her lounge act.

The four don't seek out murders to investigate; somehow the circumstances and those affected drag them in. To their surprise, they like investigating homicides, and t hey're good at it, although along the way, following a few lucky escapes from near-death situations, they discover they must learn self-defense. But it takes time for them to sell their skills and special abilities as civilians to the sheriff.

Barbara Barrett is already published in contemporary romance. Like her protagonists, she is retired and is a resident of Florida, although she spends her summers in her home state of Iowa. She is married with grown children and eight grandchildren. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, Sisters in Crime - Iowa, and Florida Star Fiction Writers.