The layered plot of the latest in the excellent Jenny Cain series (SAY NO TO MURDER) finds the Port Frederick, Mass., sleuth probing the cause of her recently deceased mother's insanity. Cain discovers that her mother's mental collapse many years before coincided with the bankruptcy of the family business. The closing of Cain Clams created considerable unemployment locally and countless enemies for the Cains--one such foe may now be trying to prevent the amateur detective from delving further into her family's past and the town's secrets. As she tracks down public mysteries, Cain unearths painful personal issues; an attempt on her life, construed as an effort at suicide, forces her to deal with the legacy of her mother's madness. Pickard masterfully resolves both plot lines in this affecting, provocative novel centering around the mystery at the heart of mother-daughter relationships.

Charming amateur sleuth Jenny Cain returns in Bum Steer, to solve a mysterious murder that sends her on a twisting adventure in the wild, wild West.

As director of the Port Frederick Civic Foundation, Jenny Cain is privy to the charitable intentions of the town's wealthiest citizens. There's eccentric old Arnie Culverson, who's promised millions to the local art museum. Who's found there one bright winter morning, neatly tucked into a priceless antique Chinese bed. With pillow and blanket. Dead. Then another dearly beloved donor dies in the night. And the killer leaves behind a nasty rhyme suggesting rich and beautiful Jenny will be next!

Jenny Cain was thrilled about the Liberty Harbor Restoration, a picturesque collection of shops, museums and restaurants. But when a runaway truck barreled into the project committee, it seemed someone in Port Frederick was out to sink Liberty Harbor. Then a wooden cross raised in unholy wrath made the message clear. Murderously clear. As director of the town's Civic Foundation, Jenny should have been glad when police detective Geof Bushfield reeled in a prime suspect. Unfortunately, it was the one person she was desperate to prove innocent. Fishing for a ruthless killer, she had to bait her trap fast - before the cold New England waters closed in over her own head!