A Deborah Knott Mystery
By: Margaret Maron
Narrated by: C. J. Critt
Series: Deborah Knott, Book 15
Categories: Mysteries & Thrillers, Modern Detective
Death's Half Acre
Narrated by: C.J. Critt
Margaret Maron's Judge Deborah Knott mysteries set in rural North Carolina are cherished by discerning readers who value authentic characters and intriguing plots. As housing sprawl creeps across the land, farmers are feeling the pinch. County commissioners have been making lucrative land deals in secret, and now murder brings Deborah and Sheriff Bryant into the middle of a major dispute.
Great book. Love the series
By cyn on 10-26-19
Christmas Mourning
Margaret Maron's best-selling Deborah Knott mystery series won instant acclaim upon its debut in 1993. In this 16th entry in the series, the judge is faced with a horrifying holiday murder case. After a beautiful young cheerleader is found dead in a car wreck, Judge Knott's husband Deputy Dwight Bryant discovers evidence that the death was anything but an accident.Now Knott and Bryant are on a desperate search for a killer before he or she trikes again.
Couldn't get through this
By Cindy on 08-18-11
Hard Row
When a local farmer - known for his severe treatment of migrant workers - turns up savagely murdered, Judge Deborah and her new Deputy Sheriff husband soon wade into a quagmire of exploitation. But as murders mushroom, the two uncover secrets that threaten both their community and their new life together.
Still enjoying this series ...
By J. Byerly on 02-23-14
Three-Day Town
New York Times best-selling author Margaret Maron's meticulously crafted Judge Deborah Knott mysteries display the work of a master. In the series' 17th entry, Deborah and Sheriff's Deputy Dwight Bryant are on their way to New York City for a belated honeymoon. Once in the city, however, they get swept up in a mystery involving a stolen package and a murdered doorman.
Disappointed...
By Yva on 04-15-12
Winter's Child
When local handyman J.D. Rouse is found dead in his pickup truck with a bullet in his head, the mayhem - and the body count - grows. But Dwight launches his own investigation after his son and ex-wife turn up missing from their home in Virginia.
Another winner from Maron
By Judith on 10-08-18
Rituals of the Season
Best-selling author Margaret Maron shows the form that has won her the Edgar and Agatha Awards, among many others, in this riveting mystery. Judge Deborah Knott and Deputy Sheriff Dwight Bryant are due to marry in a week. But all plans are put on hold when an assistant district attorney is killed, and the clues compel Judge Knott to investigate an earlier double murder that may be connected
Deborah and Dwight Get Married
By Chalis on 07-28-15
The Buzzard Table
Margaret Maron's mysteries starring Judge Deborah Knott have built a loyal following since debuting with the Edgar Award-winning The Bootlegger's Daughter. The series' 18th entry finds Deborah and her husband, Deputy Sheriff Bryant, teaming up with Lt. Sigrid Herald to track down a killer on the loose in their small North Carolina town. But as the hunt for the culprit gets more intense, they uncover long-hidden secrets that cast their investigation in a whole new light.
It's A Turkey
By Carole T. on 11-30-12
High Country Fall
Publishers Weekly declares that the "leaves of autumn are in full splendor, and so is Maron's talent in her 10th Deborah Knott adventure". Judge Knott is finally ready to marry her long-time friend Deputy Sheriff Dwight Bryant and settle down...or is she? She jumps at a chance to fill in for a judge in the high country of North Carolina. But ugly murder haunts the beauty of the Smoky Mountains.
By Kathleen Hobel on 05-21-05
Slow Dollar
At the annual Harvest Festival carnival, while everyone else is playing games and having fun, someone commits murder. As Deborah investigates, she must struggle to win a carny's confidence while a dark web of dangerous secrets begins to unravel.
Colorful writing and characterization, good plot
By Tim on 07-18-04
No one worries much about the scantily clad woman found strangled in the Orchid Motel, she must be a tourist who brought along her own problems. But when the victim turns out to be the wife of an up-and-coming lawyer, people begin looking suspiciously among themselves for the culprit, and Judge Deborah Knott learns her cousin possesses a mighty powerful motive. While Deborah searches for the vicious killer, a deadly hurricane rages up the Carolina coast, bringing destruction and its own kind of justice.
Weaving of tangled webs
By Jean on 12-27-15
Uncommon Clay
Uncommon Clay delves into the intriguing world of the Nordans, a deep-rooted family of talented yet cursed North Carolina potters. Judge Knott is filling in for another judge who suffered a mild stroke. When she decrees that the divorcing Nordan couple split their valuable earthenware collection, the husband winds up dead, in his own kiln! Many people have motives and the clay wheel swirls with suspects.
By vmom on 06-25-04
Designated Daughters
Narrated by: Margaret Maron
Surrounded by her children, her extended family, and what seems like half of Colleton County, a semi-conscious Rachel breaks weeks of pained silence with snippets of stories as randomly pieced together as a well-worn patchwork quilt. But the Knott family's joy quickly gives way to shock: less than an hour later, Aunt Rachel is found dead in her bed, smothered with a pillow. Who would kill a woman on her deathbed? Was it an act of mercy, or murder?
Bewildered by change of narrators ...............
By Janet on 08-23-14
When racial tension erupts in the sleepy community of Colleton County, North Carolina, Deborah is caught off guard. She is happily tending her own home fires: her simmering romance with Kidd Chapin, the house she's building on her family's land, and her campaign for reelection as district judge. But then the first black church is burned, and all of Deborah's alarms go off.
A Look at the New South
Long Upon the Land
On a quiet August morning, Judge Deborah Knott's father, Kezzie, makes a shocking discovery on a remote corner of his farm: the body of a man bludgeoned to death. Investigating this crime, Deborah's husband, Sheriff's Deputy Dwight Bryant, soon uncovers a long-simmering hostility between Kezzie and the slain man over a land dispute. The local newspaper implies that Deborah's family may have had something to do with the murder - and that Dwight is dragging his feet on the case.
Author makes poor narrator
Killer Market
Killer Market takes the quintessential steel magnolia to the hub of North Carolina's massive furniture industry. Deborah soon gets caught up in the whirl of the International Home Furnishings Market and finds herself a suspect in a high-power murder case. The feisty judge must use her courtroom experience and intuitive skills to strip through layers of deception if she is to clear her own name. Maron draws from her own rural southern roots to craft her trademark authentic settings and characters.
I love Maron.
By K. E. Eisenhart on 10-25-16
Up Jumps the Devil
In Up Jumps the Devil, fast-moving progress is threatening to forever destroy the leisurely, heart-warming pace of Colleton County, North Carolina. District Court Judge Deborah Knott sees trouble brewing when plans for a new interstate highway start pushing up property values. Deborah finds herself calming the combatants with down-home wit, but when the squabbles escalate to murder, Deborah is forced to search for a killer uncomfortably close to home.
Shooting at Loons
Populated with colorful, richly drawn characters, Margaret Maron's latest novel captures the flavor of life in rural North Carolina. Arriving in Carteret County, Judge Deborah Knott finds herself in the thick of battles between sport and commercial fishermen and between old and new money. She discovers the body of Andy Bynum, a retired waterman respected by all. With no obvious suspects in the murder, Deborah must find the killer in a place where people shoot at loons, sea turtles, and their neighbors.
Disappointed Fan
By BURMADEANE GEORGE on 10-13-14
Southern Discomfort
Length: 8 hrs
The governor of North Carolina has appointed Deborah to a judicial seat in the District Court Division. On her weekends, the fledgling judge has been helping an all-woman building crew complete a home for a needy single mother. Her attempts to gain positive P.R. go awry when her niece is found battered and half-naked in the partially completed home, with Deborah's own bloody hammer lying nearby.
S L O W
By Carolyn on 11-01-14
Margaret Maron continues her best-selling Deborah Knott series with Sand Sharks - an "outstanding ... neat mystery that [is] highly recommended" ( Library Journal, starred review). Judge Deborah's hopes for relaxation at a seaside judicial conference are dashed when she stumbles upon the murdered body of a colleague. And when more judges turn up dead, Deborah fears she could be next.
©2009 Margaret Maron (P)2009 Recorded Books, LLC
"The plot, populated with enticing characters, moves swiftly; an essential read for Maron fans and mystery lovers." ( Library Journal)
Bootlegger's Daughter
Two for the Dough
Three to Get Deadly
Sand Sharks is a undulating mystery with several plotlines running at the same time. In addition, there are very specific descriptions of the Wilmington, Wrightsville Beach area that are entirely accurate. I like Margaret Maron's writing style as she describes Deborah Knox, the lead character along with detailed history of her family and friends. This author drew me back to her books because they integrate North Carolina history and culture with the plotline of each book. I will continue to read this author's works because each one is uniquely entertaining.
hmmm...just didn't hold my attention
I have read all of the Judge Knott books, I'm a huge fan of Maron's, and I live in NC. However, I just couldn't get into this novel. A lot of it had to do with CJ Critt's sleepy voice. I found myself thinking, "get to the point already". My two star-rating also came from the fact that there were too many details pulling me away from the main focus. I think this book would be better read than listened to. Plus, in this novel, Deorah Knott didn't seem like her good old Southern girl self.
I don't plan on finishing listening to this audiobook and I'm sorry I used my monthly credit on it. Read Judge Knott's earlier stories - far more intriguing.
La Smurf
very engaging <br />
The story and narrator were interesting and engaging. The narrator, C.J. Critt is very talented in differentiating the voices of the characters.
Columbus, OH, United States
CJ Critt ruins this story
This is not the best book in the Deborah Knott series, but it is a good story, well written and I enjoyed reading the print version. However, the narration by CJ Critt is awful. She hesitates ever so slightly in the middle of sentences thereby putting the emphasis on the wrong words. Her so-called southern accent is painful to listen to, and she makes a lot of characters sound like idiots with her exaggerated intonations.
Willy K.
Good story but I missed the family
I have become so attached to the Knott clan that I wanted Deborah to hurry and get back home from her judges conference. Alas, the entire story takes place at the conference. Still, a good mystery and, as always, well narrated.
Chalis
A Trip to the Beach
I discovered this series recently and loved it right away.
Main character Debrorah Knott appeals to me. She is smart and interesting. She is complex, but well adjusted.
In this book, as in others in the series, I find a very strong sense of place. I can "see" the locations in my mind. I'm not sure how Margaret Maron does this. There aren't long, detailed paragraphs describing the setting. And I've never been to the location where the story takes place. Yet with some well chosen words, Margaret Maron takes me there.
The mystery and the characters in the story held my attention. This is the kind of story that I would listen to in one or two sessions if I had the time.
Narrator C.J. Critt is excellent. Her voice is smooth, her diction is clear and her inflections add interest. Her reading adds interest, but is not distracting.