Charlotte MacLeod Books

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Charlotte MacLeod was a Canadian-American author that wrote mystery novels. Born in 1922 in Bath, New Brunswick, the author moved to the US as an infant, eventually becoming a naturalized citizen in 1951.

Order of Professor Peter Shandy Series

# Read Title Published Details
1 Rest You Merry 1978 Description / Buy
2 The Luck Runs Out 1979 Description / Buy
3 Wrack and Rune 1982 Description / Buy
4 Something The Cat Dragged In 1983 Description / Buy
5 The Curse of the Giant Hogweed 1985 Description / Buy
6 The Corpse in Oozak's Pond 1987 Description / Buy
7 Vane Pursuit 1989 Description / Buy
8 An Owl Too Many 1991 Description / Buy
9 Something in the Water 1994 Description / Buy
10 Exit the Milkman 1996 Description / Buy

Order of Sarah Kelling & Max Bittersohn Mysteries Series

# Read Title Published Details
1 The Family Vault 1979 Description / Buy
2 The Withdrawing Room 1980 Description / Buy
3 The Palace Guard 1981 Description / Buy
4 The Bilbao Looking Glass 1983 Description / Buy
5 The Convivial Codfish 1984 Description / Buy
6 The Plain Old Man 1985 Description / Buy
7 The Recycled Citizen 1987 Description / Buy
8 The Silver Ghost 1987 Description / Buy
9 The Gladstone Bag 1990 Description / Buy
10 The Resurrection Man 1992 Description / Buy
11 The Odd Job 1995 Description / Buy
12 The Balloon Man 1998 Description / Buy

Order of Madoc Rhys Series as Alisa Craig

# Read Title Published Details
1 A Pint of Murder 1980 Description / Buy
2 Murder Goes Mumming 1981 Description / Buy
3 A Dismal Thing to Do 1986 Description / Buy
4 Trouble in the Brasses 1989 Description / Buy
5 The Wrong Rite 1992 Description / Buy

Order of Grub-And-Stakers Series as Alisa Craig

# Read Title Published Details
1 The Grub-And-Stakers Move a Mountain 1981 Description / Buy
2 The Grub-and-Stakers Quilt a Bee 1985 Description / Buy
3 The Grub-And-Stakers Pinch a Poke 1988 Description / Buy
4 The Grub-and-Stakers Spin a Yarn 1990 Description / Buy
5 The Grub-And-Stakers House a Haunt 1993 Description / Buy

Order of Charlotte MacLeod Standalone Novels

# Read Title Published Details
1 Mystery of the White Knight 1964 Description / Buy
2 Next Door to Danger 1965 Description / Buy
3 The Fat Lady's Ghost 1968 Description / Buy
4 Mouse's Vineyard 1968 Description / Buy
5 Brass pounder 1971 Description / Buy
6 Ask Me No Questions 1971 Description / Buy
7 King Devil 1978 Description / Buy
8 We Dare Not Go A-Hunting 1980 Description / Buy
9 Cirak's Daughter 1982 Description / Buy
10 The Terrible Tide (As: Alisa Craig) 1983 Description / Buy
11 Maid of Honor 1984 Description / Buy

Order of Charlotte MacLeod Short Stories/Novellas

# Read Title Published Details
1 A Cozy For Christmas (Short Story) 1989 Description / Buy

Order of Charlotte MacLeod Short Story Collections

# Read Title Published Details
1 Grab Bag 1987 Description / Buy
2 It Was an Awful Shame and Other Stories 2002 Description / Buy

Order of Charlotte MacLeod Non-Fiction

# Read Title Published Details
1 Astrology For Skeptics 1972 Description / Buy
2 Had She but Known 1994 Description / Buy

Charlotte MacLeod Anthologies

# Read Title Published Details
1 Mistletoe Mysteries 1989 Description / Buy
2 Christmas Stalkings 1991 Description / Buy
3 Malice Domestic 1 1992 Description / Buy
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Like many successful authors, Charlotte was an avid reader during her childhood, and it did not take her long to ignite a passion for telling stories. The author was just ten years old when she won a newspaper contest, earning $1. She also got her story printed in the newspaper.

She went on to enroll at the School of Practical Art (which became the Art Institute of Boston), using the skills she gained to become a copywriter in the advertising industry and contributing her talents to ‘Stop and Shop Supermarkets’ in Boston.

Charlotte eventually climbed the ranks at N.H. Miller and Company to become the vice president. The author was still working in advertising when she started experimenting with fiction. She began by writing short stories, which she penned on the weekend.

Charlotte transitioned to books in her 40s, taking an interest in juveniles because the market had failed to satisfy the needs of girls that wanted to read mysteries.

By the time she retired in 1982, Charlotte had several published novels under her belt. Some people will remember her for Shandy, her first adult mystery protagonist, a horticulture professor.

Others can’t get enough of Sarah Kelling and Max Bittersohn, a husband and wife team that investigates crimes.

‘Had She But Known’ is Charlotte’s most notable nonfiction book. It explores a 20th Century writer and playwright that inspired the author during her childhood. Interestingly, the playwright in question was a contemporary of Agatha Christie.

People would often compare Charlotte to Christie because she was an aging author living in rural Maine with her three cats. The author’s loyal followers took note of her ladylike mannerisms, which included her penchant for wearing hats and gloves.

Alexandria Baxter was Charlotte’s sister. Besides playing the role of business manager, she would type and proofread the author’s novels. Alexandria revealed in an interview that her sister wanted to reach readers with little or no interest in blood and guts.

While her characters were outrageous and Charlotte’s stories advanced at a dizzying pace, she steered clear of vulgar language, sex, and unnecessary violence, which placed her work squarely in the cozy mystery genre.

Her work day began at 6 a.m. She would spend the morning writing. In the afternoon, she did rewrites. Sundays were for starting new books. Maine was Charlotte’s home during the final years of her life.

She struggled with Alzheimer’s disease before finally passing away in 2005, leaving a sister and brother behind. The author’s love for storytelling was so strong that she would have continued to write novels even if no one was reading them.

Fortunately, she saw plenty of success during her lifetime. Her books sold over a million copies. She also secured a readership abroad in countries like Japan.

Charlotte MacLeod Awards

Charlotte won Nero and American Mystery Awards. She received nominations for Edgar Allan Poe and Anthony Awards.

Best Charlotte MacLeod Books

The film critic Kathi Maio once commended the author for writing highly entertaining mystery fiction. Charlotte’s best books include:

Rest You Merry: Jemima Ames had nothing good to say about Shandy’s living room. The wife of Shandy’s best friend, Jemima thought the tenured professor of Agrology had done a poor job of decorating his home for Christmas.

The overbearing woman was trying to remove Shandy’s vulgar Christmas display when she died. The police were quick to dismiss her death as an accident. But Shandy was not convinced, and neither was Jemima’s husband. They won’t rest until they find a satisfying explanation for the woman’s death.

The Family Vault: Sarah Kelling will fight anyone who claims she’s lived a pampered life. However, she can’t deny that her existence has been more privileged than most. Attached to an infamous extended family and married to a man twice her age, Sarah’s days are relatively ordinary, even though she shares her large home with the clan’s difficult matriarch.

When an elderly relative dies, the decision to bury her in the family vault creates complications when a dead body appears. Now the family’s secrets are rising to the surface.

When Does The Next Charlotte MacLeod book come out?

Charlotte MacLeod doesn't seem to have an upcoming book. Their newest book is The Fat Lady's Ghost and was released on July, 23rd 2019.

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