Reno calls itself the Biggest Little City. Don't let the "little" fool you.
When a beloved drag performer is run down beneath the neon glow of the famous Reno Arch, moments after a glittering, Bond-themed charity gala, the Reno police are content to call it a drunk driver and close the file. Four women in their sixties are not.
The world stopped noticing women of a certain age, which is precisely why no one sees them coming:
- Sam Calloway, the spy: Spent her career in Naval Intelligence and can find almost anyone with a keyboard and a hunch.
- June Mueller, the superhero: Reads maps, braves any terrain, and always has the right gear.
- Kitty Calloway, the mystic: Learned to read a room in Soviet-era Ukraine and feels what everyone else misses.
- Aggie Anderson, the master of disguise: A local with a talent for undercover work and uncovering secrets.
Armed with a lifetime of hard-won skills, the four piece the mystery together one clue at a time, helped by the "husband brigade," a PTSD service poodle named Moneypenny, and Stephen Colbert, a one-eyed donkey obsessed with James Bond. What looks like a run-of-the-mill hit-and-run turns into something far bigger and more dangerous: a criminal network with cartel money, a cop on the take, and a target whose only crime is being himself.
From the neon and casinos of downtown to eclectic Midtown, the team follows clues into the high country of Galena Forest, Washoe Valley, the historic Comstock mining towns, and the high desert along the California border. Thirty minutes in any direction brings vast terrain and cultural shifts; northern Nevada and its wide open spaces are the stage.
Equipped with wildly over-engineered gadgets from the husband brigade's basement "Q Department" and thrift-store disguises, the underestimated team uses high-tech surveillance to expose a crime syndicate embedded in their own hometown. They have the time, the talent, and the anonymity nobody bothered to notice.
Underestimating them is going to be the last mistake somebody makes.
Die Another Slay is a witty, big-hearted, fast-paced cozy thriller set in Reno, Nevada, and the first book in The Biggest Little Mystery Series. With a richly diverse multi-generational ensemble, it celebrates women over sixty in traditionally male-dominated fields, honors military veterans and their families, portrays PTSD and a service dog with care and dignity, and centers the found family of a vibrant LGBTQ+ community.
Perfect for readers of Richard Osman's Thursday Murder Club, the dry menace of Mick Herron, and the cozy charm of Vicki Delany, and for any book club that loves clever banter, real friendship, and a mystery with heart.