Barbara Allan

"It happened at Serenity's swap meet, right after Brandy Borne and her ever-more-eccentric mother Vivian finished shooting the pilot for their very own TV show, Antiques Sleuths. Brandy just, well, lost her balance and fell...into the helpful arms of an old flame, local tycoon Wesley Sinclair III. But did Brandy's innocent slip lead to the murder of Wesley's wife, Vanessa? Sure, Vanessa was furious that she caught Brandy in Wesley's embrace. And she...

When her "charmingly eccentric" mother Vivian is accused of killing mousy-haired busybody Connie Grimes after they were both involved in a bit of a scuffle, Brandy Borne must find the truth, which immerses her in a scandal involving questionable antiques and dark family secrets.

A cozy mystery with "a fast-paced plot, plenty of tongue-in-cheek humor, and tips on antique collecting" (Library Journal).

Spring has sprung a major leak in far-from-serene Serenity, as the Mississippi River drops in for an extended stay. With homes and businesses flooded, how better to help the town recover than by staging a church bazaar?
Brandy Borne knows her mother Vivian's plan, however, is more likely to lean...

The votes are in! Eccentric seventy-something Vivian Borne has (somehow) been elected county sheriff, and she's lurched into action, naming daughter Brandy a reluctant deputy and recruiting their spunky shih tzu Sushi as a one-doggie K-9 unit. As the dauntless duo snoops into creepy crimes plaguing an ill-fated Edgar Allan Poe festival, an eerie series of mournful murders puts them on a rocky road to dispensing Poe-etic justice. Small-town Antiqua,...

A village festival offers a Shakespeare play, an antiques sale—and a murder: "Surely one of the funniest cozy series going."—Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine

Brandy Borne's exceedingly eccentric mother, Vivian, has been invited to perform her one-woman interpretation of "the Scottish play" (sometimes called Macbeth)—with different hats for different characters—at the neighboring town of Old York's annual...

"Two o'clock in the morning is the perfect time to be asleep. So when long-suffering Brandy Borne is rudely awoken by her eccentric mother, Vivian, and invited on a surreptitious shopping trip, the idea is less than tempting. But if Vivian - Serenity's true-crime writing, septuagenarian super-sleuth - has a nose for sniffing out antiques, Brandy's sense of smell is just as good... and trouble's on the wind. A little light blackmail and one run-in...

At a small-town antiques market, someone is dealing in death: "Charming...a laugh-out-loud funny mystery."—Romantic Times (4 stars)
Halloween may be a time of treats, but for Brandy Borne, there's nothing trickier than keeping her batty mom out of mischief. Opening a booth at the Serenity antiques mall seems like a frightfully sensible solution—until a corpse turns up between the cornucopia and the candy corn. Local...

Vivian Borne - true-crime author, antiques dealer and ex-sheriff of Serenity, Iowa - is looking forward to meeting her new editor in London. Flying first class, rooms at the Savoy . . . Her long-suffering co-author, daughter Brandy, worries the trip will bankrupt them both, but the alternative - Mother travelling alone - is unthinkable. Brandy's almost tempted to make her fiance, Tony - Serenity's Chief of Police - call Scotland Yard and warn them...

It's curtains at Christmas in a special short story:"If you delight in the absurd and enjoy manic humor, you'll treasure the Trash 'n' Treasure mysteries." —Mystery Scene
During the dress rehearsal for a festive Christmas play in small-town Serenity, Iowa, star Madeline de Morlaye topples over—on stage!—after a bite of prop pastry. Since the frosty actress had earned plenty of enemies through her offstage...

A special Christmas short story in "one of the funniest cozy series going" (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine).
The Christmas rush is on as Brandy Borne and her quaintly quirky mother, Vivian, sniff out plum collectibles for resale, only to find the owner of a Santa's workshop worth of treasures has received some deadly tidings. It's beginning to look a lot like murder. . .but who wanted the deceased closed for the holidays—permanently?...