Shakespeare's Landlord (Lily Bard Mysteries, Book 1)

When cleaning lady Lily Bard discovers the dead body of her nosy landlord, her plan of starting a quiet new life may end in her death.

Customer Reviews:

The Shakespeare series are among the best genre novels I have ever read. Truly a class above.

By Madame X - June 27, 2006

I have one piece of advice to anybody interested in Shakespeare's Landlord: buy it, borrow it, whatever, just read it as soon as possible. Put it at the top of your pile. You'll be glad you did.

Lily Bard is one of the most compelling and, frankly, admirable heroines I have ever come across. She's got a very dark past, and from the very first page it's clear how much sheer will it has taken for her to make a new life for herself. Lily is independent, blunt, ass-kicking, solitary, and smart as hell.

The Shakespeare books are mysteries, and they're good ones, but the reason to read them is to watch Lily Bard's character grow and change. Charlaine Harris has a tremendous ability to infuse the most quotidien events with incredible depth, a true master of the 'show don't tell' school of writing. Her characters are both ordinary and monumental, and she writes about the South in a way that (really!) bears comparison to Faulkner and Toni Morrison.

The... read more

O, my offense is rank, it smells to heaven...-Shakespeare, Hamlet

By Cherise Everhard - January 20, 2008

For four years Lily Bard has lived and worked in the small town of Shakespeare, Arkansas. While she cleans the houses and businesses of the town folk she learns some of their secrets, but she's known and respected for being closed mouthed. Even though Lily is a known and recognized member of the community, she isn't really close to anyone; she keeps to herself. Lily has a past she'd like to keep there.

When the leading Shakespeare busybody and landlord turns up murdered, suddenly the people that she has worked for are all under suspicion. When the local police chief starts sniffing around Lily's door, she decides she needs to try to locate the murderer.

With only 214 pages, I was a little skeptical about how this mystery would get pulled off. I ended up being pleasantly impressed. Charlaine Harris creates a detailed setting and introduces a town full of colorful people. Having grown up in a small town; it was easy to recognize some of the characters and... read more

Average....

By S. McCullough "pacey1927" - May 18, 2008

As a huge Charlaine Harris fan I recently picked up "Shakespeare's Landlord", the first Lily Bard mystery. This series deals with Lily, a cleanwoman dealing with her traumatic past by running off to a small town and making a new life for herself. One night Lily witnesses a murderer dumping a body in a nearby park area. And they are using Lily's trash can to transport the body! Desperate to hide her own secrets, Lily begins her own search into who murdered the gossipy landlord of Shakespeare Garden Apartments...and every tenant is a supect! I flew through this book quickly, its kind of short and sweet. Well sweet, it the wrong word. Very little that happens in this story is sweet. This is the darkest story I have read from Charlaine (after her rape saga "A Secret Rage"). This mystery is definately worth reading and the clues and suspects are interesting. The reveal of the murderer is a little to quickly resolved. I was slightly disappointed by that. I would recommend this... read more