Footprints in the Sand

Written by Mary Jane Clark

Narrated by Thérèse Plummer

It's the dead of winter and struggling actress and wedding-cake decorator Piper Donovan is thrilled to be in warm and romantic Sarasota, Florida, enjoying the powdery white beaches, soothing seas, and golden sunsets over the Gulf of Mexico. She and her family are there to celebrate her beloved cousin's wedding. Not only is Piper creating the sugar-sand-dollar-festooned wedding cake, she's also the maid of honor.

But a cloud seems to be hovering over the whole affair. Shortly after a bridesmaid mysteriously disappears, a kindly neighbor's car is run off the road and a prospective witness, an innocent Amish teenager, is threatened to keep silent. Then a body is found on the beach where the wedding will take place. With the nuptials threatened, it falls to Piper to unmask a killer. Could it be the wedding planner with something to hide? A doctor and his wife who collect unusual Japanese figurines? The best man, an ex–drug dealer with lecherous eyes and roving hands? What about her cousin's future stepfather—or even the bridegroom himself?

As Piper gets close to figuring out who's been covering his guilty footprints in the sand, the cunning killer has already set his sights on Piper as his next victim!

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: Jan 8, 2013
• ISBN: 9780062239587

Mary Jane Clark

Mary Jane Clark worked at CBS News for nearly three decades. Her twelve KEY News media thrillers were inspired by that experience. Envisioning the Piper Donovan/Wedding Cake mystery series, Mary Jane enrolled in cake-decorating classes and researched unique wedding locations. The daughter of an FBI agent and a mother who customized cakes for the neighborhood kids when she was growing up, Mary Jane has two grown children and splits her time between New Jersey and Florida.

Reviews for Footprints in the Sand

[ewhatley_3 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Quick, easy read, light mystery and somewhat predictable. A little too "soft" for my personal taste buy I do like the key lime pie recipe at the end.

[mmoj_2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It was okay - not one of the best. The story is about Piper an aspiring actress and wedding cake designer who is in Florida both to participate, and to decorate a cake, for her cousin's wedding. The story read okay but somehow fell flat. I didn't feel any connection to any of the characters - except perhaps Levi (and I didn't believe in the circumstances surrounding him).

[slvoight_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I received this book as a Goodreads ARC giveaway. This was a great book and I really enjoy it

[pattylouise_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Footprints In The SandBy Mary Jane ClarkMy "in a nutshell" summary...Florida...sun...sand...and...murder...actually more than one murder.My thoughts after reading this book...Hmmm...there are tons of interesting characters in this book...and I suspected each and everyone of them while I was reading. And can I just say that every once in a while I love books with lots of really short chapters? Yum! This book had the best short chapters ever...each one made me suspect someone new. I truly did not suspect the real murderer until the very end...and just so you know...it was the very last person I would ever suspect!Let me briefly tell you what happened. This is what I would call a light hearted mystery so I will not be revealing anything major...it would spoil the fun of this delightful book! Piper...the Nancy Drew character in this book...is in Sarasota for her cousin Kathy's wedding. A friend of Kathy's disappears and this starts a progression of horrible events. Murders...mayhem...alligators...and...Puffer Fish! It is just fun and entertaining and well written. What I loved about this book...In a word? Everything! There are tantalizing food descriptions and beaches and wild life and quirky characters and mysterious characters and again...I suspected everyone. I loved it! I love the kind of cozy mystery where a supporting character makes a really bad choice and you know ultimately...it's curtains for them! Great fun!What I did not love...There is a recipe for Aunt Nora's Siesta Key Lime Pie in the back of the book...easy, no baking, and now I am forced to make it. Fictional Aunt Nora says it's the best.Final thoughts...What a delightful fun book this was. I have not read a Mary Jane Clark book in ages...she has written tons...but I loved Piper. I need to check out more of these books. If you love a relaxing cozy suspenseful mystery...this is an amazing one to choose.

[susiesharp_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was an ok cozy I didn't realize it was 3rd in a series so it took a little while to learn the characters backgrounds, some of the story was a bit farfetched but the characters made me curious enough that I may go back and listen to the first 2. I enjoyed parts of this book but had a problem with the actions of some of the characters, it did keep me guessing and a couple of the red herrings did get me. The part that annoyed me the most was Piper’s posting everything to Facebook and the way she talked about getting comments and ,oh wait there’s a dead body let’s post a picture of her dead body so I can see how many comments I get. What??!!??This was one of my vacation listens, I chose light easy reads and this one fit the bill it is a cozy mystery with traces of chick lit but the story wasn’t horrible I just question some of the actions. Piper should really leave the sleuthing to her dad (a former cop) or to her boyfriend (FBI Agent) because honestly she’s not very good at it and just pretty much put a huge target on her back without finding any answers, by the time she did figure it out it was almost too late.Plummer narration was well done, everyone had a distinct voice and I would look for more books she has narrated.My rating is somewhere between these two:3 Stars- Good Book but some things didn't connect with me2 1/2 Stars- just didn't connect to this book but was ok

[mrsbaty · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Piper Donovan, aspiring actress, is headed to Florida to be the maid-of-honor in her cousin's wedding and to help her mom bake the wedding cake. When she arrives, she find that one of the bridesmaids has disappeared and no one has seen her for three days. This is just the first of a string of unfortunate events that seem to be plaguing this wedding. The beautiful Sarasota beach setting seems to be covering a dark secret and Piper is determined to find out what it is so her cousin's wedding won't be ruined. There are plenty of suspects, interesting characters,lovely settings and sea turtles. In fact, a great beach read!American Cozy Mysteries (don't know if that's an official genre but it is to me!) is my favorite genre and this is a fun, fluffy example. There is the involvement of the Amish community which I know appeals to many readers. Footprints in the Sand is the third mystery in the Piper Donovan series and the first one I've read but that doesn't seem to be a problem. It was fine as a stand-alone mystery. It's a quick read that makes me want to find the first two in the series.I received this book from as a Goodreads giveaway and I appreciated the chance to read and review it.

[Micha Johnson · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Reading the Piper Donavon series is like hanging out with a friend. I love it!