A Bone to Pick

Written by Charlaine Harris

Narrated by Thérèse Plummer

In this second Aurora Teagarden mystery from Anthony Award winner Charlaine Harris, "Roe" unexpectedly inherits a house and a fortune when a fellow Real Murders Club member dies. But things take a turn for the macabre when Roe discovers a human skull hidden in her new home's window seat. ". chock full of colorful local names and background chatter, and fans . will be curious to learn how [Aurora's] new independence unfolds."-Publishers Weekly

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Dec 4, 2009
• ISBN: 9781440789618

Charlaine Harris

Charlaine Harris is a New York Times bestselling author who has been writing for over thirty years. She was born and raised in the Mississippi River Delta area. She has written four series, and two stand-alone novels, in addition to numerous short stories, novellas, and graphic novels (cowritten with Christopher Golden). Her Sookie Stackhouse books have appeared in twenty-five different languages and on many bestseller lists. They’re also the basis of the HBO series True Blood. Harris now lives in Texas, and when she is not writing her own books, she reads omnivorously. Her house is full of rescue dogs.

Reviews for A Bone to Pick

[rhinoa_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Aurora (Roe) is back after the events in Real Murders. One of the original club, JaneEngle, has died of old age and has left her house and savings to Roe. They were not particularly close, but it seems Jane has left Roe a mystery to solve. Lawyer Bubba Sewell gives her to understand there is something Jane has been keeping from people and on investigating her house Roe finds a human skull. The house has also been broken in to which suggests that she is not the only one who knows about it's exsistance.Roe is torn, should she move in to Jane's house but is one of the neighbours a murderer. First things first she needs to identify the identity of the skull and there are a few possibilities and missing people. She meets her neighbours including her ex lover who has recently married and his wife is about to have a baby any time now which really rubs Roe's single face in it. To even the playing field she begins to date one of the local ministers, but no one is above suspision and she is careful not to mention the skull to anyone.I enjoyed this as a random novel but not as a murder mystery. The ending was far too rushed and was much more about Roe and her realtionships with people than about the msytery. There was also a very unrealistic scene at the end involving giving birth, but I won't spoil it here. Overall a very average book which left me very disappointed as I expected better.

[beckyjg · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A Bone to Pick is the second Aurora Teagarden mystery. Although Roe, her friends, and fellow Lawrenceton, Georgia denizens continue to grow as characters, her sleuthing abilities remain strictly passive in this installment.As the story begins Roe learns that she has been bequeathed the not insignificant estate of Jane Engle, a recently deceased member of the now-defunct Real Murders true crime club. In addition to inheriting Jane's bank account, Roe has also come into possession of a small house, a mean cat, and a skull in the window seat.Although Roe's curiosity about whose skull it is and why it's in Jane's window seat is boundless, her investigative skills, once again, sit firmly in the right-place-at-the-right-time arena. Once again, however, that's all right. The neighbors are quirky, in some cases to the point of near-insanity, establishing the series firmly, if mildly, as Southern Gothic.

[klarsenmd · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is the second in the Aurora Teagarden set of books, and while the first I found slightlyentertaining, this one was just too slow for my taste. In the follow up we find Roe upset over the marriage of her former boyfriend to another woman, and looking for something to spice up her life. She finds it in an unexpected inheritance. what she soesn't realize is the inheritance comes with a skull of an unknown murder victim. why she tries to solve it on her own, I don't know. Anyway, the tale was a bit blah for me with too little action and not enough believability.

[NicholaAnkeMillen · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Too much romance and too little sleuthing! But Roe is a sweet narrator.

[wyvernfriend · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The second Aurora Teagarden story and she's dealing with the aftermaths of the previous story and her job not being very busy, along with cutbacks giving her a lot of time to do other things. She inherits a house and it's contents along with some money from an old friend who used to be in the crime discussion club. While looking through the house she finds a skull in a window seat and finds clues to who it is and finds that she's a target for whoever the killer is.It's a light mystery series and not terribly complicated. Fun series that I look forward to reading more of.

[krumbs_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

A bit odd for a second book in a murder mystery series. Less about the murder and more about hiding the results of a death from the police. Also, not so sure about the inheritance plot-line.

[thelibraryhag · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When Roe's older friend dies, she is shocked to find out that she has inherited the bulk of the estate, including a house. She knows there must be a catch, and she finds it pretty quickly, a skull hidden in the window seat. Not wanting to involve the police, Roe sets about investigating the neighbors. This is the second in the series and I enjoyed it very much. It is a quick read with interesting characters and relationships. I am looking forward to the third in the series which is being reissued soon.

[dukefan86 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This second installment was a pretty quick read, and I enjoyed seeing how threads from the first book of this Aurora Teagarden series showed up in the second. I did feel like this story was more "day-to-day" goings on, and less suspenseful than the first book of the series, Real Murders.

One of the surprises in this book for me was that Aurora "Roe" quit her job at the library. Her job was one factor that interested me in this series. I'll be interested in how Aurora's character develops as the series progresses.

[tntexas_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Readers who are continuing the series will find the beginning a bit confusing and wonder if they're really reading a sequel to the book they've just finished since quite a bit has happened during the interim. Once you get used to the changes though, it's a pretty fun book with an ending that was a bit unexpected.

[drapple_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The librarian sleuth Aurora Teagarden is presented with a mystery she must solve when she inherits a houde and finds a skull in a window seat. Did her friend who left her the property kill someone? If so, who? Is the recent break-in related to the skull? WIll Aurora's dates with the new Episcopal priest lead to something more? Another fun and charming mystery!

[kegsoccer · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

"A Bone To Pick" by Charlaine Harris is the second book in her series about librarian Aurora Teagarden. (The first being Real Murders: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery, Bk. 1) In this mystery, Aurora aka Roe is stunned when she inherits a house and a large sum of money from elderly Jane Engle after her death. That's not the only thing Jane left her- there's a human skull in the window seat. On top of that, the people that have just moved in across the street from Jane's house are none other than Roe's ex-boyfriend Arthur Smith and his new pregnant wife. After some snooping around, Roe finds out that a couple of people in the neighborhood have gone missing. One went out for diapers and never came home; another skipped out on his rent and left during the night. Was one of them killed? Is it their skull? Roe is determined to find out! I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I fully recommend the rest in this series. Next is Three Bedrooms, One Corpse: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery, followed by The Julius House: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery, Bk. 4, Dead Over Heels: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery, Bk. 5, "Fool And His Honey: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery, Bk. 6, Last Scene Alive (Aurora Teagarden Mysteries), and Poppy Done To Death: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery, Bk. 8. Or if you'd like to try a different series by Charlaine Harris, check out the Lily Bard mysteries.(Shakespeare's Landlord (The First Lily Bard Mystery), "Shakespeare's Champion", Shakespeare's Christmas", "Shakespeare's Trollop", and Shakespeare's Counselor") Or her new supernatural Southern Vampire Mysteries (Dead Until Dark (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Bk. 1), "Living Dead in Dallas", "Club Dead", "Dead to the World", "Dead as a Doornail", "Definitely Dead", and "All Together Dead")

[honeydew69862004 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

[A Bone To Pick] by Charlaine Harris 3.5 stars 272 pagesA Bone to Pick has Roe inherit a house and alot of money from one of the old members of Real Murders. In the house she finds a skull that has been there for a few years. Someone on the street is a murderer and is trying to find out who has the skull. The stage is set up for the next book to have alot of changes. Not her best series but it's an ok one.

[jeremypreacher · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Another totally competent cozy mystery in the Aurora Teagarden series. The sudden and inexplicable inheritance that includes a cat gave me flashbacks to the "A Cat Who..." series, but that's not entirely a bad thing, and it was nice that the mystery was very much past-tense, just for a change. This books is rather more focused on establishing Roe as an ongoing characters than on solving an actual mystery, and her love life is not nearly as fascinating as it might be (at least to me,) but this was a totally pleasant and painless read.

[jshillingford_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is the second in the cozy mystery series featuring amateur sleuth, Aurora Teagarden. A woman Aurora barely knows unexpectedly leaves her home and money to Aurora when she dies! But, there's a secret in the house. When Aurora accidentally discovers a hidden skull in her new home, she finds herself in danger from an unknown assailant and a mystery to solve. The first book, Real Murders, was very predictable, but Aurora was interesting enough to get me to try another book. Thankfully, the mysteries get progressively better (though never on par with Mary Higgins Clark and the like) and Aurora's interactions with her neighbors provide a lot of humor. Highly recommended series!

[madamejeanie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Aurora Teagarden, part time librarian, is barely over the huge wedding-of-the-year event where her mother, a prominent realtor, married a wealthy bank manager when she learns that an old friend and former member of her "Real Murders" club, Jane Engle, has passed away. And as she's leaving the cemetery, Roe learns from Jane's attorney that except for a small bequest to a cousin she never liked, Jane has left her entire estate to Roe. That was quite a surprise, and finding out the amount of the inheritance (a house and over half a million dollars in cash) was an even bigger one, but it's the skull that Roe finds hidden in the window seat in Jane's living room that is a downright shock. Along with a terse note in one of her many real life murder books ("I didn't do it."), Roe feels determined to try to figure out who the skull belongs to and why Jane had it in the first place, but she's hesitant to turn everything directly over to the police because she feels she owes it to Jane to keep her name out of the headlines if at all possible. In this second installment of the series, Ms. Harris has hit her stride. The characters that were introduced in "Real Murders" are fleshed out more fully and Roe has become someone I can identify with. As soon as Roe did the little jig in the privacy of the elevator at the lawyer's office building after she learned of her inheritance, I knew she and I were going to get along just fine. I'm looking forward to more books in this series.

[gpangel_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I love this cozy mystery series by Charlaine Harris. Much has happened since we last checked in on Aurora, or "Roe" . Her love life, her mother's love life, and Roe's hours as a librarian are cut. So, when a friend from the now disbanded "Real Murders" Club, passes away, Roe finds herself mentioned in the will. At first Roe is very happy about her sudden windfall. But, then she made a gruesome discovery. There are some laugh out loud moments. This a quick, light read. I enjoyed it very much. I'm looking forward to the next one.

[cathepsut · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A nice, cosy mystery. There is actually not much sleuthing going on until the end of the book. The solution is quite neat, but I guessed the who-dunnit fairly early on, motif included. So, entertaining little read for the weekend on the couch, but nothing earth-shattering. If you are new to Charlaine Harris, read the Sookie Stackhouse books first, they are much better.

[ficusfan · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the 2nd book in the Aurora Teagarden mystery series. It is a series that I started due to a RL book group (we pick a series, rather than specific books). I was not thrilled with it, and would not have read past the first book, except I bought the first 4 books.I think the best way to describe the series is beige. Its just very bland, and way too lightweight for me. It is a cozy and I am not fond of them unless they have something else going on: oddness, humor, local setting.I really don't like the main character,she is beige, wishy-washy and passive.That said, even with all my criticism, the book is a smooth fast read.The previous book introduced Aurora a poor, part time librarian in a small town near Atlanta. She is living in a condo complex her mother owns, and is also the manager. She is presented as much less successful than her mother in all phases of life.In this book, a character introduced in the first book, Jane, an elderly spinster, barely connected to Aurora, dies. She leaves Aurora her house, its contents, and her fortune. Oh yes, and an old skull.The mystery becomes who is the skull, how did it die, and where is the rest of the body? Aurora finds that Jane's house has been broken into and specific places ransacked. Holes have been dug in the lawn. Jane had been in the hospital and died there, so the house was supposedly empty for a while.Aurora embarks on a clandestine investigation of Jane's neighbors. She fears Jane was involved in the killing so she decides not to contact the police. The mystery is rather limp, and highly tinged with suburban repressed sex and violence. It is a bit sad and tawdry, as she pokes into the lives and secrets of the neighbors.The other part of the novel is Aurora trying to come to terms with her new wealth and the increased status she has. Now she can be independent of her mother. She is trying on and building a new persona.Ho hum.The ending seems like just pick a deranged neighbor.

[riverwillow · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The second book in the series and another fast read. The mystery is not as satisfying this time around, as its unrealistic and wraps itself up a little too neatly. But the reader learns more about Roe, who is an endearing character, and one who is still suffering the after effects of the events of the first book.

[capnrandm · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Short and sweet, it's a pleasure re-reading these Aurora books. I thought there would be some hinky math with Lynn and Arthur's child and the date when Aurora and Arthur broke up, but it looks like my imagination got the better of me there.

[clatters · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

You can really tell this is Charlaine's earlier writing. It lacks the personality of the Sookie books. I want to like Roe, but I cant find anything to hang on to. However, it is better than the first one, so I hope they improve. I did like the plot enough to keep turning the pages.

[tututhefirst_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Well constructed with some interesting characters, this delightful tale has all the standard ingredients of an amateur sleuth cozy murder mystery: intelligent professional woman who suffers from above average curiosity, and below average willingness to let the professionals handle the sleuthing; a cast of characters with enough meat on their bones to offer several different prospects for a culprit; a handsome, mannerly, and eligible suitor; an endearing pet (in this case a big orange cat named Madeline); a town eccentric in the person of an elderly spinster who leaves her house "and everything in it" to our heroine; a domineering mother--and a totally implausible mystery resulting from the "everything in it" whose details will not be revealed here. Don't want to spoil the fun!

[onyx95_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

While leaving Jane Engle’s funeral, Aurora ‘Roe’ Teagarden was approached by Jane’s lawyer (Bubba Sewell) in order to inform her that Jane had left everything to her. With the inheritance of the money and the house, Roe decided to quick her job at the Library and was considering her option for what to do with the house. It may have been a lot of money, but she wondered if it would be enough to compensate her for dealing with the skull she found in the window seat while she was looking around the house. *** Book 2 .…. Slow paced and not very suspenseful, just a very sweet mystery about a skull. Got to know Roe and Madeleine (the cat) better while Roe handled every things after inheriting the house. The mystery of the skull was good, but the clues were few and far between and then it was just over. I some how read these first 3 Aurora Teagarden books out of order, so I know that the previous (Real Murders) and the next (Three Bedrooms, One Corpse) are better. This one did tie up some questions I had in book 3 (that is what I get for reading a series out of order).

[miyurose_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I didn’t like this one quite as much as the first one. I still liked Roe, and her inheritance does make for some interesting plot twists, but the basic plot just didn’t connect with me. I think the problem is that if I were to inherit a house, snoop around, and find a skull hidden somewhere, my thoughts wouldn’t immediately jump to “murder!!!”. I’d think, “Cool, I wonder where they got that?” Unless, of course, there was a big ole knife sticking out of it or something.My like of Roe is what pulled me through. She’s found that her love life has taken a couple of unexpected turns. I’m interested in seeing what new adventures her inheritance allows her to undertake.

[pacey1927 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this book probably more than I did the first Roe Teadgarden book, "Real Murders". I thought Roe was better fleshed out and a lot more fun to read about. She felt real to me, this time around, which was a bit of my gripe about "Real Murders". Here Roe Teagarden finds herself mourning the quick turnaround of losing her boyfriend and then finding him married, and his wife pregnant. Roe is hurt, she is jealous, and she is just starting to emerge from that 'mourning' period. About this time, Roe learns she has inheirited a house and a bunch of money from her recently deseased friend Jane. Seems 'friend' is a bit of an understatement. They were more like good acquaintences. But when Roe finds a skull in her new house, she learns Jane has also left her with a new mystery to solve. This was not a long book and reading it was very enjoyable. I was happy with the pace, and the characters, and even the mystery seemed more interesting than the previous one. But the ending, was just kind of boring. There was a lot of stuff going on, which was good, but the actual killer was revealed quickly and it was dull in my opinion. There was no suprise revelations, or reasonings and felt almost like an afterthought. I recall feeling somewhat the same way upon the conclusion to "Real Murders". I was disappointed, I guess. Charlaine Harris can write, really, really write. I just don't feel like the actual conclusion was fleshed out enough. This was just another average cozy and what could have been more, in the end, just wasn't.