The Housewife Assassin's Handbook: Book 1- The Housewife Assassin Series

Written by Josie Brown

Narrated by Melissa Moran

Murder. Suspense. Romance. And some handy household tips.
Every housewife needs an alias. Donna Stone has one — and it happens to be government-sanctioned. But when terrorism hits close to home, it makes for strange bedfellows — and brings new meaning to the old adage, “Honey, I’m home…”
If you love funny mysteries with hard-boiled, sexy women sleuths, check out THE HOUSEWIFE ASSASSIN’S HANDBOOK.
PRAISE FOR JOSIE BROWN'S BOOKS
"Brown takes a dark look at the fears of parenthood and family... Still, the message from the somber realities is one full of hope: love makes a family, commitment keeps it together." —Publishers Weekly
"The writing is laced with venomous humor..." —The Wall Street Journal
"A fine piece of literary work." —New York Post, Page Six
"If you like Desperate Housewives, then you'll fly through this gossipy novel full of Wisteria Lane-esque characters living in a suburban jungle. Brown entertains up to the satisfying ending." —Examiner
"A funny, engaging, and often bittersweet tale..." --Cincinnati Public Library Spotlight Feature

• Language: English
• Publisher: Signal Press Audio
• Release date: Apr 15, 2024
• ISBN: 9781942052883

Josie Brown

Josie Brown is a feature writer of relationship articles and celebrity interviews. She is also the editor of the internationally syndicated "John Gray's Mars Venus Advice" newspaper column, and the co-editor of the "Relationship NewsWire". She has written two previous books: Last Night I Dreamt of Cosmopolitans, a humor dictionary that interprets the fashionista's worst nightmares -- specifically those pertaining to designer duds and bad dates. She is also the co-author, along with her husband, Martin, of Marriage Confidential: 102 Honest Answers to the Questions Every Husband Wants to Ask, and Every Wife Needs to Know. Impossibly Tongue Tied, her next novel, will be released by Avon in 2006. Josie lives in Marin County, California with Martin and their two children.

Reviews for The Housewife Assassin's Handbook

[aliceanna-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A decent story and decently written characters, but just not my thing.

[jetangen4571 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

suspense, satire, humor, assassins, widow, family-dynamics, action-adventure What can a young widow with 3 children under 7 do to make money and (sort of) avenge her husband's murder? Become a government assassin. Crazy tongue-in-cheek series of adventures with each prefaced by a household tip. Gets a little hairy sometimes, but nice escapism.The narrator performed quite well.

[cissa_5 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Donna was living her dream- married to her one true love, carrying their third child, just moved into a luxe suburban mansion... until her husband disappears as the baby is getting born, is declared dead, and she finds out that her husband was a CIA-employed assassin. Donna and the kids mourn and mostly get on with their lives... until the company her husband worked for decided to stop paying his salary, and Donna had to take on his gig herself, and fit assassination in between car-pooling and PTA meetings, as she looks for revenge on the people who killed her husband.Her life dealing with 3 kids and her job, while also navigating the politics of a small community including grown-up Mean Girls gets complicated when her boss assigns another agent to play her husband in order catch the terrorists. Complications ensue, obviously!Donna was a bit of a cipher, especially in her willingness to use her sexuality to entrap Bad Guys while still in most ways being faithful to her dead husband's memory. I did enjoy the conceit that assassination was just another job, and it was important to factor in traffic when timing the jobs so she was not late to pick up the kids.If you care, there was a fair amount of sexual content, as well as some fairly graphic violence.I thought it was a ridiculous but entertaining read. I won't go out of my way to read more at the moment, but may when I need something this light and silly.

[josiebrown-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Every desperate housewife wants an alias. Donna Stone has one, and it happens to be government-sanctions. But espionage makes for strange bedfellows, and brings new meaning to the old adage, "Honey, I'm home..."

[allysonrabbott · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

An enjoyable story that I managed to read in one day. Being a mother and an assassin is hard work. Definitely worth a read, if you like a romance mixed with a bit of mystery.

[dearheart_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Donna Stone, mother of 3, has a couple of secrets. The first is that her husband Carl, who hasn’t been around for the past 5 years, is dead. She hadn’t been aware he was an assassin for a CIA company. Since the Quorum, the terrorist group he’d been after can’t be sure they were successful in killing him; she has to keep his death a secret to protect her family. Her neighbors are led to believe he’s just out of town a lot. The other is that in order to get vengeance against the Quorum, she’s been working as an assassin for the same company Carl worked for, for the last 4 years. When it’s learned that the Quorum plans a bombing event in her town, Donna can’t wait to stop them.I found this to be a fun read with a couple of surprises. Donna’s assassin work is mixed with the problems and joys of raising her children, and sometimes one gets in the way of the other. I loved the housekeeping advice that is peppered with an assassin’s “how to.” And her gossiping and spiteful neighbors? Think about an episode of Housewives.I was pleasantly hooked with the first couple of paragraphs and enjoyed her perspective of not only her work, but in juggling that with her family. The story contains sex, violence and some light humor in the situations she finds herself in.

[33racoonie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Yes, it was silly, but in a good way. A topsy-turvy espionage with all the sex, spies, counterspies, murder combined into a spoof of the genre. I usually like more serious writing yet I didn't want this book to end. Book 2, here I come!

[bookaholicbanter · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The first book in a series full of romance, mystery,murder, suspense, and humor. This series would be greatly adored by fans of Jackie Collins or Janet Evanovich. SIZZLING! HOT! SEXY! This book is a PERFECT beach read! Grab a drink, stick your toes in the sand, and relax with this fun read!

[kaulsu · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

It earned half a star because of its price: $0.00.So a woman's husband turns up dead and a secret, covert, operative; not necessarily in that order. What's a widow with three children to do? Become an assassin herself, naturally.The plot is not written realistically, and the good guy/bad guy card is pretty transparent, so if an evening of cozy suspense is your cuppa, this book is not filling it.A real waste of time.

[mrsmommybooknerd7 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Josie Brown writes books that are a bit of an adventure, never predictable and always fun! Brown writes with balance, humor and danger; good verses bad; light and dark. Her Housewife Assassin Series is a fun, crazy and wild ride! You will remain interested throughout the novels and left craving more. I recommend the series and rate it 4 stars!

[maryinhb · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

MY THOUGHTSABSOLUTELY LOVED IT Donna thinks her husband has a normal job that includes a LOT of travel but it affords her the life she has always dreamed of and then Carl is declared dead while she is at the hospital delivering her third child, she finds out exactly what his job entailed as an assassin. When the money runs out from his job, she finds out the strange truth about what Carl actually did and is drawn in a world of espionage and terrorists. I guess being a mother prepares you for coordinating attacks and being vicious and you can ask anyone who has ever been involved in the PTA. She is hired by Acme Industries as an operative to help counteract the activities of the Quorum and other slime. So when Donna's "husband" returns to her life, it turns out to be Jack, another Acme operative that wants to use her as a front. She tries to get to the bottom of exactly what happened to her husband. There are more twists and turns in this plot than Mulholland Drive and if you have been in the car with me, just as fast! Her partner in crime is now Jack but Donna can't exactly figure out which side he is on and every time she thinks she has the answer it is wrong. This is a super sexy and fun read that you shouldn't miss!How do I love this book, let me count the ways:1. A kick ass woman that can literally kick ass as well as cook and clean. Donna gives a whole new meaning to "taking out the trash". 2. The book is set around Los Angeles, mostly in a gated community suspiciously like Coto de Caza, full of housewives that could be 'real" and for the setting alone, a big giant WIN!3. Super Sarcasm, snarky dialogue and making fun of all that is wrong in the OC, politics, as well as current world affairs.