Midnight Clear: A Callahan Garrity Mystery

By Mary Kay Andrews

Ex-Atlanta cop-turned-house-cleaning entrepreneur Callahan Garrity doesn't know what she is getting for Christmas, but she never expects the gift that arrives at her door: her estranged, ne'er-do-well brother, Brian, and his adorable three-year-old daughter, Maura. A rebel who's been in and out of trouble most of his life, Brian's deep in it now since he illegally abducted Maura from under the nose of his shrewish former wife.

When the beautiful child's mother is found murdered, the police come looking for Brian. And now, to save her brother and her holiday, Callahan -- along with her irascible mom, Edna, and a gaggle of House Mouse employees -- must uncover the truth and a killer, even if it means digging around the roots of her own family tree and exposing the rot underneath.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Oct 13, 2009
• ISBN: 9780061850417

Mary Kay Andrews

Mary Kay Andrews is the New York Times bestselling author of 30 novels and The Beach House Cookbook. A former reporter for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, she lives in Atlanta, Georgia.

Reviews for Midnight Clear

[oldsetbuilder · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

This was not good for me. I generally stay away from female authors because they (seem) to have a different perspective than male authors. It is just a preference. Having said that, the Lilac Bus by Maeve Binchy was great. I guess I mean it the genra of mystery, or spy novels.

[maydacat_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It’s Christmas time, and what better gift than to have all the family gathering for Christmas. Unless one of the family members is a long-lost brother who shows up unannounced with his previously unknown three-year-old daughter – his kidnapped daughter, that it. Before Callahan can fully appreciate this family reunion, her brother’s beyond-trashy ex-wife is found murdered, and her brother becomes quite a person of interest to the cops. If things aren’t complicated enough, a custody battle ensues, with both of the child’s grandmothers wanting Maura. It may not be your typical, heartwarming tale, but baby Maura is a charmer. This audio version is a delight to listen to, and the intricate plot will keep you guessing until the very end.

[judithdcollins · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I am enjoying the Callahan Garrity series and have one more to go (have not read them in order). They could be a standalone; however, once you start reading them, you will want to read them all to learn the crazy colorful southern characters.

Again, Callahan solves a mystery as she has a nose for being digging and finding clues to get her murderer. (she owns a cleaning service House Mouse as well as being a PI-former cop). This time the investigation hits home as involves her long lost brother Brian, his 3 yr. old daughter, and a murdered sister in law, and an array of shady characters.

Set in Atlanta, Edna the mom and all the House Mouse crew come together to solve this mystery with lots of humor and some Christmas cheer. Whether writing as Mary Kay Andrews or Kathy Hogan Trocheck –she knows southern humor! The audio version was very well done.

[madamejeanie · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It's a few days before Christmas and sometime sleuth/full-time cleaning lady Callahan Garrity has things under control for a change, until her ne'er-do-well brother, Brian -- missing over ten years -- appears with his toddler daughter, Maura, at the back door to the house that Callahan shares with her mother, Edna. Trouble has always followed Brian, and now he's in deeper than ever because he's kidnapped Maura from his estranged wife, Shay Gatlin, a real slut and a vengeful shrew with the law on her side.A few days later, when Shay is found dead, the cops suspect Brian. Though he's done many things wrong in his life, Callahan knows Brian is no murderer, and she is flabbergasted when she learns from her old buddy Deavers (from her days on the Atlanta PD) that they are reopening a couple of very cold murder cases from a decade ago and trying to find a way to connect Brian to those murders as well. Between jaunts to track down clues, Callahan finds herself falling in love with little Maura, and will fight for custody of this child herself if need be.I'm liking these books better and better.