Silence is golden ...unless you're permanently hushed up. When Lillian Johnson was found dead one hot summer day, no one in the town of Bradley, North Carolina was all that surprised. Lillian had always talked about the trials of her various health problems and was sure to share with everyone exactly how much she suffered. The townspeople were only slightly more surprised to discover that Lillian had been murdered. That's because Lillian, like most folks, had a dark side. And a fair number of people had experienced this dark side. Myrtle Clover, octogenarian sleuth and intrepid reporter, investigates Lillian's death to discover precisely who hushed her up. . . before someone else is permanently silenced.