Bill Noel - Free Library Land Online - Cultural

Mosquito Beach

Tue, 28 Aug 2001 21:06:04 +0300

An early-morning phone call from a friend asking Chris Landrum if he'd heard anything about a skeleton discovered on Mosquito Beach, an African American enclave fewer than a handful of miles from Chris's home on Folly Beach, South Carolina, soon embroils Chris and a few of his friends into trying to solve a mystery dating back sixty plus years. Chris and Charles, his friend and self-proclaimed private detective, quest for answers takes on life or death proportions when two more of Chris's acquaintances are killed and his friend Al Washington is next in the killer's sights.
The task for the amateur sleuths is made much more difficult since they know few of the locals in the close-knit Mosquito Beach community and one of the people they know might be a killer.

Dark Horse

Sat, 17 Nov 2018 16:50:52 +0200

An accidental drug overdose is ruled the cause of the death of the daughter of Chris Landrum's neighbor. The young woman's father, a retired police detective, had accused Chris of murder days after he'd arrived on Folly Beach a decade ago, and they've butted heads frequently since then. So, why get involved and question the cause of death? Could it be because the daughter was dating Joel Hurt, a man on the path to unseating Chris's good friend, Brian Newman, as mayor of the small barrier-island?
The political race heats up, and so does the retired executive's search for proof of a crime—a crime the police are certain never took place. While the tight-knit community is being torn apart by politics, life-altering events impact two of Chris's best friends, Charles Fowler, and Bob Howard, and once again prove that life in the town in the shadows of Charleston, South Carolina, is anything but dull.

The Pier

Wed, 14 Sep 1977 16:50:59 +0300

Bill Noel's debut novel, Folly, introduced Chris Landrum and his adventures on the small, quirky island of Folly Beach, South Carolina, where he spent an extended vacation, purchased a retirement home, and solved a murder. In this second installment of A Folly Beach Mystery series, murder and mayhem continue to interfere with Chris's laid-back retirement plans.

Praise for The Pier

"Louisville author Bill Noel, himself a seasoned photographer, has followed his debut offering, Folly, with another engaging Folly Beach Mystery. Armed with a gift for creating ultra-quirky yet believable characters, Noel shows how a healthy dose of cynicism—even among untrained, nonprofessional types—can lead to solving a murder mystery that the police had initially decided wasn't even a homicide."
—Kentucky Monthly

"Spend a little time at the Lost Dog Café ("Coffee and a bite") with Landrum and his troupe of amateur sleuths, and I bet you'll be glad you made the...

The Folly Beach Mystery Collection Volume II

Wed, 17 Nov 2021 16:51:07 +0200

Once again, three novels in the award-winning Folly Beach Mystery series by best-selling author Bill Noel are presented in one collection. Enjoy:
DISCORD
Chris Landrum's trip to Nashville to visit his best friend Charles hits a sour note when they learn of the death of the agent who had persuaded Heather, Charles's girlfriend, to move to Music City to seek fame and fortune as a singer. The visit sinks from bad to horrible when instead of finding stardom, Heather, is charged with the agent's murder. Chris must rely on his quick wits to solve the murder before the killer adds him to the growing list of victims.
DARK HORSE
An accidental drug overdose is ruled the cause of the death of the daughter of Chris's neighbor, a retired police detective who had accused Chris of murder days after he'd arrived on Folly Beach a decade ago. So, why get involved and question the cause of death? Could it be because the daughter was dating a man on the path to unseating...

Missing

Sun, 17 Nov 2013 16:50:54 +0200

Sixty-year-old retiree Chris Landrum has simple needs: stay healthy, avoid sunburns, and steer clear of vacationers on the small South Carolina island where he hopes to live out his remaining years. But when local teenager Samuel Perkins pulls Chris aside and tells him he just witnessed the kidnapping of a beauty queen right off Folly Beach, Chris wonders if his hopes for a peaceful retirement have just disappeared with the sunset.

While Chris and his close friend, Charles—a faux detective—contemplate whether Samuel actually witnessed a horrific crime, dead bodies begin appearing on Folly Beach. But with trouble brewing within the ranks of the police department and a newly elected mayor nurturing a vendetta against Chris, the two men have their work cut out for them as they launch their own investigation. As the body count rises and the list of suspects increases, Charles suddenly becomes the target for a serial killer intent on eliminating anyone who gets in...

No Joke

Sun, 17 Nov 2019 16:51:00 +0200

Four aging comedians deliver anything but laughs when they descend upon Folly Beach, a small, laid-back barrier island near Charleston, South Carolina. Chris Landrum's introduction to the newcomers is when he averts disaster by escorting one of them out of the center of Folly's busiest street, a task made even more difficult since the jokester, wearing a long, wool coat over red swim trunks, and black patent leather shoes, is flailing a fishing rod at anything that moves, be it vehicle or human.

In addition to the stranger not knowing why he's in the center of the street, he claims to have discovered a dead body at the beach. The problem is he can't remember if he saw it that day, the previous month, or perhaps four years earlier. Jokes, lies, secrets, dead bodies, several murder suspects, and danger follow the comics. It's up to retired bureaucrat Chris along with his cadre of quirky pals to sort out what's going on before some of them are added to the list of victims.

Ghosts

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 16:51:03 +0200

Chris Landrum's idyllic life of retirement on the South Carolina barrier island of Folly Beach just got turned upside down. After more than two decades, his ex-wife, Joan, calls to wish him a merry Christmas. He can tell she wants to tell him something more, but their conversation is cut short before he learns anything. Something's up.

A second call from Joan's best friend delivers startling news. Joan's husband has just been killed in an automobile accident in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee, and Joan wants Chris to investigate. Even though it's hundreds of miles from Chris's peaceful beach cottage, he agrees to help.

Meanwhile, Chris's best and strangest friend, Charles, joins the working world as a bartending private detective, two jobs he stumbles and bumbles through with equal measures of incompetence. Country Cal, an aging country music singer and new bar owner, hires Charles to catch a petty thief who is stealing bourbon and cash. Heather, a psychic and Charles's...

The Edge

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:50:56 +0200

AFTER A MURDER VICTIM IS DISCOVERED ON FOLLY BEACH, A RETIREE AND HIS MISFIT FRIENDS MUST FIND THE KILLER —BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.

After Chris Landrum survives the first hurricane to hit Folly Beach, South Carolina, during this century, he breathes what he is about to discover to be an overly optimistic sigh of relief. When the body of his acquaintance Lester Patterson is discovered— with an arrow plunged straight through his heart—Chris's formerly peaceful retirement on the tiny barrier island suddenly goes from bad to worse.

With the help of his remaining quirky acquaintances, Chris launches a relentless mission to stop an imperfect murderer who has already made one critical error in judgment. A weird boardinghouse and a country music bar are all that connect the victims—and now it is up to Chris to determine which one of his misfit friends is the killer and which one is vulnerable enough to be the next victim. Is it Country Cal, a...

Tipping Point

Sat, 28 Aug 2021 21:06:06 +0300

A peaceful kayak trip through the marsh suddenly turns terrifying for Chris Landrum and his friend, Charles Fowler, when a single-engine airplane plummets toward their watercraft. After coming inches from certain death, the kayakers' heroic efforts save two of the plane's occupants but failed to save the other two passengers. Learning the pilot had been poisoned and three of the plane's passengers live on Folly Beach, site of Chris and Charles's retirement homes, Charles, the self-proclaimed private detective, decides it's up to the two retirees to catch the killer. While no simple task, it's made more difficult when they realize they don't know the identity of the intended victim or victims. Further complicating their undertaking, Chris is detracted when he learns another of his friends comes face-to-face with a life-altering secret going back a half-century.

Once again, Chris and his cast of quirky characters are challenged to solve a crime the police are unable...

Dead Center

Thu, 17 Nov 2016 16:51:04 +0200

Chris Landrum s world is turned upside down when he stumbles on a body of a killer for hire. Chris s friends on the laid-back, peaceful South Carolina island are convinced they know who the hit man was sent to kill, and ask the retired bureaucrat to stick his nose in business that should be left to the police. If that s not enough, Chris comes home to an intruder intent on taking his life; his best friend announces he s moving out of state; and, his long-term girlfriend may be leaving him. Add to the mix, a participant in the witness protection program and a bookstore owner with a mysterious past, and once again, Chris is in the crosshairs of a murderer.

The Marsh

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:51:02 +0200

Chris Landrum's morning has already started on a down note, as he stands in a cemetery listening to the eulogy for a friend. But his entire day deteriorates rapidly when he hears that a murder victim has been found in the marsh behind his retirement home on Folly Beach, South Carolina. Worse yet, the victim is the business associate of one of his friends. In a matter of hours, Chris's quiet, relaxed life is turned upside down.

The police are convinced that Sean Aker, the victim's law partner, is the killer. Chris has no reason to disagree other than the fact Sean is a friend—a feeble defense at best. With the help of a group consisting of a tagalong buddy and wannabe private detective; an aging hippy and surf shop owner; a has-been country music singer; and a new acquaintance who runs a marsh tour business, Chris is thrust into a murder investigation that soon puts his dream of spending an idyllic retirement on hold yet again.

As Chris and his merry band of...

Adrift

Mon, 28 Aug 2023 21:06:03 +0300

There were numerous better ways for retiree Chris Landrum to begin his day than to listen to a traumatized friend Virgil DeBonnet telling him how he found a body with a knife sticking out his back and floating in a small boat less than a half mile from Chris's cottage. Landrum's day on Folly Beach, the small barrier island in the shadows of Charleston, South Carolina, turns even darker when Virgil convinces him and his best friend and self-anointed private detective Charles Fowler that it was up to them to find the person who ended the man's life.
The three friends twist, turn, and stumble their way among an increasing number of suspects including a former professional baseball player, the dead man's alleged partner in a con game, a wealthy businessman who'd fallen for the con, and more. The amateur detectives think they have the murder solved until their prime suspect becomes the second victim of the knife wielding killer. Unless they uncover the truth, and do it quickly,...

Silent Night

Thu, 17 Nov 2016 16:51:10 +0200

Chris Landrum is dragged out of peaceful retirement when the theft of a priceless, hand-carved figurine from a church s nativity scene threatens to suck the spirit of Christmas out of Folly Beach. If that's not bad enough, pieces of valuable jewelry and surfboards are stolen off homeowners porches on the small, South Carolina island located in the shadows of historic Charleston. Are the crimes related? All that s known for sure is that nothing is known for sure. Rumors abound and in the spirit of it takes a village, Chris is joined by a cadre of quirky characters in his quest to find answers. Adding more pressure, Chris is told that the figurine must be found by Christmas mere days away.

Washout

Wed, 17 Nov 2010 16:51:09 +0200

A routine trip to the local hardware store propels Chris Landrum into a world of revenge, hate, and murder—hardly the peaceful outcome he had planned for his retirement on the small island of Folly Beach, South Carolina. Chris learned during his first year of retirement that friendships are more important than surf, sand, and the beauty of Charleston and South Carolina's Low Country. When his friend, Larry, a retired cat-burglar-turned-hardware-store-owner, appears to be the target of a brutal murderer, Chris and his other friend, Charles, work on catching the killer before Larry becomes his latest victim. The police throw up their hands in defeat as bloody and macabre warnings begin appearing in greater numbers than suspects with few leads. What do the cryptic, chilling notes mean? What has Larry, a model citizen of Folly Beach, done to deserve the wrath of the killer? Chris seeks the help of some of his quirky friends—a charming, attractive waitress; a blustery, rude...