Needed Killing Series

The Needed Killing Series: When James F. Crawford retired from the university he didn’t expect to become a private investigator. But Provost Rufus George wanted Crawford to investigate a suspicious death--and he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Turns out, Crawford has a knack for solving crimes. With his dog and cat as the perfect sounding board, he talks through the specifics of each case--posing questions to Tan and The Black and answering them himself. If you like your mysteries with a side of humor, give the Needed Killing Series a try. Book 1: I was standing in a dead man’s apartment staring at the severed end of a rope hanging from one of the exposed beams overhead. What was I doing here? Last week I was just a university employee who had taken early retirement. Now a man was dead and I was in the thick of it. People were counting on me to figure out what had happened—and why. What kind of retirement was this?

The Needed Killing Series: When James F. Crawford retired from the university he didn’t expect to become a private investigator. But Provost Rufus George wanted Crawford to investigate a suspicious death--and he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Turns out, Crawford has a knack for solving crimes. With his dog and cat as the perfect sounding board, he talks through the specifics of each case--posing questions to Tan and The Black and answering them himself. If you like your mysteries with a side of humor, give the Needed Killing Series a try. Book 4: “Howdy. Find the sword you’re looking for?” The policeman eyed me carefully. “Who said anything about a sword?” I pointed behind me at the house with my thumb. “The guys inside found and tagged a bunch of swords right off the bat.” I’d stirred up his curiosity and like a good policeman he was going to satisfy it. “Mister, just who the hell are you and what the hell are you doing here?”

The Needed Killing Series: When James F. Crawford retired from the university he didn’t expect to become a private investigator. But Provost Rufus George wanted Crawford to investigate a suspicious death--and he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Turns out, Crawford has a knack for solving crimes. With his dog and cat as the perfect sounding board, he talks through the specifics of each case--posing questions to Tan and The Black and answering them himself. If you like your mysteries with a side of humor, give the Needed Killing Series a try. Book 2: The director of the University Press was often characterized as a man who needed killing. The Press’s authors and employees certainly wouldn’t disagree--even Peter the Gray, the office cat, detested him. So when someone puts a bullet through Philip Douglas’s head, Crawford has plenty of suspects to consider when he is once again thrust into the role of detective.

The Needed Killing Series: When James F. Crawford retired from the university he didn’t expect to become a private investigator. But Provost Rufus George wanted Crawford to investigate a suspicious death--and he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Turns out, Crawford has a knack for solving crimes. With his dog and cat as the perfect sounding board, he talks through the specifics of each case--posing questions to Tan and The Black and answering them himself. If you like your mysteries with a side of humor, give the Needed Killing Series a try. Book 3: Crawford had never considered taking his cat to the local folk festival. But when a friend wants The Black for a photo shoot, he obliges. That a snake will be part of the shoot is just the first surprise in store for him and his pets. Snakes, fortune tellers, arsonists, blackmailers . . . this festival will be unlike any other in the history of Jemison County.

When James F. Crawford retired from the university he didn’t expect to become a private investigator. But Provost Rufus George wanted Crawford to investigate a suspicious death--and he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Turns out, Crawford has a knack for solving crimes. With his dog and cat as the perfect sounding board, he talks through the specifics of each case--posing questions to Tan and The Black and answering them himself. If you like your mysteries with a side of humor, give the Needed Killing Series a try. Book 6: Asked to help an old lady get her family home back from greedy developers, Crawford reluctantly agrees. Mrs. McGillicuddy is thrilled. “I can’t tell you how excited I was when Frank told me I’d get to meet a real detective. I just love murder mysteries.” When Ms. Mac convinces Crawford to pretend to solve a mystery, he finds himself caught up in the most perplexing case of his career.

The Needed Killing Series: When James F. Crawford retired from the university he didn’t expect to become a private investigator. But Provost Rufus George wanted Crawford to investigate a suspicious death--and he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Turns out, Crawford has a knack for solving crimes. With his dog and cat as the perfect sounding board, he talks through the specifics of each case--posing questions to Tan and The Black and answering them himself. If you like your mysteries with a side of humor, give the Needed Killing Series a try. Book 5: Provost Rufus George is worried. “Something,” he tells Crawford, “is not right at University Village. I want you to look around and see if anything bothers you.” Checking out a retirement community seems harmless enough. Crawford begins with a question here and a question there--until he asks the wrong question and he and the provost find themselves the target of a wily and ruthless killer.