The Nest

"The Nest" is a new kind of cozy, with a fresh take on a classic setup; a breezy adventure mystery, set in the present day.

Herman and Teddie (née Theodora) are a playful, affectionate couple in their sixties who alternate the narration in first-person voices. One morning, they discover the body of the landlord under their apartment's balcony. Everyone says it was an accident, but the homicide detective believes it was murder, and starts building a case against Herman and Teddie.

To clear themselves, they set out to discover what really happened. But they are not the typical husband and wife one finds in traditional cozies. They have a secret they must conceal and protect.

Forced by circumstance to go sleuthing, but never having done it before, they naively follow a trail of criminal mischief in the city. A series of suspicious incidents makes them realize that there are intrigues in the apartment house itself. Neighbors with motives for their landlord's murder keep piling up.

The deeper they probe, the more they suspect that a limited-liability corporation is behind the murder. But LLCs can legally conceal their members' and investors' names. To identify who's responsible they have to skirt the law. Unexpectedly, they discover the truth about an ongoing scandal involving the chief of police. Which makes them realize that revealing too many secrets could backfire-exposing that secret of their own!

Just when they think they've got all the answers, they fall into a trap. Though they escape in a wild and risky way, another challenge looms: They still have to convince that skeptical homicide detective that what they've learned-whodunit, how, and why-is really the truth.