Murder Boogies with Elvis

Southern Sisters #8

by Anne George

The Southland's most mismatched set of siblings -- flamboyant Mary Alice and prim and proper Patricia Anne -- are back and ready to boogie in a King-sized story of hip-shaking mayhem and murder most tacky.

At an age when most women are slowing down, oversized, over-the-top Mary Alice a.k.a. "Sister" -- is always on the lookout for the next good time...and the next husband. Now Sheriff Virgil Stuckey is in line to become Sister's Mister Number Four, which has practical Patricia Anne's level head filling to the brim with a million and one prewedding details. But first there is another important occasion the sisters are looking forward to attending: a gala benefit to raise money for restoring one of Birmingham's unnatural wonders, a towering metal monument to the god Vulcan lately fallen into disrepair.

The grand finale is thirty sequined Elvis impersonators high kicking in unison. Enjoying the show from the front row, Patricia Anne and Mary Alice are in the line of fire when one of the dancing Kings keels over dead right into the bandstand. It seems this Elvis clone, one Griffin Mooncloth, has not only left the building ... he's left this life!

At first the sisters figure that the cause of death was a massive heart attack induced by one too many pelvic gyrations. But the unfortunate Mooncloth's very dramatic demise is soon discovered to be the result of a switchblade knife plunged into his back. The plot thickens when the murder weapon is discovered in Patricia Anne's very sensible purse. The perennially law-abiding "Mouse" is understandably all shook up -- and mortified to find herself the prime suspect in this bizarre case of Elvis elimination. And with Mary Alice's well-coiffed head in a sunflower-yellow-and-magenta cloud over her impending nuptials, Patricia Anne's the one who will have to get herself out of very hot water indeed.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Cozy Mystery, Humor, Cozy, Audiobook, Southern

243 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Anne Carroll George was an American author and poet. She was Alabama's 1994 state poet. George died in 2001 of heart surgery complications.

Anne George was an Agatha Award-winner and a former Alabama State Poet. She was a cofounder of the Druid Press, and a regular contributor to literary and poetry publications. She was nominated for several awards, including the Pulitzer for a book of verse entitled Some of It Is True.

Series:
* Southern Sisters Mystery

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

This is the last book in Anne George's 'Southern Sisters' cozy mystery series, written shortly before the author died. The books feature two sisters in their 60s who live Birmingham, Alabama and occasionally stumble over dead bodies. Each book in the series can be read as a standalone, but it's fun to start at the beginning and see what the women get up to over time.

The older sister, Mary Alice Crane (nicknamed Sister), is a flamboyant force of nature - 6 feet tall, 250 lbs - who's been married three times to rich, much older men. Mary Alice had a child with each husband before he died.....and left her buckets of money.



Mary Alice recently got engaged to Sheriff Virgil Stuckey, and is happily planning her nuptials and honeymoon. To the dismay of her wedding party, Mary Alice has chosen the colors magenta and sunflower for her festivities....and their dresses.







The younger sister, Patricia Anne Holloway (nicknamed Mouse), is a prim, retired English teacher - 5 feet tall and slim - married to her childhood sweetheart, Fred.



The Holloways have three children and recently found out that their daughter Haley - who's currently living in Poland with her husband - is expecting a baby girl. Thus there's much excitement in the family.

In "Murder Boogies With Elvis", the murder victim is an Elvis impersonator.

Early in the story Mary Alice, Virgil, Patricia Anne, and Fred are attending a benefit show at the Alabama Theatre - to raise money for the repair of Birmingham's 'Vulcan' statue. The show's grand finale features a long row of Elvis impersonators frolicking like the Radio City Rockettes. As the impersonators sashay to the front of the stage, one of them stumbles and falls into the orchestra pit. Turns out he was stabbed in the back with a knife.



The victim is identified as Griffin Mooncloth, but nobody seems to know who he is or how he came to be in the Elvis chorus line. As it happens, Virgil's son Buddy and his son-in-law Larry are also Elvis impersonators, and were on either side of Mooncloth when he fell. In fact, Larry says he saw a figure behind Mooncloth, but wasn't wearing his glasses - and can't identify the person. This apparently spooks someone, because Larry is attacked and falls into a coma.

Patricia Anne and Mary Alice don't try to get involved in the murder inquiry until the murder weapon that killed Mooncloth - a switchblade - shows up in Mouse's purse in a restaurant.



Patricia Anne is arrested by her former student, who's now a cop. Of course Patricia Anne is soon released - and the cop begs her not to tell his mother. LOL

After Mouse's arrest the sisters take a real interest in the case - and 'investigate' as they go about their day to day business. The gals go to lunch with friends; look at wedding dress catalogues (Sister and her brother-in-law Fred oddly bond over this task....ha ha ha); visit Larry and his family in the hospital; gossip with friends, neighbors and acquaintances; and so on. The amateur sleuths identify a number of possible suspects, and there are some surprising twists before the killer is identified.



The 'mystery' is the core element of these books, but most of the reading pleasure comes from the characters, their lives, and their colorful cohorts. Patricia Anne and Fred exchange affectionate banter - and have tasty meals purchased at the Piggly Wiggly Supermarket; Mary Alice has an over-the-top glamazon wardrobe (including purple boots) and a boisterous personality to match; the Hollowells dog, Woofer, gets lots of walks and adores his Igloo doghouse; Sister's cat Bubba invariably lies - unmoving - on a heating pad on the kitchen counter (Mouse periodically checks for signs of life); Patricia Anne is babysitting Haley's cat, Muffin, who loves to cuddle with Woofer (much to his chagrin); Mary Alice's daughter plans to have artificial insemination (like her sister in a previous book) - and Mary Alice laments that this 'isn't the usual conduit'; and more. There's always a lot going on with these ladies.



Anne George is missed by her fans, but luckily we still have her written works. If you crave cozy southern mysteries, this series will fit the bill. In case you're interested, the first book in the series is Murder on a Girls' Night Out.

You can follow my reviews at https://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot....

[Ed · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finally got some time to do a little fun reading, and Murder Boogies With Elvis is my first book to read for pleasure in 2015. I really don't know when I'll get another chance to read my next fun book. At any rate, I borrowed this copy from our public library which culls out the old books, much to my chagrin. Maybe this one will survive. I hope so. I've read one other title in the Southern Sisters series a long while ago. This title is the last one. Anne George had a nice touch with presenting her characters, especially Mouse who narrates this story. The interactions between the sisters are funny while you can tell they care about each other. This is a wonderful book with a nifty mystery, too. If you're a cozy mystery fan with a fondness for Southern settings and sister sleuths, this series might be a good bet for you to try.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

So sad that this is my last book with Mary Alice and Patricia Anne. I've really enjoyed these books and this was no exception. I was quite surprised at the culprit. These were a lot of fun.

[Janice · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the last book in Anne George's Southern Sisters series, and I had put off reading it for some time; I just didn't want to say good-bye to Mary Alice and Patricia Ann, the wonderful sisters with whom I have spent many happy hours in this series. These are delightful stories, full of families who bicker and love, and also happen to fall into solving many a murder mystery along the way.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this last book of the series (sighs), Sister and Mouse once again are witnesses to a murder when an Elvis impersonator is killed on stage at a fund raiser. Surely, this time they will not get involved, they do not even know the guy. But true to form, they are drawn into the mystery and Mouse is even arrested. They really don't have time for this either. Mouse is preparing for another grandchild and Sister is planning her own wedding (again).

I am going to miss this series. The books are uber-cozy. In fact the mystery often gets a back seat to all the family goings on. But that is OK with me in a cozy. I love this family and will miss their crazy antics. If you have not read this series, you are missing some fun. Read in series.

[Susan Webb · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this series and was saddened to hear that the author passed away in 2001 and this was her last book. The main characters, Mary Alice, a larger than life, 6ft 66 year old woman, and her very prim, tiny 5 ft sister, Patricia, whom Mary Alice calls mouse, tend to find bodies everywhere they go. They do figure them out, in hysterical ways and lots of investigating, much to the chagrin of Mouse's husband, Fred. I think any cozy mystery reader would enjoy this series.

[Marie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked this up thinking it was going to be more or less like Mrs. Pollifax & generally OK since it was written by the former poet laureate of AL... but it wasn't. The story got forgotten, or put aside, by either facts about Birmingham, AL, what the character was making her husband for dinner, or her sinus troubles. It was exciting as it sounds.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is Anne George's last of the Southern Sisters Mysteries. It is light on the mystery tie up; heavy on the zany fun. In full view of a community fund-raising audience, one of the high stepping chorus line Elvis impersonators is stabbed from the back with a switchblade and falls into the orchestra pit in front of Patricia Anne and her sister Mary Alice. Always in the wrong place at the right time they can't avoid solving another crime. The dialogue is nonstop witty, with intermittent laugh-out-loud, choke-on-your coffee remarks. Hilariously outrageous!

[Nathalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hey, y'all! This is one of my favorite set of characters---Southern sisters Mary Alice and Patricia Anne from Birmingham, Alabama! They are polar opposites in physique, personality and temperament but they are dynamite together and I like that they are close to my 50+ age bracket. Makes it much more fun and relatable. Reader Ruth Ann Phimister deserves huge kudos for bringing these fun southern belles to life. I just luuuuv me some southern accent and was sorely disappointed when I headed to Texas this summer and heard nary a "y'all" the entire trip. This book shares much humor, gentle and otherwise, as well as a great Elvis related mystery AND, for those who care, there's Mary Alice's huge cat who sleeps all day on a heating pad and answers (if he deigns join the awake world) to the perfect moniker of Bubba!

[Linda Day · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just needed a nonsense book and found a couple in books by Anne George, this being one of them ! Light silly reading about two sisters about my age, one a retired school teacher, and the other a flambouyant and wealthy widow having married 3 different men all MUCH older than herself. They, like Jessica Fletcher of "Murder she wrote", seem to show up someplace and shortly thereafter, so does a dead body or two !

I very much enjoyed my time with Patricia Anne and Mary Alice !

These are two in the George series called Southern Sisters Mysteries.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this last book in the Southern Sisters Mystery series. I will miss reading about these wonderful sisters and their bumbling adventures. Nice ending to a wonderful, fun, witty series. I am sad that there will be no more murder mysteries for Mary Alice and Patricia Anne to stumble upon. Like the way that this one wrapped up and left us with some very happy endings for a wonderful group of characters.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now I'm sad because there aren't anymore books in this series. These were fun and entertaining all the way to the very end. Highly recommend if you are looking for light and funny reading.

[Diane Justice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am very sorry that Anne George died. I will miss Sister and Mouse. I’ll bet she still had some great ideas

[Linda Lugar · Rating 5 out of 5]

It makes me so sad that this is the last of the series... I would love to know how things go for Haley when she has her baby... Mary Alice and Virgil when they get back from their honeymoon (if Mary Alice survives in an RV on the honeymoon!)... Marilyn having a baby...

Oh I love this family... they could be my family.

Thank you Anne George.

[Luann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Murder Boogies with Elvis is quintessential Anne George: a quirky, very humorous southern murder mystery. I felt very much like eating a peanut butter and banana sandwich while reading this - probably because Patricia Anne eats one several times during the story.

Mary Alice and Patricia Anne are such fun characters, and I'm glad to have met them! Anne George has perfectly captured that sister relationship. I also really love the relationship Patricia Anne has with her husband. It's sad that we will only ever have eight Southern Sister mysteries. I thought I had read most of them, but I see now that I haven't. Yay! Fun books that I can't wait to read.

Now I need to go see about that sandwich....

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm going to put up this same review for the entire series. Instead of reading this set of books, I listened to the audiobook versions of the entire series. The series is about a couple of sisters that bumble onto murders and wind up solving them. I don't know if it's the books, or the reader that I liked the most. By the time I had finished a couple of the books, I felt like the reader and the characters were old friends. The stories are light, easy to follow, and not terribly complex, but to me, they were thoroughly enjoyable. I only wish Anne George had lived long enough to write a few more.

[Ann aka Iftcan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unfortunately this is the last of the Southern Sisters novels, due to the untimely death of Ann George. I thoroughly enjoyed all 6 of the books and mourned that her career was cut short. She had a true talent for showing Southern life without making it too much of a parody.

In this book, the Elvis in question is actually a group of impersonators (or tribute artists, if you want to be polite.)

One of the troup is murdered on stage while performing in front of a packed house at a charity affair, and the Sisters are off and running.

[Peggy Sinden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anne George sure knows how to make a storyline personal and comfortable to the end. The relationship of the two sisters, Mary Alice and Patricia Anne are so likable and real you want to finish the book in one setting. Bring Elvis into the mix only made the even more Southern with just the right touch. Mary Alice has so far found the man of her dreams and the story comes to the end with a wedding and she and Virgil driving off for a RV honeymoon. Or was that her and Virgil - oh my, where is Patricia Ann when you need her.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I get such a charge out of these two sisters. Their interactions are a hoot. Sometimes you want to kick Mary Alice for being so oblivious, and sometimes you just have to laugh. The mystery in this one is pretty good. I was beginning to get worried because I really liked all the new characters, mostly Virgil's family, so I didn't want the murderer to be one of the characters I really liked. Ms. George pulls it off, however. I was very happy with the ending.

[Crystal · Rating 2 out of 5]

I only read the first third of this book and I couldn't take it anymore! It was very clearly set in B'ham as the writer took up half the time talking about Vulcan's butt and "over the mountain" suburbs. I was just annoyed by the stereotypical "southerness" of it as well. Wasn't fun. Gave up. Got a new book. :)

[✨ Gramy ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another cozy mystery laced with humor by Anne George. The lives of Mary Alice, Sister, and Patricia Anne, Mouse, are exploding with additions in this last book. For them, life will continue to go on . . . Unfortunately, for Anne George it didn't work out that way. It's the end of another great series, cut short by the death of a great author.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always enjoyable, this Southern Sisters cozy had the usual shocking ending. I never in a million years would have guessed whodunit. And surprisingly it still all made sense!

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book from one of the most fun series to read. Unfortunately, this was the last book in the series as the author died. So much fun packed into small mystery books.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny as usual. Good mystery beach read.

[Cheryl Cooper · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't believe this is the last book in this series. I have really enjoyed reading these well written, humorous books.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the city of Birmingham, sixty-something sisters Patricia Anne and Mary Alice have been stumbling on corpses ever since Patricia Anne retired from teaching English (Mary Alice blames her, naturally). This time, they are at the Alabama theater, watching Mary Alice's stepson-to-be dance with a row of other Elvis impersonators, when one of the impersonators keels over and falls off the stage into the orchestra pit, dead from a stab wound. No one seems to know who he is--he wasn't an official participant, and when his identity is discovered, it's still a mystery because he wasn't local; he wasn't even American. Even without actively investigating, the sisters always seem to be in the wrong place at the wrong time--or the right time, for readers of the mystery wanting the next clue. This time, though, it seems that the police suspect Patricia Anne--even though she was in the front row when it happened! What is the world coming to?

This is a fun series, and I take issue with the official description of Patricia Anne as "prim and proper"--she's always talking about the giant statue of Vulcan and his naked behind, and she and her husband Fred are not shy about the bedroom! She does correct everyone's grammar, and can put a former student--even one with gray hair--in their place with just a look. There's wonderful world-building and vivid characters here, though not a lot of diversity (and it is an older title). I do like that, for once, this is not a series about a nosy amateur sleuth getting in trouble (with the police and the killer) by poking their noses in and asking pointed questions; the sisters are just serendipitously (well, they always have good reasons) in places where they can get answers or get in trouble. My one quibble is that the reader, who has a wonderful accent, makes Patricia Anne sound about 80, when she's only 61. Otherwise, an enjoyable light read.

[Russell Sanders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read all eight of Anne George’s Southern Sisters mysteries, I can now declare that Murder Boogies with Elvis is my favorite. Here we find Patricia Anne and Mary Alice getting involved with the murder of an Elvis impersonator—not only that, but an Elvis impersonator who is part of “chorus line” of thirty-five Elvises (or is it Elvii?) when he is stabbed surreptitiously. No one sees the murderer and thus the sisters are caught up, once again, in a murder mystery. The plot is even more far-fetched than the others in the series, and, while other reviewers have reported how funny the series is, I found myself, for the first time, laughing out loud in two or three places. Don’t get me wrong, I do think all the books are amusing, but only this one produced belly laughs from me. George passed away after or perhaps before—I don’t know—this book was published. I don’t know if she intended this to be the end of her series, but it reads that way and is a fitting end. Recently, two of my favorite series of books have ended, and I was supremely disappointed with the final books. This book, whether an intentional series-ender or not, restored my faith in authors who write books featuring the same characters over and over. I wish Anne George could read my praise, for her books have brought me great joy, especially this Elvis one.

[Becki Basley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Murder Boogies with Elvis (southern sisters #8) By Anne George
(Scribd). As far as I can tell this is the last book of the Series but I wasn’t able to find the audiobook to it. In this book, Mary Alice is getting married to a retiring small town sheriff this time around and they plan to spend their honeymoon in an RV seeing the country.. if they find one with a bathroom.
However, after inviting her sister Patricia Ann and her husband to a benefit concert to repair the statue of Vulcan and to see her future son in law perform as Elvis. They are thrown right into a murder mystery when one of the performers stage dives apparently to his death.
This adventure sees one of the sisters arrested and the other using her newly learned survival skills to save the day. And a whole lot of laughs and family drama in between. I’m actually sorry to come to the end of this series. If Mary Alice and Patricia Anne was a sitcom, I’d look forward to it every week but as it is I think like Carolyn Haines “Sara Boothe Delaney” series. I’ll be back to revisit the sisters from time to time.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ann George mixes her genre of cozy murder mysteries with large doses of humor in this one and does it just right. This is #3 in the Southern Sister's mysteries. The protagonists are two sisters in their 60's who just always happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Murders happen around them quite often now that Patricia Ann has retired. The two sisters are complete opposites and have their share of sister rivalry, but there is a large amount of love and respect for each other in their relationship. This one was the funniest of the series yet with absurd characters such as high kicking Elvis impersonators, DIY infertility issues, and another crazy wedding for Mary Alice. This is the last of the series because Ann George passed away. It is a clean mystery with a few cuss words. The book jacket says it is a king-sized tale of hip shakin' mayhem and murder most tacky. Well said for this one.

[Laura Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

A nice note to end on. I'm going to miss Patricia Anne and Mary Alice. I'll miss all the secondary characters, too. Debbie and Haley and Bo Mitchell. Woofer. Even Fred. I'm glad we at least met Mary Alice's eldest daughter, Marilyn, in this book. Too bad we'll have no chance to know Freddie (he was the last of the sisters' kids that readers hadn't met). I couldn't help but wonder if Anne George had some sort of intuition that this might be the last book. She made sure the reader knew the gender and name of Haley's upcoming baby. And she also made sure any questions regarding Mary Alice's relationship with Virgil were answered.

Nice there was a sense of closure, though it would have been fun to see how she incorporated all the new members into the family. I'll miss the sisters and their wildly fun escapades.