Hi. My name is Norah McCarthy, and I own the most exclusive apartment building in Peerless Point, Florida. I’m not being a snob. It’s true.

My apartment building, the Florodora, is more than a hundred years old, the first in this south Florida beach town between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. I’m forty-one, tall and tanned. My sort-of straight hair has a touch of frizz from Florida’s high humidity.

I spend most days looking after the old building, paying bills and dealing with repair people.

But today was different.

The plumbers, Liam and Lester Sykes, were digging up the courtyard. Once again, the antique plumbing was a problem.

I listened to the clock tick and the familiar blend of Florodora noise, when suddenly I heard loud screams. So loud, Calypso switched off her vacuum and pounded outside. I followed her. We were hit by a horrible sight.

A muddy Liam the plumber was pointing into the hole excavated for the pipes and shouting, “Dead. Real dead.” Lester was throwing up in a potted palm.

I looked over the side of the excavation. Even though the body was reduced to a pile of cartilage, bones and scraps of skin that looked like dirty clothing, I knew who it was.

Sammie Lant. She’d been strangled with a gold bikini top.

I felt like I’d been socked in the stomach. Was one of the Florodora’s residents a killer?

Sex and Death on the Beach – A Florida Beach Mystery, Book 1
Genre: Traditional Mystery
Release: June 2025
Format: Print, Digital, Audio
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Harvard Book Store | Thriftbooks

Beneath the sun and sea of South Florida, dark crimes and bone-chilling secrets are lurking. Introducing a brand-new twisty mystery series from award-winning author Elaine Viets.

When the body of adult film star Sammie Lant is found buried next to the courtyard pool of the Florodora, Norah McCarthy’s apartment complex, she quickly becomes the police’s prime suspect.

Norah was witnessed having an argument with Sammie six months ago, the last day Sammie was seen alive – the day she gained notoriety for a shocking public stunt with a college football player.

But events take an even darker turn when more remains are unearthed – ones with an apparent connection to Norah’s tragic past. Is it pure coincidence that more than one person was buried by Norah’s pool? And is the killer closer to home than she thinks?

Introducing feisty, female sleuth Norah McCarthy, a cast of eccentric characters, and the dark underbelly beneath the palm trees and beaches of South Florida, this addictive new series is perfect for fans of Carl Hiaasen and Tim Dorsey.

About the author
Elaine Viets has written 35 mysteries in five series: the bestselling Dead-End Job series with South Florida PI Helen Hawthorne, the cozy Josie Marcus Mystery Shopper mysteries, the dark Francesca Vierling mysteries, the Angela Richman Death Investigator series and the NEW Florida Beach mystery series. Elaine was a director at large for the Mystery Writers of America. She’s a frequent contributor to Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine and anthologies edited by Charlaine Harris and Lawrence Block. Elaine won the Anthony, Agatha and Lefty Awards.  Elaine lives in Fort Lauderdale with her husband, writer and reviewer Don Crinklaw.