The truth is things aren’t going particularly well for me these days. The government seized my house and bank accounts, and I have temporarily moved into a retirement building with my ten-year-old daughter, Bea…who hates me most of the time. My husband (soon to be ex-husband) fled the country to avoid being arrested for fraud and left me with nothing, which is why I’m living in a junk-filled apartment at the Primrose with a bunch of nosy octogenarians. I agreed to clean out the apartment in exchange for a place to stay, but boy am I regretting that decision.
Although the Primrose is a gorgeous, luxurious building, it’s also the site of the 21-year-old unsolved murder of Sophia Kent. Yeah, that building and that murder—the one that made the national news. Sophia’s grandfather recently died and left a two-million-dollar reward in his will to anyone who helps solve the decades-old crime. Of course, I know it’s ridiculous to think I could solve it. But my daughter? Well, Bea is a true crime fanatic and convinced we can crack the case despite having zero experience or skills. To make matters worse, she’s managed to rope our two elderly neighbors into her scheme. Jasper is a former detective and barely talks, and Evelyn is an overly confident socialite with way too much to say about everything. In other words, I have my hands full.
I used to spend my days leisurely drinking coffee from my Breville espresso machine, attending a Pilates class, lunching with friends, and driving Bea to her various activities. Unfortunately, the government confiscated the Breville, I can’t afford Pilates, I have no friends anymore, and Bea will only talk to me if I agree to investigate a murder with her. Now I start each day by arguing with Bea and cleaning out boxes and cabinets in the Primrose apartment which are filled with things like expired soup cans, clown paint, and space erotica books. Afterwards, I work on investigating Sophia’s murder by interviewing potential suspects, sifting through old journals, and brainstorming possible motives with Bea and my neighbors. In case you were wondering, I have no clue what I’m doing.
Do I think we have a chance of solving this murder? No. Am I investigating to reconnect with my daughter? Yes. Do I think my plan will work without getting me into more trouble? Honestly, no idea.
THE PRIMROSE MURDER SOCIETY
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Release: March 2026
Format: Print, Digital, Audio
Purchase Link
Witty, endearing, and wildly entertaining, this Southern cozy mystery is a little bit Gilmore Girls, a little bit Finlay Donovan, with a big helping of Only Murders in the Building.
Lila Shaw stopped trusting anyone the minute her husband went to jail for white-collar crime, taking their country club lifestyle with him. Now Lila is broke, friendless, and losing her house—and to make things worse, her true-crime-obsessed daughter, Bea, was just expelled from fourth grade. Desperate for a fresh start, Lila agrees to temporarily move in and clean out an abandoned junk-filled apartment in Richmond’s palatial Primrose building. The luxurious Virginia landmark is filled with retirees who start their days early drinking bourbon and gossiping, in that order.
Soon after Lila’s arrival, the Primrose is thrown into chaos. The owner of the building’s splendid penthouse has died and in his final days he set up a two-million-dollar reward for any resident who helps to solve the 21-year-old murder of his granddaughter at the Primrose. A fan of all detective stories and true-crime podcasts, Bea is inspired to investigate. They really could use the reward money, so Lila reluctantly agrees, in a questionable attempt at family bonding. She’s certain the killer is long-gone after all these years anyway. That is, until another resident is murdered… and Lila becomes the prime suspect.
Now Lila needs to solve both murders to avoid jail, and even worse, losing her daughter to her snobby in-laws. To catch a killer and clear Lila’s name, she and Bea must rely on their elderly neighbors—Jasper, a shy former detective, and Evelyn, an opinionated socialite—along with Nate, a good-looking reporter who keeps appearing at the most inconvenient moments. As the amateur sleuths expose the truth about the Primrose, Lila hopes she can also unravel the trickiest parts of her own life and start fresh.
Meet the author
Stacy Hackney lives in Richmond, Virginia, with her husband and four sons. She graduated from Wake Forest University and University of Virginia School of Law—after her legal briefs started bordering on a little too dramatic, she started writing fiction and never stopped. Stacy has published two children’s books, Forever Glimmer Creek and The Sisters of Luna Island. The Primrose Murder Society is her first book for adults. Connect with Stacy at stacyhackney.com.