It’s the funny side of homicide in acclaimed TV comedy writer and novelist Laura Levine’s newest mystery featuring Jaine Austen and her snarky cat, Prozac, as a ghostwriting project sends the Hollywood writer-for-hire on a luxury train trip with strange company, extra baggage, and murder . . . What could be more idyllic than starting a new gig with an exclusive train ride from Los Angeles to Santa Barbara? Turns out, a whole lot. Jaine must figure out how to tolerate her client—Chip Miller, aka Iron Man, a wealthy gym chain owner—who Jaine soon discovers is a tyrant and a bully with an ego as pumped as his pecs. Practically everyone on board seems to have it in for Chip—his dysfunctional family members, his beleaguered staff, even his supposed best buddy from the gym. So it’s no shocker when he’s found dead in his cabin. Unfortunately for Jaine, she’s the one who finds Chip’s body, leaving her DNA on the murder weapon, and making her a prime suspect in the police investigation. Forced to save her own caboose, can Jaine chug on through an unexpected love connection and ID the killer—or has she finally reached the end of the line?
Laura Jackson Book order






- 2024
- 2023
Exploring the concept of fearing God, the book challenges the common notion that it merely means to hold reverence. It suggests that a deeper understanding of this fear can lead to transformative life changes, especially in today's chaotic world where sin prevails. The author posits that the struggles with habitual sins, even among believers, may stem from a fundamental issue with fear, prompting readers to reconsider their relationship with God and the implications of true reverence.
- 2023
"This book examines the ways plays and poetry by Shakespeare, Spenser, and Marlowe address anxieties about witchcraft, illusion, and theatricality in light of legal and theological approaches to witchcraft trials in the early modern period, and it explores what factors determined whether demonologists imagined trial as theater through analyses of manuals and pamphlets about the prosecution of witches"--
- 2022
Death by Smoothie
- 240 pages
- 9 hours of reading
Freelance writer Jaine Austen and her cat Prozac investigate the murder of a demanding actress set to star in a play based on a short-lived zombie sitcom
- 2022
- 2021
Wordsmith Jaine Austen's ship has finally come in. Her new teaching gig on a fancy cruise line nabs her a free vacation--and access to a 24-hour buffet! But sooner than you can say "bon voyage," Jaine's all-expenses-paid trip to the Mexican Riviera seems destined to be a wreck... Things are already off to a rocky start when Jaine discovers a stowaway amidst her luggage--her persnickety cat Prozac. Jaine's sinking sensation grows stronger at dinner, where she meets chatty Emily Pritchard, a wealthy seventy-year-old who's traveling with her two nephews. Jaine can't help noticing the tension among them, especially when the cruise's charming--and sleazy--British dancer, Graham, whisks Emily out onto the dance floor. Soon Emily is accepting Graham's invitations to every social event on the ship. Two nights later the bubbly couple announces their engagement, but the news is quickly overshadowed the next morning by the discovery of Graham's body with an ice pick protruding from his chest... Between hiding a furry fugitive, flirting with Emily's nephew Robbie, and baiting the hook for a clever murderer, Jaine is about to dive into her most dangerous case yet...
- 2021
Murder Gets a Makeover
- 304 pages
- 11 hours of reading
"Uber-stylist Bebe Braddock plans to juice up her Instagram feed, and thinks Jaine would make a perfect "Before & After" model. At Lance's insistence Jaine is ushered into Bebe's sprawling Brentwood spread to await her transformation. Yet, while the surroundings are glamorous, the atmosphere is toxic as Bebe bullies her team of assistants, and even her husband, into obeying her every whim. Having earned the wrath of everyone in her orbit, few are shocked when Bebe is found strangled with one of her detested wire hangers. But Jaine's prints are all over the murder weapon, making her a prime suspect. The police, however, aren't the only ones showing interest in her--so is Justin, Bebe's very cute, very young personal assistant. While Jaine navigates a cougar-style romance, Prozac is mistakenly hailed as a feline hero and catapults into internet fame. Still, there are more urgent matters at hand than Prozac's swelling ego. Because unless Jaine can track down Bebe's killer and clear her own name, the only new outfit she'll be modeling is an orange prison jumpsuit ..."--Amazon.com
- 2020
Killer Blonde
- 288 pages
- 11 hours of reading
A gal with a serious Ben & Jerry’s habit can’t afford to be too picky about employment opportunities. So when Beverly Hills socialite SueEllen Kingsley offers freelance writer Jaine Austen megabucks to ghostwrite a book of hostess tips, it’s time to sharpen the #2s. But everything short circuits when Jaine finds SueEllen floating face down in her tub, fried by her own blow dryer. The primary suspect: Heidi, SueEllen’s stepdaughter, whose account of a mysterious blonde fleeing the scene is greeted with skepticism by Beverly Hills’ finest. Peroxided suspects abound, including a very private masseuse, a jealous nurse, a former game show hostess . . . even a closet blonde with a surprising secret. One of them is hiding a murderous heart behind pricey highlights, and Jaine’s out to expose the killer’s dark roots. Because blondes have enough fun without getting away with murder . . . “The identity of the real killer comes as a smart surprise.” —Publishers Weekly
- 2020
Towpath
- 288 pages
- 11 hours of reading
A lot has changed since Towpath first rolled up its shutters 10 years ago on the Regent's Canal in Hackney and everything but the toasted cheese sandwich was cooked from home across the bridge. And a lot hasn't. It is still as much a social experiment as a unique and beloved eatery
- 2019
