There'll Be Shell to Pay
Maureen is still getting used to life on Ocracoke Island, learning how to play the "shell game" of her business-and ghost whispering with the spirit of Emrys Lloyd, the eighteenth-century Welsh pirate who haunts her shop, The Moon Shell. The spectral buccaneer has unburied a treasure hidden in the shop's attic that turns out to be antique shell art stolen from Maureen's late husband's family years ago.



Victor "Shelly" Sullivan and his wife Lenrose visit the shop and specifically inquire about these rare items. Not only is it suspicious that this shell collector should arrive around the time Maureen found the art, but Emrys insists that Sullivan's wife is an imposter because Lenrose is dead. A woman's corpse the police have been unable to identify was discovered by the Fig Ladies, a group who formed an online fig appreciation society. They're meeting on Ocracoke for the first time in person and count Lenrose among their number, so the woman can't possibly be dead.



But Lenrose's behavior doesn't quite match the person the Fig Ladies interacted with online. Now, Maureen and Emrys-with assistance from the Fig Ladies-must prove the real Lenrose is dead and unmask her mysterious pretender before a desperate murderer strikes again . . .
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There'll Be Shell to Pay
Maureen is still getting used to life on Ocracoke Island, learning how to play the "shell game" of her business-and ghost whispering with the spirit of Emrys Lloyd, the eighteenth-century Welsh pirate who haunts her shop, The Moon Shell. The spectral buccaneer has unburied a treasure hidden in the shop's attic that turns out to be antique shell art stolen from Maureen's late husband's family years ago.



Victor "Shelly" Sullivan and his wife Lenrose visit the shop and specifically inquire about these rare items. Not only is it suspicious that this shell collector should arrive around the time Maureen found the art, but Emrys insists that Sullivan's wife is an imposter because Lenrose is dead. A woman's corpse the police have been unable to identify was discovered by the Fig Ladies, a group who formed an online fig appreciation society. They're meeting on Ocracoke for the first time in person and count Lenrose among their number, so the woman can't possibly be dead.



But Lenrose's behavior doesn't quite match the person the Fig Ladies interacted with online. Now, Maureen and Emrys-with assistance from the Fig Ladies-must prove the real Lenrose is dead and unmask her mysterious pretender before a desperate murderer strikes again . . .
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There'll Be Shell to Pay

There'll Be Shell to Pay

by Molly MacRae

Narrated by Callie Beaulieu

Unabridged — 10 hours, 31 minutes

There'll Be Shell to Pay

There'll Be Shell to Pay

by Molly MacRae

Narrated by Callie Beaulieu

Unabridged — 10 hours, 31 minutes

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Overview

Maureen is still getting used to life on Ocracoke Island, learning how to play the "shell game" of her business-and ghost whispering with the spirit of Emrys Lloyd, the eighteenth-century Welsh pirate who haunts her shop, The Moon Shell. The spectral buccaneer has unburied a treasure hidden in the shop's attic that turns out to be antique shell art stolen from Maureen's late husband's family years ago.



Victor "Shelly" Sullivan and his wife Lenrose visit the shop and specifically inquire about these rare items. Not only is it suspicious that this shell collector should arrive around the time Maureen found the art, but Emrys insists that Sullivan's wife is an imposter because Lenrose is dead. A woman's corpse the police have been unable to identify was discovered by the Fig Ladies, a group who formed an online fig appreciation society. They're meeting on Ocracoke for the first time in person and count Lenrose among their number, so the woman can't possibly be dead.



But Lenrose's behavior doesn't quite match the person the Fig Ladies interacted with online. Now, Maureen and Emrys-with assistance from the Fig Ladies-must prove the real Lenrose is dead and unmask her mysterious pretender before a desperate murderer strikes again . . .

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Praise for The Haunted Shell Shop Mysteries

“History and shell lore combine in this beguiling tale.” —Kirkus Reviews on There’ll Be Shell to Pay

“A strong sense of place, a sympathetic heroine, and an opinionated ghost will appeal to fans of Carolyn Haines’ Sarah Booth Delaney cozies.” —Booklist on Come Shell or High Water

“The first book in Molly MacRae’s latest cozy mystery series is populated with charming, eccentric characters. The elderly Weaver siblings are a hoot, and I loved Maureen’s relationship with her adult children. The amnesia narrative is written in a manner as disorienting as the experience itself, but everything comes together satisfactorily in the end. Honestly, it’s so refreshing to read of older characters tackling tough and often dangerous problems. The inclusion of a friendly ghost also adds a delightful touch of the paranormal.” —Criminal Element on Come Shell or High Water

"Molly Macrae's delightful pirate ghost story and cozy mystery mashup is not to be missed. Cozy readers will be enthralled with this trip to North Carolina's Outer Banks." Amanda Flower, USA Today bestselling author of Blueberry Blunder

“Molly MacRae delights in her new Haunted Shell Shop series debut. Come Shell or High Water is a fun and twisty tale set on a North Carolina island. Nobody does ghosts like MacRae, with gentle eighteenth-century pirate Emrys keeping widowed shell expert Maureen Nash company as she untangles the salty facts of more than one murder along with mysteries from the past." Maddie Day, author of Deep Fried Death

“Molly MacRae’s Carolina coastal island in Come Shell or High Water is a treasure chest of atmosphere and island history with a unique cast of characters, including a pun-cracking 18th century pirate-ghost and two quirky octogenarian siblings, who may be the best sidekicks since Fred and Ethel Mertz. Her malacologist protagonist (when I said unique characters, I meant it) is sympathetic and interesting, making this layered Haunted Shell Shop mystery one you’ll be happily digging into." Korina Moss, author of Fondue or Die

“Ahoy, matey! Explore North Carolina’s Outer Banks without leaving home, go shelling without getting your feet wet, and savor a fun mystery filled with history and word play, as newly-widowed Maureen gets to know a fascinating place and its proudly quirky residents, all while discovering more about herself and her family.” Leslie Budewitz, three-time Agatha Award-winning author of the Spice Shop Mysteries

“With its likable protagonist and irresistible island setting, Come Shell or High Water will charm readers with an imaginative mashup of cozy mystery and ghost story.” Lucy Burdette, USA Today best selling author of A Clue in the Crumbs

Kirkus Reviews

2025-05-03
Maureen Nash returns to the Moon Shell, her shop on North Carolina’s Ocracoke Island, to confront a murder and other mysteries.

On her first trip to Ocracoke as the owner of the Moon Shell, Maureen survived a hurricane, met the ghost of Welsh pirate Emrys Lloyd, and solved a murder. Now she’s come back for good, with thanks to her neighbors Glady and Burt, who ran the shop in her absence. Missing from the scene are Emrys and Bonny, Maureen’s cat. Bonny turns up but Emrys does not, though he sends her a letter saying he found a treasure trove in a hidden attic above the shop. Police Capt. Rob Tate, who’s busy with the case of an unidentified corpse, stops by to get a note someone left on Maureen’s desk for him. He’s deeply disturbed when he reads the note, which says: “The dead woman is Lenrose.” It’s signed “Maureen Nash,” and appears to be in Maureen’s handwriting. What dead woman? He wants to know if Maureen is playing some kind of joke on him. There’s a visiting woman named Lenrose Sullivan, but she appears to be alive, well, and riding around ostentatiously with her husband, Victor, in their vintage Kaiser. Lenrose has dementia, and Victor, a friend of the man who left Maureen the Moon Shell, has what she thinks is an unhealthy interest in the shop and the special shell Emrys had carved. Maureen’s old friend Kathleen, who’s obsessed with figs, and Kathleen’s equally fig-obsessed friends Paula and Roberta are happy that they’ve rented a nearby cottage with a fig tree until the unpleasant smell there leads them to a body hidden in a tidal creek. When they take Maureen to view the crime scene, she discovers Emrys, who’s been stuck there. She’s amazed when Emrys identifies the body as Lenrose, whom Paula and Roberta knew online as another fig fan. Is Lenrose dead or alive?

History and shell lore combine in this beguiling tale.

Product Details

BN ID: 2940195496036
Publisher: Tantor Audio
Publication date: 06/24/2025
Series: Haunted Shell Shop Mystery , #2
Edition description: Unabridged
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