Aurora Teagarden has prepared her talk on the 1931 Wallace case for the monthly meeting of Real Murders, a club of twelve true-crime fans. She never gets to give it. Before the meeting she finds fellow member Mamie Wright dead, killed in a way that mirrors the very case she was about to present. Charlaine Harris’s third novel was published by Walker & Company in 1990 and was nominated for the Agatha Award for Best Novel.
What Is Real Murders About?
Librarian Aurora “Roe” Teagarden is 28 and lives in Lawrenceton, Georgia, a growing suburb of Atlanta. The Real Murders club meets once a month to analyze famous cases, the famous murders of the past. After Mamie’s death, more killings follow, each modeled on a different historical murderer. Someone in the mystery club is acting out its own subject, and every member, Aurora included, is a suspect or a possible next victim.
The plot is clever and darker than most cozy mysteries. Publishers Weekly wrote that “an ingenious plot and sufficient flow of blood keep the pages flying.” That is a fair warning: the deaths are not gentle.
Roe, Robin and Arthur
Aurora is quiet and observant, and her social life has been uneventful. The murders change that. Two men take an interest: Robin Crusoe, a mystery writer new in town, and Arthur Smith, a police detective who is also a club member. Her reactions to both are funny and honest, and they keep the book from being only grim.
Our Review: An Original Premise, With Teeth
The idea is the best thing here: a group of people who treat murder as a hobby suddenly have to face the real thing. Harris asks, without preaching, what it means to enjoy reading about old murders. School Library Journal praised the pacing and the well-placed clues, and mystery writer Carolyn G. Hart said the story both charms and chills.
Some club members are thin, and the romance moves fast. If you want a bloodless cozy, this is not it. If you like a puzzle with real menace, it holds up more than thirty years later.
Aurora Teagarden Books in Order
This is the first book. The series has ten murder mysteries and one short story, and no new Aurora book has been announced. Read them in order, because Aurora’s life changes a lot between books.
- Real Murders (1990)
- A Bone to Pick (1992)
- Three Bedrooms, One Corpse (1994)
- The Julius House (1995)
- Dead Over Heels (1996)
- A Fool and His Honey (1999)
- Last Scene Alive (2002)
- Poppy Done to Death (2003)
- All the Little Liars (2016)
- Sleep Like a Baby (2017)
The short story “Deeply Dead” (1997) appeared in the anthology Murder, They Wrote. After a thirteen-year break, Harris returned to Aurora in 2016.
How Many Husbands Did Aurora Teagarden Have? (Spoilers)
In the books, two. She marries businessman Martin Bartell, who has died by book 7. Later she marries Robin Crusoe, the writer she meets in this first book. In the Hallmark films she marries once, a college professor named Nick Miller who does not exist in the novels.
The Hallmark Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Why They Ended
Hallmark made 18 Aurora Teagarden Mysteries TV movies with Candace Cameron Bure, from 2015 to 2022. Real Murders was the second film, and its plot differs from the book. In April 2022 Bure left Hallmark for a rival network, GAC Media, and Hallmark said it had no plans for more films with her. Hallmark later made three prequel films with Skyler Samuels as a younger Aurora, in 2023 and 2024.
What Books Has Charlaine Harris Written?
Charlaine Harris’s best-known books are the Sookie Stackhouse novels. Yes, True Blood is based on a book: HBO’s series adapted that cycle, starting with Dead Until Dark (2001). She also wrote the darker Lily Bard mystery series, starting with Shakespeare’s Landlord. Then came the four Harper Connelly novels, starting with Grave Sight, the Midnight, Texas trilogy and the six Gunnie Rose books. Before Sookie, she spent thirteen years on Aurora and Lily.
Quick Facts
| Title | Real Murders |
|---|---|
| Author | Charlaine Harris |
| Series | Aurora Teagarden Mysteries, the first of ten |
| First published | 1990, Walker & Company |
| Setting | Lawrenceton, Georgia, near Atlanta |
| Sleuth | Aurora “Roe” Teagarden, a librarian |
| Audiobook | Narrated by Thérèse Plummer, 6 h 8 min (Recorded Books, 2009) |
| Award | Agatha Award nominee, Best Novel |
| Film | Real Murders: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery (Hallmark, 2015) |
| Next book | A Bone to Pick (1992) |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Real Murders the first book in the Aurora Teagarden series?
Yes. Note that the Hallmark films started with A Bone to Pick, so the movie order is different.
Is there an audiobook?
Yes. The unabridged edition from Recorded Books runs about six hours.
What should I read next?
Carolyn G. Hart, who praised this book, writes the Death on Demand mysteries, starting with Death on Demand. Or browse our librarian mysteries.