THE LILY BARD MYSTERIES #5: Shakespeare's Counselor by Charlaine Harris

Lily Bard just wanted to start life over - but life had different ideas. A thrilling crime series from an international bestseller!

This omnibus contains the titles SHAKESPEARE'S LANDLORD, SHAKESPEARE'S CHAMPION, SHAKESPEARE'S CHRISTMAS, SHAKESPEARE'S TROLLOP and SHAKESPEARE'S COUNSELOR.

Lily Bard is starting over again. She's disguised herself as much as she can, cutting her hair short and wearing baggy clothes and she's moved to Shakespeare, Arkansas, where, working as a cleaning lady, she can sweep away the secrets of her dark, violent past.

But Shakespeare is not the peaceful little community Lily had hoped for and her idea of just fading into the background looks like it's doomed right from the beginning, when she discovers the dead body of her landlord...

Before long, everyone is going to know Lily Bard's name.

This is the fifth--and final--book in The Lily Bard Mysteries Omnibus.

After waking up one morning and almost strangling her husband, Jack encourages Lily to attend a therapy group for rape victims. No matter how much time goes by, Lily can't shake the terrible nightmares of what happened to her. The dark incident that changed her life, changed who she was, is a dark stain constantly haunting her, especially when she's asleep. So she agrees to go.

To her surprise, she actually doesn't mind it. She finds her therapist to be quite capable in getting the group to talk, and the other women seem like a nice enough group. But Lily's life is never straightforward and simple, so after only several visits, something horrible happens. A new member to the group is brutally murdered and left staged in a horrid position inside the therapist's office. Suddenly, she once again finds herself in the middle of a murder-mystery. As well as finding out that this murder has something to do with the counselor's past.

But Lily's got some personal issues to deal with at the moment. Her relationship with Jack has become a lot more serious, and she's learning the ropes of becoming a private investigator. And while all of this is happening, she's still cleaning. Not to mention that something absolutely heartbreaking--and unexpected--happens to her too. :(

Shakespeare's Counselor is absolutely fantastic! The plot was intriguing, full of twists and turns that made me as confused as the characters. The crimes are also very demented. This is an emotional installment to Lily and Jack's story, one with a satisfying conclusion.

I'm only sad that it's over.

The Lily Bard Mysteries Omnibus, January 2011, ISBN 9780575096448, Gollancz Paperback

M&SRC books read: 6/12