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Jean Rabe
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The Dead of Autumn: A Piper Blackwell Mystery Kindle Edition

by Jean Rabe (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.7 out of 5 stars 78 ratings

The green fairy never made it to the Halloween party.

The costumed teen’s gruesome murder sends ripples of fear through Piper Blackwell’s rural Indiana jurisdiction.

Investigating the crime plunges the young sheriff and her top detective into a monstrous underworld.

Can the battle-hardened duo survive the trip into the dark heart of “idyllic” Spencer County?

And will they find the killer before more lives are destroyed?


WOW! This series just gets better and better with each book. The DEAD OF AUTUMN is thrilling, with unexpected twists from start to finish. Would make a captivating Netflix series! ~ Cheryl Kaye Tardif, international bestselling author of SUBMERGED
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  1. Book 5 of 6
    Piper Blackwell Mystery
  2. Print length
    319 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Accessibility
    Learn more
  5. Publication date
    May 15, 2022
  6. File size
    903 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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Shop this series

 See full series
There are 6 books in this series.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09X3PXV8G
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Boone Street Press
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 15, 2022
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 903 KB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 319 pages
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Book 5 of 6 ‏ : ‎ Piper Blackwell Mystery
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 out of 5 stars 78 ratings

About the author

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Jean Rabe

Jean Rabe

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My home is filled with dogs and books. Lots of dogs and books. I am surrounded by both as I type this.

I wear twenty-some-year-old sandals or fraying tennis shoes to work everyday, and my wardrobe is often convention t-shirts or Green Bay Packer sweats.

I'm a mystery writer living in a tiny Midwestern town that has a gas station, a Dollar General, and a marvelous pizza place with exceedingly slow service.

Always working on a new project or three.

I have more than fifty books published in the fantasy, science fiction, urban fantasy and mystery genres, and more than one hundred short stories. I've lost count of the number of anthologies and magazine issues I've edited. Yeah, I've been around a while.

I'm concentrating on writing mysteries now and have a series set in Spencer County, Indiana. Piper Blackwell.

In my spare time I dabble in roleplaying games and boardgames, toss tennis balls for my cadre of dogs, and attempt to put a dent in my to-be-read stack of novels.

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
78 global ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • Amanda Green
    5.0 out of 5 stars Jean Rabe Does It Again!
    Reviewed in the United States on May 17, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    Once again, Jean Rabe delivers an excellent read. Part police procedural, part humor, part cozy mystery, it is all entertainment.

    The Dead of Autumn is, in my opinion, the best of the series to date. I love how we're seeing Piper really growing into her role as sheriff. She isn't perfect and she knows it. She isn't afraid of asking for help--even if she doesn't always like it (but then who does?). I also enjoyed seeing her work more closely with her chief detective, a Chicago-transplant, while her chief deputy deals with his own challenges. And let's not forget about the skeleton in the attic and the ensuing race between Piper's dispatcher/computer guru and her father to figure out who it belongs to and how it got there.

    And that's just part of the ride Ms. Rabe takes her readers on in this book.

    An excellent read and now I'm anxiously waiting for the next entry in the series.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Katinka
    5.0 out of 5 stars Mom Kat Reads
    Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2022
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    Halloween night always seems to get unusual 911 calls, but most of them don't amount to much more than minor disturbances, loud parties that might have gotten out of hand, or silly and generally harmless pranks. But a girl murdered on her way to a costume party is anything but usual.

    Once again, Sheriff Piper Blackwell has her hands full trying to discover who killed the teenage girl dressed as Steampunk Tinkerbell and why. And this one is definitely not a simple murder mystery. There are a lot of twists and turns involved, as well as quite a few surprises along the way.

    From the moment I started reading, I honestly couldn't put this book down. It held me completely captivated from beginning to end as I tried to figure it out before the end of the story. And the secondary mystery (that had nothing to do with this murder) was just as interesting and entertaining. And watching that mystery get solved gives quite a bit of insight into some of the secondary characters and their lives, adding extra dimensions to the overall story.

    I highly recommend reading this book, especially if you enjoy murder mysteries, any of the other books in this series, or are just looking for a very well written tale that will keep you guessing until the end. I think you'll enjoy it as much as I did. Ms. Rabe is definitely a master storyteller who never disappoints her readers. And if you’re anything like me, you’ll read through this one almost nonstop & be waiting as patiently as possible for the next one in the series.
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  • Sara T.
    5.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing Rural Indiana Mystery Highlighting Contemporary Problems
    Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    In this Piper Blackwell mystery Rabe gets into the heads of many other denizens of the southern rural Indiana County. We especially learn more from and about Zeke, the very young police dispatcher who wants to become a detective or even Sheriff. Personally I would’ve liked more writing from Sheriff Piper Blackwell‘s viewpoint than from all the other characters’. But I appreciate that Rabe was world-building, if you will, fleshing out the people and the issues in the setting for these mysteries.
    This story gets into the scourge of several types of drug use and trade, especially in rural America. I really appreciated this plot line, though it is painful, because it is very much a reality nowadays. I think Rabe tackled it very well. She even gets into unknowing relatives and knowing relatives regarding teen drug use.
    There are some more lighthearted bits in here, for example as Piper and Chef and gas station owner Nang expand their romance, and as dispatcher Teegan buys a behemoth of a mansion.
    This book could probably stand on its own, but I think it is best appreciated if you read the preceding Piper Blackwell mysteries. Overall I really am enjoying this series and I’m very glad Rabe is writing it.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Susan Paul
    5.0 out of 5 stars Piper just keeps getting better and better!
    Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    To start, I'm not the greatest at writing reviews. The Dead of Autumn had everything I love. To name a few; It's part of a series, it's a mystery, the lead character is female, and it has a pug :-)

    Seriously though, it is an excellent read that I found hard to put down. I'm ready for the next "The Dead of..." book!
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Dwayne Jacobs
    5.0 out of 5 stars Timely and gripping
    Reviewed in the United States on January 6, 2024
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    The plots are great and realistic, the pacing very well done,and the evolution of the characters totally believable. More please!
    One person found this helpful
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  • Jeremy E. Grenemyer
    5.0 out of 5 stars “Sometimes he wondered if heaven wasn’t Fall all the time.”
    Reviewed in the United States on June 17, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    This book was my first cozy. I hadn’t known there was such a thing. And I’d lost track of Rabe. I’d last encountered her 30 years ago when I read Red Magic. I figure the concept of “cozy” as a kind of sub genre must have come along in that time. And during that time Jean Rabe never stopped getting better at telling good stories.

    I’m not someone that cares much about characters besides the protagonist. I like action. But a cozy is supposed to care about the people that are a part of the protagonist’s life. Rabe did something for me few other authors have succeeded at; she made me care.

    So I’ll be ordering the previous books in the Piper Blackwell series, and the new one as soon as it’s released.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Margaret Cutter
    5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't put it down!
    Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2022
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    The Dead of Autumn: A Piper Blackwell Mystery, is the fifth and latest pageturner in Jean Rabe’s exciting series staring the young Sheriff of rural Spencer County, Indiana. It starts with a dead body on page one, then another a few chapter later. Piper and her team must sift through the evidence, track down the killer among a slew of suspects, and bring down a major drug operation, making this latest novel a worthy successor to the previous Piper books. But it is so much more than a police procedural. Rabe paints her characters in multi-dimensional detail, quirks and imperfections included. By the time the reader finishes the book, they are as invested in the people of Spencer County as if they were neighbors. I enjoyed this book immensely, and highly recommend the entire Piper Blackwell series.
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  • C. Clarkson
    5.0 out of 5 stars More Piper Please
    Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2022
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    Jean Rabe once again brings us into Piper’s world. One she has brought to life with rich imagery and accurate details. I quickly became immersed in the mystery of the body found in tall fescue. But it her characters, and the life they are leading while solving this mystery that really engages you. This is the 5th book of the Piper series and I have enjoyed watching Piper and the other residents of Spencer County grow.
    One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Lauralee Reimer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Feel good murder mystery
    Reviewed in Canada on April 17, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    This series is smart, clean and will keep you up all night. It’s the kind of book you rush through because it’s so good and then are disappointed when it’s done.
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  • Gregg Peevers
    4.0 out of 5 stars Another Great Piper Blackwell Story
    Reviewed in Canada on June 2, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    Piper Blackwell is a young sheriff in rural Indiana and this outing has great opening which leads to an interesting mystery.

    The strengths of the previous 4 books are once again in evidence, a compelling protagonist, a great supporting cast all of whom continue to develop and a great sense of place in the descriptions of the locations and the environment.

    I would encourage any one that is interested to read all 5 books in the series in order for the character development of Piper and the other characters.
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