Murder at Leisure Dreams: Galapagos (Giovanna Rogers Mysteries)
Mystery
2nd in Series
Setting – Galapagos
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Milford House Press
Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 26, 2025
Print length ‏ : ‎ 340 pages

Synopsis

Giovanna Rogers restarts her career as expatriate manager of the new Leisure Dreams resort hotel on Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos. Due to her youth and limited proficiency in Spanish, she struggles to gain the respect of her staff and the company’s executives. She has to prove to them that she got the job because of merit, not because the CEO is a family friend. And prove to herself that she can overcome a past business failure and make the hotel a success.

When the story opens, Giovanna and her staff prepare for the hotel’s grand opening. Friends, family, and corporate bigwigs fly in for the event. Renowned documentary producer Claire Costello and her film crew have arrived; Giovanna has the staff send a bottle of champagne to Claire’s room to welcome the VIP guest. The next morning, Claire is found dead in her bed; the cause of death is apparent poisoning. Now Giovanna must work with her boyfriend, local police detective Victor Zuniga, to solve the case while juggling the details of the grand opening and controlling the narrative around the mysterious demise of a VIP guest on the property.

Complications in her relationship arise when Giovanna’s ex-boyfriend decides to join her family to attend the grand opening. Her best friend and several of her employees have a history with Claire. And Claire’s team is somewhat dysfunctional, keeping secrets and telling contradictory stories. Despite Giovanna’s efforts to maintain normalcy and apprehend the culprit, things continue to worsen.

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Guest Post by Character Giovanna Rogers

Being the manager of Leisure Dreams – Galapagos, the newest hotel in the international luxury resort chain, is a dream job in a dream location. The hotel overlooks the beautiful Academy Bay and the town of Puerto Ayora on the island of Santa Cruz. Nearby is the world-famous Charles Darwin Research Station, home of many endangered giant tortoises, including Tio Armando, one of the biggest tourist attractions on the island.

It’s hard to believe I’ve moved over 2500 miles away from my home in Georgia, to a remote island in the Pacific, 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador. A UNESCO world heritage site, practically a nature sanctuary. But right now, it’s good to stay out of sight and out of mind; let people get over what happened. I’m kind of a pariah in my former town.

Most of the employees at the resort are a joy to work with. They tolerate my lack of proficiency in the native language and are patient with my efforts to learn Spanish. Fortunately, Leisure Dreams is an American company that requires all its employees to speak fluent English, so communication with the staff is not a problem. If some of them suspect I got my job because of a family friendship with the CEO rather than on merit, they keep it to themselves. (It’s true that my grandmother and I met the Leisure Dreams CEO and his family on a Galapagos cruise last year, but I believe I also impressed him with my corporate experience and business savvy.)

Several of the employees have confided that Belinda Chavez, my assistant manager, interviewed for my position, and they warned me to be careful. Yes, I know Belinda resents that the job went to an American expatriate who is new to the company instead of her. But, like me, she works hard to prove herself and is basically harmless. I don’t think she’d do anything to sabotage me or hurt the Leisure Dreams brand.

My love life is pretty good for a change. I’ve started dating Victor Zuniga, a Puerto Ayora police detective. When I first saw him on board our cruise ship, I thought he looked more like a sexy TV detective than a real cop. Although we got a rough start when we met—I was a person of interest in a murder investigation—the romance is heating up now.

So, what’s a day in my life like? This week, we’re preparing for the resort’s grand opening, and it’s a big deal. I stay busy overseeing all the last-minute details, so it’s good that I’m living in the hotel for now. This is my chance to reboot my career after the bankruptcy of my spay/neuter clinic back in Georgia last year—and the resulting scandal—for which my ex-fiancé blamed me. So much for loyalty, love, and trust. I’m glad I saw him for who he is before we tied the knot.

Anyway, the CEO and many of the Leisure Dreams executives, government officials, and of course, the press will be here for the opening, so everything has to be perfect. Our chef has planned a fantastic menu, with fresh seafood hand-selected from the local fish market. Our sommelier has stocked extra cases of the finest champagne from the Leisure Dreams reserves. The lobby and ballroom look beautiful, and the suites are all ready for the guests. Now, if I can just keep Harvey, that pesky sea lion, from sneaking into our pool and make sure he stays on the beach where he belongs.

My grandmother, Michelle DePalma, and her husband, Roberto, will fly in for the big event. Michelle is like a surrogate mother to me, and it will be great to see her again. She loves the Galapagos and wouldn’t miss this opportunity to return. I just hope she doesn’t nag me about getting back together with Timothy, my ex-fiancé. That ship has sailed.

I’m excited about our VIP guest, Claire Costello, a famous American documentary producer, who arrives tomorrow. I know Michelle and Roberto will enjoy meeting her; they’re fans of her nature programs on PBS. Claire and her crew will attend the opening ceremonies and then use the hotel as their base while they shoot another nature film in the Galapagos. I heard this one will be about giant tortoises and perhaps feature Tio Armando. I’ve arranged for the staff to roll out the red-carpet treatment: the best suite, extra amenities, and a welcome basket with fruit and a bottle of our finest champagne, compliments of the CEO. Belinda promised to handle the details personally.

I just hope nothing goes wrong. Everything depends on this grand opening going flawlessly.

About the Author

SHARON MARCHISELLO is the author of two other mysteries published by Milford House, the fiction imprint of Sunbury Press: Going Home (2014) and Secrets of the Galapagos (2019), which is the prequel to Murder at Leisure Dreams – Galapagos. She also writes the DeeLo Myer Cat Rescue Mysteries from Level Best Books. Besides novels, Sharon has published short stories in anthologies and online magazines, including one that was a 2022 Derringer finalist. She has written travel articles, training manuals, screenplays, book reviews, and a nonfiction book, Live Well, Grow Wealth (2018). She earned a Bachelor’s degree in French from the University of Houston and a Master’s in Professional Writing from the University of Southern California. She is an active member of Sisters in Crime, the Atlanta Writers Club, and the Hometown Novel Writers Association. Retired after 27 years with Delta Air Lines, Sharon now lives in Peachtree City, Georgia. She serves on the boards of the Fayette Humane Society, Hometown Novel Writers Association, and the Friends of the Peachtree City Library. She loves to travel, including a trip to the Galapagos Islands in 2014.

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