Merla Zellerbach. Dying to Dance (2012) 198 pp.
Publisher’s description: “Once again, Hallie Marsh, amateur sleuth and career woman, finds herself getting involved in a mysterious death. When Hallie and scientist Sam Butler find the body of Sam’s friend, beautiful heiress Carlie Gaines, in her Russian Hill condo, Hallie contacts Carlie’s lawyer, Nate Garchik. She learns that Carlie has no relatives, except for her estranged father, a convicted felon. With no clues to Carlie’s murder or the poison that killed her, Hallie decides to go undercover at the dance school Sam and Carlie attended. There she meets Jeff Donegan, the oversexed ballroom instructor, and Fernando Ruiz, the magnetic ‘Tango King,’ among others. Working with psychic Zlotta Kofiszny and cynical detective T.B. Baer, Hallie tackles a second mysterious death that leads to a frightening discovery and an unexpected solution.”
Setting: San Francisco