Susan Furlong Bolliger

Susan Furlong Bolliger wrote mystery fiction after working as a high-school language teacher, freelance translator, and academic writer. Murder for Bid introduces Pippi O'Brien, a former investment banker who turns to resale merchandising around Chicago. Searching auctions, estate sales, garage sales, and discarded goods for items she can sell gives Pippi specialized knowledge of value and access to people who underestimate her. Those routines draw her into the suspicious death of a wealthy suburban socialite and provide the clues, motives, and social encounters that shape her inquiry. The novel was issued by Martin Sisters Publishing and belongs to the cozy mystery tradition, emphasizing community observation over formal police procedure. Furlong Bolliger had already published short fiction in magazines and anthologies, and her early books included several compact mysteries. The resale premise gives this debut novel its most distinctive feature: everyday commerce becomes a structured puzzle, while Pippi’s professional experience helps her judge both objects and the stories people attach to them.