Here is a list of some of the new releases for the week of December 8th, 2019. I am going to divide the list into 4 days because there are so very many of them for the week. Today is the first day of my list for this week. Hope you find some selections for your weekly reading. Enjoy and happy reading.
![Faces of Darkness: Based On A Real-Life Mystery by [McKay, Steven A.]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51nJIPktWHL.jpg)
When a young noblewoman is brutally assaulted in her own manor house, two former outlaws decide they must solve the mystery, before things go too far…
CROFTUN, NORTHERN ENGLAND
WINTER, AD 1328
Lady Isabella de Courcy is found alone in a room bolted from the inside, unconscious, and with a dagger forced through her hand, but this is just the latest in a line of similar, terrifying incidents. For months now, she’s been stalked by some shadowy tormentor yet, bafflingly, the attacker has never been clearly seen by anyone, even Lady Isabella, and he seems to leave no trace of his movements.
Can the bailiff, John Little, along with the legendary friar, Robert Stafford, uncover the truth and, more importantly, will they be able to save the troubled victim before she ends up dead?
This new standalone novella from the author of The Druid sees the return of two much-loved characters from the Forest Lord series and is based on a shocking real-life case which remains, to this day, unsolved. (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle
![Magical Muck-Up: Five Cozy Mystery Shorts by [Lee, Amanda M.]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51vlYNiKpbL.jpg)
Sometimes fun comes in smaller packages.
Join five fun friends from five different series as they embark on five different adventures.
This collection includes:
Wolf on the Job (A Covenant College Short): Spend time with Aric as he navigates life with his tempestuous wife and magical daughter.
Luke on the Loose (A Mystic Caravan Mystery Short): Hang out with Luke as he investigates an incubus in Ohio … and maybe finds a love connection all his own.
Cupid in Crisis (A Moonstone Bay Cozy Mystery Short): Join in the fun as Booker helps an old friend … with a little help from Hadley and Galen, and a lot of trouble from a cadre of demanding models.
Millie on a Mission (A Charlie Rhodes Cozy Mystery Short): Millie likes being in charge, especially when she gets to mess with an old enemy. Jack and Charlie are along for the ride.
Jerry Takes Charge (An Aisling Grimlock Short): Hang out with Jerry as he runs an important party … and tries to keep his best friend Aisling from running off the rails. (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle
![Dead in the Dinghy (A Mollie McGhie Cozy Sailing Mystery Book 4) by [Jacobson, Ellen]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41JV26abENL.jpg)
What would you do if your husband became obsessed with turning your cat into an internet sensation?
Mollie McGhie is excited about the Coconut Cove regatta. She’s looking forward to sailing to Destiny Key, enjoying the Fourth of July festivities, and dressing her cat, Mrs. Moto, up in adorable costumes for her hubby’s crazy new YouTube channel. Instead, they lose the race, get caught in a dangerous storm, and find a dead body in their dinghy.
The local chief of police claims that it was an accidental death, but Mollie is convinced that a murder took place. During her investigation, Mollie gets drawn into the local art community, worries that her cat is going to turn into a diva, learns more about the mysterious Destiny Key, and even does a waitressing gig in exchange for bacon.
Can Mollie prove that someone was murdered in her dinghy or will this heinous crime be covered up?
Dead in the Dinghy is the fourth book in the light, humorous, and original Mollie McGhie cozy sailing mystery series. If you like kooky characters, adorable cats, and plenty of chocolate, you’ll love this cozy mystery. Grab Dead in the Dinghy today and laugh out loud from the first page to the last.
Spoiler Alert: You’ll want to binge watch cute cat videos after reading this book!
The Mollie McGhie Cozy Sailing Mysteries
Robbery at the Roller Derby – Book #0 (Prequel Novella)
Murder at the Marina – Book #1
Bodies in the Boatyard – Book #2
Poisoned by the Pier – Book #3
Dead in the Dinghy – Book #4 (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle
![Curtain Call At Brooksey's Playhouse: A Lainey Maynard Cozy Mystery Series: The Prequel (A Lainey Maynard Mystery Series) by [Hern, Laura]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/511gLJUHgSL.jpg)
In a small town…
…everyone has secrets.
What will they do to keep them?
Murder brought Lainey to Mirror Falls. Among the lakes and forests of northern Minnesota, where folks greet you with a smile, everything isn’t as quaint as it seems. The local police captain isn’t interested in her theories.
Who will she turn to?
Lainey’s secret weapon is her brain and wit, but it’s a double edge sword as her sassy mouth can get her in trouble. This time, though, it may be more than she can handle.
The more she digs, the uglier it gets. Could the beloved, charming, and impeccably dressed, retired bank president be involved?
Chinese smuggling, jade mining, laundered money, and a double cross, lie at the heart of this delightful cozy mystery. You’ll love every page, because Lainey is clever in all the right ways.
Get it now. (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle
![Case of the Ostentatious Otters (Corgi Case Files Book 8) by [Poole, Jeffrey]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51LlQp-OQEL.jpg)
When a dead SCUBA diver is discovered during their road trip vacation to Monterey, CA, Zack, Jillian and the two corgis, Sherlock and Watson, become embroiled in a race to discover what the diver had been doing when he died. Compounding their investigation is the presence of a group of playful otters, who just so happen to be using what appears to be gold coins as tools to open shellfish. Are the two events related? Could the deceased diver have located a sunken treasure ship off the coast of Monterey?
Pick up your copy of Zack and the dogs’ latest thrilling adventure! (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle
![First Place Witch: A Beechwood Harbor Magic Mystery (Beechwood Harbor Magic Mysteries Book 8) by [Garrett, Danielle]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51czWDvmH5L.jpg)
It’s the chance of a lifetime, but Holly’s not sure she can survive the spotlight’s harsh glow.
With her potions shop officially open for business, Holly sets off to the San Francisco Haven to compete with the most elite potions masters in the entire country. But what should be a fun and potentially life-changing experience quickly sours when Haven Council officials show up and start poking around Holly’s workstation.
When one of the competitors is found murdered, all eyes swivel to Holly and her apprentice.
Holly doesn’t know who killed the egotistical wizard, but she knows it wasn’t her or Harmony. She also knows that there are some on the esteemed Haven Council who wouldn’t hesitate to blur the lines of the investigation if it means getting rid of her once and for all.
Holly, Adam, Evangeline, and Harmony have to find the real killer before the clock runs out and Holly ends up wearing SPA handcuffs.
***
First Place Witch is the eighth book in the Beechwood Harbor Magic Mysteries series by Danielle Garrett. (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle
![Cherry Cream and Murder (Holly Holmes Cozy Culinary Mystery Series Book 4) by [O'Connor, K.E.]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/515%2BxKGjW-L.jpg)
Ruined reputations, romance, and rivalry abound in this riveting new murder mystery.
When Holly is tasked with preventing a death, she’s in a bind. She has no idea who’s about to die and how they’ll meet a sticky end!
When the killer strikes during a longbow shooting competition, Holly investigates. As she hunts for the truth, she discovers work rivals, a neglected girlfriend, and intense jealousy surrounding the victim.
Risking her safety, and ignoring the warning from castle security to stay out of the investigation, Holly is determined to find the truth. If she fails, a killer will go free, and justice won’t prevail.
With the odds stacked against her, and a second castle guest falling prey to the longbow killer, Holly is running out of time.
Welcome back to Audley St. Mary. The stories are always full of desserts, murder, and puzzles. Enjoy mystery, friendship, twists and turns, and lots of tasty treats as you indulge in this delicious book.
This is a fun, twisty page-turner that will delight dessert lovers, cozy mystery fans, and anyone who has a soft spot for a cute dog!
More books in the series:
Book 1 – Cream Caramel and Murder
Book 2 – Chocolate Swirls and Murder
Book 3 – Vanilla Whip and Murder
Book 4 – Cherry Cream and Murder (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle
![The Lornea Island Detective Club (Rockpools Book 2) by [Dunnett, Gregg]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41aCPiu6i2L.jpg)
At just 14 years old, Billy Wheatley has already solved two murders – well sort of. So it’s only natural he should open a detective agency on the windswept and lonely Lornea Island.
It’s less likely he should get an actual client – and a partner – but then both are a little crazy, in their own way.
Billy rapidly finds himself investigating the case of a man who disappeared forty years ago in mysterious circumstances. And though it seems like ancient history, his erratic efforts disturb clues that were meant to be long-buried. And the people that buried them. At the same time, Billy’s own hidden past comes back to haunt him in a way he least expects.
Billy must use his unique combination of charm, youthful optimism and scientific cunning to solve two mysteries, before it’s too late. Because at least one of the people he thinks he can trust is out to kill him.
It’s just not the one he thinks it is.
The Lornea Island Detective Club is the sequel to The Things you find in Rockpools, which was an Amazon bestseller in the US, UK, Australia and Canada in 2018. It sold over a hundred thousand copies and has over 2000 international reviews, with an average rating of 4.7 out of 5. Here’s just a flavor or what readers are saying:
“Hugely enjoyable. This is a cut above your usual thriller, and will keep you guessing until the end.”
“Billy has just become my favorite ever character!”
“I would give it 6 stars if I could.” (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle
![Christmas Spells: Witch Cozy Mystery (The Kitchen Witch Book 14) by [Best, Morgana]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51Y%2B1-3UzWL.jpg)
Amelia is feeling extra Santa-mental and wants the Christmas spirit, just not the Christmas spirit who arrives to demand her help.
The Ghost of Christmas Past was an elf-made man who was murdered the previous Christmas while in a Santa suit.
Can Amelia solve the murder, or is it a lost Claus?
Yule never guess who the murderer is! (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle
![Snow Toys for You (Alaska Cozy Mystery Book 13) by [Meadows, Wendy]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51nyP-K5R6L.jpg)
Will Sarah and Amanda survive the sub-zero temperatures to thaw out this case, or will a voice from the past get Sarah on the right track?
It’s just what Sarah needs, but fate has other plans for her when she gets a phone call from her cousin, Bonnie Malloy. It’s a plead for help that Sarah can’t turn her back on. Family is family, after all. So, she packs up with her rookie, Amanda, and makes the long journey to a small town in Northern Michigan to visit Bonnie.
Toying with emotions promotes deadly play.
The trip shifts quickly from a friendly scout into a murder investigation when a man is found dead inside Bonnie’s toy store. The residents are busy pointing the blame on each other, and the evidence is growing more malicious as snarky politicians, shady business people, and stone-cold hired killers are added to this circus show.
Playtime is over.
Sarah’s back is against the wall as she deals with Bonnie’s explosive emotions and trying to guide Amanda – who knows more about donuts than she does about conducting a murder investigation. A storm is brewing, promising devastation in its wake.
This cozy mystery is a clean read: no graphic violence, sex, or strong language.
Read all the Alaska cozy mysteries:
1. The Snowman Killer
2. Deep in the Snow
3. Snow Happens
4. Snow is Not the Time
5. Spring into Murder
6. Chasing Shadows
7. Snowy Misery
8. Hot Springs Murder
9. Danger in the Snow
10. Snow Ordinary Family
11. Snow Mercy
12. Snow Laughing Matter
13. Snow Toys for You (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback
![Deceptions and Decisions in Las Vegas: A Tiffany Black Mystery (Tiffany Black Mysteries Book 17) by [Winters, A.R.]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51g-xyCcD5L.jpg)
A Cupcakes-And-Crime Caper
Cupcake-loving croupier Tiffany Black is taken by surprise when a woman from Ryan’s past contacts her—and claims to be his ex-fiancée.
Before Tiffany can recover from that bombshell, the woman, Constance, drops another one: she’s been accused of murdering her new sweetheart’s mother, and she wants Tiffany to clear her name.
As Tiffany explores the depths of a murder conspiracy, and her own feelings for Ryan and Stone, she receives bad news about Ryan’s mission.
Meanwhile, Nanna decides to make Bridget her doggie assistant, and Ian tries to improve his relationship with Sally – but things don’t go quite as planned!
Will Tiffany, Ian and the gang be able to save the day this time?
Deceptions and Decisions in Las Vegas is the seventeenth book in The Tiffany Black in Las Vegas Mystery Series. Though it can be read as a standalone, it’s best read in series order.
This is a lighthearted cozy mystery featuring a strong female protagonist, some unusual friends and family, and a mystery that needs solving! It has no graphic gore, bad language or sex.
Praise for A.R. Winters:
“Fans of Stephanie Plum, meet Tiffany Black, A.R. Winters’s new heroine.” – Rea, Amazon.com
“You fall in love with Tiffany Black from the start, and the mystery starts immediately” – Melissa Greenberg, Amazon.com Top 1000 Reviewer
“The perfect balance of being lighthearted, but still a serious page-turning mystery.” – Jaycie D, Amazon.com (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle
![Wasted Thyme (A Dinner Club Murder Mystery Book 7) by [Whalen, Karen C.]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51PDVnZWE4L.jpg)
Twice-widowed Jane Marsh ties the knot for the third time with longstanding fiancé Dale Capricorn. Jane’s ready for a celebratory reception at her uber-trendy condo in downtown Denver with champagne toasts, fancy dress, and her family and dinner club friends. Everyone knows she and Dale’s prettier and younger ex-wife Polly are “frenemies,” but Jane starts fresh and asks Polly to cater the event. However, after the last guest leaves, Jane discovers the ex-wife dead—and Jane’s the obvious suspect. If Jane doesn’t find the real killer, her third marriage certainly won’t be the charm. (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback
![Murder at the Opera: An Atlas Catesby Mystery by [Quincy, D. M.]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51iFKmJib9L.jpg)
When a nobleman’s mistress is gunned down on the steps of the Covent Garden opera house, brilliant adventurer Atlas Catesby discovers a sinister family connection that compels him to investigate.
London, 1815. Amateur sleuth Atlas Catesby is about to discover the dark side of the bright lights. His long-awaited night at the opera with Lady Lilliana ends abruptly when a notorious courtesan is shot to death in Covent Garden.
The infamous victim was the mistress of the powerful Marquess of Vessey. Atlas believes that the marquess–his former brother in law–is responsible for the long-ago death of Atlas’s sister, Phoebe. Atlas seizes the opportunity to potentially avenge his sister’s death. But his inquiry is complicated when Phoebe’s grown son implores Atlas to help prove Vessey’s innocence.
Plunging into the cutthroat backstage life of the theatre community, the adventurer and the noblewoman soon discover that ruthless professional rivalries can escalate into violence, setting the stage for death in Murder at the Opera, D. M. Quincy’s third riveting Atlas Catesby mystery set in Regency England. (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover, Audiobook
![Verse and Vengeance: A Magical Bookshop Mystery by [Flower, Amanda]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51ozTExBAaL.jpg)
USA Today bestselling author and Agatha Award winner Amanda Flower turns the charm up to ten in her fourth Magical Bookshop mystery.
With the help of Walt Whitman’s works, magical bookshop owner Violet Waverly puts her pedal to the metal to sleuth a bicycle-race murder that tests her mettle.
A bicycle race is not Charming Books proprietor Violet Waverly’s idea of a pleasant pastime. But police chief David Rainwater wheelie wants them to enter the Tour de Cascade as a couple, so she reluctantly consents.
The Tour de Cascade is the brainchild of Violet’s Grandma Daisy. The race is a fundraiser to build the Cascade Springs Underground Railroad Museum. But not everyone in this Niagara Region village supports the race. As if the bike race weren’t tiring enough, pesky private investigator Joel Redding is snooping around Charming Books. It takes all of Violet’s and Grandma Daisy’s ingenuity to keep Redding from discovering the shop’s magical essence–which communicates with Violet through books.
When Redding perishes in an accident during the race, David discovers that the brake line of the private eye’s bike was cut. Worse, Violet tops his list of suspects. As Emerson the tuxedo cat and resident crow Faulkner look on, Charming Books steers Violet to the works of Walt Whitman to solve the crime. But no other names ring a bell as culprits, and as David’s investigation picks up speed, Violet will have to get in gear to clear her name. (Amazon)
Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover
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