New Releases For The Week Of March 8th, 2020–Part 1

Here is a list of some of the new releases for the week of March 8th, 2020. 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.

 

An English manor home, an unsolved mystery, too many suspects to count… It’s the perfect holiday for romance novelist Sara Medlar.

After solving two murder cases in their hometown of Lachlan, Florida, Sara Medlar, her niece Kate and their friend Jack need a change of scenery. Sara arranges for them to visit an old friend of hers in England. Upon arrival at Oxley Manor, a centuries-old estate that has been converted to a luxury hotel, Kate and Jack quickly realize that Sara is up to something. They learn that Sara has also invited a number of others to join them at Oxley.

When everyone assembles, Sara lets them know why they are there. Decades earlier, two people ran off together from Oxley and haven’t been heard from since—and Sara wants to solve the case. As the people who were there the night the two went missing, the guests find themselves cast in a live mystery-theater event.

In reenacting the events of that night, it becomes clear that everyone has something to hide and no one is safe, especially when the discovery of a body makes it clear that at least one of the people who disappeared was murdered.

Sara, Jack and Kate are once again at the heart of a mysterious case that only they are able to solve. But someone is willing to continue to kill to keep the truth about Oxley Manor buried, and none of the guests are safe.

New York Times bestselling author Jude Deveraux has crafted another irresistible case in her bestselling Medlar Mystery series.  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle, Hardcover, Paperback, Audiobook

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“What if you could listen in on any phone conversation in town? With great humor and insight, The Operator by Gretchen Berg delivers a vivid look inside the heads and hearts of a group of housewives and pokes at the absurdities of 1950s America, a simpler time that was far from simple. Think The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel in the suburbs with delicious turns of jealousy, infidelity, bigotry, and embezzlement thrown in for good measure. The Operator is irresistible!”

 — Kathryn Stockett, author of the New York Times bestselling novel The Help

A clever, surprising, and ultimately moving debut novel, set in a small Midwestern town in the early 1950s, about a nosy switchboard operator who overhears gossip involving her own family, and the unraveling that discovery sets into motion.

In a small town, everyone knows everyone else’s business . . .

Nobody knows the people of Wooster, Ohio, better than switchboard operator Vivian Dalton, and she’d be the first to tell you that. She calls it intuition. Her teenage daughter, Charlotte, calls it eavesdropping.

Vivian and the other women who work at Bell on East Liberty Street connect lines and lives. They aren’t supposed to listen in on conversations, but they do, and they all have opinions on what they hear—especially Vivian. She knows that Mrs. Butler’s ungrateful daughter, Maxine, still hasn’t thanked her mother for the quilt she made, and that Ginny Frazier turned down yet another invitation to go to the A&W with Clyde Walsh.

Then, one cold December night, Vivian listens in on a call between that snob Betty Miller and someone whose voice she can’t quite place and hears something shocking. Betty Miller’s mystery friend has news that, if true, will shatter Vivian’s tidy life in Wooster, humiliating her and making her the laughingstock of the town.

Vivian may be mortified, but she isn’t going to take this lying down. She’s going to get to the bottom of that rumor—get into it, get under it, poke around in the corners. Find every last bit. Vivian wants the truth, no matter how painful it may be.

But as Vivian is about to be reminded, in a small town like Wooster, one secret usually leads to another. . . .  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle, Hardcover, Paperback, Audiobook

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Avery Shaw likes to win. Unfortunately, her single-minded focus on being declared victor tends to get her into trouble. That’s never more true than when she decides to take on her archnemesis Tad Ludington.
With an election coming up, Avery is ready to let her freak flag fly in an attempt to get Tad to show his true colors on television … thus sabotaging his chance at getting into office. That backfires when, after a truly epic meltdown, Tad is shot and left for dead in his own home.
Sheriff Jake Farrell knows Avery isn’t guilty but his belief doesn’t matter when the case is taken away from him and given to the Michigan State Police. The incoming investigator zeroes in on Avery almost instantly … and makes her life a living hell.
In addition to Tad, who is fighting for his life in the hospital, Avery also has to grapple with Eliot’s former employee Fawn, a woman who won’t stop flapping her lips about Avery’s probable guilt … all because she holds a grudge and finally has a platform to express it.
Avery is in a bind. She’s been banned from covering Tad’s attack and the election, and she’s being called a “suspect” on every television station in the state. If she wants to clear her name, she’s going to need help.
There’s little more she loathes than asking for help. She has no choice this time.
Avery has always attracted weirdos. This go-around, those weirdos are going to come to her defense. It’s going to take a motley band of colorful characters to save Macomb County’s favorite intrepid reporter.
Will they be up for the challenge?  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Obituary writer and amateur sleuth Eve Mallow is enjoying life in sleepy Saxford St Peter – until a mysterious murder lands right at her door…

It’s spring in Saxford St Peter – time to get back in the garden, listen to the birds, and take gentle strolls in the woods. But for some, it’s the season for murder.

Eve Mallow is relishing the gentle pace of the village until a new arrival stirs everyone up. Ashton Foley is back: a teenage tearaway turned interior designer to the stars. He’s mad, bad and dangerous to know, but charming too – as Eve herself can testify – and every house in Saxford opens its doors to him.

So when he’s found murdered in the woods near his mother’s home, Apple Tree Cottage, there’s no shortage of suspects. A jealous husband? A spurned lover? Or has someone from his past life caught up with him?

The police soon hit on a simple solution, and arrest his mother’s partner Howard. Ashton always hated him, and he bears all the marks of a recent fight. But Ashton’s mother, miles away in New Zealand, is convinced he’s innocent, and enlists Eve’s help to prove it.

There’s just one problem. Eve saw Howard sniffing around Apple Tree Cottage on the morning of the murder, and she’s fairly sure he’s guilty, too…

An unputdownable page-turner, perfect for fans of Faith Martin, Agatha Christie and Betty Rowlands.

See what readers are saying about the Eve Mallow series:

‘Stunning… loved the story and the pacing and just everything about it… a great story that I couldn’t put down… The twists and turns were great.’ Crossroad Reviews

‘Plenty of plot twists, red herrings, and misdirection. Kept me in suspense. I loved it!’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Drags the reader right into the plot from day one. She writes so vividly… I can almost imagine I’m on the dunes walking Gus, an inspiration of a dog that steals the show. The plot is strong… A Marplesque amateur sleuth.’ Jenny O’Brien, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I really enjoyed reading this! Loved the typical English village location and the very Jessica Fletcher-type protagonist… I am anxious to read more of this character soon!’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I was immediately drawn into the story… keeps you guessing… a sure winner for M.C. Beaton fans.’ Goodreads Reviewer

‘Kept me on my toes throughout…a cracking follow up book which completely satisfied although it did leave me gagging for the next in series.’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I devoured the mystery in one sitting. Highly recommend this series.’ NetGalley reviewer

‘Like coming home. I loved the atmosphere… Looking forward to the next part. 5 stars’ B for Bookreview, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I thoroughly enjoyed it… loved the setting… I was reminded of a modern-day Miss Marple.’ Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Eve’s character is perfect, the setting is ideal and the mysteries abound.’ Robin Loves Reading

‘I loved this book… everything an old-fashioned sleuthing ought to be… I flew through the pages’ Shalini’s Books & Reviews, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘A cast of characters who are inviting and warm. I love Eve, and the people she befriends in this small village as she digs for the truth… I’m happy to highly recommend this writer and her books!’ Roxx is Reading, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle, Audiobook

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you like clean and funny cozy mysteries, then you will love Patricia Fisher!

She over 50, feisty, and oh so good at solving mysteries.

Patricia Fisher is not your average woman. To start with she lives in a seventy-three-room manor house and travels with a Jamaican butler who is part ninja and fakes his Downton Abbey accent. Then add to those facts that she just opened a private investigations business and throw in the worrying bit where people keep trying to kill her.

When a climber suspiciously falls to his death and a local artist has her dog stolen, Patricia finds herself investigating two cases that seem to have no motive and no clues. Even with the help of her friends these mysteries will be hard to unravel.

But as she starts to poke her nose in where it is most definitely not wanted, a name from the past comes back to haunt her, a mysterious underworld figure issues a confusing threat, and she begins to wonder if she has any idea what she is doing. Will her intuition get her through again? Or has she bitten off more than she can chew?

If only she had listened to Sam.

Get ready for a new series of thrills!

What Sam Knew is the first in a follow-on series from Patricia’s successful Cruise Mystery series
Books in that series:
The Missing Sapphire of Zangrabar
The Kidnapped Bride
The Director’s Cut
The Couple in Cabin 2124
Dr Death
Murder on the Dancefloor
Mission for the Maharaja
A Sleuth and her Dachshund in Athens
The Maltese Parrot
No Place Like Home  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Essie Lang’s second Castle Bookshop mystery is perfect for fans of Lorna Barrett and Vicki Delany.

Thousand Islands bookstore owner Shelby Cox sleuths the slaying of a true-crime writer who may have learned too much about a murder case that should have stayed shut.

There are a thousand stories in New York’s scenic Thousand Islands, and Bayside Books co-owner Shelby Cox stocks them all. But lately, the Blye Island bookseller’s life is more about investigation than inventory. True-crime writer Savannah Page caps off two successful signings at Bayside Books with a night in Blye Castle. She’s there to research Joe Cabana, a colorful Prohibition-era mobster who owned the castle–until he was found dead in the island Grotto.

But crime becomes all too true for Savannah. Her body turns up the next morning, in a secret passage at the bottom of the stairs. The last thing Shelby Cox wants is to sleuth another murder, but she’s intrigued about how a killer could have reached the island after hours. She’s not at a lack for suspects either. It could have been anyone from Savannah’s fiancé, Liam Kennelly, who argued with her the evening before, to island caretaker Matthew Kessler, recently cleared of his wife’s murder. Can Shelby keep regular store hours, elude the police chief, and assemble the clues into a hard-bound case without getting permanently shelved?  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle, Hardcover, Audiobook

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Samantha thought following a mysterious diary around the French Quarter of New Orleans would be a harmless way to learn about her new hometown until it became about murder.

Discover the places and people that make New Orleans unique through the eyes of newcomer, Samantha Richardson, in the first book in the French Quarter Mystery Series, The Key to Murder.

Looking for a fresh start as well as clues to her past, Samantha is thrilled with her furnished apartment even with its strange diary and key left on the living room bookshelf. Sammy, as her new friends call her, explores the city’s French Quarter by following the riddles in the anonymous diary. It was fun until it led to a body. Now Sammy must find out who wrote the journal before the murderer strikes again.

Sammy moved to New Orleans for answers and a new life, but is a murderer going to keep her from her future?

The Kindle edition is available for pre-order and will be released on March 8, 2020. The paperback version will be available to order on March 8, 2020.  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle, Paperback

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As Megan comes closer to finding out who framed her parents, her world is rocked once more as another body turns up in Pacific Cove. Will Megan and friends be able to solve the case – and free her parents from Spellcatraz – before it’s too late?  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jasmine can sometimes track emotions, and because of that, the coven considers her a talented witch.

She knows the only thing she can do reliably well is cook. Mind tracking is only a side dish, and that ability is so unreliable she’s ashamed to claim it as a talent.

Migrating to Gisborne years ago to keep a secret, her parents held important positions in the coven. Before she knows it, Jasmine—with limited talent and zero willingness—promised her parents she would manage the coven and keep their secret.

Gisborne is a tranquil little town. Keeping secrets shouldn’t be a problem.

Unfortunately, the tranquility of the town ends when a tourist is killed with a bottle of cabernet sauvignon produced by the vineyard she manages.

The city’s no-nonsense detective, Bertram Hays, is normally the last person sent to investigate the occurrences in a small town. But the chief of his station dispatches him to Gisborne the very second he learns about the murder, because Detective Hayes has never lost a case.

To keep the paranormal community at bay and their secret hidden, Jasmine and her friends must either convert the arriving detective into a believer and ask for his help, or point him toward a wrong direction.

Neither solution is feasible at the moment…

Cabernet Murder is the first installment of the Magic in the Vineyards paranormal mystery series. If you like small-town charm, food, wine, and mystery with a dash of romance, Magic in the Vineyards is the series for you.  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why won’t anybody believe that Mr. Matsouka was murdered?
Sure, there were twenty people around him at the time who saw nothing suspicious, but Crystal Cinnamon Schmidt, advice columnist at the Harrogate News, is absolutely certain his death was no accident.
Mr. Matsouka’s widow Lorraine was pretty chummy with the hired help before her husband’s death and scandalously close afterwards. Plus, Crystal is receiving weird letters in the mail from someone claiming to be Lorraine and claiming to have a guilty conscience.
If that wasn’t strange enough, nasty rumors are surfacing about Crystal every day that play havoc with her anxieties she struggles to keep under control. As well, her previous good reputation with the police is going downhill…way downhill. They are not going to help her with this murder investigation despite her track record for uncovering conspiracies.
Even her mom and her step-dad don’t believe her. Her friends are concerned about her sanity and advise Crystal to step up her visits to her psychologist and to step away from her hairbrained theory.
Is Crystal the only person who can solve the case or is Mr. Matsouka’s murder simply another manifestation of her over-active imagination?  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hare today, dead tomorrow… Can a stylish sleuth pull a rabbit out of her hat to solve an Easter murder in this to-dye-for cozy mystery?

When hairstylist Marla Vail attends an Easter egg hunt at historic Tremayne Manor, she’s only there to fix hair for a client, Bonnie “Blinky” Morris. But when she’s asked to comb the grounds for leftover goodies, Marla discovers more than just a few dyed eggs. The dead body in the bunny costume is definitely not having a good hare day. And Blinky seems to have disappeared down a rabbit hole.

When trying to solve a murder, everyone needs a friend who’s all ears. For Marla, that’s her husband, homicide detective Dalton Vail. They make an eggcellent team. Dalton isn’t the kind to leap to conclusions, but with his wife seven months pregnant, and knowing Marla finds crime-solving to be irresistible, he worries about her running off on another hare-raising adventure.

Marla’s peeps are hoping for a happy ending, but she may have found a basketful of trouble this time. Can she crack the case before Blinky becomes the next victim?

Recipes Included!  (Amazon)

Editions Available:  Kindle, Paperback