Books To Read In 2021–Part 3

If you made a New Year’s Resolution to read more this year, here are a few of the first-in-the-series books to consider. Enjoy your reading!!!!

A New York chocolatier lands in a sticky situation when she returns to her Amish roots in this debut cozy mystery by the Agatha Award-winning author.

Bailey King is living the sweet life as assistant chocolatier at a famous New York chocolate company. But just when she’s up for a major promotion, she gets word that her grandfather Jebidiah’s heart condition has worsened. Bailey rushes to Harvest, Ohio, where her grandparents still run Swissmen Sweets, the Amish candy shop where she first learned about delicious fudge, truffles, and other assorted delights.

Unfortunately, Baily’s grandparents are suffering from more than just heart trouble. A local Englisch land developer is trying to take over their shop. And when the man is found dead in the candy shop kitchen—with Jebidiah’s chocolate knife buried in his chest—the sheriff suspects Bailey. Now, with the sweet help of a handsome deputy, Bailey is out to clear her name. But as a cunning killer tries to fudge the truth, she may be headed straight into a whole batch of trouble . . .

Recipe Included!

Her new canine companion is a lot more loyal than her ex-husband—but that doesn’t mean she wanted him dead….
 
Lilly may be losing a husband but she’s gaining a toy poodle. That could be seen as a win-win, since her new adopted pooch Aggie (named after Agatha Christie) is cute and adorable, and Lilly’s dirty dog of a spouse is cheating on her with a blond bimbo—except for one problem: Albert Echosby’s just been murdered, and Lilly is the number-one suspect.
 
With the cops barking up the wrong tree, it’s a good thing her best friend Scarlett “Dixie” Jefferson from Chattanooga, Tennessee, decided to take a break from the dog club circuit to pay a visit, along with her own prize pair of poodles. With help from Dixie, her defense attorney daughter, and a blue-eyed man in blue with a K-9 partner, Lilly is determined to collar the real killer. But when a second murder occurs, it’s clear they’re dealing with one sick puppy . . .

Maybe the best thing that ever happened to Kristan “Stan” Connor was losing her high-stress public relations job. Now there’s plenty of time to spend in her sleepy new Connecticut town working on her dream: baking healthy, organic pet treats!

Before long the neighborhood dogs are escaping their yards to show up at Stan’s doorstep, begging for the kinds of special homemade treats her Maine coon cat Nutty loves so much. And Stan’s pet-loving neighbors are thrilled with the new organic options available to their furry family members. But not everyone loves Stan and her newfangled organic ways. . .

It seems Carole Morganwick, the town vet, is from the old school of pet care. But when Stan swallows her pride and brings a very unwilling Nutty in for a checkup, she not only finds Carole dead under a pile of kibble. . .but also that she’s in the dog house as the prime suspect! Finding the real killer and clearing her name will require some seriously surreptitious sniffing around. . .and hopefully, curiosity won’t kill this innocent cat!

Includes Gourmet Pet Food Recipes!

“Like the goodies Stan makes for her Maine coon kitty Nutty, Kneading To Die is a treat! Liz Mugavero weaves animal knowledge into a fun and frisky whodunit, with plenty of lively pet action.” –Clea Simon, author of Cats Can’t Shoot

Welcome to the Historic McMurphy Hotel and Fudge Shop–where life is sweet, revenge is sweeter, and murder is here to to stay. . .

You Can’t Fudge An Alibi

Allie McMurphy is up to her neck in renovations at the grand old hotel that’s been in her family for generations. With its quaint Victorian charm–and world-famous fudge shop–the place is one of Mackinac Island’s most beloved landmarks.

Sure, every family has a skeleton or two in the closet. But Allie didn’t expect to find an actual corpse inside hers, especially one Joe Jessup, who had a long-running feud with her dear departed grandfather. Which makes Allie the number-one suspect.

Can she sniff out the culprit before another victim checks in?

Sedona is given the opportunity of a lifetime: play an up-and-coming executive with all the trappings of wealth with someone else footing the bill. The catch: find out who is stealing company funds before the criminals find out that their program is being debugged.

Sedona runs into danger, the corporate glass ceiling, and an occasional chance at romance in her quest to figure out who is stealing money from Strandfrost. Unfortunately, Sedona is better at writing computer code than deciphering political vitriol, and if she doesn’t find a way to wade through the red tape and red herrings, she could lose both her job and her quarry!

Maria Schneider has published stories in Coyote Wild Magazine, TownDrunkMag.com and “Over My Dead Body.”