New Releases For the Week Of January 17th, 2021–Part 1

“Sister” Jane Arnold and her hounds must sniff out a thief with expensive taste when a string of missing paintings leads to murder in this exciting foxhunting mystery from New York Times bestselling author Rita Mae Brown.

Spring is peeking through the frost in Virginia, and though the hunting season is coming to a close, the foxes seem determined to put the members of the Jefferson Hunt Club through their paces. Sister and her friends are enjoying some of the best chases they’ve had all season when the fun is cut short by the theft of Crawford Howard’s treasured Sir Alfred Munnings painting of a woman in hunting attire riding sidesaddle. When another painting goes missing five days later—also a Munnings, also of a woman hunting sidesaddle—Sister Jane knows it’s no coincidence. Someone is stealing paintings of foxhunters from foxhunters. But why?

Perhaps it’s a form of protest against their sport. For the hunt club isn’t just under attack from the thief. Mysterious signs have started to appear outside their homes, decrying their way of life. stop foxhunting: a cruel sport reads one that appears outside Crawford’s house, not long after his painting goes missing. no hounds barking shows up on the telephone pole outside Sister’s driveway. Annoying, but relatively harmless.

Then Delores Buckingham, retired now but once a formidable foxhunter, is strangled to death after her own Munnings sidesaddle painting is stolen. Now Sister’s not just up against a thief and a few obnoxious signs—she’s on the hunt for a killer. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover, Audiobook

The first in an exciting new series featuring Trudell Becket, a spunky librarian who will stop at nothing to save her beloved books and catch a killer!

Trudell Becket, book-loving librarian, finds herself in a bind when the library where she works is turned into a state-of-the-art bookless library. In a rare move of rebellion, Trudell rescues hundreds of her library’s beloved books slated for the recycle center. She sets up a secret book room in the library’s basement and opens it to anyone who shares her love of the printed book.

When the town councilman, who was the vocal proponent of the library’s transformation into a “futuristic technological center,” is crushed under an overturned shelf of DVDs, Trudell becomes the police’s prime suspect for his murder. She was the only person in the library at the time of his death, or so the police believe. But that’s not true. For the past month, Trudell had been letting a few dozen residents into the building through the basement entrance so they could read and check out the printed books.

But if she tells the police about the backdoor patrons who were in the library at the time of the murder, she’d have to explain about the secret book room and risk losing the books. In order to protect herself from being arrested for a murder she didn’t commit, Trudell–with the help of a group of dedicated readers–decides to investigate. She quickly discovers you can’t always judge a book by its cover. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover

Certain she’s seen more than enough death for one lifetime, literary agent Allie Cobb is ready to close the book on her amateur sleuthing, even when she learns that an unidentified body has been unearthed in a local state park. But when a worn and haunted-looking woman shows up on her doorstep with a grim story about her young daughter’s disappearance twenty years ago—and the police confirm that the recently discovered body is hers—Allie can’t bear to turn the poor woman away.

Determined to uncover the truth about the young woman’s murder, Allie begins delving into the circumstances of her life and those she knew so many years before. And when she meets powerful resistance from those she questions—many of whom are now trusted leaders in her small, tight-knit community—she’s sure she’s on the right track. But as she narrows down the list of suspects, Allie realizes too late that a cold-blooded killer is dead-set on keeping the secrets of the past buried, and it will take all her wit and cunning to avoid becoming the second young woman to meet an untimely end . . .

Praise for the Allie Cobb Mysteries:

“Mr. Kenney has written a complicated mystery . . . The killer reveal was so entertaining and the takedown was something I had never seen in a cozy mystery.” —Escape With Dollycas

“Full of charm, great characters, and plenty of small details, making it perfect for fans of cozies.” —Books a Plenty Book Reviews

“A Genuine Fix is a lighthearted cozy mystery with a cunning cat, a disagreeable victim, a mound of mulch, a tolerant police chief, and one determined bicycle-riding literary agent.” —The Avid Reader

“The story behind the mystery and Allie’s interaction with family and friends . . . [are] character-driven and peopled by characters that are easy to become attached to and invested in.” —I Read What You Write

“I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed getting to know Allie and her friends . . . A Mysterious Mix Up is a quick and easy cozy mystery.” —Christy’s Cozy Corner

About the Author:

Award-winning and bestselling author J. C. Kenney grew up in a household filled with books by legends like Agatha Christie and Lilian Jackson Braun, so it was no surprise when he found himself writing mysteries. When he’s not writing, you can find him following IndyCar racing or listening to music. He lives in Indianapolis with his wife, two children, and a cat who is the inspiration for Ursula in the Allie Cobb Mysteries. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

What do you do when Hollywood takes over your tiny Maine village to make a movie? Cassidy Beauvoir, chair of the board of overseers of Amity Landing, is ready to throw the bums out; that is, until she meets Jasper MacEwan, the director of American Waterloo: the Rout of the Penobscot Expedition. It’s instant attraction until a series of deadly incidents threatens their budding romance. Are the attacks directed at the movie crew or the townspeople?

As the two search for answers, the trail leads them to long-held secrets of the worst naval defeat of the American Revolution—including betrayal, murder, and a lost hoard of English gold. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

From USA Today bestselling author Leslie Langtry comes the latest laugh-out-loud Merry Wrath adventure!

Former CIA agent and current suburbanite Merry Wrath knows she’s having a bad day when she wakes up wearing someone else’s clothes in a locked room with a dead body and a dozen copies of the book, Boats of the Midwest. It doesn’t help matters any when the police burst in and arrest her on the spot for the murder of a man she’s never heard of. With an unimpeachable witness placing her at the scene of the crime, her Girl Scout troop trying to bust her out of jail, and a sister-in-law who’s launched a one-woman campaign to send her to prison, Merry knows that this time she’s in trouble.

And Merry finds it’s tough to clear your name when you’re being followed by a wannabe bounty hunter who’s chasing you down and dealing with a group of teenage druids who have just bought a hearse and an old church they call The Chapel of Despair. Added to her trouble are a couple of tattoo artists with a creepy fixation on Lance Armstrong, a witness who works at the Pump & Pawn pawnshop/gym, and most of the town of Bladdersly, Iowa.

Can Merry solve this locked room mystery before she ends up locked in a cell?

Merry Wrath Mysteries:
Merit Badge Murder – book #1
Mint Cookie Murder – book #2
Scout Camp Mystery – short story in the “Killer Beach Reads” collection
Marshmallow S’More Murder – book #3
Movie Night Murder – book #4
Mud Run Murder – book #5
Fishing Badge Murder – short story in the “Pushing Up Daisies” collection
Motto for Murder – book #6
Map Skills Murder – book #7
Mean Girl Murder – book #8
Marriage Vow Murder – book #9
Mystery Night Murder – book #10
Meerkats and Murder– book #11
Make Believe Murder – book #12
Maltese Vulture Murder – book #13
Musket Ball Murder – book #14
Macho Man Murder – book #15
Mad Money Murder – book #16
Mind-Bending Murder – book #17

What critics are saying about Leslie Langtry’s books:

“I laughed so hard I cried on multiple occasions! Girl Scouts, the CIA, and the Yakuza… what could possibly go wrong?”
~ Fresh Fiction

“Darkly funny and wildly over the top, this mystery answers the burning question, ‘Do assassin skills and Girl Scout merit badges mix…?'”
~ RT BOOKreviews

“Mixing a deadly sense of humor and plenty of sexy sizzle, Leslie Langtry creates a brilliantly original, laughter-rich mix of contemporary romance and suspense.”
~ Chicago Tribune

“Langtry gets the fun started from page one.”
~ Publisher’s Weekly (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

My name is Gracie Springs, and I am not a witch… but I’m pretty sure my cat is. I first started to get suspicious when he jumped just a little too high while chasing after a robin in our front yard. I knew for sure when he opened up his mouth and addressed me by name!

The first thing he told me? That he doesn’t like the name I gave him—even though “Fluffy” fits him like a warm sweater at Christmas. Now we’ve compromised on “Merlin the Magical Fluff,” which according to him references his long and proud lineage just fine.

After that small matter was settled, he informed me that I must uphold his secret or risk spending the rest of my life in some magical prison. I agreed, not knowing it would turn into a full-time job of covering his tracks and fibbing our way out of some pretty tight spots.

When my boss at the local coffee shop turns up dead as a dormouse, things go from challenging to practically impossible… especially since all my coworkers seem to think I’m to blame.

Here’s hoping my witchy cat can charm our way out of this one, because right now it looks like I’m cursed if I do and charged with murder if I don’t. Yikes! (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle

In the Florida Keys, the tops are down, the margaritas are cold, and water is murder.

Madison and Fab’s morning coffee comes with a side dish of witnessing two bodies being dumped at the end of their boat dock. And gossip is flying around Tarpon Cove faster than a cigarette boat.

When yet another “easy” job turns up more dead bodies, the smell is making Madison barfy, and the girls’ “I know nothing” faces are getting a workout. So is the hotline to their lawyer.

Madison just wants happy endings all around, but evidence is piling up that they’re all being watched. If they don’t play their cards right, they could be someone’s loose end—and all wind up dead. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

Downton Abbey crossed with Murder, She Wrote…set in a Yorkshire village!

When the body of Isolde Newley’s long lost husband is found in the grounds of St Augustus churchyard, suspicion falls on Isolde and everyone close to her – especially her new love interest, the dashing Dr Mainwaring.

The mystery is exacerbated by the largest snowfall seen in North Yorkshire for years. No one can get in – or out – of the village.

It will take all of Tommy & Evelyn Christie’s sleuthing powers to clear their friends and find the murderer before the police arrive from York.

If you enjoy the glamour of bygone eras like 1920s Downton Abbey and gentle, cozy mysteries set in the English countryside then you will love this new series.

What readers are saying:

‘…a page turner’Goodreads reviewer

‘What I loved best were the reveals and plot twists’Goodreads reviewer

‘Unexpectedly amazing’, ‘A wonderful murder mystery’ & ‘A jolly good read’Amazon reviews (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle

A portrait of death…

Anna has barely had time to settle in at the Montford town home in London, when she is drawn down a new path of danger. After she witnesses a stabbing in an alley, it’s up to Anna to find the killer  – before the killer finds her.

When suspects abound, Anna must delve into the art world and the personal life of the victim, searching for the truth.  Will the reintroduction of her employer’s attractive nephew, Jerome Townson, complicate matters? And will the stirring of old shadows from her past blind Anna to the dangers of the present? (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

“Very entertaining. I highly recommend this book to the permanent library of any reader that appreciates a very well written mystery, with some twists and an intelligent plot. You will not be disappointed. Excellent way to spend a cold weekend!”
–Books and Movie Reviews, Roberto Mattos (regarding Murder in the Manor)

SILENCED BY A SPELL (A LACEY DOYLE COZY MYSTERY—BOOK 7) is book seven in a charming new cozy mystery series which begins with MURDER IN THE MANOR (Book #1), a #1 Bestseller with over 100 five-star reviews—and a free download!

Lacey Doyle, 39 years old and freshly divorced, has made a drastic change: she has walked away from the fast life of New York City and settled down in the quaint English seaside town of Wilfordshire.

With Halloween fast approaching, Lacey lucks out when she’s given a rare, ancient book that’s perfect for her upcoming spooky auction. But after the book is sold to a buyer, the mysterious book vanishes before she can deliver it. Even stranger, the equally mysterious seller has disappeared—just as a body turns up dead.

With her reputation on the line, Lacey finds herself in the fight of her life to save her business and clear her name—and, with the help of her beloved dog, to solve the mysterious disappearance.

FRAMED BY A FORGERY (Book #8), and CATASTROPHE IN A CLOISTER (Book #9) are also available for pre-order! (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle

What Happens when the Soul Brokers Want Their Due? Nothing Good

Mary is a detective with the special ability of knowing when someone is lying, which comes in handy in a murder investigation. But when a witness claims to have seen a strange animal with a human in its mouth, can Mary believe it, even if her instincts tell her it’s true?

Her cat Ugly seems to be making noises other than the usual meows…like she’s trying to communicate. Is Mary losing it or is Ugly attempting to speak or something even more unusual?

Mary’s dreams are also trying to tell her something….that a group called the Soul Brokers are in need of payment. Make remuneration or forfeit an innocent soul. What the heck has she gotten herself into?

***Find out in the First book of the Tortie Kitten Mystery Trilogy*** (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

In this small town, there’s muffin but murder…

Sunny Charles has only just gotten used to running her aunt’s café. It’s been a learning curve, what with the moody customers, the eggs over easy, and now, her chef leaving for a baking course for five full days. With him gone, she’s in charge of everything ‘food’—and cooking is not her strong suit.

Sunny’s got to hire outside help, but when she goes over to her aunt’s best friend’s house looking for advice, she walks in on a dead body instead. And the murderer, shrouded in darkness, mid-escape… If only she’d seen his face. Sunny’s convinced that she knows whodunit, but with the tension mounting in the small coastal town of Parfait, Sunny’s got to decide what’s most important to her: her friends or her life.

Can Sunny solve the case before the real murderer stops her? And who are the dark shadowy figures that seem to be following her everywhere? Find out in the second installment of the cozy Sunny Side Up series. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle

“I love cozy mysteries and The Great British Baking Show and this wonderfully quirky series combines them to perfection!”
The Earl of Frome gets a shock when a gaggle of nosy bird watchers gang up on him. When one of them winds up dead, it doesn’t look good for the Earl. Amateur baker Poppy Wilkinson gets embroiled in yet another murder mystery. It’s a good thing she’s got witchy powers as she has to solve a murder, try and learn more about her own mysterious beginnings and turn out a winning cake, because it’s cake week in the competition tent.
From USA Today Bestselling author Nancy Warren comes the 5th book in the witches baking series. Each book can be read alone. They feature no sex, gore or bad language but lots of clues, some quirky humor, and recipes. “Just my cup of tea–with cake!” (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle

S

now days aren’t supposed to end with dead bodies.

Harvey Beckett has just finished a quiet meal after shoveling the sidewalks around Main Street when the body of the new bartender in town is discovered behind the bar. When Harvey begins to look into the victim’s pseudonym, she finds out far more than she bargained, enough to put her in real danger.

Can she and her friends find the murderer before they become victims themselves? (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

Complex hexes and intricate spells are boiling up trouble in the next puzzling whodunit of the Paramour Bay Mysteries by USA Today Bestselling Author Kennedy Layne…

The residents of Paramour Bay have no idea that something sinister might be lurking in the snowy shadows along the main thoroughfare of their quaint coastal town. They are all a bit curious about what could possibly be leaving odd footprints in the snow, though. It’s all anyone can talk about until a spree of vandalism begins happening to the local storefronts.

Raven Marigold’s familiar is the only one who believes that the town is under attack by the new upright adornment that has been strategically positioned right outside of the local bakery by none other than the baker herself. The intimidating gargoyle statue carved into granite has been set upon a matching pillar, and Leo insists that the thing actually moves. Can he finally convince Raven that he’s right before those odd footprints lead right to their own front door?

You might want to bring a chisel and a hammer along if you want to follow the dark, snowy trail all the way to the end of this quirky mystery! (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

Henry has hit rock bottom. A fifty-year old mystery could save him – or finish him off.

Crossing fiction with a dash of true crime, Windfall: A Henry Lysyk Mystery is a clever “What if…” solution to the most captivating unsolved heist of the twentieth century.

Henry Lysyk’s life is a mess.

With his marriage over and his accounting career marred by scandal, he retreats to the anonymity of a rented suite in a house shared with strangers. But the trail of a decades-old crime leads a murderous treasure hunter to his doorstep, and Henry is baffled by his neighbors’ cover-up.

An unexpected visit from his adventure-hungry niece, Frieda, further complicates Henry’s efforts to lay low. With his houseguest refusing to stay away from the danger, Henry’s terrified they’re about to expose secrets someone would kill to protect. Not knowing who to trust, they must choose which parts of the past to uncover, and which to leave buried.

A real-life ransom, a shadowy past, unlikely allies, and ruthless murder. Can Henry unravel this cold case before he and Frieda become its next victims?

If you enjoy absorbing mysteries, original characters, and true unsolved crime, then you’ll love Byron TD Smith’s clever “What if…” blend of tale and truth. 

Windfall is the first instalment in the Henry Lysyk Mystery series. Henry and Frieda will return… (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover, Paperback

Old tensions can come back to bite you. But did they really push this detective over the edge to murder? Casey, Jim and their unlikely posse of friends don’t think so, and they aim to prove he wasn’t behind the Lethal Shot on Flowerpot. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

A timeless murder mystery with the fascinating, glamorous Mitford sisters at its heart, The Mitford Trial is the fourth installment in the Mitford Murders series from Jessica Fellowes, inspired by a real-life murder in a story full of intrigue, affairs and betrayal…

It’s lady’s maid Louisa Cannon’s wedding day, but the fantasy is shattered shortly after when she is approached by a secretive man asking her to spy on Diana Mitford—who is having an affair with the infamous Oswald Mosley—and her sister Unity.

Thus as summer 1933 dawns, Louisa finds herself accompanying the Mitfords on a glitzy cruise, full of the starriest members of Society. But the waters run red when a man is found attacked.

Back in London, the case is taken by lawyer Tom Mitford, and Louisa finds herself caught between worlds: of a love lost, a family divided, and a country caught in conflict. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover, Paperback, Audiobook

A middle-of-the night phone call summons NYPD Detective Chiara Corelli and her partner, Detective P.J. Parker, to a politically sensitive murder scene. The victims―a U.S. Senator, the pastor of a mega church, and a self-made music industry billionaire―appear to have been killed during a sex orgy.

Pressure is mounting to cover up the circumstances. But Corelli and Parker are enraged by the words scrawled in blood on a mirror, and their hearts are broken by what they find hidden in a closet. Now the partners vow to find the killer and expose the unsavory lives of these men while seeking justice for the real victims in this case―the children..

A Message in Blood is book #3 in the Chiara Corelli Mystery Series. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Paperback