New Releases For The Week Of October 24th, 2021–Part 1

Multiple dead teenagers, in a town demanding answers, drives Rachel Ryder into an undercover case that is unlike any she’s faced before.

“Detective Rachel Ryder is smart, tough, and fearless—readers will gladly follow her through every twist.” —LynDee Walker, Amazon Charts bestselling author of Fear No Truth

Standing over the body of a teenage boy on the lawn of a wealthy family, Rachel has no idea that three more will shortly follow. However, as the young bodies pile up, Rachel is called on to go undercover.

Deputized as a Drug Enforcement Agent and tasked to work hand-in-hand with the Hamby PD, she becomes a counselor at the local high school. When what seems like a basic sting operation ends in a shootout, Rachel must dig through layers of secrets and betrayal to protect not only the youth in her new community, but the lives of those she loves.

USA Today Bestselling author Carolyn Ridder Aspenson delivers an exciting third installment to the riveting Rachel Ryder series.

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What readers are saying about the Rachel Ryder series:

★★★★★ “…a gutsy and persistent female detective…”
★★★★★ “…tops my top five for mystery reads of 2021!!”
★★★★★ “If you enjoy police procedural thrillers with a strong female lead, these Rachel Ryder books are tailor made for you.” (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover. Paperback. Audiobook

It is a Spooktacular time for Jolie and Ava as they have their hands’ full catering Leavensport’s annual Halloween Pumpkin Bash. When Ava convinces Jolie to get their fortunes told by a visiting psychic, they receive an ominous prediction.“Masks–literal and figurative, chaos, deceit, betrayal, death. The cards have spoken.”Madame Esme Emerald’s fortunes are looking more like premonitions of doom. It seems that someone in Leavensport received a reading that did not sit well because Madame Emerald is found dead, and it looks like her crystal ball is the murder weapon—or is something more supernatural going on?Bounty-Full Investigative Services is on the case, or is it more of a paranormal manifestation? This could be a first for the girls as they take on the underworld’s spirits. Welcome to Leavensport, OH, where DEATH takes a DELICIOUS turn! (Amazon)

Edition Available: Kindle

Beloved New York Times bestseller M. C. Beaton’s cranky, crafty Agatha Raisin—now the star of a hit T.V. show—is back on the case again in Down the Hatch.

Private detective Agatha Raisin, having recently taken up power-walking, is striding along a path in Mircester Park during her lunch break when she hears a cry for help. Rushing over, she finds an elderly couple, Mr. and Mrs. Swinburn, in the middle of the green—with the body of an old man lying at their feet.

The man, who the coroner determines died by poisoning, was known as “the Admiral,” a gardener notorious for his heavy drinking, and Chief Inspector Wilkes writes the death off as an accident caused by the consumption of weedkiller stored in a rum bottle. Agatha is not convinced that anyone would mistake weedkiller for rum but carries on with her work at Raisin Investigations, until she receives an anonymous tip that the Admiral’s death was no accident.

Local gossip points to the Swinburns themselves as the killers, spurred by a feud at the club where they, as well as the Admiral, were members. Distraught at this accusation, they turn to Agatha to clear their name, and she takes the case—despite the warnings of Chief Inspector Wilkes.

Agatha encounters one suspicious character after another, becoming further enmeshed in the Admiral’s own dark and shady past. And when she’s run off the road, narrowly escaping with her life, and then another attack occurs, it becomes clear that someone doesn’t want the case closed—and will stop at nothing to prevent Agatha from solving it. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover, Audiobook

Amateur sleuth Trisha Carson is being watched. By a laptop that tracks her online life. By a blue-eyed athlete who guides her through an open water swim. And by Frida, her smart refrigerator. What are they looking for? A determined Trisha hunts down her stalkers and stumbles across a grim plan that will echo throughout the West Coast. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle

Eleanor Wilde has traded a career as a sham medium for a (relatively) respectable life in a small English town, providing the locals with herbal remedies and elixirs. But on a trip to the seaside town of Brighton, her past comes calling—and so does a killer . . .

Though Eleanor is delighted that her brother, Liam, is visiting her in England, she must reluctantly agree that her quiet village lacks something when it comes to sightseeing—namely: sights. True, there’s nearby Castle Hartford, belonging to the family of Ellie’s boyfriend, Nicholas. But even Nicholas’s mother is eager to ditch sleepy, sweltering Sussex for a vacation in Brighton, taking Ellie and a relieved Liam with her. Yet hopes of a breezy seaside holiday quickly turn stormy, in every sense . . .

The ominous change in weather is accompanied by the reappearance of Ellie’s former partner-in-crime, Armand Lamont. Back when Ellie earned a living as a phony medium, Armand’s hypnosis skills helped the pair persuade many gullible marks to hand over their savings. Ellie assumes that Armand has resurfaced with blackmail in mind, but before she can figure out his angle, she and Liam witness a man being pushed from a boat by two shadowy figures who then vanish into midair.

Phantoms? Demons? Though Ellie doesn’t believe in either, the recovered body is real enough, as is a string of thefts plaguing their luxury hotel. Ellie has a theory, and it requires inviting Nicholas to join them under a fake identity. Their evolving relationship is as complex as this case, and Ellie’s authentic supernatural abilities too are developing in surprising ways. But as for whether the outcome will be good or bad, not even her witchy powers can say . . . (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover

When Samantha Kidd is invited to fill a vacated spot in a secret society, she jumps at the chance. The group’s mission is to preserve famous fashion patterns through memorization and pass them down to future generations, but Samantha’s dreams of Chanel jackets and Halston dresses are dashed when she’s assigned the 501 jean. And when the retiring denim expert turns up dead, she fears there’s more than fashion history at stake.

Garments from the deceased member’s estate are linked to a series of deadly jean jackings, and Samantha questions everything. Was the member’s death an admission of guilt of past crimes or vigilante justice? As she pulls at the threads of the investigation, she finds the fabric of her secret society fraying at the seams.

Can Samantha unzip the facts or will the truth stay buttoned up forever?

Fahrenheit 501 is the twelfth humorous installment in the Samantha Kidd mystery series. If you like fashion history, fun puzzles, and unusual crimes, or read favorites Cleo Coyle or Joanne Fluke, you’ll love Diane Vallere’s latest Samantha Kidd mystery. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle

’Tis the season for the delectable desserts Emily Westhill and her cuddly cat serve up at Deputy Donut—but someone naughty on Santa’s list has come to town . . .

It’s Christmastime again in Fallingbrook, Wisconsin. Emily has truly decked the halls of her donut shop and decorated her donuts with festive designs from green and red frosting to snowflake sprinkles. For the annual Ice and Lights Festival, she’s commissioned a sculpture with three ice-carved donut shapes to form a holey snowman, Frosty the Donut. She has one Christmas wish this year—to spend some time under the mistletoe with a certain detective.

But the holidays just aren’t the same without an unexpected disaster or two. A tour bus on its way to the festival has crashed and a snowstorm has left all the shaken passengers stranded and shivering. Emily and her friends open their homes to shelter the traveling families, while the bus driver is admitted to the hospital for his injuries. But the following morning, Emily discovers his body—buried beneath Frosty the Donut.

The bus passengers show little sympathy for the man who dashed through the snow so badly, some claiming he was under the influence while behind the wheel. Emily also discovers that the driver had a history with folks in Fallingbrook. With multiple motives for murder piling up, it will take a Christmas miracle for Emily to solve this crime . . .  

Praise for Boston Scream Murder

“Spooky delights don’t discourage a murderer in small town Wisconsin. . . . Cozy fare with a dollop of moonlight mist.”
—Kirkus Reviews

Includes delicious recipes! (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle. Paperback

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In this latest reimagining of Dickens as an amateur sleuth, Charles is tossed into Newgate Prison on a murder charge, and his fiancée Kate Hogarth must clear his name . . .
 
London, January 1836: Just weeks before the release of his first book, Charles is intrigued by an invitation to join the exclusive Lightning Club. But his initiation in a basement maze takes a wicked turn when he stumbles upon the corpse of Samuel Pickwick, the club’s president. With the victim’s blood literally on his hands, Charles is locked away in notorious Newgate Prison.
 
Now it’s up to Kate to keep her framed fiancé from the hangman’s noose. To solve this labyrinthine mystery, she is forced to puzzle her way through a fiendish series of baffling riddles sent to her in anonymous poison pen letters. With the help of family and friends, she must keep her wits about her to corner the real killer—before time runs out and Charles Dickens meets a dead end . . .
 (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover, Audiobook