New Releases For The Week Of March 5th, 2023–Part 2

High tea and high fashion turn deadly in this latest installment of the New York Times bestselling series.

Tea shop entrepreneur Theodosia Browning has been tapped to host a fancy Limón Tea in a genuine lemon orchard as a rousing kickoff to Charleston Fashion Week. But as fairy lights twinkle and the scent of lemon wafts among the tea tables, the deadly murder of a fashion designer puts the squeeze on things.
 
As the lemon curd begins to sour, the murdered woman’s daughter begs Theodosia to help find the killer. Tea events and fashion shows must go on, however, which puts Theodosia and her tea sommelier, Drayton Conneley, right in the thick of squabbling business partners, crazed clothing designers, irate film producers, drug deals, and a disastrous Tea Trolley Tour.
 
INCLUDES DELICIOUS RECIPES AND TEA TIME TIPS! (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover, Audiobook

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Life for children’s book author Samantha Davies seems to finally be going smoothly. She has a new boyfriend, the love of her faithful dachshund and star of her books, Porkchop, and wedding bells are even ringing for Sam’s Southern Belle cousin, Candie Parker. After eleven engagements Candie has finally found Mr. Right in Mark Hogan, who is currently running for reelection as the Mayor of Wings Falls in small-town Upstate New York.

But when Candie hires Ex-Fiancé #1, Tommy, to repair her century-old purple Victorian home, disaster strikes. Instead of the perfect place for Candie and Mark to start their life as husband and wife, Candie finds Tommy dead—murdered with his own nail gun! Things only get worse when a few old racy pictures of Candie from when she and the victim were engaged surface, providing the police with the perfect motive for Candie to kill her ex.

With the police on the wrong trail, Sam isn’t about to sit on the sidelines in this murder investigation—much to the dismay of Sam’s boyfriend, Detective Hank Johnson. But it’s up to Sam to make sure her cousin doesn’t spend her honeymoon in the Wings Falls’ poky. Will Sam find out who the murderer is so Porkchop can walk down the aisle as Candie’s ringbearer? Or will the killer be saying “I do” to another victim… this time closer to home?

“Readers will fall in love with this book as soon as they open it up.”
~ Cozy Mystery Book Reviews (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

When a wedding turns into a crime scene, young vintner Parker Valentine investigates the full-bodied problem in this captivating Colorado-set cozy mystery.
 
It’s June in Boulder, Colorado, and wedding season is in full swing. Parker Valentine is excited to attend the wedding of her cousin, Emma, where in addition to celebrating the happy couple, she’ll also be providing wine for the reception. But when the fussy wedding planner is found dead midway through the ceremony, Parker knows that to get the weekend back on track, she’ll need to unveil a murderer.
 
Unfortunately, there’s no shortage of high tension and hot tempers during a wedding, so Parker has a long list of potential suspects. Even worse, her entire family has fixated on the state of Parker’s relationship with her boyfriend, Reid. If Parker can manage to impress her relatives with her wine skills and dodge unwanted pointed personal questions, solving a murder will be the icing on the cake. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback, Audiobook

It’s a birthday weekend with the gift of murder.

Recently widowed, Emma Banefield looks forward to a getaway birthday weekend with her free-wheeling sister, Nicole Earp, sipping chocolate martinis at the peaceful, historic Dulce Inn. When a rude stranger, a nasty food critic, and a madhouse of temperamental artists greet them, all hope for a tranquil weekend evaporates faster than dew on a hot desert morning.

Overlooking the riotous atmosphere is doubly hard after Em discovers the body of a hotel guest, and a second murder affects Nic personally. Now, entrenched in a caper that pits them against a surly detective, they cozy up to a hotel staff hiding dangerous secrets to uncover clues to the killer.

Using their smarts and love of all-things mystery, will the Chocolate Martini Sisters solve the crime ahead of the obstinate Chief Detective or find themselves trapped in the middle of a third murder? (Amazon)

Editions Available:Kindle, Paperback

There’s trouble brewing in the Cove. And it’s not the world’s worst coffee.

Madison Westin doesn’t need much to start her morning off right. Just a cute skirt covering the Glock strapped to her thigh and a daily promise to Creole to stay out of trouble. It definitely doesn’t include her bestie, Fabiana Merceau, shouting, “Cover me!” before Madison’s had her first hit of caffeine.

With the opening of the newest business venture, Cove Storage, the one rule for renters: no shady stuff. And the thing about shade? It can hide a whole nest of rats, and the mess they leave behind can be more than just unpleasant. It can be lethal. Especially when one of those rats is plotting revenge…

Be prepared for an action-packed ride. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback

Riches to rags. … Time heals all wounds, … but old deeds still haunt, … even for the innocent!

After helping the captain solve his long overdue case, Doreen’s reputation is well and truly cemented in Kelowna. That’s proven out when a young woman is murdered in her own apartment, and the police start looking at the boyfriend. With the town on edge, this young man seeks out Doreen’s help to prove his innocence.

Corporal Mack Moreau is back to light duty work—mostly keeping an eye on Doreen, if the captain has any say in it. It’s hardly a hardship, as he loves being around her, when she’s not dipping her toes in his active cases. And yet somehow she manages to find old cases that dovetail with his ongoing ones, giving her an exaggerated opinion of where her boundaries are.

What seems simple on the surface goes back into history to a case that was done and dusted, with the killer now out free, looking for revenge. But, of course, it’s not that simple or that easy; and, by the time Doreen and her animal crew are done, the world has shifted for more than just one person in this case. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Paperback, Audiobook

Small-town gossip, a hair salon owner, and a dead body.

After notorious town rivals get into a fight, one of them winds up dead.

It’s shear chaos at Ruby Tate’s hair salon once the sheriff arrests the prime suspect.

Ruby agrees to help uncurl the mystery and save the reputation of her young receptionist’s mother.

Luckily, her puzzle-solving skills are a cut above the rest. But can Ruby and her eccentric bestie piece together the clues before someone else ends up hurt?

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This delightful cozy mystery is full of twists, drama, endearing characters, and a bit of humor. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle

In this new installment of the Edgar award-winning Stewart Hoag mystery series, the ghostwriting sleuth investigates a trail of murder amidst Hollywood’s rich and famous.

Stewart “Hoagy” Hoag hasn’t written any fiction since his debut novel rocked the literary world of the 1980s and then left him with a paralyzing case of writer’s block. Since then, he’s been reduced to ghostwriting celebrity memoirs. But his newest project could have him diving back into the world of fiction in a way he never imagined.

Nikki Dymtryk is Hollywood’s hottest reality TV star, known for her wild party lifestyle and prolific sexual conquests across the music, film, and sports industries. But when the ratings for her show Being Nikki begin to drop, the Dymtryk family engineers a new plan to keep Nikki in the limelight: reinventing the young star as a bestselling author. Nikki’s team hires Hoagy to ghostwrite a steamy romance novel showcasing the glitz and glamor of the Hollywood elite.

Reluctantly, Hoagy flies out to L.A. with his trusty basset hound Lulu to see what he’s gotten himself into with Nikki. But when he finally meets the starlet, she’s nothing like the aimless, airhead image she presents to the media. This project may just be the key to getting Hoagy’s creative juices flowing again—and staying in L.A. might also give him a chance at getting back together with his actress ex-wife, Merilee. But spending time with Nikki isn’t all parties and poolside lounging. As Hoagy gets closer to the young woman, he begins to uncover the Dymtryk family’s dark secrets. Secrets that are worth killing for. (Amazon)

Editions Available: Kindle, Hardcover