Tag: cozy mystery

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#MidweekMystery:A CUP OF FLOUR A PINCH OF DEATH by V.M. Burns

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Thanks to Maddy’s social media savvy, Baby Cakes Bakery is becoming a huge success—so much so that she’s attracted the attention of her former nemesis, the fiancé-stealing Brandy Denton. When Brandy blows into New Bison like an ill wind and disrupts a vlog Maddy’s filming, their argument goes viral. After Brandy’s body is found in the freezer at Baby Cakes, Maddy instantly goes from viral sensation to murder suspect.

As Maddy is still reeling from the murder, a stranger shows up in the bakery claiming to have been a friend of Octavia. He believes Maddy is in danger. When a second body washes up on the lake shore, it seems clear someone’s out to kill to keep a secret—and it may have to do with her great aunt.

Maddy rallies her aunt’s friends, the Baker Street Irregulars; Sheriff April Johnson; and her veterinarian boyfriend Michael—not to mention her English mastiff Baby—to do some digging and root out whoever’s behind the killings . . .

Valerie (V. M.) Burns is an Agatha and Edgar Award-nominated author. She is the author of the Mystery Bookshop, Dog Club, RJ Franklin, and Baker Street Mystery series. As Kallie E. Benjamin, Valerie writes the Bailey the Bloodhound Mystery series. She is an adjunct professor in the Writing Popular Fiction Program at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, PA, and a mentor in the Pocket MFA program. Born and raised in northwestern Indiana, Valerie now lives in Northern Georgia with her two poodles. Connect with Valerie at vmburns.com.

Author Links

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/v-m-burns

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vmburnsbooks/

GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16534140.V_M_Burns

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vmburnsbooks/

Website:  vmburns.com

Purchase Links
Amazon    Apple     Books-A-Million    Barnes and Noble    Bookshop.org    Google Play    Hudson Booksellers   KOBO    Target     Walmart

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#Midweek Mystery: Butterfly Betrayal

Raising butterflies is peaceful and calm, until someone dies.

Majestic Monarch Butterfly Farm might flitter away forever. That is, unless Seneca James acquires the property next door. She and Winifred, her costume-wearing cat, have a fight on their hands. Their land sits next to a milkweed-covered field, essential for monarchs. If she’s unsuccessful in buying it, her precious, winged friends won’t survive. When people end up dead on her farmland, Seneca is suspected of murder.

What is it about the milkweed field that’s worth killing for? And who’s the murderer?

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Ruth J. Hartman

The Seneca James Mysteries

Ruth J. Hartman spends her days herding cats and her nights spinning mysterious tales. She, her husband, and their cats love to spend time curled up in their recliners watching old Cary Grant movies. Well, the cats sit in the people’s recliners. Not that the cats couldn’t get their own furniture. They just choose to shed on someone else’s.

Ruth, a left-handed, cat-herding, farmhouse-dwelling writer uses her sense of humor as she writes tales of lovable, klutzy women who seem to find trouble without even trying.

Ruth’s husband and best friend, Garry, reads her manuscripts, rolls his eyes at her weird story ideas, and loves her despite her insistence all of her books have at least one cat in them. See updates about her cozy mysteries at Ruthjhartman.com.

Author Links

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ruth.j.hartman

Facebook Author Page https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063631596817

BookBub https://www.bookbub.com/profile/ruth-j-hartman

Website https://www.ruthjhartman.com/

Purchase Link – Amazon

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#Midweek Mystery: Cry Wolf (an Alaska Untamed mystery)

An Alaskan tour guide is bracing for winter when she realizes that the wolves aren’t the only predators on the prowl.
Lark O. Jensen, Cry Wolf
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With boat tours off the coast of Alaska shut down for the winter, tour guide Stacie Calder is joining the dedicated team at the Juneau Wildlife World, a wild animal sanctuary. Along with Sasha, her husky companion, she’s prepared to spend the long season in the scenic park. But not everyone is so chipper about the newcomers—least of all, Stacie’s new manager, Oliver Brownling. He constantly gives Stacie a hard time, specifically because she brought Sasha along with her. That is, until his mauled body is found in a remote part of the sanctuary containing wolves.

When it becomes clear that a human was responsible for the brutal murder, all eyes are on Stacie.

With the weather worsening, Stacie and Sasha are forced to stay at the sanctuary with the wolves—and her colleagues. As the storm gets worse, it’s clear that this killer has a taste for blood and may strike again. Will Stacie be able to find the murderer, or will the hunter become the hunted?

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Lark O. Jensen is the pseudonym of Linda O. Johnston, a former lawyer who is now a full-time writer. Lark wrote Bear Witness, the first Alaska Untamed mystery for Crooked Lane Books, in 2022, and the second in the series, Cry Wolf, has just been published. Linda has also written the Barkery & Biscuits Mystery series and the Superstition Mysteries for Midnight Ink and the Pet Rescue Mysteries and Kendra Ballantyne, Pet-Sitter mysteries for Berkley Prime Crime. Linda additionally writes for Harlequin Romantic Suspense, and her stories often involve dogs.

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Dumpster Dying: A Hazardous Hoarder Mystery

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Jenna Lawson is a cashier at the Blue Market convenience store where Birdie often shops. The two women have formed a strong bond to assuage the losses in their lives, and Birdie thinks of Jenna like the daughter she lost long ago. So, when Jenna goes missing, Birdie is determined to find out what happened to her.

As she works to unravel the mystery, a man at church, Neville Miller, shows interest in Birdie, leading her to wonder if the lonely days are finally coming to an end. But her ghostly husband, Walter, sure isn’t going to like it.

Birdie is on a hunt that may claim the ultimate price—her own life.

Born and raised in the beautiful Bluegrass state of Kentucky, Michelle Bennington developed a passion for books early on that has progressed into a mild hoarding situation and an ever-growing to-read pile. She delights in spinning mysteries and histories.

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#Midweek Mystery: Bear Witness (an Alaska Untamed mystery)

Alaska tour boat guide Stacie Calder faces the deep freeze in this scenic cozy series debut perfect for fans of Paige Shelton.

No nine-to-five cubicle career will suit Stacie Calder—the naturalist much prefers working in the great outdoors. Specifically, the spacious and spectacular Alaskan wilderness, whose rugged charms she shares with sightseers on the top deck of the tour boat where she works. But one May afternoon, Stacie’s passengers see more than glittering glaciers, frolicking harbor seals, climbing bears and soaring seabirds…they also witness a man lying dead in the frigid Alaskan waters. And it seems likely that someone gave him a fatal push.

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Lark O. Jensen is the pseudonym of Linda O. Johnston, a former lawyer who is now a full-time writer. Lark has written Bear Witness, the first Alaska Untamed mystery for Crooked Lane. Linda has written the Barkery & Biscuits Mystery series and the Superstition Mysteries for Midnight Ink and the Pet Rescue Mysteries and Kendra Ballantyne, Pet-Sitter mysteries for Berkley Prime Crime. Linda also writes for Harlequin Romantic Suspense, and her stories often involve dogs.

 Website  Facebook Amazon  Barnes & Noble 

Header image created by freepik – www.freepik.com

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#Midweekmystery: Mining for Murder by Mary Angela

A Happy Camper Mystery

The South Dakota Gold Rush might be long over, but Zo Jones feels like she’s hit the mother lode when she and her friends browse an estate sale, where a rare old book about the history of Spirit Canyon is causing quite a commotion. In addition to local stories and secrets, the book may even contain the location of a famous stash of gold—a treasure worth killing for Canyon’s annual Spirit Spooktacular weekend is on, and for local amateur sleuth Zo Jones, it’s boomtime for business at her Happy Camper gift shop . . . until a murderer drops in for a browse.

Zo’s friend Maynard Cline wins the bid on the book, to the chagrin of many interested parties, including the historical society and college history department. But when Zo and Hattie head to Maynard’s mansion to borrow the book for a library event, the only thing they find is Maynard—at the bottom of the mountain. The valuable book is gone. Zo knows this must be murder because there’s no way a germophobe like Maynard would have voluntarily dived into a pile of dirt. Now she’ll have to dig into a new case, and go prospecting for a perpetrator

Mary Angela

Mary Angela

The Happy Camper Mysteries

Mary Angela is the author of the Happy Camper cozy mystery series, the Professor Prather academic mystery series, and several short stories. When Mary isn’t penning heartwarming whodunits, she’s teaching, reading, traveling, or spending time with her family. She lives in South Dakota with her husband, daughters, and spoiled pets. You can find out more about her loves, including her writing, at MaryAngelaBooks.com.
Author Links
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Instagram
Purchase Links   
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Header Image: Spearfish Canyon, South Dakota
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Midweek Mystery: Welcome to Piney Falls

Winner of the Literary Titan Silver Award

Lanie has no idea what awaits her in Piney Falls…

Lanie Anders has a perfectly-ordered life. From her half-foam morning latte to her high-powered executive job – she controls every outcome. But when her house burns to the ground in mysterious circumstances, her life is thrown into confusion.

Searching for some kind of purpose, she stumbles across a century-old mystery and flees to Piney Falls, Oregon, an oceanside hamlet with a curious past. But something isn’t quite right in the picturesque town. Her neighbor speaks in riddles, the death rate is alarmingly high and the impossibly handsome town baker is hiding something.

With each clue she unearths in the present and the past, she becomes more convinced that the townspeople are in imminent danger.

Will Lanie be able to solve both mysteries without putting her own life in jeopardy?

Find out why readers are calling Welcome to Piney Falls “immensely immersive and totally gripping.” Don’t miss the first in this exciting new mystery series!

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Joann Keder spent most of her years in the Midwest, growing up and raising a family on the Great Plains of Nebraska. She worked for sixteen years as a piano teacher before returning to school to receive a master’s degree in creative writing. A mid-life move to the Pacific Northwest lead her to re-examine her priorities. She now creates stories about life and relationships in small towns while her ever-patient husband encourages her.

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Header image: Tumalo Falls, OR

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#Midweek Mystery: Enter a Wizard, Stage Left by Connie di Marco

Julia Bonatti wasn’t always a crime-solving San Francisco astrologer.


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She was engaged to the love of her life and preparing for a teaching career when her fiancé was killed in a hit and run accident.

Julia takes refuge with her grandmother Gloria. But there’s little time to grieve. Gloria, a retired seamstress, needs Julia’s help. Gloria’s been hired to create costumes for a production of Agatha Christie’s Appointment with Death at the newly opened Theatre Mars in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood.

Theatre Mars is a stunning jewel, the cast is talented and the script is brilliant.

But Julia gets the first hint of trouble when the owner of The Mystic Eye bookshop warns that all might not go well. The dire prediction comes true when the lead actress is murdered before the final curtain, echoing the play itself. Then Julia’s sleuthing puts her grandmother Gloria’s life in grave danger. Can Julia rescue her grandmother before it’s too late? And will a black cat play a leading role?

Author Connie di Marco
Author Connie di Marco

About The Author

Connie di Marco is the author of the Zodiac Mysteries, featuring San Francisco astrologer, Julia Bonatti.  Writing as Connie Archer, she is also the national bestselling author of the Soup Lover’s Mystery series from Berkley Prime Crime.  Some of her favorite recipes can be found in The Cozy Cookbook  and The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook.  Connie is a member of International Thriller Writers, Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.  She lives in Los Angeles but dreams constantly of the San Francisco fog.

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Holiday Throwback: Letters to Santa, Hilo, Hawaii Edition

Before she was with the legendary mystery blog Chicks on the Case, author  Leslie Karst had a culinary blog called Custard and Clues.  In this 2014 post she shares highlights from the Hilo, Hawaii Tribune Herald’s Letters to Santa.  

 

Local kids provide evidence to bolster their case for getting on the Good List (“I’ve been helping my mom at dinner time by washing the rice”), or get Santa oriented so he doesn’t lose his way (“If you come down our chimney, one you will get dirty, and two, our Christmas tree will be right in front of you”). Some simply throw themselves on the mercy of the court (“Can I know if you give people on the bad list another chance?”).

Read the whole thing HERE!

Header image: Victorian Christmas card depicting Santa stuffing a child into his sack.