How are we almost half way through the year already? Crazy! June is almost upon us and it’s a great month for books. A few of these are ones that are part of my most anticipated books of the year, and I’m really excited to finally own and read them soon.
Twenty-six-year-old editorial assistant Nella Rogers is tired of being the only Black employee at Wagner Books. Fed up with the isolation and the micro-aggressions, she’s thrilled when Hazel starts working in the cubicle beside hers. They’ve only just started comparing natural hair care regimens, though, when a string of uncomfortable events cause Nella to become Public Enemy Number One and Hazel, the Office Darling.
Then the notes begin to appear on Nella’s desk: LEAVE WAGNER. NOW.
It’s hard to believe Hazel is behind these hostile messages. But as Nella starts to spiral and obsess over the sinister forces at play, she soon realises that there is a lot more at stake than her career.
A whip-smart and dynamic thriller and sly social commentary, The Other Black Girl will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last twist.
Published: June 3rd, 2021 Publisher: Allen & Unwin Genre: Psychological Fiction, Domestic Fiction
SYNOPSIS: When Gill and Gabe’s elder son drowns overseas, they decide they must hide the truth from their desperately unwell teenaged daughter. But as Gill begins to send letters from her dead son to his sister, the increasingly elaborate lie threatens to prove more dangerous than the truth.
A novel about family, food, grief, and hope, this gripping, lyrical story moves between Tasmania and London, exploring the many ways that a family can break down – and the unexpected ways that it can be put back together.
Published: June 8th, 2021 Publisher: Del Rey Genre: Historical Fiction, Fantasy Fiction, High Fantasy, Historical Fantasy, Fairy Tale, Jewish Fiction
SYNOPSIS: In her forest-veiled pagan village, Évike is the only woman without power, making her an outcast clearly abandoned by the gods. When soldiers arrive from the Holy Order of Woodsmen to claim a pagan girl for the king’s blood sacrifice, Évike is betrayed by her fellow villagers and surrendered.
But when monsters attack the Woodsmen and their captive en route, slaughtering everyone but Évike and the cold, one-eyed captain, they have no choice but to rely on each other. Except he’s no ordinary Woodsman – he’s the disgraced prince, Gáspár Bárány, whose father needs pagan magic to consolidate his power. Gáspár fears that his cruelly zealous brother plans to seize the throne and instigate a violent reign that would damn the pagans and the Yehuli alike. As the son of a reviled foreign queen, Gáspár understands what it’s like to be an outcast, and he and Évike make a tenuous pact to stop his brother.
As their mission takes them from the bitter northern tundra to the smog-choked capital, their mutual loathing slowly turns to affection, bound by a shared history of alienation and oppression. However, trust can easily turn to betrayal, and as Évike reconnects with her estranged father and discovers her own hidden magic, she and Gáspár need to decide whose side they’re on, and what they’re willing to give up for a nation that never cared for them at all.
Published: June 10th, 2021 Publisher: Manilla Press Genre: Historical Fiction
SYNOPSIS: From the bestselling author of The Familiars and The Foundling comes Stacey Halls’s most compelling and ambitious novel to date.
‘Something’s not right here.’ I was aware of Mr Booth’s eyes on me, and he seemed to hold his breath. ‘What do you mean?’ ‘In the house. With the family.’
West Yorkshire, 1904. When newly graduated nurse Ruby May takes a position looking after the children of Charles and Lilian England, a wealthy couple from a powerful dynasty of mill owners, she hopes it will be the fresh start she needs. But as she adapts to life at the isolated Hardcastle House, it becomes clear there’s something not quite right about the beautiful, mysterious Mrs England.
Distant and withdrawn, Lilian shows little interest in her children or charming husband, and is far from the ‘angel of the house’ Ruby was expecting. As the warm, vivacious Charles welcomes Ruby into the family, a series of strange events forces her to question everything she thought she knew. Ostracised by the servants and feeling increasingly uneasy, Ruby must face her demons in order to prevent history from repeating itself. After all, there’s no such thing as the perfect family – and she should know.
Simmering with slow-burning menace, Mrs England is a portrait of an Edwardian marriage, weaving an enthralling story of men and women, power and control, courage, truth and the very darkest deception. Set against the atmospheric West Yorkshire landscape, Stacey Halls’ third novel proves her one of the most exciting and compelling new storytellers of our times.
SYNOPSIS: From the author of the global #1 bestselling debut The Silent Patient comes a spellbinding literary thriller which weaves together Greek mythology, psychology, and murder…
St Christopher’s College, Cambridge, is a closed world to most.
For Mariana Andros – a group therapist struggling through her private grief – it’s where she met her late husband. For her niece, Zoe, it’s the tragic scene of her best friend’s murder.As memory and mystery entangle Mariana, she finds a society full of secrets, which has been shocked to its core by the murder of one of its own.
Because behind its idyllic beauty is a web of jealousy and rage which emanates from an exclusive set of students known only as The Maidens. A group under the sinister influence of the enigmatic professor Edward Fosca.A man who seems to know more than anyone about the murders – and the victims. And the man who will become the prime suspect in Mariana’s investigation – an obsession which will unravel everything…
The Maidens is a story of love, and of grief – of what makes us who we are, and what makes us kill.
Published: June 10th, 2021 Publisher: Riverrun Genre: Fairy Tale
SYNOPSIS: Cath is a photographer hoping to go freelance, working in a record shop to pay the rent and eking out her time with her manager Steve. He thinks her photography is detective work, drawing attention to things that would otherwise pass unseen and maybe he’s right . . .
Starting work on her new project – photographing murder houses – she returns to the island where she grew up for the first time since she left for Glasgow when she was just eighteen. The Isle of Bute is embedded in her identity, the draughty house that overlooked the bay, the feeling of being nowhere, the memory of her childhood friend Shirley Craigie and the devastating familicide of her family by the father, John Craigie.
Arriving at the Craigie house, Cath finds that it’s occupied by Financial Analyst Alice Rahman. Her bid to escape the city lifestyle, the anxiety she felt in that world, led her to leave London and settle on the island. The strangeness of the situation brings them closer, leading them to reinvestigate the Craigie murder. Now, within the walls of the Craigie house, Cath can uncover the nefarious truths and curious nature of John Craigie: his hidden obsession with the work of Richard Dadd and the local myths of the fairy folk.
The Good Neighbours is an enquiry into the unknowability of the past and our attempts to make events fit our need to interpret them; the fallibility of recollection; the power of myths in shaping human narratives. Nina Allan skilfully weaves the imagined and the real to create a magically haunting story of memory, obsession and the liminal spaces that our minds frequent to escape trauma.
SYNOPSIS: When Rachel’s baby is stillborn, she becomes obsessed with the idea that saving a stranger s life months earlier is to blame. An unforgettable, heart-wrenching, warm and funny debut.
Mum-to-be Rachel did everything right, but it all went wrong. Her son, Luke, was stillborn and she finds herself on maternity leave without a baby, trying to make sense of her loss.
When a misguided well-wisher tells her that ‘everything happens for a reason’, she becomes obsessed with finding that reason, driven by grief and convinced that she is somehow to blame. She remembers that on the day she discovered her pregnancy, she’d stopped a man from jumping in front of a train, and she s now certain that saving his life cost her the life of her son.
Desperate to find him, she enlists an unlikely ally in Lola, an Underground worker, and Lola’s seven-year-old daughter, Josephine, and eventually tracks him down, with completely unexpected results…
Both a heart-wrenchingly poignant portrait of grief and a gloriously uplifting and disarmingly funny story of a young woman’s determination, Everything Happens for a Reason is a bittersweet, life- affirming read and, quite simply, unforgettable.
SYNOPSIS: When the mother of an autistic young man hires a call girl to make him happy, three lives collide in unexpected and moving ways … changing everything. A devastatingly beautiful, rich and thought-provoking novel that will warm and break your heart…
Sebastian James Murphy is twenty years, six months and two days old. He loves swimming, fried eggs and Billy Ocean. Sebastian is autistic. And lonely.
Veronica wants her son Sebastian to be happy … she wants the world to accept him for who he is. She is also thinking about paying a professional to give him what he desperately wants.
Violetta is a high-class escort, who steps out into the night thinking only of money. Of her nursing degree. Paying for her dad’s care. Getting through the dark.
When these three lives collide – intertwine in unexpected ways – everything changes. For everyone.
A topical and moving drama about a mother’s love for her son, about getting it wrong when we think we know what’s best, about the lengths we go to care for family … to survive … This Is How We Are Human is a searching, rich and thought-provoking novel with an emotional core that will warm and break your heart.
Published: June 10th, 2021 Publisher: Pan Macmillan Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller, Crime Fiction
SYNOPSIS: Everything she touches breaks . . .
Nell Ballard is a runaway. A former foster child with a dark secret she is desperate to keep, all Nell wants is to find a place she can belong.
So when a job comes up at Starling Villas, home to the enigmatic Robin Wilder, she seizes the opportunity with both hands.
But her new lodgings may not be the safe haven that she was hoping for. Her employer lives by a set of rigid rules and she soon sees that he is hiding secrets of his own.
But is Nell’s arrival at the Villas really the coincidence it seems? After all, she knows more than most how fragile people can be – and how easy they can be to break . . .
Fragile is a dark, contemporary psychological thriller with a modern Gothic twist from an award-winning and critically acclaimed writer who has been compared to Ruth Rendell, P. D. James and Val McDermid. Rebecca meets The Handmaid’s Tale in Sarah Hilary’s standalone breakout novel.
Published: June 10th, 2021 Publisher: W&N Genre: History, Society and Culture, Gender Studies
SYNOPSIS: ‘We are taught that medicine is the art of solving our body’s mysteries. And as a science, we expect medicine to uphold the principles of evidence and impartiality. We want our doctors to listen to us and care for us as people, but we also need their assessments of our pain and fevers, aches and exhaustion to be free of any prejudice about who we are, our gender, or the colour of our skin. But medicine carries the burden of its own troubling history. The history of medicine, of illness, is a history of people, of their bodies and their lives, not just physicians, surgeons, clinicians and researchers. And medical progress has always reflected the realities of a changing world, and the meanings of being human.’
In Unwell Women Elinor Cleghorn unpacks the roots of the perpetual misunderstanding, mystification and misdiagnosis of women’s bodies, and traces the journey from the ‘wandering womb’ of ancient Greece, the rise of witch trials in Medieval Europe, through the dawn of Hysteria, to modern day understandings of autoimmune diseases, the menopause and conditions like endometriosis. Packed with character studies of women who have suffered, challenged and rewritten medical orthodoxy – and drawing on her own experience of un-diagnosed Lupus disease – this is a ground-breaking and timely exposé of the medical world and woman’s place within it.
Published: June 17th, 2021 Publisher: Doubleday Genre: Historical Fiction
SYNOPSIS: The Salpêtrière asylum, 1885. All of Paris is in thrall to Doctor Charcot and his displays of hypnotism on women who have been deemed mad or hysterical, outcasts from society. But the truth is much more complicated – for these women are often simply inconvenient, unwanted wives or strong-willed daughters. Once a year a grand ball is held at the hospital. For the Parisian elite, the Mad Women’s Ball is the highlight of the social season; for the women themselves, it is a rare moment of hope.
Geneviève is a senior nurse. After the childhood death of her sister, she has shunned religion and placed her faith in Doctor Charcot and his new science. But everything begins to change when she meets Eugénie, the 19-year-old daughter of a bourgeois family. Because Eugénie has a secret, and she needs Geneviève’s help. Their fates will collide on the night of the Mad Women’s Ball…
SYNOPSIS: I drove myself out of New York City where a man shot himself in front of me. He was a gluttonous man and when his blood came out it looked like the blood of a pig.
That’s a cruel thing to think, I know. He did it in a restaurant where I was having dinner with another man, another married man.
Do you see how this is going? But I wasn’t always that way.
Published: June 24th, 2021 Publisher: Harper Collins UK Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Crime Fiction, Police Procedural
SYNOPSIS: They thought they’d got away with it … they were wrong.
Leigh and her sister Callie are not bad people – but one night, more than two decades ago, they did something terrible. And the result was a childhood tarnished by secrets, broken by betrayal, devastated by violence.
Years later, Leigh has pushed that night from her mind and become a successful lawyer – but when she is forced to take on a new client against her will, her world begins to spiral out of control.
Because the client knows the truth about what happened twenty-three years ago. He knows what Leigh and Callie did. And unless they stop him, he’s going to tear their lives apart …
Just because you didn’t see the witness … doesn’t mean he wasn’t there.
SYNOPSIS: You can save hundreds of lives. Or the one that matters most . . .
The atmosphere on board the first non-stop flight from London to Sydney is electric. Celebrities are rumoured to be among the passengers in business class, and the world is watching the landmark journey.
Flight attendant Mina is trying to focus on the passengers, instead of her troubled five-year-old daughter back at home – or the cataclysmic problems in her marriage.
But soon after the plane takes off, Mina receives a chilling anonymous note. Someone wants to make sure the plane never reaches its destination. They’re demanding her cooperation . . . and they know exactly how to get it.
It’s twenty hours to landing. A lot can happen in twenty hours . . .
Published: June 24th, 2021 Publisher: Orion Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Hardboiled, Police Procedural, Crime Fiction, Crime Series
SYNOPSIS: DO YOU WANT TO PLAY THE GAME?
A crimewave sweeps through the city and no-one is safe. An arson at the docks. A carjacking gone wrong. A murder in a country park. What connects all these crimes without causes, which leave no clues?
Detective Inspector Helen Grace faces the rising tide of cases which threatens to drown the city. But each crime is just a piece of a puzzle which is falling into place.
And when it becomes clear just how twisted and ingenious this web of crime is, D.I. Grace will realise that it may be impossible to stop it . . .
THE BEST BOOK YET FROM THE MASTER OF THE KILLER THRILLER.
Ruth lives in the heart of the city. Working, drinking, falling in love: the rhythm of her vivid and complicated life is set against a background hum of darkening news reports from which she deliberately turns away.
When a new romance becomes claustrophobic, Ruth chooses to leave behind the failing relationship, but also her beloved friends and family, and travels to the other side of the world in pursuit of her dream life working with whales in New Zealand.
But when Ruth arrives, the news cycle she has been ignoring for so long is now the new reality. Far from home and with no real hope of survival, she finds herself climbing into the mouth of a beached whale alongside a stranger. When she emerges, it is to a landscape that bears no relation to the world they knew before.
When all has been razed to the ground, what does it mean to build a life?
The Stranding is a story about the hope that can remain even when the world is changed beyond recognition.
She loves her daughter, and the two of them is all that matters. But after nearly twenty years, she and Ella are suddenly leaving London for the Isle of Kip, the tiny remote Scottish island where Lorna grew up.
Alice’s world is tiny but full.
She loves the community on Kip, her yoga classes drawing women across the tiny island together. Now Lorna’s arrival might help their family finally mend itself – even if forgiveness means returning to the past…
So with two decades, hundreds of miles and a lifetime’s worth of secrets between Lorna and the island, can coming home mean starting again?
Published: June 24th, 2021 Publisher: Picador Genre: Historical Fiction, Humorous Fiction, Coming-of-Age Story
SYNOPSIS: From the author of Sunday Times Bestseller, Dear Mrs Bird, comes a much hoped-for follow up, Yours Cheerfully. Charming, heart-warming and hilarious, Yours Cheerfully is just the tonic we’ve all been waiting for.
London, September, 1941.
Following the departure of the formidable Editor, Henrietta Bird, from Woman’s Friend magazine, things are looking up for Emmeline Lake as she takes on the challenge of becoming a young wartime advice columnist. Her relationship with boyfriend Charles is blossoming, while Emmy’s best friend Bunty, is still reeling from the very worst of the Blitz, but bravely looking to the future. Together, the friends are determined to Make a Go of It.
When the Ministry of Information calls on Britain’s women’s magazines to help recruit desperately needed female workers to the war effort, Emmy is thrilled to be asked to step up and help. But when she and Bunty meet a young woman who shows them the very real challenges that women war workers face, Emmy must tackle a life-changing dilemma between doing her duty, and standing by her friends.
Every bit as funny, heartwarming, and touching as AJ Pearce’s debut, Dear Mrs Bird, Yours Cheerfully is a celebration of friendship, a testament to the strength of women and the importance of lifting each other up, even in the most challenging times.
SYNOPSIS: ‘So that was all it took,’ I thought. ‘That was all it took for me to feel like I had all the power in the world. One morning, one moment, one yellow-haired boy. It wasn’t so much after all.’
Chrissie knows how to steal sweets from the shop without getting caught, the best hiding place for hide-and-seek, the perfect wall for handstands.
Now she has a new secret. It gives her a fizzing, sherbet feeling in her belly. She doesn’t get to feel power like this at home, where food is scarce and attention scarcer.
Fifteen years later, Julia is trying to mother her five-year-old daughter, Molly. She is always worried – about affording food and school shoes, about what the other mothers think of her. Most of all she worries that the social services are about to take Molly away.
That’s when the phone calls begin, which Julia is too afraid to answer, because it’s clear the caller knows the truth about what happened all those years ago.
And it’s time to face the truth: is forgiveness and redemption ever possible for someone who has killed?
Published: June 24th, 2021 Publisher: Post Hill Press Genre: Suspense, Psychological Fiction
SYNOPSIS: Named one of the most riveting books of Spring 2021 by Veranda Magazine!
Like the chilling psychological thriller The Silent Patient, Deborah Goodrich Royce’s Ruby Falls is a nail-biting tale of a fragile young actress, the new husband she barely knows, and her growing suspicion that the secrets he harbors may eclipse her own.
On a brilliantly sunny July day, six-year-old Ruby is abandoned by her father in the suffocating dark of a Tennessee cave. Twenty years later, transformed into soap opera star Eleanor Russell, she is fired under dubious circumstances. Fleeing to Europe, she marries a glamorous stranger named Orlando Montague and keeps her past closely hidden.
Together, Eleanor and Orlando start afresh in LA. Setting up house in a storybook cottage in the Hollywood Hills, Eleanor is cast in a dream role—the lead in a remake of Rebecca. As she immerses herself in that eerie gothic tale, Orlando’s personality changes, ghosts of her past re-emerge, and Eleanor fears she is not the only person in her marriage with a secret.
In this thrilling and twisty homage to Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, the story ricochets through the streets of Los Angeles, a dangerous marriage to an exotic stranger, and the mind of a young woman whose past may not release her.
A Cut For A Cut (Detective Kate Young 2) by Carol Wyer
Published: June 29th, 2021 Publisher: Thomas & Mercer Genre: Thriller, Suspense, Crime Fiction, Crime Series, Police Procedural
SYNOPSIS: DI Kate Young can’t trust anybody. Not even herself.
In the bleak countryside around Blithfield Reservoir, a serial murderer and rapist is leaving a trail of bloodshed. His savage calling card: the word ‘MINE’ carved into each of his victims.
DI Kate Young struggles to get the case moving―even when one of the team’s own investigators is found dead in a dumpster. But Kate is battling her own demons. Obsessed with exposing Superintendent John Dickson and convinced there’s a conspiracy running deep in the force, she no longer knows who to trust. Kate’s crusade has already cost her dearly. What will she lose next?
When her stepsister spills a long-buried secret, Kate realises she’s found the missing link―now she must prove it before the killer strikes again. With enemies closing in on all sides, she’s prepared to do whatever it takes to bring them down. But time is running out, and Kate’s past has pushed her to the very edge. Can she stop herself from falling?
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this riveting thriller. Thank you to Ellie at Penguin UK for the invitation to take part and the gifted ARC.
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SYNOPSIS:
An attractive student. An older professor.
Think you know the story? Think again.
THE NEW UP-ALL-NIGHT THRILLER FROM THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER CARA HUNTER, PERFECT FOR FANS OF LINE OF DUTY
She has everything at stake; he has everything to lose. But one of them is lying, all the same.
When an Oxford student accuses one of the university’s professors of sexual assault, DI Adam Fawley’s team think they’ve heard it all before. But they couldn’t be more wrong.
Because this time, the predator is a woman and the shining star of the department, and the student a six-foot male rugby player.
Soon DI Fawley and his team are up against the clock to figure out the truth. What they don’t realise is that someone is watching.
And they have a plan to put Fawley out of action for good…
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MY REVIEW:
The Whole Truth is the fifth book in the DI Adam Fawley series and I’m a little late to the party. While I own all of the books, I have only read the first one. And that was a few years ago. So I appreciated that the author opens the book with a ‘Previously… in the Fawley Files’ that details all the recurring characters along with some important information on their backstory and personality. I think more series should do this as it not only makes it easier to read as a standalone, but is also a refresher for those who’ve read the previous books.
In this book the author explores the timely subject of sexual harassment by a person in authority. Only this story is a twist on the familiar tale of a teacher taking advantage of a student or the stories of abuse of power often heard in the current #MeToo movement. In this story, the victim is male and the perpetrator is female. Parallel to this investigation is a storyline involving Adam and his pregnant wife, Alex. There is a storm cloud approaching their happy horizon. One that involves and old case coming back to haunt them and a brutal murder that will turn their world upside down.
While I had enjoyed the first book in the series, this one really had me on the edge of my seat. The author is fantastic at connecting the reader to her characters and made me care about what happened to them even though I’ve not built up that long-standing relationship you get when reading a series. I loved her use of mixed media to tell the story as it makes it even more fun and interesting to read. She writes about the difficult but important topics in the story with truth and sensitivity, showing both sides without judgement or prejudice. She illustrates the added struggles male rape victims face to be believed, the mystogynistic beliefs some people still hold and the fine line officers have to take between investigating and victim blaming. But this isn’t a clear cut case and we are never quite sure who to believe, giving the author the opportunity to also explore the psychology of those who abuse their power in such a way as well as how false allegations might impact those they are levered against.
Captivating and twisty, this is an excellent thriller that had me on tenterhooks. I’m now looking forward to going back and reading the other books in the series, as well as finding out what comes next for the characters in book six. A must-read for fans of crime thrillers and police procedurals.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰
Trigger Warnings: Sexual assault, rape.
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Cara Hunter is the author of the Sunday Times bestselling crime novels Close to Home, In the Dark, No Way Out and All the Rage, all featuring DI Adam Fawley and his Oxford-based police team. Close to Home was a Richard and Judy Book Club pick and was shortlisted for Crime Book of the Year in the British Book Awards 2019. No Way Out was selected by the Sunday Times as one of the 100 best crime novels since 1945. Cara’s novels have sold more than a million copies worldwide, and the TV rights to the series have now been acquired by the Fremantle group. She lives in Oxford, on a street not unlike those featured in her books.
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this tense and twisty thriller. Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part, and to Viper Books for the gifted ARC.
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SYNOPSIS:
WOULD YOU SAVE THE MAN WHO DESTROYED YOUR LIFE?
When paramedic Megan Lowe is called to the scene of an attempted murder, all she can do is try to save the victim. But as the man is lifted onto a stretcher, she realises she knows him. She despises him. Why should she save his life when he destroyed hers?
Jess Foster is on her way home when she receives a text from Megan. Once best friends, the two women haven’t been close for years, not since the night when they were just the teenage girls whom no-one believed; whose reputations were ruined. All Jess can think is, you had it coming.
Now Megan and Jess are at the centre of a murder investigation. But what secrets are they hiding? Can they trust one another? And who really is the victim?
Perfect for fans of C.L. Taylor, Lucy Foley and Lisa Hall, You Had It Coming is a thrilling tale of suspense and dark secrets.
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MY REVIEW:
Taut, tense and twisty, You Had It Coming is a story of injustice, murder and vengeance. At the epicentre of it all is what really happened to two teenage girls on the night of a party twelve years ago. Two girls whose worlds were destroyed when they weren’t believed. Were Megan and Jess telling the truth? Did William Newton build his reputation at their cost? Or did he save two innocent young men from injustice? These questions and more are examined in this readable page-turner.
The author addresses several difficult subjects in the story. She does this with honesty, but also sensitivity, never being graphic or sensational. She focuses instead on the emotion, the long-lasting effects of what happened that night and how trauma ripples through your life long after the event has occurred, seeping into every facet of your world. There is also a tempo of malevolence and foreboding that runs through the pages as she sprinkles crumbs of suggestion that hints at their possible guilt at random intervals in the story. It is cleverly done, and the effect is that even when I was 80% of the way through the book, I had lots of suspicions but no clear idea who the culprit was or what was going to happen next. Carroll had me on the edge of my seat, my heart racing as I quickly turned the pages to reach the finale and unveil the truth.
She filled the book with a cast of fractured, troubled, but compelling, characters. The three narrators: Megan, Jess and Bridget – the detective in charge of the murder investigation – are great choices that each offer a unique perspective and insights. While Megan and Jess were both victims of the same crime twelve years ago, their backgrounds and the way it has impacted their lives since, are very different. Just as their reactions to Newton’s death and the murder investigation are different. I liked the uncertainty that having two of them added to the story and found it interesting to read as they get to know each other again all these years later.
The narrator I liked best was Bridget. This wasn’t because she was the one investigating the murder, but because of the perspectives the author explored through her character. Bridget has a teenage son and daughter, and through her family and perspective as a mother rather than a police officer, the author explores the nuances of consent, rape and sexual assault. I particularly liked how the author had her address these issues directly with her children. As the mother of two teenage boys myself, I am keenly aware of how vital it is to have these conversations and make sure they understand consent and the dangers of those blurred lines for both men and women.
Gripping, suspenseful, thought-provoking and emotionally-charged, I highly recommend this fantastic thriller.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰
TW: Sexual assault, rape.
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Ber Carroll (also known as B.M Carroll) was born in Blarney, a small but famous village in Ireland. The middle child of six, she often retreated from the chaos of family life by immersing herself in books. She has fond memories of the mobile library bus that used to pull up outside their house in Blarney and the dozen or so books she would borrow at a time, some quite inappropriate for her age.
Ber moved to Sydney in 1995 with her boyfriend (now husband) Rob. She got a job as a finance manager in the IT industry and began to climb the corporate ladder. The exciting and dynamic work environment captured her imagination and inspired her first novel. When Executive Affair was published, Ber flatly denied it was in any way auto-biographical. She now admits that the novel did have a lot of her in it, and suspects that half the people who purchased the book were her ex colleagues, to see if they were in it too. Ber gave up her finance career when she realised that she couldn’t hold down a demanding job, be mum to two small children and write books to contractual deadline. She now writes fulltime, but says that she misses getting dressed up for work and being around people who listen to what she has to say, unlike her kids!
Ber is the author of ten novels, including Just Business, High Potential, The Better Woman, Less Than Perfect, Worlds Apart and Once Lost. Her most recent novels The Missing Pieces of Sophie McCarthy, Who We Were, and You Had It Coming (May/June 2021) are published under B.M. Carroll.
Welcome to First Lines Friday where I share the first lines from one of the books on my shelves to try and tempt you to add it to yours.
“She holds her hands up as if in prayer, steam evaporating from her skin. The water laps at her neck as she lies back into its warmth. Laughter and female voices surround her, a confusion of sound echoing off the stone. She filters it out, focusing on her fingers turning them, watching the water drip down, the steam rise. They could be anybody’s hands, she thinks, they could belong to anybody. But they belong to Felix.”
Today’s first lines are taken from The Wolf’s Den by Elodie Harper, the stunning debut that was published yesterday.
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SYNOPSIS:
Sold by her mother. Enslaved in Pompeii’s brothel. Determined to survive. Her name is Amara. Welcome to the Wolf Den…
Amara was once a beloved daughter, until her father’s death plunged her family into penury. Now she is a slave in Pompeii’s infamous brothel, owned by a man she despises. Sharp, clever and resourceful, Amara is forced to hide her talents. For now her only value lies in the desire she can stir in others.
But Amara’s spirit is far from broken. By day, she walks the streets with the Wolf Den’s other women, finding comfort in the laughter and dreams they share. For the streets of Pompeii are alive with opportunity. Out here, even the lowest slave can secure a reversal in fortune. Amara has learnt that everything in this city has its price. But how much is her freedom going to cost her?
Set in Pompeii’s lupanar, The Wolf Den is the first in a trilogy of novels reimagining the lives of women who have long been overlooked. Perfect for fans of Pat Barker’s The Silence of the Girls and Madeline Miller’s Circe.
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This is one of my most anticipated reads this year and I’m so excited to read it, particularly after attending last night’s Zoom event ‘Myths and Legends’ with the author. This book is also our first pick for the SquadPod Book Club, which starts next month. I can’t wait to finally read it alongside fellow book lovers. Click on the social media links below for more information and to join in.
Published: April 29th, 2021 Publisher: Michael Joseph Genre: Romance Novel, Contemporary Romance, Humorous Fiction, Domestic Fiction Format: Paperback, Kindle, Audio
Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this fantastic book. Thank you to Chrissie at Michael Joseph for the invitation to take part and the ARC of the book.
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SYNOPSIS:
NOAH AND KATE WERE MEANT TO BE TOGETHER FOREVER.
Married with two gorgeous sons, it looked like they’d got their happy ever after.
But marriage isn’t easy. And one day, Kate left, taking their two boys with her.
These days, Noah is a weekend dad – and it breaks his heart. He misses the chaotic mealtimes, the bedtime stories, the early mornings and the late homework.
Suddenly, he decides enough is enough – he has to win his family back. Starting with Kate.
The only problem?
IN SIX WEEKS’ TIME, KATE IS GETTING MARRIED TO SOMEONE ELSE . . .
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MY REVIEW:
Until Next Weekend is a story about love, loss and moving on. It made me laugh, made me cry, and it made my heart ache. The author has cleverly crafted a nuanced, emotive and tender story that is also a funny and entertaining read.
It is expertly and sensitively written, weaving serious topics such as depression, suicide, grief and child neglect amongst the lighthearted jokes and banter. With evocative and descriptive prose she brings the story and characters to life. I loved the scenes with Noah’s pupils in particular as she perfectly captured the wonderful innocence, beauty and frustration of young children in his buzzing, chaotic classroom.
I liked Noah. He’s a great character who feels very real. He makes mistakes and isn’t always likeable, yet the author knows how to make you care about him and root for him, particularly for the sake of his young sons. But while he was a great narrator and main character, for me the stars of the show were Mimi and little Harley.
Barmaid Mimi is a vibrant, charismatic and feisty character who challenges Noah from the moment they meet. I enjoyed their dynamic and how she helped him to grow. Harley, Mimi’s troubled nephew who is also one of Noah’s pupils, was by far my favourite character. He has a lot of problems and is initially seen as a naughty and unlikeable child. But we soon learn there is much more to his behaviour than first meets the eye. My heart broke for him as his story unfolded and this little boy found a place in my heart. Marks is a master at writing troubled children and knows exactly how to shatter your heart into a million pieces and make you want to throw your arms around them and reassure them it will all be okay.
Compelling, truthful, thought-provoking and dripping with humour, Ms. Marks is two for two on fantastic books that I would recommend. I’m looking forward to reading what she writes next.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰
Trigger Warnings: Depression, suicide.
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Rachel Marks studied English at Exeter University before becoming a primary school teacher. After having her first son, she decided to focus mainly on being a mum, teaching one day a week and nurturing her creative side by starting a small photography business.
Despite always loving to write, it wasn’t until she gained a place on the 2016 Curtis Brown Creative online novel writing course that she started to believe it could be anything more than just a much-loved hobby. Her inspiration for her first novel came from the challenges she faced with her eldest son, testing and fascinating in equal measure. When she discovered Pathological Demand Avoidance, a poorly understood Autism Spectrum Disorder, she could finally make sense of her son’s behavior, and the idea for the first novel fell into place.
When not writing, she loves dragging her husband and two boys around Europe to off-the-beaten track and sometimes sub zero destinations, snowboarding and sightseeing, the kind of trips that would undeniably be easier without children but only half the adventure…
Happy Publication Elizabeth Macneal! I’m thrilled to be sharing my review of this dazzling novel today.
SYNOPSIS:
The spellbinding novel from the author of the Sunday Times bestselling The Doll Factory. ‘An absolute triumph. Exquisitely written, intensely satisfying’ – Stacey Halls, author of The Familiars
1866. In a coastal village in southern England, Nell picks violets for a living. Set apart by her community because of the birthmarks that speckle her skin, Nell’s world is her beloved brother and devotion to the sea.
But when Jasper Jupiter’s Circus of Wonders arrives in the village, Nell is kidnapped. Her father has sold her, promising Jasper Jupiter his very own leopard girl. It is the greatest betrayal of Nell’s life, but as her fame grows, and she finds friendship with the other performers and Jasper’s gentle brother Toby, she begins to wonder if joining the show is the best thing that has ever happened to her.
In London, newspapers describe Nell as the eighth wonder of the world. Figurines are cast in her image, and crowds rush to watch her soar through the air. But who gets to tell Nell’s story? What happens when her fame threatens to eclipse that of the showman who bought her? And as she falls in love with Toby, can he detach himself from his past and the terrible secret that binds him to his brother?
Moving from the pleasure gardens of Victorian London to the battle-scarred plains of the Crimea, Circus of Wonders is an astonishing story about power and ownership, fame and the threat of invisibility.
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MY REVIEW:
“It is as if someone has taken a paintbrush and run it from her cheekbone to her chin, splashed tiny flecks of brown paint across the rest of her face and neck. He should look away, but he can’t. He cannot believe that this quiet village could contain someone so extraordinary.“
Elizabeth Macneal has done it again. Circus of Wonders is an absolute masterpiece. Captivating, illuminating and transportive, Macneal had me in the palm of her hands from beginning to endas I absorbed this marvelous dazzling tale.
When you fall in love with an author and their debut novel there is always some trepidation that accompanies the excitement of reading their second novel. But Macneal has once again crafted something special. Exquisitely written and richly drawn, she paints an evocative picture that spirits you away to a world that has drifted away into history. With great attention to detail she immerses you in the sights and sounds of Victorian life, making you feel like you are right there beside Nell and the others.
“How can she do that, Nell wonders; how can she beat to make a feature of her own difference, to stare the world in the eye?”
This is a book filled with a cast of fabulous and varied characters that are all outcasts, battling inner demons and searching for acceptance. Written with sensitivity and realism, the author draws them so vividly that they dance before your eyes as if you’re watching them on a movie screen. I adored Nell. She is a fantastic protagonist and I loved how the author really builds her character before the circus becomes a big part of the story. Allowing us to get to know her and her backstory straight away builds a rapport between her and the reader, creates empathy for the heartbreak, pain and longing she feels, and helps us to understand her feelings and actions later in the story. Toby is another great character. The relationship between him and his brother Japer – the villain of the story – is mysterious and complex. But through glimpses of their childhood and their time on the battlefield during the Crimean War, we slowly have a greater understanding of their relationship and of them as individuals.
“There’s more than one way to tell a story.”
The author weaves a number of recurring themes throughout the story: love, belonging, self-acceptance, redemption, the power of storytelling and of who controls the narrative, that are explored in a variety of ways. For example, Nell starts out as a pariah who tries to live a life in the shadows unseen. But through the acceptance and friendship of the other wonders at the circus, and the fame she finds as Nellie Moon, she not only begins to accept herself, but she soars. She is a butterfly emerging from her chrysalis, illuminated and spectacular, and discovers there is a power in being different. She also finds that it opens the door to something else she never thought possible: love.
Spellbinding, intoxicating, atmospheric and consuming, this is a story about what it is to be human. I was lost in the world she created and didn’t want to go back to reality when it was finished. It is something truly special.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Elizabeth Macneal was born in Scotland and now lives in East London. She is a writer and potter and works from a small studio at the bottom of her garden. The Doll Factory, Elizabeth’s debut novel, was a Sunday Times bestseller, has been translated into twenty-nine languages and has been optioned for a major television series. It won the Caledonia Novel Award 2018. Circus of Wonders is her second novel.
The Patient Man has been shortlisted for this year’s British Book Awards in the Crime/Thriller Book of the Year category. Joy is the only author from an independent publisher on that list and as a fan of her books, I’m delighted to be sharing this extract from the book with you today.
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Chapter 2
Marie walked into his office wearing a deep turquoise silk shirt. Jackman felt relief flooding through him. So much for his dream.
‘Good grief!’ Marie exclaimed. ‘How long have you been in?’ She stared at the pile of paperwork in his out tray.
‘Oh, a while.’
‘You’ve been reading up on feng shui again, haven’t you, sir? Clear your clutter and promote a tidy mind.’ Marie grinned at him. ‘Or is the super breathing down your neck for results?’
‘Neither, actually. Just couldn’t sleep. And this lot,’ he pointed to the paperwork, ‘was haunting me.’ He returned her grin. ‘How was the day off yesterday?’
‘Brilliant, boss. I took the new bike for a spin. She handles amazingly.’ ‘Ah, this one’s a girl, is it? How come?’ ‘Well, after Harvey was annihilated, I decided I’d try a new line, if you know what I mean. We went to Cromer, had the best crab lunch ever, and drove back before the traffic got too bad. It was the perfect day.’
‘And her name?’ asked Jackman.
‘Not sure yet, sir. But she’ll tell me when she’s ready. So, I’m all refreshed and raring to get to work. What’s first?’
‘After a strong coffee and the morning meeting, you and I are going to visit a certain Mr Kenneth Harcourt, at a house named Wits’ End. How does that sound?’
‘Wits’ End? Is he some kind of nutter? The coffee sounds good but I’m not too sure about someone who calls their house that.’
‘Well, I hope he’s no nutter, because he owns that private gun club out on Bartlett’s Fen. Someone attempted to break into it yesterday.’
‘What? The Fenside Gun Club? That’s pretty snobby.’ Marie raised her eyebrows. ‘Actually, very snobby indeed. So, what happened?’
‘Last night there was a break-in at his home. Most likely it was the same bunch of villains who’d failed to get into the club earlier that day.’
‘Okay, I’ll go and get those coffees and you can fill me in on what we know so far.’
Jackman watched her leave, wishing he could shake off the remnants of his nightmare. That feeling of doom. It was like a film clip played on a loop in his head. It just wasn’t like him to be so unsettled by a stupid dream.
He stacked the final reports in his out tray and heaved a sigh of relief. At least they were done. Now they could concentrate on the petty crimes and, hopefully, in a couple of days they would see daylight.
Marie returned with coffee and he told her what uniform had reported following their visit to the gun club and Kenneth Harcourt’s home. ‘Whoever tried to get into the gun club underestimated the security they have there. The CCTV images showed a couple of rough-looking scrotes who obviously had little previous experience of breaking and entering. It’s thought they were chancers who bit off more than they could chew. We’ve got some pretty good pictures, but no faces. As you can imagine, they were wearing the usual hoodies.’
Marie frowned. ‘But we have to assume that they were pretty desperate to get hold of a gun if they then turned their attention to Harcourt’s private address. That doesn’t sound like chancers to me. How did they get hold of his home address in the first place?’
‘He’s well known, has fingers in all sorts of pies apparently. If I were after his address, I’d just follow him home when he left the club, no sweat.’
‘Mmm.’ Marie stared into her coffee, swirling it around like a fortune teller about to read the tea leaves. ‘So, did they get away with a gun?’
‘Two, according to uniform. Both have valid licences. They’ve circulated the type, calibre and serial numbers to all forces.’ Just for a second, the final scene of the dream flashed through Jackman’s mind, Alistair Ashcroft waving to him from across his mother’s stable yard, rifle in hand. ‘I don’t like the thought of firearms here in Saltern-le-Fen.’
‘Me neither, boss,’ said Marie. ‘Especially not in the hands of a couple of low-lives. Although they were probably stolen to order and are a hundred miles away by now. Firearms fetch a high price on the black market.’
‘That’s what I’m hoping.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘Let’s get daily orders out of the way and then go and talk to Mr Harcourt. As a shooting man, he should know better than to leave his guns where they can be stolen so easily. Doesn’t he keep them in locked gun cabinets?’
He had seen it far too often, the casual attitude to guns displayed by people who used them regularly, especially among the upper classes. He’d found them in wardrobes, in umbrella stands, propped up behind doors, in the downstairs toilet and numerous other insecure places. Time after time, people had said to him, “What’s the use of a gun if you can’t lay your hands on it quickly?”
Jackman’s father had taught both his sons to shoot at an early age but although Jackman was a natural and far better than his brother, he’d never taken to it, especially hunting. Target shooting was fine, but as soon as he got a living creature in his sights, he faltered. But at least it had taught him a healthy respect for guns, even air rifles, which were religiously locked away after every use. The laws were in place for a very good reason.
Jackman stood up. ‘Right, let’s go. The quicker we get the morning meeting done, the sooner we can go.’
They turned into the long, straight driveway of Wits’ End. Situated on the outskirts of Saltern-le-Fen, it stood alone among miles of arable fields, which were now a sea of acid-yellow rape, almost too bright to take in. The grounds covered perhaps two acres, part walled and part fenced, filled with all manner of trees and shrubs and carpeted with extensive lawns. Marie saw a small stable block and a greenhouse of Victorian design. The perfect country residence.
‘No comments about the house name, please, Evans. Not the slightest giggle.’ Jackman tried to look serious, but his eyes let him down.
‘As if, sir!’ she said, all innocence.
The house rose up in front of them, tall and elegant. The front door had a white columned portico and Marie could see heavy, lustrous drapes through the windows. The whole place reeked of money. ‘It should be called something classy, not Wits’ bloody End,’ she muttered.
‘I totally agree,’ said Jackman. ‘It should be a Regency Lodge or perhaps an Enderby. Well, let’s see what kind of man the owner of Wits’ End is.’
They climbed out of the car and mounted the steps to the front door. Jackman rang the bell. They heard dogs barking and someone shouting.
‘Well, at least they are home,’ Marie whispered to Jackman. ‘Sounds like he’s rounding up the hounds.’
The man who answered the door was tall and straight-backed with a full head of greying hair and looked every inch the county “squire.
‘Ah, good, the detectives. Come in, come in.’
Marie and Jackman entered a spacious hall, sparsely but tastefully furnished, the walls adorned with a collection of beautifully framed hunting scenes that were definitely not prints.
Harcourt led them through to a large airy sitting room where Marie got a closer look at those impressive drapes. The room had a lived-in feel. It was used, not merely kept as a showplace.
Marie took a seat in a comfortable armchair and had a proper look at Harcourt. He looked familiar somehow, although she couldn’t imagine where she might have seen him before. She was good at recalling faces, but she was struggling with this one.
Jackman asked him exactly what had happened, ‘From the beginning, sir.’
‘As I told the uniformed officers, we were all out, the whole family. I have a brother visiting from South Africa, and we went to the Red Lion for a celebratory dinner. The little bastards took an axe to the kitchen door, hacked off the lock. Wrecked the blasted door.’ Harcourt glowered at them. ‘And before you ask, no, we didn’t set the alarm before we left. We rarely use the alarm. The damn thing is so sensitive a breath of wind sets it off.’
‘You have dogs, sir. We heard them when we arrived. Didn’t they bark?’
‘Probably barked their heads off, but who’s to hear them? As you can see, we have no nearby neighbours.’
‘The intruders didn’t harm them?’ Jackman asked.
‘No, and they weren’t put off by them either. The dogs were shut in the family room and the thieves didn’t go in there.’
‘So, where were the guns taken from, sir?’ Marie asked.
‘My study. I have a couple of gun cabinets, one a steel shotgun safe with a digital keypad and one that belonged to my father, an antique carved wooden one. That’s the one they trashed. Used the bloody axe on it. Beautiful piece, irreplaceable both in design and personal value. Now it’s matchwood. Your officers have already photographed it and gone over it for prints — what’s left of it.’
‘So they were all locked away?’ asked Jackman.
‘All bar one air pistol that my son uses. That’s in a drawer beneath my desk. It’s still there. It would have taken brains to work out the catch that releases the drawer and these savages were evidently not well endowed in that department. It’s an old desk, and the drawer has a secret compartment especially made to house a service revolver, not that we have one.’
‘Perhaps you’d be kind enough to show us later, sir?’ asked Jackman, more sympathetic now that he knew the guns had been locked away.
‘Certainly, Detective Inspector.’ Harcourt suddenly looked tired. ‘I’m assuming you won’t get them back?’
‘It’s highly unlikely, Mr Harcourt.’ Jackman said. ‘Stolen firearms are usually moved on very quickly.’ He glanced down at his notebook. ‘I see the guns stolen were a target shooting rifle and a shotgun.’
‘Yes, the shotgun is a Dickson & Son boxlock ejector made in the 1930s, a family heirloom like the cabinet, and the target shooter is an Anschutz Super Match bolt action rifle.’
Marie frowned. ‘You had other guns in the cabinet, but they left those?’
Harcourt nodded. ‘Yes, funny that. They could have had another couple, and that’s apart from those in the main steel cabinet. Not that an axe would be any match for that gun safe. But they just took those two, and some ammunition.’
‘Anything else taken or damaged, sir?’
‘Nothing, so I suppose I should be thankful for that. At least they didn’t draw pictures on the walls in excrement.’
‘Very true, sir. Sounds like they knew exactly what they wanted.’ Jackman paused. ‘The other two guns, the ones they left behind, what were they?’
‘Air rifles. Varmint guns.’ ‘Sorry?’ Marie said, puzzled by the unfamiliar expression. ‘An American term. They are used to keep rodents and rabbits down.
Basically, they are reliable small calibre guns for pest control.’ ‘So, they only took a valuable shotgun and an expensive target rifle?’ She was trying to work out why they would have been so selective.
‘Surely even the “varmint” guns would have had some value?’ ‘Not really. They come in at around five hundred pounds each.’ Marie considered that plenty to spend on pest control. ‘And the others?’ It took Harcourt a moment to respond. ‘Well, my father’s shotgun isn’t worth a great deal. It had more sentimental value. I had it valued for insurance purposes about a year ago and they said two and a half thousand. The Anschutz is around two thousand.’
She let out a low whistle. ‘And that’s not a great deal?’
Harcourt laughed. ‘If they’d been able to get into the other cabinet it would have been a different matter.’
‘A Purdey?’ asked Jackman.
Harcourt laughed louder. ‘Spot on. It’s the jewel in the crown. But apart from that, I have my best target rifles in there, Walthers, and they are worth four and a half each.’
‘So how many guns do you own, sir?’ Marie asked, having lost count.
‘Well, personal guns would be nine, including the pistol. We also have a small collection for general use in the armoury at the gun club.’
‘And every single one is legal and licensed?’ she asked.
‘Check for yourself, Detective Sergeant. You’ll find all my guns are properly registered. And my gun club is hot as hell when issuing club firearms to members. The armourer is present at all times. They never leave his sight. Most of our members prefer to use their own firearms. We only offer ours if requested, usually to give visitors a feel for the club prior to joining.’ Harcourt turned a hard gaze on her. ‘I take both the ownership and handling of weapons extremely seriously, DS Evans, I always have. I spent my early life in the military, so I know my guns. I also know what they can do.’ Without taking his eyes off her, he rolled up his left sleeve and showed her an ugly scarred area on his forearm. ‘That wasn’t the enemy, Detective, it was a friend of mine whose mind wasn’t fully focused when he was cleaning his weapon. Something like that would instill a lifelong respect for lethal weapons, wouldn’t you say?’
Chastened, Marie nodded. ‘Absolutely, sir.’ Clearly there would be no Uzis in his umbrella stand. ‘Could we see the damage the thieves did, Mr Harcourt? Both to the door and the gun cabinet?’
Harcourt stood up. ‘Of course. Come this way.’ They followed him through the house to the kitchen door at the rear. ‘No much finesse used on that, was there?’ Jackman shook his head. Marie stared at the deep ragged gouges and the splintered wood around the lock. It looked almost frenzied. A few well-placed blows could have done the job with far less damage.
‘A man is coming to fit a new door,’ Harcourt said. ‘But the damage to the gun cabinet is irreparable.’ He marched off back through the house, calling out over his shoulder. ‘Come. I’ll show you.’
Marie took careful stock of the house as they moved through it. It was a real family home, obviously well loved. She passed several doors with brightly painted plaques on them — the children’s rooms. Jack’s Room, Keep Out! Kirstie’s Room.
They entered a spacious study with double-aspect windows that looked out over the extensive gardens. The room was centred around a massive antique banker’s desk that put Jackman’s beloved office desk to shame. Marie almost laughed.
‘Wow! That’s a statement piece!’ he whispered, reverently. Jackman had obviously fallen totally in love with that desk.
‘So was that.’ Harcourt pointed angrily to what remained of the gun cabinet.
Even Marie could appreciate why he was so upset. The ornately carved wood had been hacked at and chopped up like kindling. As with the kitchen door , a huge amount of force had been used. ‘Using a sledgehammer to crack a nut,’ she murmured.
‘Precisely,’ growled Harcourt. ‘And I’d like to use some of the same tactics on them, the bastards.’
Jackman said nothing and just stared at the wreckage that had once been an elegant piece of furniture.
Marie found it almost embarrassing to see this man so distraught about losing his father’s precious belongings. She felt like she was intruding.
She gazed at the rest of the room. Nice stuff, classy, but once again, well used. There was dog hair on the seat of a winged armchair by one of the windows, and a closer look showed dust and the odd stain on the carpet that looked suspiciously like the remnants of children’s wax crayons. Then she looked at the glorious desk again, saw the leather letter racks and matching pen holders. It wasn’t all museum pieces, though. At one end stood a laptop and a dock for a mobile phone. And a rather lovely modern woodblock photo frame.
Marie almost gasped.
One look at the picture instantly brought realisation of why she recognised Kenneth Harcourt.
The photo showed a young girl, wearing the red-and-yellow football strip of Saltern-le-Fen Juniors Football Club. She was clasping a ball under her arm and looking directly at the camera lens. Kirstie Harcourt, eleven-year-old girl, killed in a hit-and-run the year before. The car had been stolen and the driver had got away. There had been suspects, but no evidence that would hold up in court, and the coroner had found an open verdict. Not the kind of thing that gave closure to a grieving family. “Kirstie’s Room.” The plaque was still on the door.
Marie backed away from the desk, hoping that Harcourt hadn’t noticed her staring at the photo. ‘I think we need to get back and get some enquiries underway, sir, don’t you?’
Evidently puzzled by her sudden desire to leave, Jackman said, ‘Er, yes, we do. Thank you for your time, sir. We’ll keep in touch.’
Outside in the car, she told Jackman what she had seen.
‘Of course! Why didn’t we recognise that surname?’ Jackman exclaimed. ‘It was all over the papers for weeks.’
‘They always just referred to her as Kirstie, didn’t they?’ Marie said. ‘Kirstie the whizz-kid footballer.’
‘And it didn’t happen on our patch, either. She had been at a friend’s place over Greenborough way, hadn’t she?’
Marie nodded. ‘That’s right. DI Nikki Galena handled it. It wasn’t our case.’
Jackman looked pensive. ‘Not that this break-in will be connected, but I wish I’d realised before we spoke to the poor guy.’
Marie felt the same. She hoped Harcourt hadn’t thought she and Jackman not mentioning it showed insensitivity, that they were dismissive of his family’s tragedy. She turned on the engine but didn’t yet pull away.
‘Sir? Did you notice that Harcourt hesitated when I asked him how many guns he owned?’
Jackman shrugged. ‘Not especially. He does have a lot of them. It’s not surprising that he had to think about it.’
‘I guess so, but . . . forget it, you’re probably right. I just had an odd feeling that he was being, well, very careful as to how he answered.’ Jackman smiled at her. ‘Hold that thought, Marie. You and your intuition. It’s rarely wrong.’
‘We’ll see. Tell me, Mister Knowledgeable, how much is a Purdey worth?’
Jackman rolled his eyes at her. ‘My father told me this. Would you believe over a hundred and thirty grand?’
‘What?’ Marie exclaimed. ‘How much?’ ‘And Purdeys aside, a Peter Hofer sidelock can cost a cool million.’ ‘For a bloody gun?’ She tried to imagine what she would do with a million pounds. Buying a shotgun certainly didn’t feature. ‘They are works of art, Marie. They have the most intricate engraving on the handle. Some take years to make.’ ‘I guess so. But it’s still a gun, isn’t it, not a life support machine or a cancer research laboratory. A million pounds could save hundreds of lives by supplying clean water to African villages. All a gun does is kill things.’
‘I gather you won’t be purchasing one if you win on EuroMillions?’ said Jackman.
‘Dead bloody right I won’t. I hate the things. I’ve seen what they can do to people.’ Marie glanced across to Jackman and saw an odd look on his face. She was about to ask him what was wrong, but when she looked again, he seemed his normal self. Maybe she’d imagined it. No doubt, Jackman was recalling a particularly bad case he’d dealt with, where someone got shot or, more likely, he was reliving the time he was shot himself.~
Sometimes Marie wished she wasn’t so sensitive to tiny nuances in people’s demeanour. Like that hesitation of Harcourt’s when he was telling her about his guns. Yes, maybe it was simple hesitation, but Marie had seen cogs turning and sensed a tension emanate from the man. As soon as she got back to the station, she would check out those guns and their licences. Otherwise it would keep bugging her.
Jackman was staring out of the window. They were only minutes from town, but the fenland farming area swept right up to the outskirts of Saltern itself. ‘I wonder why such force was used?’ he mused. ‘You hit the nail on the head when you described it as using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. What was all that about?’
‘That bothers me too, boss. I mean, if they did it because they hated the Harcourts and wanted to wreak mega damage, they wouldn’t stop with just those two items, would they? They’d have smashed the whole place up.’
‘Exactly.’
Marie slowed as they entered Saltern-le-Fen. ‘One thing is for sure: they aren’t professional thieves.’
‘And they aren’t crackheads looking for something to sell for drug money or they’d have taken anything they could lay their hands on,’ Jackman added.
‘So what are they?’ she said.
‘I have no idea, Marie, and that bothers me. I like simple and straightforward, not convoluted and tortuous.’
‘If I knew what that meant I’d probably agree with you.’ She stopped at a red light. ‘What’s clear is this. They wanted guns or they would never have tried to get into Fenside Gun Club and then when that failed, Harcourt’s home.’
‘But they only took two. Why leave those other two? Even decent air rifles are worth something. Why not just take all four?’ Jackman asked.
‘I thought this was a simple break-in. Now I’m well confused,’ Marie said.
‘And you’re not alone.’ Jackman scratched his head. ‘Let’s just get back and see how the others are doing with the petty crime cases, then maybe we can have a campfire. See what they think of our baffling theft.’
‘Good idea, boss.’ They drove the rest of the way in silence, each lost in thoughts of lethal weapons.
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Joy Ellis grew up in Kent but moved to London when she won an apprenticeship with the prestigious Mayfair flower shop, Constance Spry Ltd. Many years later, having run her own florist shop in Weybridge, Ellis took part in a writers workshop in Greece and was encouraged by her tutor, Sue Townsend to begin writing seriously. She now lives in the Lincolnshire Fens with her partner Jacqueline and their Springer spaniels, Woody and Alfie.
Published: March 23rd Publisher: Thomas & Mercer Genre: Suspense, Thriller, Psychological Fiction, Psychological Thriller Format: Hardcover, Kindle, Audio
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#Ad Welcome to my review of this gripping thriller. Thank you to Amazon Publishing and Thomas and Mercer for the gifted copy of this book.
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SYNOPSIS:
Number one New York Times bestselling master of suspense Dean Koontz takes readers on a twisting journey of lost love, impossible second chances, and terrifying promises.
A decade ago, Emily Carlino vanished after her car broke down on a California highway. She was presumed to be one of serial killer Ronny Lee Jessup’s victims whose remains were never found.
Writer David Thorne still hasn’t recovered from losing the love of his life, or from the guilt of not being there to save her. Since then, he’s sought closure any way he can. He even visits regularly with Jessup in prison, desperate for answers about Emily’s final hours so he may finally lay her body to rest. Then David meets Maddison Sutton, beguiling, playful, and keenly aware of all David has lost. But what really takes his breath away is that everything about Maddison, down to her kisses, is just like Emily. As the fantastic becomes credible, David’s obsession grows, Maddison’s mysterious past deepens―and terror escalates.
Is she Emily? Or an irresistible dead ringer? Either way, the ultimate question is the same: What game is she playing? Whatever the risk in finding out, David’s willing to take it for this precious second chance. It’s been ten years since he’s felt this inspired, this hopeful, this much in love…and he’s afraid.
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MY REVIEW:
The Other Emily is a gripping page-turner that had me guessing from start to finish. From the ominous and intriguing opening I was on tenterhooks. What had happened to Emily? And just who is Maddison? Could she really be David’s lost love? Or is she a mysterious doppelganger?
What I loved most about this book was the perpetual mystery. There’s nothing better than a book that genuinely surprises you, and this one did that again and again. What appeared to be happening seemed impossible and illogical, so you’re kept on your toes and it’s impossible to predict. It felt like the more we knew, the more the mystery deepened. As secrets were unfurled the tension rose and I was on the edge of my seat, my heart pounding as I waited for David to discover the truth about Emily’s disappearance.
The characters are all captivating and well-written. David was a great protagonist. He is likeable and easy to root for. His love for Emily is still so strong even after ten years and you can feel his heartbreak radiating from the pages. You want him to find the truth, but you also don’t because it is inevitably going to cause him even more pain. Maddison is suitably enigmatic and impossible to figure out. Common sense told me she wasn’t Emily but so many other things pointed to her being her. I couldn’t figure it out and decided to instead just enjoy the ride and see where the author took me. Ronny Lee Jessup is a fantastic villain. Both he and his house of horrors are chilling, disturbing and repulsive. I would cringe every time he was on the page and felt sick to my stomach at the thrills he got from hurting others and continuing David’s torment.
I’d obviously heard of Dean Kootz before. What thriller reader hasn’t? But this was my first time reading one of his books. I loved his style and the short, sharp chapters and am now wondering why it’s taken me so long to pick up one of his books. I will definitely be reading more of them in the future.
A tense, eerie, twisty and curious thriller, this was an entertaining read. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys the genre.
Rating: ✮✮✮✮✰
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Dean Koontz, the author of many #1 New York Times bestsellers, lives in Southern California with his wife, Gerda, their golden retriever, Elsa, and the enduring spirits of their goldens, Trixie and Anna.
Welcome to May’s list of cozy mystery releases. Are you looking forward to any of these? Let me know in the comments.
Mermaid Mimosa (The Magic & Mixology Mystery Series Book 8) by Gina LaManna
SYNOPSIS: When the king of the mermaids is poisoned, Lily is called to help with a problem she’s never faced before—one beneath the surface of the water. As she sets about creating a potion to save his life, however, she realizes this is only one part of a much, much larger problem.
One morning, Lily receives a letter from an anonymous source stating that The Faction is planning to launch an attack against The Isle. Can Lily stop her father and The Faction before it’s too late? Time is running out, and Lily can’t help but feel she’ll need a miracle to save the lives of the ones she loves…
Published May 1st
Death at Rugosa Bay: A Pembury Acres Cozy Mystery Book 4 (Pembury Acres Mystery) by Daphne McLean
SYNOPSIS: Wherever she goes…
…Murder follows.
Stay-at-home mom and PI in training Jennifer Temple is trying to enjoy her yearly vacation on Rugosa Bay, but that pesky crime investigation happening on the beach keeps calling her name.
When the body of a local bar fly is found buried in the sand, Jennifer has to balance relaxation with her urge to solve crime.
In a tight-knit beach community, where locals stick together, the truth may be difficult to come by. Add to that, a few hundred people flocking to the island for a class reunion, finding the murderer will be like finding a needle on the beach.
If the culprit isn’t caught before the reunion weekend is through, her chance to bring them to justice might float away on the Sunday morning ferry.
This cozy mystery features a cast of lovable but quirky characters.
Published May 1st
Poodle Versus The Outlaw (Cottage Country Cozy Mysteries Book 8) by Anne Shillolo
SYNOPSIS: An icy lake reveals a horrifying secret – but months later, Rocco, the Nasty Small Poodle, is still chasing his tail! And, Rocco isn’t the only one with spring fever, as romance is in the air for the humans in this story. Zora Flynn, a 50-something local newspaper publisher, and the staff of The Williamsport Whistle have their first cold case to crack. By the time spring arrives in Williamsport, the body of the murder victim is still unidentified. Will a video re-enactment give the investigation new life and get the case back on the front page? Zora realizes they’ve been barking up the wrong tree when an unexpected visitor sends the case in a new direction and points to a sinister threat. The dead man’s secret might be about to shake the cottage country town to its core. That’s if Zora and Rocco survive to tell the story!
Published May 1st
Cakes and Mistakes (Sweets and Secrets Cozy Mysteries Book 3) by A. R. Winters
SYNOPSIS: When the town playboy Robert Knox is killed, Shepherd Fall’s baker Janelle becomes the prime suspect. After all, she was the last one to see him alive, and was linked to him romantically. But Jean knows there’s no way someone as sweet as Janelle could be a killer!
Diving head first into Rob’s life creates ripples in the town, and Jean quickly learns he was the cause of many secrets. A dentist and his pregnant wife, a waitress, and a reporter all seem to be a part of the web Rob found himself caught in.
As things become more dangerous, Jean realizes that she’s caught in the web too, and if she’s not careful—she’ll find herself the next victim. Now she has to save herself, catch the murderer, and help discover who is trying to sabotage Aunt Betsy’s bakery.
Published May 3rd
All You Knead Is Love by Tanya Guerrero
SYNOPSIS: Sometimes you find home where you least expect it.
Twelve-year-old Alba doesn’t want to live with her estranged grandmother in Barcelona. She wants to stay with her mom, even if that means enduring her dad’s cutting comments to them both.
But in her new home, Alba forms a close relationship with her grandmother, gains a supportive father figure and new friends, and even discovers a passion and talent for baking. And through getting to know the city her mother used to call home, Alba starts to understand her mother better–and may just be able to make their family whole again.
Hardcover published May 3rd
A Cut Above: A Karnie Cleaver Mystery by Judy Lynn
SYNOPSIS: Karnie works in her family’s butcher shop. When Donna Amick stalks to the meat display case and tries to pressure her to leave the family business to work for her, Karnie turns her down, flat. But Donna doesn’t like to take “no” for an answer. The next morning, Donna’s body is found behind A Cut Above with a meat cleaver embedded in the back of her head. Detective Carmichael’s top suspect is Sam Lessman, who trained at their shop and then went to work for Donna as a full time butcher. Karnie knows it can’t be him and decides to prove it. Unfortunately, that’s a lot harder to do in real life than it is in the mysteries she reads.
Published May 3rd
For Batter or Worse (A Cupcake Bakery Mystery) by Jenn McKinlay
SYNOPSIS: Life is sweet and business is booming at the Fairy Tale Cupcakes bakery–and the fact that Mel and Joe are getting married is the icing on the cake. Their reception will be held at the swanky resort where Oz works as the pastry chef. The wedding planning is all fun-fetti and games until Mel and Joe meet the head chef at the resort who has been making Oz’s life miserable. When the eccentric chef insults Mel’s bakery, Oz gets into a blowout argument with the culinary prima donna.
Things turn extra sour when the chef is murdered, and Oz is the police’s main suspect. As the countdown to the wedding day begins, Mel, Joe, and the rest of the Fairy Tale Cupcake crew must sift through clues to catch the real killer and clear Oz’s name before their wedding plans are totally battered and baked.
Published May 4th
Arsenic and Adobo (A Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery Book 1) by Mia P. Manansala
SYNOPSIS: One of BuzzFeed’s Highly Anticipated Mystery Novels of 2021!
The first book in a new culinary cozy series full of sharp humor and delectable dishes—one that might just be killer….
When Lila Macapagal moves back home to recover from a horrible breakup, her life seems to be following all the typical rom-com tropes. She’s tasked with saving her Tita Rosie’s failing restaurant, and she has to deal with a group of matchmaking aunties who shower her with love and judgment. But when a notoriously nasty food critic (who happens to be her ex-boyfriend) drops dead moments after a confrontation with Lila, her life quickly swerves from a Nora Ephron romp to an Agatha Christie case.
With the cops treating her like she’s the one and only suspect, and the shady landlord looking to finally kick the Macapagal family out and resell the storefront, Lila’s left with no choice but to conduct her own investigation. Armed with the nosy auntie network, her barista best bud, and her trusted Dachshund, Longanisa, Lila takes on this tasty, twisted case and soon finds her own neck on the chopping block…
Publihsed May 4th
Of Mutts and Men (Chet & Bernie Mystery, 10) by Spencer Quinn
SYNOPSIS: When Chet the dog, “the most lovable narrator in all of crime fiction” (Boston Globe), and his partner, PI Bernie Little of the desert-based Little Detective Agency, arrive to a meeting with hydrologist Wendell Nero, they are in for a shocking sight–Wendell has come to a violent and mysterious end. What did the hydrologist want to see them about? Is his death a random robbery, or something more? Chet and Bernie, working for nothing more than an eight-pack of Slim Jims, are on the case.
Bernie might be the only one who thinks the police have arrested the wrong man, including the perp’s own defense attorney. Chet and Bernie begin to look into Wendell’s work, a search that leads to a struggling winemaker who has received an offer he can’t refuse. Meanwhile, Chet is smelling water where there is no water, and soon Chet and Bernie are in danger like never before.
Paperback published May 4th
Glaces and Graves (Cup of Jo Book 5) by Kelly Hashway
SYNOPSIS: With the success of her coffee shop, Cup of Jo, Joanna Coffee is living the life she’s always dreamed about. If only people would stop dragging her into murder investigations.
Someone leaves Jo’s glaces and an apology letter on the graves of two local teen girls, and Jo feels it’s a sign she’s meant to solve their murders. The problem is the police don’t believe it was murder. They think the girls were unfortunate drowning victims.
Once again, Jo will need to don her detective’s hat and team up with her ex, Detective Quentin Perry, to put the guilty party behind bars.
Published May 4th
The Ghost and the Haunted Portrait (Haunted Bookshop Mystery Book 7) by Cleo Coyle
SYNOPSIS: Bookshop owner Penelope Thornton-McClure and her gumshoe ghost team up to solve the stunning mystery at the heart of a madwoman’s self-portrait in this all new installment from New York Times bestselling author Cleo Coyle.
While gathering a collection of vintage book cover paintings for a special event in her quaint Rhode Island bookshop, Penelope discovers a spooky portrait of a beautiful woman, one who supposedly went mad, according to town gossip. Seymour, the local mailman, falls in love with the haunting image and buys the picture, refusing to part with it, even as fatal accidents befall those around it. Is the canvas cursed? Or is something more sinister at work?
For answers, Pen turns to an otherworldly source: Jack Shepard, PI. Back in the 1940s, Jack cracked a case of a killer cover artist, and (to Pen’s relief) his spirit is willing to help her solve this mystery, even if he and his license did expire decades ago.
Published May 4th
G hostly Chronicle: A Harper Harlow Mystery Books 16-18 by Lily Harper Hart
SYNOPSIS: Harper Harlow, ghost hunter extraordinaire, has seen it all. Ghosts, back-from-the-dead boyfriends, and parents ping-ponging between divorce and reconciliation are the norm for her. Finally, though, she’s about to get everything she’s ever wanted … if the ghosts don’t get in the way first. Join Harper and her motley crew of friends as they solve mysteries and a have a heckuva lot of fun.
Note: This three-book omnibus includes Ghostly Camping, Ghostly Wedding, and Ghostly Travels.
Published May 4th
Ghostly Travels (A Harper Harlow Mystery Book 18) by LilyHarper Hart
SYNOPSIS: Harper Harlow-Monroe thought getting to her wedding would be the hard part. She was wrong. Getting through her honeymoon is going to be a whole lot worse. Jared Monroe decided to surprise his new wife with a honeymoon in Salem, Massachusetts. The goal was to have fun, bask in the sun, and eat some good seafood while shutting out the rest of the world. The fact that there’s a ghost hunting conference happening at the same time is just added icing on the cupcake of life. Then the unthinkable happens and Harper’s best friend Zander Pritchett magically shows up for the conference … and decides to hijack their honeymoon. Jared might be able to put up with Zander, but when a missing girl and several ghosts rile up the atmosphere, things threaten to spiral out of control. Harper is who she is. When she finds out several teenagers have gone missing over the course of a month, she can’t stop herself from digging hard. What she finds is a strange nexus of ghosts who don’t act like she expects … and a story that might haunt her for the rest of her life. Harper is determined to make this a honeymoon to remember despite Zander and the ghosts working against her. She’s going to have to survive for that to happen … and nothing is a given. Salem is a city with a long history. Hopefully, it won’t be the end for Harper and Jared.
Published: May 4th
Murder in the Marigolds (Lovely Lethal Gardens Book 13) by Dale Mayer
SYNOPSIS: A new cozy mystery series from USA Today best-selling author Dale Mayer. Follow gardener and amateur sleuth Doreen Montgomery—and her amusing and mostly lovable cat, dog, and parrot—as they catch murderers and solve crimes in lovely Kelowna, British Columbia.
Published May 4th
The Inn at Holiday Bay: Clue in the Clam be Kathi Daley
SYNOPSIS: A heartwarming cozy mystery series about losing everything, taking a chance, and starting again.
After suffering a personal tragedy Abby Sullivan buys a huge old seaside mansion she has never even seen, packs up her life in San Francisco, and moves to Holiday Bay Maine, where she is adopted, quite against her will, by a huge Maine Coon Cat named Rufus, a drifter with her own tragic past named Georgia, and a giant dog with an inferiority complex named Ramos. What Abby thought she needed was alone time to heal. What she ended up with was, an inn she never knew she wanted, a cat she couldn’t seem to convince to leave, and a new family she’d never be able to live without.
In book 15 in the series, it’s time for the annual clam bake weekend which promises to bring not only new guests to know and love but a mystery to solve and an important decision to make.
Published May 4th
Prelude to a Witch (Wicked Witches of the Midwest Book 18)by Amanda M. Lee
SYNOPSIS: Bay Winchester has battled ghosts, shades, poltergeists … and sometimes her own family. It’s the latter giving her fits now. Well, and Hemlock Cove’s younger set of course. Bay thought the worst was behind her when she modified the memories of four tempestuous teenagers bent on stealing magic and wielding it in a tyrannical manner. Unfortunately for her, when one of those teenagers ends up dead behind the inn her father owns, things start to spiral. The girl’s death is ritual in fashion, bloody runes painted on the trees, and Bay can’t wrap her head around exactly what has happened. Then things get worse when dark figures start appearing in windows, black ghosts threatening Bay and her family at every turn. Between the horror haunting Hemlock Cove and the annoying presence of Bay’s former boss and his current fiancée, who just so happens to be a distant relative, Bay has her hands full … and that’s before her cousin Clove’s baby starts displaying a rather interesting skillset that is going to force accommodations within the family. All Bay wants is a little break to plan her wedding and look forward to happily ever after with her fiancé Landon Michaels. What’s she’s going to get is a whole lot of trouble. Bay’s growing powers are drawing in a new element of evil. It’s going to take everything she has – and a little help from Aunt Tillie – to fight the ultimate battle. Survival isn’t a given but Bay is determined to make it to her big day. No matter what.
Published May 4th
Life’s A Birch (The Bloomin’ Psychic Book 2) by Annabel Chase
SYNOPSIS: Forty-two-year-old Mia Thorne is settling into her new life in the small riverside town of Newberry, Pennsylvania. Part of her misses the bright lights of the big city, but Mia is determined to make the best of the cottage she inherited and its surrounding gardens, as well as her blossoming love life. Residents like Scarlet and Patrick have welcomed her with open arms and encourage Mia to embrace her special abilities with the same enthusiasm. Even Ophelia seems to have accepted her presence, although Mia’s convinced the ornery cat would be perfectly content to suck out her soul if she dared to leave the bedroom door unlocked at night.
When a body is discovered in the canal outside Scarlet’s house and the police suspect foul play, Mia rushes to her friend’s aid. Between a creepy birdwatching group and an unfriendly neighbor, Mia ends up with a list of suspects as long as Rapunzel’s hair. Unfortunately, Detective Derek Fairfax and Chief Tuck are determined to keep Mia away from the investigation under the guise of being, you know, the actual members of law enforcement–but Mia’s specialty is denial, and she’s more than happy to ignore their orders.
Can Mia identify the killer before it’s too late or will Scarlet find herself up a canal without a paddle?
Published May 6th
Penne Pyro: A delicious cozy mystery (A Jade Sommer Mystery Book 2) by Nicolette Pierce
SYNOPSIS: It’s getting hot!
As Jade helps her family get the restaurant up and running, an arsonist wreaks havoc on the food world, putting all local restaurants in jeopardy. The next victim is already targeted: Piatto Perfetto. Time is running out for Jade and her family.
While Jade attempts to keep Nana from donning her detective hat, developments arise with Logan. A shocking reveal will leave Jade devastated. Not only is the restaurant at risk, but so is her heart. She will need to layout her feelings to Logan once and for all. But, is it too late?
Can Jade find the pyro before Piatto Perfetto becomes the next victim? Is it too late for Jade and Logan to put the past aside? Get your copy of Penne Pyro and find out!
Published May 6th
The Man with the Silver Saab (Detective Varg 3) by Alexander McCall Smith
SYNOPSIS: Perplexing, unfathomable and perhaps unimportant, the cases that Malmo’s Department of Sensitive Crimes take on will test them to their limits.
Life – and crime – is not always as it seems for Ulf Varg and the other fearless detectives in Malmo’s Department of Sensitive Crimes. There are always surprising new cases to take on, and the latest batch is no exception. And that’s not to mention Ulf’s struggle to contain his feelings for his colleague Anna Bengsdotter. All in all, things are distinctly difficult in Malmo, and it seems up to Ulf and the Department to set them right.
Published May 6th
Strange Tricks: An Essex Witch Museum Mystery (The Essex Witch Museum Mysteries) by Syd Moore
SYNOPSIS: Rosie Strange is back in the latest of the fabulously creepy Essex Witch Museum Mysteries
Secretly Rosie Strange has always thought herself a little bit more interesting than most people – the legacy her family has bequeathed her is definitely so, she’s long believed. But then life takes a peculiar turn when the Strange legacy turns out not just to be the Essex Witch Museum, but perhaps some otherworldly gifts that Rosie finds difficult to fathom. Meanwhile Sam Stone, Rosie’s curator, is oddly distracted as breadcrumb clues into what happened to his missing younger brother and other abducted boys from the past are poised to lead him and Rosie deep into a dark wood where there lurks something far scarier than Hansel and Gretel’s witch…
Published May 6th
Summer Serendipity at the Twist and Turn Bakery: the perfect summer read (Heritage Cove Book 3) by Helen J. Rolfe
SYNOPSIS: It’s summer in Heritage Cove, the picturesque village by the sea. Join some of your favourite characters and welcome new faces in this uplifting, romantic read brimming with character, community and friendship…
The Heritage Bakery is finally getting the makeover it deserves, with sisters Jade and Celeste modernising the place and putting their own stamp on it while retaining all the charm of days gone by. But Jade has far more planned than a brand-new kitchen and fancy cake designs. She’s ready for an even bigger change in her life. It’s almost time to take the next step and she knows just what to do to make that happen.
Etna owns the village tea rooms and when she hears that local man Harvey is looking for a labourer to help him renovate the bakery after being let down at the last minute, she suggests to her nephew Linc that it may just be the change he needs to get his head straight. Linc arrives in the Cove willing to give it a go and he works hard, but what he hadn’t envisaged was anything bordering on a romance – not with his track record or what he’s involved in right now.
When a tall, dark, handsome stranger appears in the village and turns Jade’s world upside down, will it be enough to make her abandon her plan before she even sets the wheels in motion? And has Linc missed his chance to tell her how he really feels?
It’s almost time for the wedding of the year for one of the village favourites and the annual Wedding Dress Ball. But when the sun begins to set, will anyone else be lucky in love?
Published May 6th
Murder Takes a Holiday: Classic Crime Stories for Summer
SYNOPSIS: For most of us, a summer holiday is an opportunity to escape from it all: to lounge on warm sands or sip a cool drink in the shade of a city square. But, as the characters in this murderously good collection of classic crime stories discover to their cost … trouble has a nasty habit of finding you out.
From a body found on a beach without a single footprint, to a lemonade stand whose wares appear to have been poisoned and a Wimbledon final ruined by the mysterious disappearance of the championship player, these tales of murder and malice will take you on the trip of a lifetime.
So pour that glass of Pimms, grab your sunhat and indulge your dark side: these stories will chill you to your very core, even in a heatwave …
Published May 6th
Murder, She Wrote: Killing in a Koi Pond: 53 by Jessica Fletcher & Terrie Farley Moran
SYNOPSIS: After heading down to D.C. for a mystery writers’ conference, Jessica Fletcher decides she’s earned a vacation and takes a train to Columbia, South Carolina, to visit her old college friend Dolores. Dolores has just married her third husband, Willis Nickens, a wealthy and cutthroat businessman, and they’ve moved into an opulent historic home with plenty of space for guests. The morning after she arrives, Jessica goes out for a morning walk on the grounds of the estate, only to discover Willis facedown in the koi pond. The police think it might be a freak accident, but Jessica isn’t so sure. In her short time there, it had already become apparent that Willis wasn’t interested in making friends. In her mind, the question isn’t if Willis was murdered, but by whom.
Published May 6th
The Silent Bullet (Library of Congress Crime Classics) by Arthur Reeve
SYNOPSIS: Next in the esteemed Library of Congress Crime Classics, a collection of twelve tales of intrigue and suspense, featuring Craig Kennedy, the ‘American Sherlock Holmes’
First published in 1910, The Silent Bullet is the first collection of Arthur B. Reeve’s Craig Kennedy mysteries. In this book of twelve tales of intrigue and suspense, readers are introduced to Kennedy, sometimes called the ‘American Sherlock Holmes’, and his friend and assistant, reporter Walter James. A professor at Columbia University, Kennedy uses his scientific expertise and inventions to solve cases, usually employing pioneering turn-of-the-century technology, such as hidden microphones, lie detectors, and a makeshift defibrillator. Full of thrilling escapades as well as insight into the discoveries of the early 1900s, The Silent Bullet is an adventure from start to finish.
Published May 6th
A Dash of Sorcery (The French Quarter Witch Mystery Series Book 1) by Constance Barker & Corrine Winters
SYNOPSIS: A Cat Familiar who wears a monocle…only in New Orleans Does that Look Normal
Hey there, my name is Georgette, but you can call me Georgie…everyone does. I own the local art gallery for up and coming artists in the city. I can also summon Mother Nature if need be. See, I’m a witch that controls fire, wind, water and the air. As the saying goes, don’t mess with Mother Nature. Although, I’m only mother to a cat familiar, Mr. Marcel.
Mr. Marcel is 196 years old and never lets me forget it. He wears a monocle…I don’t know why…he thinks it makes him look regal although all the other cats laugh at him. What these other cats can’t do that Marcel can is identify when someone is lying or exaggerating. He also has flashes of the future, however, those can be confusing and get us into all kinds of trouble. He’s my bestie and I couldn’t imagine life without him.
Which comes to my next best friend Veronique. She has the power to speak to the dead, which comes in handy if someone is murdered. She also assists me at the gallery.
The local detective in our corner of the city is a warlock by the name of Raphael. His grey eyes put me in a trance, but I’m not sure he’s interested in me. At one moment he’s tender and another he’s aloof. Which makes me think he has secrets.
My mentor, Miss Hallie, is older than dirt. And I mean that in a nice way. The gal is old but still has the spunk of a 1200 year old. She owns the shop next to me, and performs a little tarot reading. Oh and she also raised me after my parents perished young. She likes her martinis dry and her jokes dirty.
And last but not least is my nemesis, Xavier. He’s a witch hunter, but mortal. He’s a thorn in my side as he thinks he’s more than he is. But he’s got his own secrets. Some that may change his world and mine.
When a murder occurs in my shop, I’m not willing to lie down and let the so called police take over. I will get to the bottom of it to restore my good name in the city of New Orleans.
Published May 6th
Murder in the Mews: Miss Hart and Miss Hunter Investigate: Book 4 by Celina Grace.
SYNOPSIS: It is 1935. Back in London, servant sleuths Joan Hart and Verity Hunter are enjoying life in the capital again. Joan has entered a tentative ‘understanding’ with Detective Inspector Marks, whilst Verity begins acting classes hosted by her uncle, Tommy.
Their new lives are rudely interrupted by a letter from a servant they’d once worked with: accused of the brutal murder of their elderly, wealthy employer. Joan and Verity want to help, but how can their friend be innocent of the crime when she and her employer were the only ones in the house on the night of the killing?
The two friends begin to investigate but as they know well from previous cases, people are always hiding secrets – some more deadly than others…
Published May 7th
F aking It (A Wayfair Witches’ Cozy Mystery #14) by A. A. Albright
SYNOPSIS: When a bat arrives, telling Wanda that he is her familiar, and she is his witch, things get confusing …
Wanda already has a familiar, and he looks exactly like this bat, sounds exactly like this bat, and only eats mangoes – exactly like this bat. Is this new arrival a Doppel-Dizzy, or a sign of something sinister in the air?
As well as finding out why Dizzy now has a double, Wanda must deal with a strangely-behaving Max, and a murdered janitor. The janitor was killed in Wentforth’s College for Wizards, and an important magical object has been stolen from the college, too.
As the body count increases, Wanda and the gang work hard to solve the case. But when they get to the bottom of this mystery, they may not like the answers …
Published May 8th
Dice on a Deadly Sea (A Cardboard Cottage Mystery Book 2) by Jane Elzey
SYNOPSIS: Four adventurous friends dive into murder while celebrating the big Five-O, and another husband dies trying. Zelda Carlisle’s birthday cruise with her three best friends is anything but a smooth sail. A cruise in the Galapagos Islands is a bucket list adventure come true, but plans go off the rails after they bump into a dead man on deck. Gambling that when there is no body there is no crime to ruin their fun, they hide him and hope no one will notice he’s missing. With their reckless deed landing them in peril, they charm their way through shark-infested waters, a mud-spa they didn’t anticipate, and a sexy pirate with something to hide. Sleuthing falls to Amy Sparks, who discovers all that glitters is not gold on this dicey deadly sea. If she can’t reel in a ruthless killer, they may never leave the ship alive.
Published May 10th
S huttered Secrets: A Spooky Paranormal Suspense (A Riley Thomas Mystery Book 2) by Melissa Erin Jackson
SYNOPSIS: He doesn’t want her to focus on the past.
It’s been six months since Riley Thomas, reluctant medium extraordinaire, has had a ghost haunting her apartment, and she prefers it that way. Life is less complicated when the dead aren’t trying to get her attention. Her best friend is getting married and wants to DIY her way through wedding prep—Riley’s got no time for ghosts.
One of Jade’s wedding must-haves is vintage film cameras her guests can use to help document the big day. The months-long hunt for relics leads to a thrift shop jackpot, and Riley adds the cameras to the growing pile of wedding supplies in her apartment. That night, Riley gets a midnight wake-up call from a ghostly Black woman in a yellow dress.
Even after the haunted cameras are removed from the apartment, the ghost woman keeps popping up, both in Riley’s dreams and in the corner of her eye. Tracking down the previous owner of the cameras proves difficult, and as Riley digs deeper, she uncovers a link between the cameras and two murdered women—one white, one black, yet neither one is Riley’s mystery woman.
Though the identity of the ghost proves to be as elusive as her predator, Riley is determined to uncover the truth of what happened to these women. But now someone knows she’s looking … and he’s hell-bent on making sure he finds her first.
Published May 10th
A Body at the Tea Rooms: A totally addictive English murder mystery novel (A Kate Palmer Novel Book 3) by Dee McDonald
SYNOPSIS: Meet Kate Palmer! A semi-retired nurse with a sweet tooth for cake and a talent for solving crimes.
Kate Palmer is most disappointed when renovations at her sister Angie’s new tea rooms are derailed after a body is discovered in the cellar. She was looking forward to clotted cream teas with a seaside view. Instead she has another murder mystery to solve…
If the village gossip is to be believed, the unfortunate man was connected to the wealthy Hedgefield family. Kate is reluctant to get caught up in the investigation but a curious card in the victim’s jacket pocket sparks her interest. Not to mention the ridiculous rumour Angie is somehow involved! Keen to clear her sister’s name so she can finally eat cake in the charming tea rooms, Kate teams up with handsome retired Detective ‘Woody’ Forrest to untangle the baffling case.
After quizzing the locals over copious cups of tea, Kate begins to realise the Hedgefields, who live in a grand mansion and own half the village, are not as perfect as they make out. They’re hiding a long-buried family secret and plenty of people have a grudge against them, including a number of their ex-employees.
But who could have murdered a member of Lower Tinworthy’s most enviable family? Was it the old gardener? The seemingly sweet cook? Or the bitter maid?
Just as she inches closer to the truth, Angie goes missing. Does amateur sleuth Kate have what it takes to get to the bottom of this extraordinary puzzle and save her sister at the same time?
Published May 10th
SHERLOCK HOLMES The Langsdale House Mystery (The Watson Chronicles) by Christopher D Abbott
SYNOPSIS: A murder suicide investigation at Langsdale House raises significant concerns for Inspector Bradstreet of Scotland Yard–but his superiors consider the matter closed.
When Dr Wallace Houston-Smythe, a well-respected medical man, apparently kills his stepson, Harold Houston, and then himself, Inspector Bradstreet’s misgivings on the detail of both deaths leads him to seek advice from Sherlock Holmes. With Holmes persuaded to investigate, he and Dr Watson follow clues leading deep into the heart of high-society London. Dr Wallace had a secret which certain powerful men will stop at nothing to ensure remains undiscovered. It falls to Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson to uncover the motives for those deaths–motives that appear intrinsically linked to the grisly goings-on at Langsdale House…
Published May 10th
Deadly Ever After (A Lighthouse Library Mystery) by Eva Gates
SYNOPSIS: Librarian Lucy’s wedding is at stake when a murder interrupts her engagement celebrations. To make it down the aisle, she’ll have to find the killer to save the date in the 8th book in the Lighthouse Library mysteries.
They’re getting married! Lucy Richardson and Connor McNeil have announced their engagement. Their friends throw a party for the couple at Coquina Beach, close to Lucy’s beloved Bodie Island Lighthouse Library.
As they’re packing up the presents and the (few) leftovers from Josie’s Cozy Bakery, who should arrive, but Richard Eric Lewiston III, Lucy’s former almost-fiancé and his overbearing mother Evangeline. Push comes to love when Evangeline makes no secret of why she’s here: to get Lucy and Ricky back together.
Lucy isn’t temped in the least, and Ricky is nothing but embarrassed at his mother’s desperate ploy. Before returning to Boston Evangeline throws a dinner party at Jake’s Seafood Bar for a reluctant Lucy and her family. Lucy hopes to get the dinner over with and see Evangeline and Ricky returning to Boson. But when a body is found at the restaurant’s kitchen door, Lucy is again forced to unwillingly put on her detective’s hat and do what she can to save her family and her engagement. Meanwhile, the classic novel reading club is reading The Hound of the Baskervilles, and open war breaks out in the Lighthouse Library when Lucy agrees to temporarily take care of a dog named Fluffy, but Charles the library cat has other ideas.
Published May 11th
Bloodshed in the Forest: A Viking Witch Cozy Mystery (The Viking Witch Cozy Mysteries Book 5) by Cate Martin
SYNOPSIS: After more than a month living in the lost Viking colony of Villmark, Ingrid Torfa just barely feels at home there. As her magic grows, so grows the animosity of those who wish her gone from their world. And now she faces a new challenge: a winter hunt, held in the deep, dark forest that surrounds the village. Her hosts the Thors swear to keep her safe from the dangers ever-present outside the walls of their hunting lodge. Yet the real danger may lurk within those walls. Not all the other guests appreciate Ingrid’s presence among them. And then one of the hunting party disappears in the night. Taken by Odin’s Wild Hunt? A tragic accident. But lured outside the lodge’s protective walls and then taken by Odin’s Wild Hunt? That looks like murder by magical means. As the only magical person in the lodge, suspicions fall on Ingrid. She knows her own innocence, but if she fails to find the guilty party in time, someone else may die.
Published May 11th
The Remains of the Fae (Down & Dirty Supernatural Cleaning Services Book 5) by Kate Karyus Quinn
SYNOPSIS: When Paige’s Fae ex-husband Jax wants a faerieland divorce, Oberon sends them on a quest to find out who murdered a Fae in the human world.
Published May 11th
Peaches and Schemes: A Georgia B&B Mystery by Anna Gerard
SYNOPSIS: In Anna Gerard’s third delightful Georgia B&B mystery, Nina Fleet learns that despite the satin, lace, and buttercream trappings, weddings often prove to be anything but sweet…
Nina Fleet might be new to the innkeeping business, but she’s savvy enough to know that Cymbeline’s tourists aren’t enough to keep her fledgling bed and breakfast going. And so, Nina decides to tap into the destination wedding market by taking a booth at the Veils and Vanities Bridal Expo. The twice-yearly event is sponsored by the town’s two wedding pros: Virgie Hamilton, the sixtysomething owner of Virgie’s Formals, and Roxanna Quarry, a Gen X event planner and Nina’s new friend. But everything goes wrong during the expo’s fashion show, when Roxanna comes tumbling out of an oversized prop wedding cake, strangled to death by her own scarf.
Virgie is arrested for the crime, thanks to Nina’s statement to the police about having overheard the woman accusing her partner of embezzlement. Meanwhile, the situation grows tense with her sometimes nemesis and current tenant, the dashing out-of-work actor Harry Westcott. Harry is concentrating on plugging his most recent side hustle …but he’s not too busy to break the news to Nina that her ex-husband is engaged to be married again.
Certain that Virgie’s only offense is a bad temper, Nina decides to do her own investigating. First, however, she and Harry retrieve Roxanna’s now ownerless dog, planning to foster him until a new home can be found. But local gossip soon convinces Nina that others beside Virgie might have had reason to murder Roxanna. As Nina gets close to the truth, she’s putting her own life at danger. And when Virgie vanishes after being bailed out of jail by an unknown benefactor, Nina fears that if she can’t find the dress shop owner in time, tying the knot will take on a whole new meaning for them both.
Published May 11th
A Peculiar Combination: An Electra McDonnell Novel: 1 by Ashley Weaver
SYNOPSIS: The first in the Electra McDonnell series from Edgar-nominated author Ashley Weaver, set in England during World War II, A Peculiar Combination is a delightful mystery filled with spies, murder, romance, and the author’s signature wit.
Electra McDonnell has always known that the way she and her family earn their living is slightly outside of the law. Breaking into the homes of the rich and picking the locks on their safes may not be condoned by British law enforcement, but World War II is in full swing, Ellie’s cousins Colm and Toby are off fighting against Hitler, and Uncle Mick’s more honorable business as a locksmith can’t pay the bills any more. So when Uncle Mick receives a tip about a safe full of jewels in the empty house of a wealthy family, he and Ellie can’t resist. All goes as planned–until the pair are caught redhanded. Ellie expects them to be taken straight to prison, but instead they are delivered to a large townhouse, where government official Major Ramsey is waiting with an offer: either Ellie agrees to help him break into a safe and retrieve blueprints that will be critical to the British war effort, before they can be delivered to a German spy, or he turns her over to the police. Ellie doesn’t care for the Major’s imperious manner, but she has no choice, and besides, she’s eager to do her bit for king and country. She may be a thief, but she’s no coward. When she and the Major break into the house in question, they find instead the purported German spy dead on the floor, the safe already open and empty. Soon, Ellie and Major Ramsey are forced to put aside their differences to unmask the double-agent, as they try to stop allied plans falling into German hands.
Published May 11th
Punning with Scissors (A Crossword Puzzle Mystery Book 2) by Becky Clark
SYNOPSIS: Quinn Carr has been quietly creating crosswords for the Chestnut Station Chronicle in her small Colorado town since she was in high school, but she has yet to solve the puzzle of how to make a living from her passion. So she lives with her parents and works at the local diner, catering to regulars like The Retireds, a charming if cantankerous crew of elderly men. The most recent member to join the group is a recently retired tailor, the unfortunately named Hugh Pugh.
4-LETTER WORD FOR “IMPALE”
But Hugh’s misfortune dramatically increases when he’s arrested for stabbing his husband with a pair of fabric shears. With a cryptic crossword clue left at the crime scene, Quinn seems tailor-made for solving this murder. The local police may be determined to pin the crime on the kindly tailor, but Quinn will use her penchant for puzzles and what her therapist calls her “obsessive coping mechanism” to get the clues to line up and catch the real culprit—before the killer boxes her in. . . .
Published May 11th
A Gladiator’s Tale (Leonidas the Gladiator Mysteries Book 2) by Ashley Gardner
SYNOPSIS: Leonidas’s former trainer, Aemil, asks him to look into the mysterious deaths of the gladiators in his ludus. Leonidas and Cassia investigate, uncovering scandal that plunges the two into mortal danger.
Published May 11th
Pride and Premeditation (Jane Austen Murder Mysteries, 1) by Tirzah Price
SYNOPSIS: Perfect for fans of the Lady Janies and Stalking Jack the Ripper, the first book in the Jane Austen Murder Mysteries series is a clever retelling of Pride and Prejudice that reimagines the iconic settings, characters, and romances in a thrilling and high-stakes whodunit.
When a scandalous murder shocks London high society, seventeen-year-old aspiring lawyer Lizzie Bennet seizes the opportunity to prove herself, despite the interference of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, the stern young heir to the prestigious firm Pemberley Associates.
Convinced the authorities have imprisoned the wrong person, Lizzie vows to solve the murder on her own. But as the case—and her feelings for Darcy—become more complicated, Lizzie discovers that her dream job could make her happy, but it might also get her killed.
Published May 13th
A Brush with Death: Book 2 (A Nosey Parker Cozy Mystery) by Fiona Leitch
SYNOPSIS: When a body turned up at her last catering gig it certainly put people off the hor d’oeuvres. So with a reputation to salvage, Jodie’s determined that her next job for the village’s festival will go without a hitch.
But when chaos breaks out, Jodie Parker somehow always finds herself in the picture.
The body of a writer from the festival is discovered at the bottom of a cliff, and the prime suspect is the guest of honour, the esteemed painter Duncan Stovall. With her background in the Met police, Jodie has got solving cases down to a fine art and she knows things are rarely as they seem.
Can she find the killer before the village faces another brush with death?
Published May 13th
A Lethal Lesson (Lane Winslow Mysteries 8) by Iona Whishaw
SYNOPSIS: Lane Winslow trades crime solving for substitute teaching in the eighth installment of this mystery series that Kirkus Reviews calls “riveting”.
Back home in the Kootenays after her Arizona honeymoon, Lane offers her assistance when neither the outgoing teacher, Rose, nor her replacement, Wendy, show up at the local schoolhouse one blizzardy Monday in December. But when she finds the teachers’ cottage ransacked with Rose unconscious and bleeding, and Wendy missing, Lane delivers Rose to the hospital in Nelson and turns the case over to her exasperated husband, Inspector Darling, and his capable colleagues, Sergeant Ames and Constable Terrell.
Never one to leave a post unmanned, Lane enlists as substitute teacher for the final two weeks before the Christmas holidays, during which time she discovers a threatening note in the teachers’ desk and a revolver in the supply cupboard. But these clues only convolute the case further. Who has been tormenting these women, and where has Wendy gone?
Meanwhile, Darling finds the body of a hit-and-run victim in a snowbank miles outside of Nelson, the residents of King’s Cove are preoccupied by the possibility of a new neighbour, and Sergeant Ames is as confused as ever by the inimitable Tina Van Eyck.
Published May 13th
A Body at the Tea Rooms (A Kate Palmer Novel Book 3) by Dee MacDonald
SYNOPSIS: Meet Kate Palmer! A semi-retired nurse with a sweet tooth for cake and a talent for solving crimes.
Kate Palmer is most disappointed when renovations at her sister Angie’s new tea rooms are derailed after a body is discovered in the cellar. She was looking forward to clotted cream teas with a seaside view. Instead she has another murder mystery to solve…
If the village gossip is to be believed, the unfortunate man was connected to the wealthy Hedgefield family. Kate is reluctant to get caught up in the investigation but a curious card in the victim’s jacket pocket sparks her interest. Not to mention the ridiculous rumour Angie is somehow involved! Keen to clear her sister’s name so she can finally eat cake in the charming tea rooms, Kate teams up with handsome retired Detective ‘Woody’ Forrest to untangle the baffling case.
After quizzing the locals over copious cups of tea, Kate begins to realise the Hedgefields, who live in a grand mansion and own half the village, are not as perfect as they make out. They’re hiding a long-buried family secret and plenty of people have a grudge against them, including a number of their ex-employees.
But who could have murdered a member of Lower Tinworthy’s most enviable family? Was it the old gardener? The seemingly sweet cook? Or the bitter maid?
Just as she inches closer to the truth, Angie goes missing. Does amateur sleuth Kate have what it takes to get to the bottom of this extraordinary puzzle and save her sister at the same time?
Published May 13th
A Ghastly Spectacle: A Regency Cozy (Beatrice Hyde-Clare Mysteries Book 8) by Lynn Messina
SYNOPSIS: Since the new Duchess of Kesgrave cannot be swayed from her unfortunate interest in dead bodies, Lady Abercrombie decides to confront the matter head-on by hosting a murder mystery dinner party. Gathering together several of society’s most influential members, she concocts an amusing puzzle-play, assigns roles, and stands back to allow Bea to impress them all with her ingenuity.
The former spinster will be the height of fashion in no time. Huzzah!
No, she won’t, Bea thinks. Her status has increased with her marriage, yes, but so have the insecurities that bedeviled her first season. Far from charming everyone with her wit, she will appall them with her inability to form coherent or interesting sentences.
’Tis a three-act tragedy in the making.
But then one of the guests is killed in the same manner as her ladyship’s victim and the evening turns genuinely tragic. Horrified, the august company scurry for the exits, and Bea, determined to detain all her lovely suspects, throws herself bodily against the door. Intimidated or not, she will identify the murderer—even if it guarantees her social ruin.
Published May 14th
Preface to Murder: An Oxford Murder Mystery (Bridget Hart Book 6) by M. S. Morris
SYNOPSIS: A dangerous book. A hidden secret. A deadly betrayal.
The Oxford Literary Festival is in full swing, but Detective Inspector Bridget Hart isn’t there to learn about books. Instead she’s been given the task of protecting Diane Gilbert, a controversial author who has received a death threat. Diane doesn’t seem to think she needs Bridget’s protection, but when the worst happens, Bridget’s role switches to running a murder enquiry.
The only clues Bridget has to go on relate to Diane’s new book which examines the murky world of international arms deals. Under pressure to identify the killer, Bridget finds herself drawn into the clandestine world of foreign governments and the British Security Service. She’ll need all her wiles and the full cooperation of her team to follow the twisting trail of evidence to its logical conclusion.
Set amongst the dreaming spires of Oxford University, the Bridget Hart series is perfect for fans of Elly Griffiths, JR Ellis, Faith Martin and classic British murder mysteries.
Published May 14th
Murder on the Moors (A Dodo Dorchester Mystery Book 4) by Ann Sutton
SYNOPSIS: When you just want to run away and nurse your broken heart but murder comes knocking.
Lady Dorothea Dorchester, Dodo, flees to her cousins’ estate in Dartmoor in search of peace and relaxation after her devastating break-up with Charlie and the awkward attraction to Chief Inspector Blood that caused it. Horrified to learn that the arch-nemesis from her schooldays, Veronica Shufflebottom, has been invited, Dodo prepares for disappointment. However, all that pales when one of the guests disappears after a ramble on the foggy moors. Presumed dead, Dodo attempts to contact the local police to report the disappearance only to find that someone has tampered with the ancient phone. The infamous moor fog is too thick for safe travel and the guests are therefore stranded. Can Dodo solve the case without the help of the police before the fog lifts?
Published May 14th
Jackal & Hide: A Compassionate Cozy Murder Mystery (A Kenya Kanga Mystery Book 4) by Victoria Tait
SYNOPSIS: Limited time. A murderer hiding in plain sight. Can she crack the deadly puzzle without breaking her own heart?
‛Mama Rose’ Hardie just wants to make her ailing husband comfortable. So she puts aside her dedication to wildlife and community and whisks him off to a luxury lodge for a breathtaking getaway. But when a guest enters the bush and never returns, Rose is torn between remaining at her partner’s side and her fears for the woman’s plight.
Shocked when the missing person is found strangled to death, Rose struggles to balance her priorities when her husband takes a serious fall and ends up in the hospital. And with her estranged son demanding she stay by her husband’s bedside, the anxious investigator worries the killer may escape into the grassland…
Can Mama Rose solve the murder before time is cut short?
Jackal & Hide is the page-turning fourth novel in the Kenya Kanga cozy mystery series. If you like clever whodunits, captivating scenery, and deeply personal themes, then you’ll love Victoria Tait’s enthralling tale.
Published May 14th
~ Skeptic in Salem: An Episode of Death (A Dubious Witch Cozy Mystery—Book 3) by Fiona Grace
SYNOPSIS: When Mia Bold, 30, learns that the pharmaceutical company she works for only cares about money, she quits on the spot, walking away from a high-powered career—and from her long-time boyfriend, who breaks up with her.
With the podcast and TV show taking off, Mia’s career and life are finally starting to bloom again—when her uptight family makes an unexpected visit to Salem, to cast doubts on her passion and to urge her to return home.
At the same time, Mia’s show must try to debunk a notoriously haunted house, now on the market for sale. Mia, unable to explain the phenomena, seems to have met her match—just as the real estate agent drops dead.
Could this house be as insidious as it seems?
Or might there be some other motive?
A mesmerizing page-turner, packed with intrigue, mystery, romance, pets, food—and most of all, the supernatural—SKEPTIC IN SALEM is a cozy with a twist, one you will cherish as it has you fall in love with its main character and as it keeps you glued (and laughing) throughout the night.
Published May 14th
The Witch’s Wrath: Witches of Abaddon’s Gate Book 1 by Tegan Maher
SYNOPSIS: These old witches think they can come here and steal the youth from unsuspecting women? Not in my town, sugar. Hold my potion.
My name’s Mila Maganti, and I used to be content running my potions shop and spending my days off at the beach. That is until some crazy angel decided to break her demon boyfriend out of the Valley of Lost Souls and let way more than just one bad-boy spirit out in the process.
I run the potions shop because it’s what I love. What most people don’t know, though, is that my blood runs thick with powerful earth magic, and if I have to, I can do a bang-up job of holding my own in a fight if I have to. Or if I want to.
When two girls turn up dead, drained of all their life forces, the Paranormal Criminal Investigation Bureau realizes what’s happened. Some of the souls that escaped are evil witches bent on getting their bodies back, and to do that, they’ll use ancient dark magic to siphon the essence from young women.
As head of the regional crime unit, my cousin Michael came to me for help. He knows me, he trusts me, and most importantly, he knows I have what it takes to put these witches back in the pit they flew out of. And I’ll do it with a smile. Nobody comes to my town and harms the people I care about. They’ve done gone and ticked off the wrong witch.
Join me, my Arctic fox, Calamity, and my team of witches, shifters, and fae as we hunt these souls down and send them back where they belong. Who knows – you may even run into a Valkyrie or two along the way.
Published May 15th
The Cursed Lantern: A Paranormal Artifacts Cozy Mystery (Paranormal Artifacts Cozy Mysteries Book 3) by Tegan Maher
SYNOPSIS: Burt Emerson was stubborn, rude, and ungrateful, but he didn’t deserve to die for it. Much, anyway.
Burt Emerson was one of the most contrary people the gods ever stretched hide over. He had it all – a great wife, a nice house, a corner office in a building he owned – but he took it all for granted. And then he turned up dead amid some bizarre circumstances. He’d reported his wife missing while she was standing right beside him, and claimed his grandfather’s watch had been stolen even though it was right there on his wrist. His partner said he wandered around the parking lot of their office building but never came inside.
That’s a little nuts even by our standards, so I decide to take a closer look. Why me? Because through an impressively confounded set of circumstances, I set a trunkful of cursed objects loose on the unwitting non-magicals in our town. Now I have to figure out which of the pieces in his collection killed him before somebody else dies and his wife goes to prison.
Just another Tuesday in Mystic Beach.
Published May 15th
Cupcakes are Murder (Bijoux Mystery Series Book 3) by Teri Barnett
SYNOPSIS: A cupcake conundrum, a culinary queen on the edge, and a cold-case killer on the loose…
Morgan Hart is settling into her job as police captain of Bijoux, Michigan. Murders have been solved, puppies have been rescued, and she’s starting to see some progress in the renovation of the beach house she inherited from her mom. Despite trying to solve her husband’s murder five years ago, Morgan is trying to find balance in her new life.
Life is sweet.
Until it’s not.
Hannah Bellamy, owner of Hannah’s Heavenly Confections, Bijoux’s premier bakery, has won a contest on the Baking TV Network to host this year’s Cupcake Bakeoff. When word gets out that British baking superstar Sassy McComas, aka, The Queen of Cupcakes is participating, Bijoux becomes the icing on the cake for bakers and foodies around the world desperate to meet Queen Sass and make a name for themselves. Rumor has it, Queen Sass is secretly searching for a fresh face to turn into a baking star for a new TV show she’s launching.
But when one of the top challengers in the Cupcake Bakeoff turns up dead in the alley of the Bijoux Community Center, Morgan has to sift through the evidence and stop the killer before they strike again and threaten to topple Queen Sass from her throne.
Published May 15th
~ The Adventure of the Deceased Scholar (The Early Case Files of Sherlock Holmes Book 3)by Liese Sherwood-Fabre
SYNOPSIS: Award-winning author and recognized Sherlockian scholar Liese Sherwood-Fabre’s third novel in “The Early Case Files of Sherlock Holmes” follows the young detective to London for the spring holiday. This CIBA first-place mystery and mayhem winner has been described by bestselling author Gemma Halliday as “a classic in the making” and Kirkus Reviews as “a multifaceted and convincing addition to Sherlock-ian lore.”
A tragedy during the 1868 Oxford-Cambridge Boat race puts Mycroft Holmes’ reputation on the line.
When Mycroft Holmes identifies a drowning victim, he is drawn into a situation that could destroy not only Lord Surminster’s name, but his own reputation as well. If ruled a suicide, the lord’s assets will be returned to the Crown, leaving his mother and siblings destitute. Should that happen, the victim’s sister has threatened to drag Mycroft’s good name through the mire. Will Sherlock be able determine what happened before more than one family is destroyed?
Published May 15th
~ A Medium’s Protégé: A Cozy Ghost Mystery (Becky Tibbs: A North Carolina Medium’s Mystery Book 10) by Chariss K. Walker
SYNOPSIS: In the 10th book in this sweet, clean cozy mystery series, Becky Tibbs helps someone from her past as well as a young friend. Becky has always had a special relationship with little Suzie Black. Suzie has otherworldly talents of her own. She sees the spiritual companions of everyone she meets. In the past and before Becky helped her understand her gifts, it had gotten Suzie into a lot of trouble. Now, with the Covid virus pandemic still raging, Suzie’s mother must go to Florida to help her own mother. She can’t take Suzie with her and must seek Becky’s help to watch over her daughter while she is away. Join Becky and all the Tibbs family as they help ghosts in Asheville, North Carolina with their unfinished business.
Published May 15th
Fate’s a Witch: Celestial Academy: The Witch Book 3 by Tegan Maher
SYNOPSIS: Two components of the Sceptor of Life recovered, two to go if I want to save the world. Failure’s not an option.Twice now, I’ve nearly died battling the witches who stole the Sceptor and Stones of Life, but I accomplished what I started out to do: reclaim the magical stones that keep white magic alive. Both times I’ve battled, I’ve discovered new abilities, and both times, I barely made it out alive. The important thing is that I made it out. Now I have three days left to recover the final two stones.Let’s hope my luck holds because I’m the only thing standing between humanity and the end of the world. Well, me and my partner and a whole lot of magic. It’s not going to be easy, but I’m a Flynn witch – nothing ever is.
Published May 16th
Sight Seering (Shady Grove Psychic Mystery Book 3) by Ada Bell
SYNOPSIS: A Seer in the City…
While visiting an estate sale to pick up new items for Missing Pieces, Aly gets hit with a surprise: the elderly homeowner didn’t have a heart attack–she was murdered. Aly’s got the evidence in her hands, and the killer is offering to sell it to her. Time to make a deal, then call the police.
If only anyone believed her. Miriam Peabody was in her 70s and appeared to die of natural causes. Police found no evidence of foul play, but Aly knows what she saw. Worse, she’s pretty sure the killer has powers of their own. As she seeks evidence to support her vision, someone is watching Aly’s every move. They’re always one step ahead. She needs to find concrete evidence to give the police before someone Miriam trusted gets away with murder.
Published May 17th
Dead On Target: Paranormal Cozy Mystery (Visions & Victims Book 5) by Lily Webb
SYNOPSIS: Don’t shoot the messenger…
Psychic Selena feels like she’s finally settling into her new life at the paranormal Kindred Spirits Inn — until a hair-raising hound swipes one of her guests. The only problem? No one can track down the shapeshifting suspect.
When a hunting party begins a search for the lethal lycan, Selena fears things aren’t what they seem — and what she discovers raises her hackles.
Someone’s hounding after the werewolf for all the wrong reasons, and they’ll stop at nothing to make sure they bag the beast.
Can Selena’s visions spare the shapeshifter? Or will she be the next to take a silver bullet?
Dead On Target is the fifth book in the Visions and Victims series of paranormal cozy mysteries. If paranormal pariahs, heartless hunters, and magical mysteries get your wand waving, then you’re sure to fall under the spell of this new spinoff series that expands Lily Webb’s magical universe.
Published May 17th
Auntie Poldi and the Lost Madonna: Auntie Poldi 4 by Maria Giordano
SYNOPSIS: There’s only one Auntie Poldi: bewigged, cursing in Bavarian, and knocking back a wee shot of grappa as a pre-breakfast aperitif . . . or is there? No one is as they seem (and sound) in this hilarious new mystery featuring Sicily’s sultriest sleuth.
Strange dealings are afoot in the Apostolic Palace–a nun leapt to her death shortly after participating in a seemingly routine exorcism. But when a priest clad in Gammarelli and a Vatican commissario with an almost unholy level of sex appeal turn up at her door, Poldi is shocked to hear that she’s a suspect in their case.
Who is the woman being exorcised, and where has she disappeared to? And why in the world does she claim, in perfect Bavarian, to be Poldi, Isolde Oberreiter, of Torre Archirafi?
Poldi will need all the help she can get to clear her name, but her nephew has been distracted by a love affair gone sour, someone in the town has been spraying graffiti death threats on her front door, and her local friends seem to be avoiding her. And even Vito Montana balks when Poldi discovers that the case hinges on a lost Madonna statue, stolen years ago from the pope himself.
Forza, Poldi! With a pair of mysterious twins dogging her every move and a mandate to maintain sobriety, will Poldi be able to unmask her mysterious doppelgänger, find the lost statue in time, and survive her sixty-first birthday?
Published May 18th
Curses & Cliffhangers (A Library Witch Mystery Book 8) by Elle Adams
SYNOPSIS: Life is good for Rory Hawthorn. She’s progressing well in her magical lessons and is also finally unearthing her father’s long-kept secrets. If not for the Grim Reaper trying to interfere in her love life, things would be perfect.
Until the Grim Reaper goes missing, at the same time as a lethal curse is set loose in Ivory Beach which leaves even Rory’s family stumped. With the local curse-breaker being as unhelpful as ever, a particularly annoying local celebrity in town and the vampires scheming, it’s a wonder she has any time to uncover the secrets her father kept hidden in his journal – even if his past is linked to the present in more ways than she knows.
Can Rory and Xavier put an end to the deadly curse and win themselves back into the Grim Reaper’s good graces?
Published May 18th
Aged for Malice (A Tuscan Vineyard Cozy Mystery—Book 7) by Fiona Grace
SYNOPSIS: Olivia Glass, 34, turns her back on her life as a high-powered executive in Chicago and relocates to Tuscany, determined to start a new, simpler life—and to grow her own vineyard.
Olivia is stunned when she discovers the treasure map may lead to a historic wine cellar, hidden on her estate, filled with priceless wine. It seems like the stuff of dreams—until a dead body puts her at the center of the high-stakes discovery, and turns her heaven into a hell.
Can she clear her name?
And will the priceless find be hers?
Published May 18th
Independent Bones (A Sarah Booth Delaney Mystery) by Carolyn Haines
SYNOPSIS: When Dr. Alala Diakos, a visiting professor of Greek literature, comes to teach at Ole Miss in Oxford, Mississippi, it doesn’t take long for controversy to follow. With her fervent feminist ideals and revolutionary leanings, she quickly earns the admiration of many—and the ire of others. During a speech in the park, in which Alala tries to organize the women of Zinnia to demand equal pay, the crowd gets unruly, with men heckling the professor. And when PI Sarah Booth Delaney finds a sniper rifle and scope in the bushes, she begins to worry that there are more than fighting words at stake.
Sarah Booth calls her boyfriend, Sheriff Coleman Peters, who offers the protection of the Zinnia police department, but Alala rejects him, saying she has no use for the law or men. And when a notorious domestic abuser is found dead the next day, suspicions turn to Alala herself, who was overheard bragging that she would take him down. Tensions deepen when connections are drawn between Alala and two similar, previous deaths.
But Sarah Booth doesn’t want to believe Alala is a murderer, and when the professor shows up at Sarah Booth’s doorstep, asking her to find the real criminal, Sarah Booth embarks on a case stretching across the Delta. Yet Alala remains at the center of it all, and Sarah Booth can’t help but wonder if the killer has been with her all along…
Published May 18th
Apple Valley, Ax, and Ambrosia: A Cozy Contemporary International Crime Mystery (Sadie Silver Mystery #5) by Kailin Gow
SYNOPSIS: It is a Purrfect Mix of Romance, Food, and Mystery.
Fashionable Celebrity Pastry Chef Sadie Silver loves mixing travel, food, romance, and crime solving wherever she goes or stays…along with the help of her intelligent cat Orchid and sensitive-smelling-nose dog Biscuit. handsome forensic scientist Palmer, and the mysterious gorgeous man who always places an order directly from her for a dozen red velvet cupcakes.
Published May 18th
Doggone Deadly: A Wayside Bay Mystery – Book 3 of The House Call Dog Groomer Series by Reida Kenzington
SYNOPSIS: The third fun and furry sleuthing adventure in The Wayside Bay Mystery series. Charlie & Mabel are enjoying the annual beach side quilt retreat when murder strikes! Watch for it in Spring 2021!
Published May 18th
Beachfront Bakery: A Perilous Cake Pop (A Beachfront Bakery Cozy Mystery—Book 3) by Fiona Grace
SYNOPSIS: Allison Sweet, 34, a sous chef in Los Angeles, has had it up to here with demeaning customers, her demanding boss, and her failed love life. After a shocking incident, she realizes the time has come to start life fresh and follow her lifelong dream of moving to a small town and opening a bakery of her own.
After a popular food critic trashes Allison’s bakery, he ends up dead—and suspicion falls on her. With business failing, Allison’s only hope is to solve the crime and clear her name.
But it’s not so simple: the dead critic infuriated a long line of people, and any of them could have gladly killed him. Will Allison—and her beloved dog—be able to solve the seemingly impossible case in time?
A hilarious cozy mystery series, packed with twists, turns, romance, travel, food and unexpected adventure, the BEACHFRONT BAKERY series will keep you laughing and turning pages late into the night as you fall in love with an endearing new character who will capture your heart.
Published May 18th
Best in Breed (Locust Point Mystery Book 11) by Libby Howard
SYNOPSIS: Valentine’s Day in Locust Point brings love, puppies…and murder!
Everyone is enchanted by Olive’s new puppy—even an initially wary Taco. Thinking she might want to add a furry friend to her own home, Daisy convinces Kay to go with her on a whirlwind tour of shelters, rescues, and breeders. But puppy loves comes to an abrupt end when the two women find well-known animal advocate Prucilla Downing dead in a pile of broken trophies and slashed fur coats.
With plenty of suspects, Kay jumps in to find the murderer, find homes for a kennel full of puppies, and find the perfect Valentine’s Day gift for Judge Beck.
Published May 18th
The Art of Deception: A Daughter of Sherlock Holmes Mystery (Daughter of Sherlock Holmes Mysteries, 4) by Leonard Goldberg
SYNOPSIS: Suspenseful and entertaining, with many twists and turns….This is one of the best Sherlock Holmes series since Laurie R. King’s Mary Russell books.–Historical Novel Society
USA Today bestselling author Leonard Goldberg returns with another puzzling case for the daughter of Sherlock Holmes to unravel in this exciting mystery, The Art of Deception, sure to be enjoyed by fans of Sherlock Holmes as well as Laurie R. King and Charles Finch.
In the west end of London, an apparently crazed individual is on the loose, breaking into art galleries and private homes to slash valuable paintings of women. Despite Scotland Yard’s best efforts, the criminal remains at large and continues on his destructive path.
When Joanna and the Watsons are called in to solve the mystery, they soon discover that although the canvases have been slashed, their backings remain pristine, with no cuts or scratches. The criminal, it seems, is no mere vandal–he’s searching for something hidden behind the portraits.
Suspicion soon falls on two skilled art restorers who previously worked at the gallery where all the vandalized art was purchased. When Joanna finds the body of one in a bricked off fireplace at the gallery, the other is left as the prime suspect. But then he’s discovered dead as well. Luckily, Joanna has a plan for ensnaring the criminal once and for all. But it must not fail, or more paintings–and lives–will be lost.
Published May 18th
The Real Not-Wives of Red Rock Canyon (The Extra Series Book 12) by Megan Walker & Janci Patterson
SYNOPSIS: Does he really want to be my boyfriend if he never even thinks about a future where he’s anything more?
Social media maven Emily Pietrowski loves working alongside her boyfriend, celebrity rock climber Jason Winslow. But she’s less enthused about Jason’s new gig as the host of the reality show, The Real Not-Wives of Red Rock Canyon, where they’ll be camping with affluent divorcees who are trying to find self-actualization through rock climbing. It’s only her love for Jason that could motivate her to spend a week on a set filled with purse dogs, bejeweled climbing harnesses, and organic, sugar-free s’mores.
Jason and Emily have been going strong for the last two years, but lately Emily is starting to feel like their relationship is stuck in a rut. She’s ready to take the next step, but every time she brings up their future, it seems like Jason is, well . . . not.
When Emily is recorded confronting Jason about her concerns, they unwittingly become part of the on-screen drama. Emily will do anything to save her relationship, even if it means agreeing to on-camera therapy sessions with dubiously licensed Monroe Coco, the biggest diva of them all.
This crazy week could make or break them—but is it already too late?
Published May 19th
The Westminster Intrigue (The Rannoch Fraser Mysteries Book 23) by Tracy Grant
SYNOPSIS: Autumn 1820. From Mayfair to Covent Garden to Seven Dials, London is in an uproar over George IV’s (the former prince regent) attempts to divorce his wife Queen Caroline. And nowhere is the crisis more intense than in Westminster where the royal divorce is playing out in the House of Lords.
In this tense atmosphere, former spies Malcolm and Mélanie Rannoch go on an undercover mission in a brothel that leads to a brawl–and the murder of the man they were tracking. The victim, Captain James Blayney, was selling the memoirs of a notorious courtesan, whose lovers may include Napoleon Bonaparte, the Duke of Wellington, and key noblemen involved in the royal divorce trial. The missing memoirs may also hold crucial information about the Elsinore League, the powerful organization the Rannochs have been battling for years.
As revelations mount, Malcolm and Mélanie uncover the secrets of some of the most powerful people in Europe. The future of the British monarchy hangs in the balance. But as the Rannochs unravel the clues in the memoirs, they realize that the consequences for the royal family may be nothing compared to the consequences for their own…
PublishedMay 19th
Perpetual Potions (Pacific North Witches Book 6) by Samantha Silver
SYNOPSIS: Escape to the Pacific Northwest, where magic and mountains meet murder and mayhem.
Ali is finally house hunting, looking for the perfect place for her mom, when she’s brought a case to solve that comes with huge reward money if she can get it done. However, doing so will require Ali to exorcise some demons. Will Ali be able to grow past her own shortcomings to find the killer, even as he’s coming after her?
Perpetual Potion is the sixth and final book in the Pacific North Witches series of humorous paranormal cozy mystery novels.
Published May 20th
Mystery at the World’s Edge: The colourful time-travel mystery (Tam Eildor Mystery Book 4) by Alanna Knight
SYNOPSIS: When Tam Eildor arrives unexpectedly on a remote Scottish island in the year 1587 after his time machine develops a fault, he quickly finds himself embroiled in the lives of the colourful locals. Many are trying to escape the tyranny of the power-hungry Earl Robert Stewart as, having imprisoned the beautiful Princess Marie for many years, he now plans to force her into a distasteful marriage with his eldest son, Patrick, to further his own ambitions.
Aided by a motley crew including a stowaway, a pirate and one of the earl’s own sons, Eildor attempts a daring rescue of the princess. Together they will travel the oceans in search of Spanish gold, lost loves and new futures.
Published May 20th
Key Lime Pie Perjury: Cozy Mystery (MURDER IN THE MIX Book 34) by Addison Moore
SYNOPSIS: My name is Lottie Lemon, and I see dead people. Okay, so I rarely see dead people, mostly I see furry creatures of the dearly departed variety, who have come back from the other side to warn me of their previous owner’s impending doom.
A regency ball goes awry and both Noah and Everett are in over their heads. Add in the ghost of an adorable Bichon Frise named Pretty Boy and you’ve got trouble. Perjury, a dirty deal made with a couple of mobster devils, and a defunct bakery. Summer in Honey Hollow is getting too hot to handle.
Lottie Lemon has a brand new bakery to tend to, a budding romance with perhaps one too many suitors, and she has the supernatural ability to see the dead—which are always harbingers for ominous things to come. Throw in a string of murders, and her insatiable thirst for justice, and you’ll have more chaos than you know what to do with.
Living in Honey Hollow can be murder.
Published May 20th
Hot on the Trail Mix (Auntie Clem’s Bakery Book 15) by P. D. Workman
SYNOPSIS: Spelunking isn’t for sissies.
When Vic and Willie discover human remains in a cave they are exploring, the shock waves are felt throughout Bald Eagle Falls. When Willie falls under suspicion, Erin has to do more than just make her awesome new granola bars and trail mix.
Erin’s investigations reveal that there is more to the case than meets the eye, and if she is going to uncover the truth, she had better watch her step.
Published May 21st
“ H” is for Hollyweird (Malibu Mystery Book 8) by Cantrell Black
SYNOPSIS: Malibu’s most famous canine lothario, Harvey the English Bulldog, is back to make private investigator Sofia Salgado’s life even more difficult than usual. And if dealing with the canine Casanova wasn’t bad enough, she’s also on the track of a missing movie star. Expect thrills, spills, mishaps and laughs galore as Malibu’s newest PI takes on two cases that will test her patience to the limits.
Published May 21st
Scandal at the Salty Dog: An M/M Cozy Mystery (Secrets and Scrabble Book 4) by Josh Lanyon
SYNOPSIS: Mystery Stalks the Cobbled Streets of Pirate’s Cove
Who or what is haunting elderly recluse Juliet Blackwell, what does it have to do with mysterious goings-on at the Salty Dog Pub–and why is any of it mystery bookshop owner Ellery Page’s problem? According to sometimes boyfriend Police Chief Jack Carson, it’s not Ellery’s problem, and Ellery should stop asking awkward questions before it’s too late.
Ellery couldn’t agree more, but it’s hard to say no when someone is as frightened as old Mrs. Blackwell. Mrs. Blackwell insists the ghost of long dead pirate Rufus Blackwell has come to avenge himself on the last member of his treacherous clan.
Before Ellery can say, “Yikes!” Mrs. Blackwell takes a tumble down the grand staircase of her spooky mansion, and it’s up to Ellery to find who is trying to kill his eccentric customer.
Published May 22nd
The Granite Coast Murders: A Brittany Mystery (Brittany Mystery Series, 6) by Jean-Luc Bannalec
SYNOPSIS: Inspector Dupin and Claire are on a two-week vacation, but while Claire seems to enjoy the quiet of the beach, Commissaire Dupin takes every opportunity to leave the beach towel. The fabulous dinners on the hotel patio and the rumors about a stolen statue of a saint are the few interesting moments of his days on vacation. But then a tourist vanishes without trace and there’s an attack on a deputy to the local assembly, who is involved in confrontations with local farmers. Shortly after that, the Britanny beach resort is shocked by the discovery of a corpse.
Dupin clandestinely begins to investigate with the help of the local villagers, something he must keep a secret from Claire and his colleagues in Concarneau. Between bewitched valleys and beautiful beaches, an unfathomable case develops.
Published May 24th
See Something (A Witch City Mystery) by Carol J. Perry
SYNOPSIS: Salem’s WICH-TV program director Lee Barrett is about to discover no good deed goes unpunished . . .
Lee has been promoted from field reporter to program director. Keeping track of all the shows and managing the local TV personalities—including a cowboy, a clown, and a performing dog—has her head spinning. Perhaps that’s what makes her take pity on the distraught woman she finds sitting alone on a bench on the Salem common. When she realizes that the poor woman doesn’t even know her own name, Lee takes her into the warmth of the home she shares with her Aunt Ibby and their clairvoyant gentleman cat, O’Ryan. Maybe Lee can use her own psychic gifts to divine the woman’s identity.
Lee’s detective beau Pete Mondello wants to talk to the “Jane Doe,” but before he can investigate, he’s called to a crime scene. A body has been found washed up in a narrow harbor cove. As harmless as her new houseguest seems, Lee can’t help but wonder if she may be harboring a killer . . .
Published May 25th
Carried to the Grave and Other Stories (A Food Lovers’ Village Mystery Book 6) by Leslie Budewitz
SYNOPSIS: In her Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries, Agatha Award-winning author Leslie Budewitz introduces us to Jewel Bay, a tight-knit Montana community that thrives on tourism and farm-to-table fare. Featuring Erin Murphy, beloved proprietor of the Merc—a century-old general store converted into a local foods market—each book brings us closer to the folks who call Jewel Bay home, and the cunning culprits in their midst.
In this delicious new collection of five short stories and one novella, she takes us further into the heart of Jewel Bay—from the playhouse to the Merc, from funerals to food festivals—with equal parts humor, suspense, and compassion, and no shortage of murder to spice up the menu . . .
In Carried to the Grave, a long-hidden family secret refuses to be put to rest.
Jewel Bay’s community food festival serves up the perfect opportunity for a devious killer with an appetite for murder in Pot Luck.
In The Christmas Stranger, a small gesture by a mysterious man turns out to change lives . . . and much more.
A romantic getaway to a secluded beach town in Mexico provides a deadly remedy for a couple’s trouble at home in A Death in Yelapa.
As the local playhouse opens for the season, it’s curtains for a stage manager with a secret in Put on a Dying Face.
And in An Unholy Death, when Kate and Paddy Murphy open Murphy’s Mercantile in 1910, they know making a go of it in rough-and-tumble Montana will be hard work, but for a local preacher, it’s murder.
Published May 25th
The Diva Serves Forbidden Fruit (A Domestic Diva Mystery) by Krista Davis
SYNOPSIS: She’s a young Martha Stewart…in Old Town Virginia! New York Times bestselling author Krista Davis delights with the 14th in her enormously popular and completely charming Domestic Diva Mystery series, as entertaining maven Sophie Winston must cut to the core of another murder investigation when members of an international tour group begin dropping like flies all over Old Town, Virginia…
With Old Town’s DIY Home Decorating Festival in full swing, Sophie’s swamped, juggling a bumper crop of artisans, antique dealers, and decorators for the busy street fair. Still, when her best friend Nina suddenly needs a ride from the airport, Sophie is happy to help…until she sees Nina disembarking in a state of disarray. It’s obvious the trip to Portugal soured somewhere along the way. But after one of Nina’s traveling companions turns up murdered the following day, Sophie knows something is truly rotten… Though the crime scene is staged to look like an accident, Sophie isn’t fooled and peels off to conduct her own investigation. Her only clue is a strange image the victim scratched into the soil before dying. Could it point to a cryptic killer in Old Town? A bitter travel adversary? Or a cursed artifact smuggled back from the trip? As the mystery grows, so does the body count, and if Sophie doesn’t pluck the murderer soon, her best friend may be the next to fall…
Published May 25th
Murder in a Scottish Garden (A Scottish Shire Mystery Book 2) by Traci Hall
SYNOPSIS: In the charming Scottish shire of Nairn,sweater shop owner Paislee Shaw must root out a garden variety killer. . .
Paislee’s custom sweater and yarn business, Cashmere Crush, is the sole support for not only the single mum and her ten-year-old son Brody, but also her eccentric Gramps and Wallace, their black Scottish terrier.So when her landlord, Shawn Marcus, serves her an eviction notice and then pulls a disappearing act, she’ll go to any lengths to find the man and reason with him.
Shawn is heir to the Leery Estate, which Brody’s class will be visiting on a field trip. So Paislee volunteers to chaperone in the hopes of tracking down Shawn and killing two birds with one stone. Unfortunately, the only one killed is a man Paislee sees falling out of the hedges after being shot. It’s not her missing landlord, but Lady Leery’s nephew, Charles Thomson. Gruff DI Mack Zeffer is on the case, but Paislee also has a stake in flushing out the shooter. With suspects sprouting up like weeds, Paislee may need to hedge her bets until she can determine who is trying to lead her down the garden path . . .
Published May 25th
Beyond a Reasonable Donut (A Deputy Donut Mystery Book 5) by Ginger Bolton
SYNOPSIS: Selling her corn fritters at a carnival, Deputy Donut Café owner Emily Westhill faces off against a murderer who doesn’t play fair . . .
Emily and her assistant, Nina, are looking forward to manning the Deputy Donut tent at the Faker’s Dozen Carnival in Fallingbrook, Wisconsin—a festival held on Friday the thirteenth to celebrate good and bad luck. But Emily has barely dropped the corn fritters in oil when bad luck boils up. First, their bucket of confectioner’s sugar disappears—and then while a mime creates a distraction, a magician robs their cash register.
After the carnival, their misfortune continues. Emily discovers that someone has broken into artist Nina’s loft and vandalized a large painting in progress with the bucket of stolen sugar, which is now on the head of the mime, who seems to have been suffocated. Emily would bet Nina was the intended victim, but the cops think Nina silenced the mime. Now Emily must catch the killer white-handed—before someone else kicks the bucket . . .
Published May 25th
I sa & the Road Trip (The Sunnyvale Mysteries Book 6) by Jessica Sorensen
SYNOPSIS: Isa’s story continues as she goes on the road to visit her mom and discover more about herself…
Published May 25th
Grace in Hollywood: A 1920s Grace Michelle Mystery (Grace Michelle Mysteries Book 2) by Kari Bovee
SYNOPSIS: All that glitters… is sometimes blood. With her golden ticket buried in the ground, can she save a wrongly accused teen from the gallows? Hollywood, 1924. Promoted to lead costume designer of a star-studded film, Grace Michelle should be on top of the world. But between her husband’s debt, her sister’s recent death, and the troubled teenaged girl she’s fostering, she’s struggling to please everyone and still keep a smile on her face. And when a Tinseltown shindig turns deadly, Grace is horrified to discover her young charge unconscious alongside the director’s grisly corpse.
Determined to prove the girl’s innocence, Grace’s own haunted past fills her sleep with prophetic nightmares. And no sooner has she sought clarity from a medium than a second body lands the scared teenager in the slammer.
Can Grace turn the camera on the real culprit before another victim ends up on the cutting room floor?
Grace in Hollywood is the second book in the riveting A Grace Michelle Mystery historical series. If you like fiercely loyal heroines, thrilling whodunits, and the magic of old cinema, then you’ll love Kari Bovee’s enthralling tale.
Published May 25th
Death at High Tide: An Island Sisters Mystery (Island Sisters, 1) by Hannah Dennison
SYNOPSIS: Death at High Tide is the delightful first installment in the Island Sisters series by Hannah Dennison, featuring two sisters who inherit an old hotel in the remote Isles of Scilly off the coast of Cornwall and find it full of intrigue, danger, and romance.
When Evie Mead’s husband, Robert, suddenly drops dead of a heart attack, a mysterious note is found among his possessions. It indicates that Evie may own the rights to an old hotel on Tregarrick Rock, one of the Isles of Scilly. Still grieving, Evie is inclined to leave the matter to the accountant to sort out. Her sister Margot, however, flown in from her glamorous career in LA, has other plans. Envisioning a luxurious weekend getaway, she goes right ahead and buys two tickets–one way–to Tregarrick. Once at the hotel–used in its heyday to house detective novelists, and more fixer-upper than spa resort, after all–Evie and Margot attempt to get to the bottom of things. But the foul-tempered hotel owner claims he’s never met the late Robert, even after Evie finds framed photos of them–alongside Robert’s first wife–in his office. The rest of the island inhabitants, ranging from an ex-con receptionist to a vicar who communicates with cats, aren’t any easier to read. But when a murder occurs at the hotel, and then another soon follows, frustration turns to desperation. There’s no getting off the island at high tide. And Evie and Margot, the only current visitors to Tregarrick, are suspects one and two. It falls to them to unravel secrets spanning generations–and several of their own–if they want to make it back alive.
Published May 25th
A Haunting Midlife: A Paranormal Women’s Fiction (Witching After Forty Book 3) by Lia Davis
SYNOPSIS: Ava Harper may be a raiser of the dead and a not-so-famous author, but she isn’t vampire hunter. Not even close.
With the decision made to stay in Shipton Harbor, she returns to the home she shared with her deceased husband in Pennsylvania to put it on the market. But saying goodbye to the memories of the home they raised their son in is a lot harder than it had sounded in her head.
In the months she’s been in Shipton, new neighbors moved in across the street from her Philly home. Now, Ava has nothing against vampires. But when people in the neighborhood start turning up dead, she can’t help but to check into the newbies in the hood.
Since she doesn’t know enough about law enforcement red tape, she calls her best friend to come and help. However, Sam is working a case with a neighboring town and Sheriff Drew takes it upon himself to show up at her door instead.
And now, as if dealing with how the sheriff makes her knees weak isn’t bad enough, her house is haunted.
Just another day in Ava’s life at this point.
Published May 25th
~ Murder at St. Winifred’s Academy (A Ferrara Family Mystery Book 5) by J. D. Griffo
SYNOPSIS: Tranquility, New Jersey’s amateur drama troupe is staging a murder mystery at St. Winifred’s Academy and Alberta Scaglione couldn’t be more thrilled. Even her Italian-American famiglia are getting in on the act. But someone’s making deadly revisions to the script . . .
Alberta can hardly believe it. Her childhood screen idol, 1950s Hollywood starlet Missy Michaels, has signed up for the local Tranquility Players revival of the classic Arsenic and Old Lace. But before Missy memorizes a single line, she’s found dead in her dressing room wrapped in lace and clutching a bottle of arsenic. The ultimate drama-queen suicide? Everyone thinks so—except Alberta. A Ferrara woman knows murder when she sees it. Alberta also knows producer Nola Kirkpatrick’s checkered past: whenever she’s around, trouble abounds.
Alberta and her crime-reporting partner-in-sleuthing granddaughter, Jinx, have a hunch the murderer is among the Players. So Alberta joins the cast—reluctantly playing Missy’s role—to get closer to the truth. She notices the director is a little unbalanced, but aren’t they all? The leading man is a wildly obsessive Missy Michaels fanboy—but a murderer? Of course, the show must go on. But if Alberta and Jinx can’t nab the killer before opening night, it may mean curtains for more Players . . . including Alberta.
Published May 25th
Pint of No Return (Shake Shop Mystery Book 1) by Dana Mentink
SYNOPSIS: The first in new dessert cozy mystery series! A murder in town is bound to shake things up…
After her divorce from her thrice-married embezzler husband, Trinidad Jones is finally ready for a fresh start. So when she’s left one of ex’s businesses in Upper Sprocket, Oregon, she decides to pack up her dog, cash in her settlement, and open her dream business: the Shimmy and Shake Shop, introducing the world to her monster milkshakes. And even with a couple sticky situations underway, namely that the other two ex-wives also call Sprocket home, Trinidad’s life seems to be churning along smoothly.
That is, until she discovers her neighbor, the Popcorn King, head down in his giant popcorn kettle. When one of Trinidad’s fellow ex-wives is accused of the murder and Upper Sprocket descends into mayhem, it’s going to take a supersized scoop of courage to flush out the killer.
Published May 25th
Broomsticks and Pink Gumdrops: A Paranormal Cozy Mystery (A Witch’s Cove Mystery Book 12)by Vella Day
SYNOPSIS: Finding a dead body in the wall of our new candy shop was strange enough, but then someone from the past returns carrying a pink ribbon I’d left on my very strange Christmas trip to Ohio.
As a founding member of The Pink Iguana Sleuths of Witch’s Cove, I thought I’d seen it all, but I was wrong. When the sheriff’s department files this as a cold case, my curiosity gets the best of me. What else is new? It also didn’t help that my talking pink iguana is insisting that I look into it.
When a corpse is fairly warm, it’s easy to come up with who wanted this person dead. Motives are everywhere, but not this time. We didn’t even know the identity of the skeleton. I shuddered to think what kind of killer hid a body in the wall of a store? A very bad one, for sure.
Regardless of how hard it will be, Jaxson, Iggy, and I are up for the challenge. I couldn’t help but wonder why an FBI agent from the past was sent to us, though. To help? Or hinder?
Published May 25th
Four Cuts Too Many (A Sarah Blair Mystery Book 4) by Debra H. Goldstein
SYNOPSIS: Sarah Blair gets an education in slicing and dicing when someone in culinary school serves up a main corpse in Wheaton, Alabama . . .
Between working as a law firm receptionist, reluctantly pitching in as co-owner of her twin sister’s restaurant, and caretaking for her regal Siamese RahRah and rescue dog Fluffy, Sarah has no time to enjoy life’s finer things. Divorced and sort-of dating, she’s considering going back to school. But as a somewhat competent sleuth, Sarah’s more suited for criminal justice than learning how many ways she can burn a meal.
Although she wouldn’t mind learning some knife skills from her sous chef, Grace Winston. An adjunct instructor who teaches cutlery expertise in cooking college, Grace is considering accepting an executive chef’s position offered by Jane Clark, Sarah’s business rival—and her late ex-husband’s lover. But Grace’s future lands in hot water when the school’s director is found dead with one of her knives in his back. To clear her friend’s name, Sarah must sharpen her own skills at uncovering an elusive killer . . .
Published May 25th
Death in Bloom (A Flower House Mystery) by Jess Dylan
SYNOPSIS: The first in a sweet and colorful cozy mystery series from Jess Dylan, Death in Bloom introduces flowershop owner Sierra Ravenswood …
Published May 25th
Tell Me S’more (The Campfire Series Book 4) by Beth Merlin
SYNOPSIS: Camp Chinooka was supposed to be a place of inspiration, the place where Perry Gilman would finally compose his symphonic masterpiece. But four years later, Perry Gillman isn’t any closer to his dream of becoming a world renowned musician. Instead, he fell love in with Gigi Goldstein and he thought that love would be enough. Now, struggling to find the right subject for a new musical while hustling as a piano player at a local jazz bar, he can’t help but measure his own shortcomings to his famous father’s monstrous success. So, when he stumbles onto the idea to write a musical about the life and times of Elizabeth I, everything finally changes. The musical is an international sensation and suddenly, Perry is on the fast track to super stardom.
However, fame and success come at a price. When his relationship with Gigi is thrown into a tailspin, he must decide whether to follow his dream for which he fought for so long or sacrifice it all for true love.
Published May 25th
Scones and Scandal (Peridale Cafe Cozy Mystery Book 22) by Agatha Frost
SYNOPSIS: When the official Peridale neighbourhood watch breaks up, Julia finds herself leading a brand new team. Their first order of business? Solving the murder of the former leader…
Published May 25th
Ribbing and Runes: A Paranormal Cozy Mystery (Vampire Knitting Club Book 13) by Nancy Warren
SYNOPSIS: Can a secret runic message lead to murder?
As Lucy and Rafe plan their wedding, everyone wants to get involved. The vampire knitting club are crafting the gown, William’s catering, the Miss Watts are making the cake. Everything’s under control. Or is it? Just as Lucy begins to believe there won’t be a hitch in their plans, she receives a curious wedding gift that leads to murder.
Between hen parties, her parents arriving early, running a knitting shop and a murder, will Lucy make it down the aisle in one piece?
Join Lucy and her undead knitting club as they solve another crime. There’s no violence, sex or bad language, just quirky characters, humor—and murder. The books can be read on their own, but it’s probably more fun to start at book 1 and binge.
Published May 26th
The Whitby Murders (A Yorkshire Mystery Book 6) by J. R. Ellis
SYNOPSIS: A murder with three witnesses. But one of them doesn’t believe what she saw…
Halloween, Whitby. DCI Jim Oldroyd’s daughter Louise is in town with friends for a goth festival. But their visit to an escape room ends in bloody murder when one of the group stabs his girlfriend and flees the scene. It’s a crime with three witnesses—but Louise refuses to take what she saw at face value.
Oldroyd and DS Carter are called in to solve the case, assisted from the sidelines by Louise. But the closer they investigate, the more complex the web of deceit appears. This is no straightforward crime of passion.
With a violent murderer on the loose, it’s only a matter of time before they strike again. And this time it’s personal. Oldroyd must expose the truth, protect his daughter and stop the horror before it’s too late.
Published May 27th
The Man Who Vanished and the Dog Who Waited by Kate High
SYNOPSIS: Summer in the Lincolnshire Wolds and Clarice is rung by her friend Louise, asking whether she can look after Susie, her son’s lively Boxer, as 41-year-old Guy has gone missing from the family home.
His mother thinks he has been suffering from depression but more worryingly, in his professional life, he had been working on a high-profile case, defending a known criminal. His home life was beset with problems too, which is why his mother has asked Clarice to look after the dog; Charlotte, Guy’s wife, just can’t cope with her as well as their three daughters.
Getting drawn into the puzzle of Guy’s disappearance, Clarice wonders how Susie received a nasty cut to her back leg, and who is the mysterious Charles? Guy apparently did not trust him enough to let him into his home, and he had not been seen since he was driven away in Charles car. Guy’s friends all say that he was a good, honest man, but as Clarice looks further into the murky criminal world he inhabits, she questions if Guy has been pulled in out of his depth. And – why does Susie keep returning to the private woods, where she had spent so much time with her beloved master….
Published May 27th
Post Mortem : A Mail Carrier Cozy Mystery Book 6 by Tonya Kappe
SYNOPSIS: Sugar Creek Gap is a southern small town where everyone puts their differences aside in order to come together for the greater good of the cozy knit community. But when a citizen, Jeff Faulkner, goes missing from the annual Sugar Creek Gap High School fundraiser, the rumor mill starts to turn faster and faster, churning up the past that puts Jeff Faulkner in the spot light.
Bernadette Butler, a local mail carrier, hears all the gossip swirling around while delivering the mail on route. Hearsay says Jeff ran off because his payment for an old gambling debt came due or he ran off with another women making both assumptions irrelevant after Rowena, Bernadette’s feline, finds Jeff’s lifeless body.
Heartbroken for Jeff’s family, Bernie knows all too well what it feels like to become a widow and a son fatherless. Bernie can’t help but collect clues with all the gossip flowing faster than she can deliver the mail, putting her smack dab in the middle of the investigation that has more twists and turns than the roads where Bernie drives her mail carrier truck.
Published May 27th
The Boyband Murder Mystery by Ava Eldred
SYNOPSIS: ‘I have long believed that loving a boyband brings with it a wealth of transferable skills, but I’d never imagined solving a murder would be one of them…’
Harri and her best friends worship Half Light – an internationally famous boyband. When frontman Frankie is arrested on suspicion of murdering his oldest friend Evan, Harri feels like her world’s about to fall apart. But quickly she realises that she – and all the other Half Light superfans out there – know and understand much more about these boys than any detective ever could.
Now she’s rallying a fangirl army to prove Frankie’s innocence – and to show the world that you should never underestimate a teenage girl with a passion…
Published May 27th
Murder on the Beach: A Destination Murders Short Story Collection by Karen Cantwell
SYNOPSIS: If you’re searching for the perfect light and funny Beach Read, what could be better than one that features mysteries actually on the beach?
And with eight funny short stories, you can travel along with our cozy authors to a variety of shores: from the rocky coastlines of New England, to the white stretches of sand on the Atlantic, to the teal and emerald waters of the Gulf Coast, the surfing havens on the Pacific, and even the beaches in between.
So, take a trip with our authors as they show you that sharks aren’t the only danger near the water.
The Magnolia Chameleon (Honeyrose Collection Book 2) by Sindee Harlow
SYNOPSIS: A young woman is found dead. An enchantingly beautiful Nob Hill servant harbors more than a few secrets. A dashing detective with a pair of handcuffs is determined to find answers. Explosive chemistry neither can deny…
In 1899 San Francisco, master of disguise Detective Beau Winsor investigates the death of law student, Scarlett McSweeney. Is it murder or an overdose? The last person to see her alive is Maisie Flowers, a faithful servant in the Booker Law Firm household. Beau must earn Maisie’s trust if he is to gain her assistance in following a trail of political corruption into Chinatown’s opium dens and sex dungeons. The attraction is instant, though Maisie has never kissed a man and Beau has never loved a woman. Boundaries are tested as they are drawn into a sensual alliance, snaring them ever closer to danger, where falling in love was never a part of the plan. When another murder occurs, it’s too close for comfort, especially when motive and opportunity point toward Maisie. Clearly, time is running out.
Published May 29th
Cherringham – Killer Track: A Cosy Crime Series (Cherringham: Mystery Shorts Book 39) by Matthew Costello
SYNOPSIS: Every year Lady Repton opens up her grand estate to host ‘Cherringfest’ – the Cotswold’s favourite music festival. And this year will be special, featuring not just the return of the legendary and infamous metal rock band, Lizard…but also the home debut of the young and wildly successful new group, Unlost. But what should be a summer weekend of fantastic music, food and fun for all, turns frightening when murder is threatened, and one performer is nearly killed. Soon Jack and Sarah are in a race against time, trying to untangle a web of jealousy, egos and revenge before this Cherringfest ends in a deadly climax…
Published May 29th
Riesling and Revenge (Barossa Valley Cozy Mystery Book 4) by Daisy Linh
SYNOPSIS: Book 4 in the Barossa Valley Cozy Mystery series.
Published May 29th
Leaf of Faith (Isabella Proctor Mysteries Book 1) by Lisa Bouchard
SYNOPSIS: Finding a dead body will ruin anybody’s day, but being the prime suspect could ruin your life.
Isabella Proctor is desperate for a normal life – her own apartment, a job or two that pay the bills, and maybe even a hunky boyfriend. Making potions, helping customers, using her witchy talents to help others is all she wants.
When she finds one of her bosses dead behind the Apothecary, she’s out of a job and won’t be able to finish her training as a potions witch.
Things get worse when Detective Palmer starts treating her like she’s the prime suspect. Her life will never get back on track until she clears her name by finding the real killer.
When the killer strikes close to home again, will Isabella solve the case before another person dies?
Published May 31st
Pink Heels and Problems: A Cozy Historical 1950s British Mystery (A Totally Girly Girl Mystery Book 1) by Sarah Jane Weldon
Published: April 29th, 2021 Publisher: Michael Joseph Genre: Romance Novel, Contemporary Romance, Domestic Fiction, Humour, Humorous Fiction
SYNOPSIS:
Best friends tell each other everything.Or do they?
Georgia and Lydia are so close, they’re practically sisters.
So when Lydia starts an online business that struggles, Georgia wants to help her – but Lydia’s not the kind to accept a handout. Setting up a fake Twitter account, Georgia hopes to give her friend some anonymous moral support by posing as a potential customer.
But then Lydia starts confiding in her new internet buddy and Georgia discovers she doesn’t know her quite as well as she thought. Georgia knows she should reveal the truth – especially when Lydia starts talking about her – but she just can’t help herself.
Until Lydia reveals a secret that could not only end their friendship, but also blow-up Georgia’s marriage . . .
Georgia’s in too deep.
But what can she save? Her marriage, her friendship – or just herself?
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MY REVIEW:
Worst Idea Ever is a sharply-observed story of tumultuous female friendship, a misguided act of charity, jealousy, vengeance and betrayal.
Georgia and Lydia have been best friends for over twenty years. But while on the surface they appear to be soul sisters who are more like family and friends, they are both hiding secret jealousies and rivalry that lurks beneath their love and support of one another. When Georgia, a successful children’s author and illustrator, drunkenly creates a fake twitter account to secretly try and boost Lydia’s confidence in her own creative endeavours, she sparks a chain of events that sees their resentment and irritation boil over and threatens to tear them apart forever.
Why on earth have I waited so long to read one of this author’s books?! After inhaling this book in pretty much one sitting and staying up until 3am to finish it as I NEEDED answers, I’m kicking myself for letting her books languish on my shelves for so long. I loved how she pulled the rug from under me with a jaw-dropping twist that took this from an entertaining but predictable read, to one that had me on the edge of my seat trying desperately to figure out what would happen next. It was pure genius and made it impossible to put the book down.
Expertly written, Fallon entertains while examining the complexities of issues such as friendship, jealousy, deception and revenge, putting the reader in the shoes of both sides of the story so they can make their own mind up about who and what is right or wrong. She also looks at the lies we tell ourselves to excuse our bad decisions, the damage we can cause to others when trying to do the right thing, and the masks people can wear to hide who they really are.
Georgia and Lydia are great characters that I enjoyed individually and as a duo. They have that easy rapport of long-standing, close friendship, that I’m sure we all recognise. They’ve been there for each other’s highest highs and lowest lows and feel like they know each other inside out. But there are things unspoken, fragments of envy and conflict they don’t give a voice to, that lurk under the surface and fester. It is a combination of all of these things that leads to Georgia’s misguided act of kindness and Lydia’s Judas kiss of betrayal.
If you’re looking for an entertaining read full of twists and tension, then this is the book for you. Compulsive, clever, witty and utterly brilliant, I am an instant fan. Now I’m off to buy more of her books…
Rating: ✮✮✮✮.5
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MEET THE AUTHOR:
Jane Fallon is the multi-award-winning television producer behind shows such as This Life, Teachers and 20 Things to Do before You’re 30. Her debut novel “Getting Rid of Matthew’ was published in 2007 and became a Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller as have her subsequent books ‘Got You Back’, ‘Foursome’, ‘The Ugly Sister’, ‘Skeletons’, ‘Strictly Between Us’,’My Sweet Revenge’, ‘Faking Friends’ and ‘Tell Me a Secret’ Her 10th novel Queen Bee is available now to pre order in both paperback and for Kindle.
Thank you to Michael Joseph for the invitation to take part in the blog tour and for the gifted ARC. Please check out the reviews from the other bloggers taking part in the tour.
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The Diva Serves Forbidden Fruit (A Domestic Diva Mystery) by Krista Davis
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Emma's Biblio Treasures 