Amateur Detective

An explosion and fire at the Ashton Gunpowder Mill in Kent has killed over a hundred men. It's called an appalling tragedy - until suspicion and rumor raise the specter of murder. While visiting the Ashton family, Bess Crawford finds herself caught up in a venomous show of hostility that doesn't stop with Philip Ashton's arrest. Indeed, someone is out for blood, and the household is all but under siege.

Claire Hendricks can see ghosts, but she can't see herself having a fun vacation. Yet when her new friends/found family, Basher and Alex, insist, Claire and her dead BFF, Sophie, pack themselves off to a remote Irish island. This tempest-tossed isle is indeed full of noises: not only is the hotel where the gang is staying double booked with a posh private party, the island's crumbling old fort is being fought over by rival ghost pirates. In death, as in life, they're vying over a legendary stash of loot, supposedly hidden somewhere on the island or in the surrounding rough seas.

Secretive VIPs A man who isn't who he says he is A murder When Addi and the gang encounter a group of interesting VIPs, they think it'll be an easy cruise - until a murder rocks the boat. Now, Addi must uncover a killer - before they strike again. Meanwhile, Ethan is "shadow captain", Sam is overwhelmed with VIPs' demands, and Cece is enjoying her perfect new role. Praise for A.R. Winters: "The perfect balance of being lighthearted, but still a serious page-turning mystery." - Jaycie D, Amazon.com "A fun cozy mystery with engaging and entertaining characters" - lq, Amazon.com "A cute light ...

A Cupcakes-and-Crime Caper “I didn’t kill her, I swear!” Fresh off a shift of slinging cards, blackjack dealer and private investigator Tiffany Black takes a frenzied call from Mary Bilford, the services manager at ritzy Spa Renauld. Mary needs someone to prove she didn’t kill spa client Gina Welling—which means it’s time for Tiffany and Ian to go undercover and infiltrate the spa. “Winters will have you giggling into your book!” Who stood to benefit from Gina’s death? Was it ex-husband Harry, who was coincidentally visiting the spa while his ex-wife was there; nurse ...

Appearances can be deceptive. A charming English village mystery. Simon is asked to protect the eldest daughter of a local property developer during a family celebration. The family have received a series of disturbing threats, but the developer doesn't want to involve the police. The celebration goes well, but Simon makes a decision with fatal consequences. When the younger daughter asks for his help, there are many reasons why he should stay away from the family. But Simon wants to redeem himself. A friend's future depends on him getting it right this time. But will he?

Lord Peter Wimsey discovers the body of a man wearing nothing but a gold pince nez in the bathtub of a nearby flat. His ensuing investigation introduces us to a variety of suspicious characters, his witty repartee, and his mind-boggling deductive reasoning.

Ethan Thompson’s college reunion takes a dark twist on a long-awaited fishing trip with his four college buddies. The laughter quickly turns to panic when one of them is discovered dead. As the lakeside getaway transforms into a crime scene, Ethan's retired police detective mother, Maya, and his investigative reporter daughter, Lily, spring into action. Together with their trio of clever canine detectives, they begin to unravel the mystery. With secrets from Ethan's college days surfacing, can they reel in the truth before the killer gets away? Join the Thompson family on their quest for ...

Though the inheritance from her dearly departed Alexander was meant to set Sarah Kelling up for life, it vanishes quickly in the face of hounding from charitable organizations and the IRS. Facing the loss of her stately Back Bay brownstone, Sarah opens her home to lodgers - deciding she prefers a boardinghouse to the poorhouse. Soon she is cooking meals and serving tea for a cast of quirky residents, a cozy little family that would be quite happy were it not for the unpleasant presence of a certain Barnwell Augustus Quiffen.

"OH No! How could this happen?" Meggie gets off the phone with the Museum. "The heirloom has vanished without a trace." Meggie, owner of the Willow Inn, was thrilled when Ms. Wren of the Museum asked to display her family's cherished heirloom. But now this! "I don't understand?" Meggie thought out loud, just as she and her loyal beagle, Bentley, were gearing up for the Harvest Festival. Now, Meggie must navigate a tangled web of deceit, suspense, and intrigue to find her family's lost heirloom. Little does she know this heirloom holds the key to a puzzling mystery. As Willow Creek's past ...

A modern woman in 1907, Lady Dunbridge is not about to let a little thing like the death of her husband ruin her social life. She's ready to take the dazzling world of Gilded Age Manhattan by storm. From the decadence of high society balls to the underbelly of Belmont horse racing, romance, murder, and scandals abound. Someone simply must do something. And Lady Dunbridge is happy to oblige.

The most original crime novel in years - British ‘Golden Age’ sleuth meets American hard-boiled crime! It’s the summer of 1920: Kit Aston travels to San Francisco for his cousin’s marriage to the mysterious Dain Collins. When a private investigator tailing Dain Collins is killed, Kit Aston, his fiancée Mary and Aunt Agatha team up with Pinkerton detective, Dashiell Hammett, in a case involving murder, kidnap and the theft of a certain legendary bird from Malta. The latest Kit Aston mystery is a delightful reimagining of some of Dashiell Hammett’s greatest novels: the Maltese ...

Instead of catering to cozy readers at my inherited bookshop, I found myself staring at the town’s crabbiest gardener… taking a dirt nap in my alleyway. I just turned a new page in my life when I returned to Bramble Dale to start a laid back book club. But when my old crush is pegged as a suspect for a murder it became a crime story that I needed to solve. When my trusty yellow lab, Peanut, sniffs out a bloodied scarf, me and my bestie start questioning suspects. With the victim rigging the gardening competition so he always won there were more than enough people that wanted to dig his ...

The plan was to start over here with the picture-perfect Genova’s pastry elite; not to catch the culprit who iced the last chef. When Paolo’s death goes from natural causes to murder, my trip to the beautiful Italian harbour town turns into a case of spine-chilling whodunit. I whip up confections, not conspiracies. But my scruffy clue-sniffing beagle has different plans for us in this sun-kissed town; to remove the stench of murder. Motives linger as the sous chef, Enzo, craves the spotlight, while Luca, the supplier, has a sour taste left behind after a heated argument. Even Giulia, ...

Catching a killer is a piece of cake... Or is it? When Mindy Macbay moves back to her hometown of Santa Verona, she soon finds herself on the receiving end of anonymous threats, and even worse, unpleasant encounters with her high school nemesis and former paramours. "Winters will have you giggling into your book!" Will Mindy unmask the killer before it’s too late? And will her annoying high-school nemesis manage to make Mindy's life sufficiently miserable? Praise for A.R. Winters: "The perfect balance of being lighthearted, but still a serious page-turning mystery." - Jaycie D, Amazon.com...

Everyone has a secret.... Only some lead to murder. Introducing Leo Stanhope: a Victorian transgender coroner's assistant who must uncover a killer without risking his own future. When the body of a young woman is wheeled into the hospital where Leo Stanhope works, his life is thrown into chaos. Maria, the woman he loves, has been murdered, and it is not long before the finger of suspicion is turned on him, threatening to expose his lifelong secret.

Rebecca Orange is back—and so is murder! After solving the shocking death of the castle’s head architect, Rebecca is settling into her new life as the animal trainer at Monrovia Castle. But life in the charming Village of Atwood is far from peaceful when Rodrigo, the editor of the local gossip magazine, turns up dead. For Rebecca, the stakes couldn’t be higher. The villagers are wary of newcomers like her, and the castle’s annual Foundation Festival, celebrating the legendary founder of Monrovia, hangs in the balance. To make matters worse, Rodrigo’s death points suspicion at the ...

Eager to unravel her family's history, Becca Gold finds herself untangling a web of murder. Aunt Becca and her niece take a journey to Portugal on an exclusive tour in pursuit of ancestral insights. Amid mingling with fellow travelers, Becca’s inner warning system starts to flare. She senses an ominous undercurrent. She’s keenly observing everyone’s actions and yet a priceless relic goes missing and its owner, one of the tourmates, is found dead. Uncertainty looms: no one knows if it was a natural demise or a calculated murder. Determined to get to the bottom of things, Becca snoops ...

Pelican Cove’s Favorite Resident Gunned Down! When someone close to Jenny King is found murdered on a boardwalk bench, the Magnolias are plunged into grief. Secrets from the victim's past complicate the situation. Faced with a baffling lack of suspects, Jenny has no time to mourn as she struggles to hunt for the killer. Meanwhile, Pelican Cove residents are battling a wave of mosquito infestation. Quashing the menace becomes difficult with the town ready to rebel and dwindling city funds. Muffins and Mobsters brings tragic new developments as the Magnolias must persist in the face of ...

The Phantom is back... It's 1920 and a series of daring diamond robberies take place in London's fashionable West End by a thief who leaves a calling card. Kit Aston investigates, and this time he's brought his aunt... What seems a straightforward case spirals out of control as London gangland's 'Elephant Boys' become involved. Can Kit, his fiancee Mary, Aunt Agatha and a film-making chauffeur called Alfred succeed where Scotland Yard have failed? 'The Phantom' is a fast-paced whodunnit, sparkling with romance and humour. The Kit Aston mysteries mix real life historical characters and ...

"A rocket ride of action, political intrigue, and suspense."—San Diego Magazine "A sharp thriller. Russell has us in the palm of his hand."—Chicago Tribune "Ingeniously imagined and skillfully told, Political Suicide must be included in any list of this year's best thrillers."—San Diego Union-Tribune Will Travis is an undercover corporate investigator whose job involves low-key assignments like checking out the service at Washington, DC, hotel bars and reporting back to management. But his evening takes an unexpected turn when he interrupts an attempted murder. Soon, Will is on the ...