Amateur Sleuths Christmas

Meet Marcia Banks...I’m a normal person. Well, I do have an unusual first name, pronounced Mar-see-a, not Marsha. And an abnormal vocation - I train service dogs for veterans with PTSD. But otherwise I’m normal...Except I tend to get sucked into other people’s messes, which has led to my unusual avocation - amateur sleuth. Romp along with me and my four-legged best friend, Buddy through our first three big adventures, plus a bittersweet Christmas tale!

It's Christmastime, and farmer Lucy Resnick is living the life she's always dreamed of. When she's not selling her jams, soaps, and mistletoe bundles at the Buttercup Christmas Market, she's enjoying cozy evenings by the fire with her knitting group - or her handsome veterinarian boyfriend Tobias Brandt. But less than a week before Christmas, a pall falls over the festive atmosphere when local man Randy Stone turns up with a knife in his back and a sprig of mistletoe in his hair.

It’s time for the first Christmas market at The Pearl Hotel, but when the festivities take a sinister turn, bestselling author and amateur sleuth, Serena Tate, must help find the assailant before they strike again. When Serena Tate’s twin daughters propose a unique holiday venture to Nina Takeda, the owner of The Pearl Hotel, Serena is reluctant to give her approval. Her friends, Mia and Lily, support the girls' plan, so Serena changes her opinion, and The Merry and Bright Christmas Market is underway. As the festive season kicks into high gear, the hotel is alive with holiday cheer—...

It’s Christmastime in the quiet Los Angeles County city of Vista Beach, home of computer programmer and tole-painting enthusiast Aurora (Rory) Anderson. The magic of the season fills the air as residents enjoy school concerts, a pier lighting ceremony and the annual sand-snowman contest. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, Rory plans on painting ornaments to sell at the local craft fair and joining in on the holiday fun. But she finds the season anything but jolly after the house across the street is torn down, revealing a decades old crime. Past meets present when her father is ...

London, December 1835: Charles and Kate are out with friends and family for a chilly night of caroling and good cheer. But their blood truly runs cold when their singing is interrupted by a body plummeting from an upper window of a house. They soon learn the dead man at their feet, his neck strangely wrapped in chains, is Jacob Harley, the business partner of the resident of the house, an unpleasant codger who owns a counting house, one Emmanuel Screws.

As the first snowfall blankets Maplewood, the town is filled with holiday cheer. The annual Christmas Market is in full swing, with stalls selling everything from handmade ornaments to hot cocoa. Emily and Rebecca are busy decorating the Sunny Side Inn and preparing for their annual Christmas Eve feast for the guests and townsfolk. However, the holiday spirit is dampened when the town's beloved Santa Claus impersonator, jovial postman Bob "Santa Bob" Davis, is found dead in his home, a list of the town's residents labeled "Naughty" and "Nice" by his side.

The holidays are supposed to be a joyous time in Majestic Cove. But for private investigator, Melody Clue, they are more hectic than ever. First, she makes a shocking discovery while working on a case for a client. Then, on her way back home, she stumbles upon a masked figure lurking in the dark carrying a blood-stained knife. When the masked figure runs away, it leads to a high speed chase that will turn her small hometown on its head. Who is behind the mask? Whose blood was on the knife? And how will the high speed chase end? Find out by buying a copy of Crazy Criminals, Car Chases, and ...

With only days to go until Jackie's wedding, the unthinkable happens, and murder wreaks havoc on the best-laid plans! Christmas is fast approaching, and Harmony's festive Winter Wonderland is in full swing. Everyone is getting in the holiday spirit. The ice-skating rink is bustling, the vendors are busy selling ornaments, and the hot chocolate is flowing. But Jackie Parker is focused on her upcoming nuptials. Her custom-made wedding gown and crimson velvet evening coat are almost complete. The horse and sleigh are reserved to take Jackie to her wedding reception. And soon she will be ...

Sienna has returned to Tennessee, along with her new husband, Pierre, from the honeymoon of a lifetime in France, only to be hit with two diabolical cases. The cases were back-to-back, and both were much too close to home. Though clearly ethically criminal in nature, neither case of gross deceit would hold up in court, so Sienna was on her own, without the help of her local police department. Will this year’s Thanksgiving be a feast filled with giving thanks or a day of mourning two lost dreams, with Christmas just weeks away? [Now including the recipe for Sienna Monroe's Christmas Scone!]

It’s Christmas in Riddleton and crime-novelist-turned-amateur-sleuth Jen is in desperate need of a cozy festive season running the town's local bookstore. But, between trying to drum up business for Ravenous Readers and attempting to finish her latest novel, Jen is totally run off her feet. Matters get worse, however, when a man's body is found outside the bookstore, along with a scrap of paper in his pocket with none other than Jen's address on it!

As Melanie attempts to deck the halls in a house overrun by pampered poodles, her event planner friend, Claire, is busy playing Santa for the wealthiest clientele on Connecticut's Gold Coast. A personal shopper gig in the affluent town of New Canaan seems like business as usual. Except Claire's stylish stint comes at a higher price than she bargains for when she stumbles over her newest customer's dead body. Named a prime suspect for murder, she begs for Melanie's help, then vanishes like cookies and milk on Christmas Eve.

Christmas with the family? Penny Küfer is quite surprised when she is invited to a fancy celebration with her estranged mother, of all people. Waldenstein Castle, the party location and home to Penny's latest stepfather, turns out to be a palace right out of a fairy tale. The assembled guests, however, seem rather eccentric, and what's more, one of them is a ruthless killer. But he hadn’t reckoned with Penny....

**Holiday Heist** is a cozy mystery set in the charming town of Holiday Corner, Vermont. The story revolves around Celeste and Edwin, who are eagerly preparing for their wedding. However, their celebration takes on a deeper meaning when they decide to host a fundraiser in conjunction with their nuptials to support the Sutton family, who have fallen on hard times. As the town comes together to help, the excitement builds for what promises to be the biggest event Holiday Corner has ever seen. But the festive atmosphere is shattered when a priceless necklace, generously donated by the wealthy ...

Melanie Travis has her hands full with her two young sons, a part-time job, and a half dozen poodles to her name. But even with the busy holiday season approaching, she still has time to sniff out a Christmastime killer.... There's nothing lovelier than Christmas in Connecticut, but Melanie can scarcely find a moment to enjoy the festivities.

On the day after Thanksgiving, the body of a well-known member of Plymouth’s Gay and Lesbian Community was found snagged on the rocks off South Point Bluff. A month later, on Christmas Eve, another man is brutally attacked on historic Burial Hill, but this time the victim managed to get away. Now, a man without a conscience is walking the streets of Plymouth looking for a place to live and a way to finish what he started.

Dr. Georgia Thackery is back at home with her parents after finding a new adjunct position at Bostock College. Everyone is excited for their first family Christmas with nothing to hide. Why? Because Georgia’s daughter, Madison, is now in the know about Sid, their walking, talking family skeleton. But their Christmas cheer is interrupted when the Thackerys' dog, Byron, goes missing on a cold December night. When he’s finally found, he has a femur clutched between his jaws, and Georgia and Madison race to apologize to Sid for letting the dog gnaw on him yet again

HO HO HOMICIDE? When the man who plays Santa for the Maycroft Christmas Festival goes missing, the committee turns to Deena Sharpe to find him. Her reputation for solving mysteries is legendary. But when the case becomes a kidnapping, she's worried something sinister has happened. Sharpe Claus has plenty of suspects and enough finger pointing to keep Deena on her toes. Follow along as she tries to solve the case of the missing Santa! This fun, cozy Christmas novella can be read as a standalone in the Maycroft Mysteries by USA Today Bestselling Author Lisa B. Thomas. Like all the books in ...

When Iris Woodmore visits Winchester for their annual pantomime, murder is the last thing she expects to find. And there seems to be no valid reason as to why anyone would want to hurt lead actress, Rachel Lacey – kind and philanthropic, she organized the Christmas performance to raise funds for the Winchester Cathedral Great War Fund. Determined to uncover the sinister forces at play, Iris and her dear friend Percy embark on a perilous journey through the snow-lined streets of Winchester, where secrets lurk around every corner and danger looms in the shadows.

Ainsley decides to set aside her search for answers to her past and enjoy her first Gooseberry Christmas by volunteering along with the rest of the gang for the Christmas festival on the boardwalk. Normally Ainsley didn’t bother much with Christmas and all its trappings, but this year she is excited to join in as most of the locals are prone to do. Of course it does put a bit of a damper on the festivities when a body is found in the tree lot where the gang had offered to help out.

Tommy and Evelyn Christie are looking forward to a quiet Christmas holiday at the home of Hugh Norton-Cavendish, the 9th Earl of Clifford, who recently married Tommy's cousin, Elise. However, the suspicious death of Albert Lewis, a businessman hoping to buy land from Hugh, means the Christmas festivities are quickly over. Tommy is distracted by his sister's new relationship with a man he distrusts. Evelyn is busy with her pack of dogs, brought for the traditional Boxing Day shoot.