Holiday Mystery

Have yourself a very Merry Witchmas in Holiday Haven, where the magic and mystery of Christmas is snow joke! Lumi Northrop is a powerful guardian of the north—the North Star Reindeer Sanctuary, that is. But when trouble strikes and Santa's favorite reindeer goes missing, it's up to her to save Christmas!

USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR CAROLYN RIDDER ASPENSON blends humor and magic in Goody Witch Shoes. In Holiday Hills, magic keeps things interesting—but murder takes it to a whole new level. The town buzzes itself into a hissy fit when notorious witch Matilda Star turns up dead. Then a note surfaces, pointing the finger at someone Matilda called “Miss Goody Witch Shoes.” The problem? No one knows who that is. And when a second witch ends up dead, it’s clear we’ve got a serial killer on our hands. With a growing list of suspects, a talking cat familiar with plenty of attitude, and a ...

As the holidays approach, Detective Lindsay Boxer and her friends in the Women's Murder Club have much to celebrate. Crime is down. The medical examiner's office is quiet. Even the courts are showing some Christmas spirit. And the news cycle is so slow that journalist Cindy Thomas is on assignment to tell a story about the true meaning of the season for San Francisco. Then, a fearsome criminal known only as "Loman" seizes control of the headlines. He is planning a deadly surprise for Christmas morning.

Venice — the city of canals, masks … and murder? Tour guide Lana Hansen is having the time of her life leading a Carnevale-themed trip in Venice, Italy. Her merry group loves exploring the city’s rich artistic and cultural heritage together, as well as sampling the sumptuous cuisine the island city is famous for. Their invitation to a masquerade ball, complete with historical costumes and fancy masks, should be the culmination of a perfect week. Yet when the guest of honor is bludgeoned to death, all eyes are on the partygoers—including Lana and her group! Was it an environmental ...

Need the perfect man? No problem—simply create him! Ivy wanted nothing more for Christmas than to have someone to come home to, a companion to chat about her day with, and someone to show off at her family holiday celebrations. Instead of wishing on a star, she takes matters into her own hands. Ivy creates her perfect companion at Dream Droids, the premier robotics company specializing in sentient humanoids. She spends weeks with Dr. Pierce, creating her dream man. Every detail is worked out, from his appearance, personality, and even his knowledge of her life. This will be the best ...

Alvirah Meehan, the lottery winner turned amateur sleuth; recently "hitched" private detective Regan Reilly; and their husbands Willy and Jack, are guests on the Royal Mermaid's maiden voyage, the Santa Cruise. The cruise is Commodore Randolph Weed's gift to a select group of people who in the last year made the world a better place. What he doesn't know is that his ne'er-do-well nephew, Eric, has smuggled two escaping criminals on board.

The Baker Street Bistro gang have their Christmas celebration spoiled by murder. That leads Gracie and the Blue River Police Department into a New Year full of puzzling events. As Gracie follows the clues you get a taste of South Carolina and the charming population of Blue River.

THE CORFU DEATH CLUB Alexis Sartori is a founding member of the Corfu Death Club, which meets every week in the Three Brothers Taverna in Garitsa. He’s the island’s pathologist, and his friends in the club include a mortician, an obituarist and an expert of the philosophy of dying. But death becomes personal when Alexis is called to the glamorous resort of Kalami. The victim is Maria Delargy, a British ex-pat multi-millionaire, well-known to Alexis. The police don’t seem to care that she’s been murdered. Was she killed because of her vast wealth, or her plans to build a hotel ...

Welcome back to Holiday Hills, a magical town where good always trumps evil, even if it’s a little late to the game. Bessie’s Enchanted Bookstore and Café is my sanctuary—a cozy corner where I write my witchy mysteries, surrounded by the scent of cinnamon lattes and the quiet rustle of book pages. But fiction became reality when Hansen, a young witch and Bessie’s part-time employee, dropped dead while serving pumpkin spice lattes. Now, I’m in the middle of a real-life murder mystery, and Bessie, the closest thing I have to family, needs my help. With my snarky cat familiar, ...

An annual Christmas parade... A missing trophy... A high school nemesis returns... Do bad things always come in threes? When an old high school nemesis of her mother is murdered, Alivia Sue Harper (Ash) and her best friend Kaley Ann Tipton (Kat) rush to prove her innocence. A short read cozy mystery.

It's Christmas Eve and Detective Alex Cross has been called out to catch someone who's robbing his church's poor box. That mission behind him, Alex returns home to celebrate with Bree, Nana, and his children. The tree decorating is barely underway before his phone rings again - a horrific hostage situation is quickly spiraling out of control. Away from his own family on the most precious of days, Alex calls upon every ounce of his training, creativity, and daring to save another family.

Four bestselling mystery authors meet up for a writers' retreat in tropical climes, on the dreamy Caribbean island of St. Mary. Seeking to infuse their tales with authenticity, they enlist the expertise of Penny Küfer, a spirited and sharp-witted private investigator known for her prowess in unraveling complex crimes. Penny arrives on St. Mary anticipating a serene break from her usual caseload, envisioning tranquil days under the tropical sun. However, while enjoying a romantic sunset on her very first evening, she witnesses a murder. As the line between fiction and reality blurs, Penny ...

Hank is in real trouble this time. Loper and Sally May's relatives are coming for Christmas dinner, and Sally May has been working to get the entire ranch in order - including preparing for the Christmas feast. Unfortunately, when she discovers that the turkey she bought has met a terrible end, she pins the blame on Hank! Is he the guilty party, or have more sinister forces been at work to frame him for the crime?

Benji: When I wake up to see my best friend floating in the doorway, transparent with bruises shadowing her neck, all roads seem to lead back to her older brother Jack. He’s the only one who might believe my ghost story… after all, he was there when I saw a ghost last time. I need his help to figure out what happened to my best friend. The only hitch in the plan is that I’ve been in love with Jack for the last fifteen years and he can’t seem to stand to be in my presence. Jack: I should have sent Benji on his way when he showed up at my doorstep in the middle of the night telling a ...

In the festive village of Holiday Junction, April Fool’s Day takes a sinister turn when a notorious troublemaker is found dead after a heated altercation. Violet Rhinehammer, sharp-witted journalist for the Junction Journal, is knee-deep in covering the town’s Fool’s Festival when a palm reader’s cryptic prophecy shakes her to the core. The tension only rises at a surprise party for her boyfriend, Darren, where an argument with a rowdy bar regular leads to a shocking discovery: the man from the party is dead, and suspicions swirl.

Melanie Trenholm should be anticipating Christmas with nothing but joy - after all, it’s only the second Christmas she and her husband, Jack, will celebrate with their twin toddlers. But the ongoing excavation of the centuries-old cistern in the garden of her historic Tradd Street home has been a huge millstone, both financially and aesthetically. Local students are thrilled by the possibility of unearthing more Colonial-era artifacts at the cistern, but Melanie is concerned by the ghosts connected to it that have suddenly invaded her life and her house.

The Bistro at Holiday Bay plays host to the Holiday Bay High School class of 2004 as they gather to celebrate their twentieth reunion. While every class seems to have its story to tell, this particular class is most famous for the murder of one of its most popular students shortly before graduation.

It was supposed to be a relaxing vacation in sweet, sunny Cape Cod—just me and my beloved brother—but discovering a corpse in our rental house really throws a wrench into our tanning schedule. Now a rude, crude bounty hunter has arrived on the back of his motorcycle to catch the killer and refuses to believe I can be helpful, despite countless hours of true crime podcast listening. Not to mention a fulfilling teaching career of wrangling second graders.

Not everyone loves Christmas fruitcake but, then again, not everyone was killed by one, either. In the picturesque town of Ravenwood Cove, the Christmas festival is a sparkling affair of lights, laughter, and the aroma of holiday treats. But when a flying fruitcake fatally strikes a man amidst the festivities, the Yuletide cheer turns to shock. Was it just a tragic mishap, or was this confectionary conundrum an act of cold-blooded murder? Come visit the sweet little town of Ravenwood Cove, where cozy cottages and quirky characters are tangled up in mystery and murder!

Music to their ears? Not when they crash to their death... Roger Thornton has been in charge of the music in Holiday Corner for more years than most could remember. But when Ada Starr, a retired professional singer, moves to town some folks feel she is better suited to conduct the church choir and Christmas carolers. Roger doesn't agree. When Roger is found dead outside the church, Ada is the prime suspect, but her daughter and their friends don't agree. What possible motive could she have had?