Puzzle Mystery

A featured selection at the 2024 Tucson Festival of Books Distracted by guilt over the serious injuries his best friend sustained while assisting with a case, Vasily Korsokovach doesn’t think much of the envelope that appears in his mailbox at the Rancho Linda Police Department. Containing a bunch of retro Polaroid snapshots showing a series of ordinary objects in everyday situations, the Deputy Chief finds himself at a loss as to why anyone would send him such random photos; whatever hidden message the sender was hoping to pass along is a mystery that Vasily is unwilling to delve into. ...

Andy Crowl barely knew his recently deceased cousin, Craig Moore, so he’s especially surprised to be named as the sole beneficiary in Craig’s will. Not that there’s much to inherit: just an empty bank account and a run-down house. Once Andy arrives in the town of Mortom, however, he’s drawn into his puzzle-obsessed cousin’s true legacy: a twisted and ominous treasure hunt. Beckoned by macabre clues of dead rats and cemetery keys, Andy jumps into the game, hoping to discover untold wealth. But unsavory secrets - and unanswered questions about Craig’s untimely demise - arise at every turn....

Tempting apple. Killer stepmom. Princely love. Fun contemporary Y.A. romance❤️ While playing a game to match herself to a famous piece of art, Peony van Veer gets a shocking result. She looks exactly like the woman in a painting from the roaring twenties. Peony has to get a closer look at her doppelganger, but the piece is housed in a private collection. In Scotland. Her best chance to see the painting means signing up for a teen artist retreat -- hosted by the aristocratic Sinclair family. One problem. Peony gave up painting because critics compared her to her famous Van Veer ancestor....

When Charlotte McKay wakes up in a hospital bed with no memory of how she got there, all she wants is to go back to the perfect London flat she shares with her husband, and the impressive career she’s worked so hard to build. But something’s not right. Her husband David is at her bedside - but so is a three-year-old girl, and she’s calling Charlotte "Mummy"....

The Aldens are on vacation in Seattle! On their first day of sightseeing a mystery falls right into their laps when Benny finds a riddle taped to the bottom of a table. What does the riddle mean, and where will it take them? Follow Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny as they crack the mysterious riddle on their way through the Emerald City.

Solving a crime is like piecing together a puzzle. But what happens if the pieces don't fit? When police chief Gordon Hepler's doctor orders him to cut down on the stress in his life or risk losing his vision, Gordon books a winter retreat at a remote bed and breakfast. Hours away from Mapleton, where nobody knows he's a cop, he plans to relax and try to forget about his eyes.

I’m Seymour…Parakeet Detective. My owner, Sharon, and I are on the Sasquatch watch! The creature stalking quiet Mountain Springs is nosy and newsworthy. We’ll find out more than we bargained for. This monster may hold the key to my human existence in a bird body. But I’ve got to survive to find out. Jump in with Sharon and Seymour for a cozy mystery with a paranormal twist.

A dead bride and a missing maiden - in a small town, surrounded by loved ones. Can detectives save lives and bring the killer to justice? Detective Danielle Hall believed in the goodness in everyone. When her best friend found the dead body in the bridal suit she was about to rent for her own wedding, Danielle had no option other than finding the killer in their small town community. She discovered that one of the bride’s maids disappeared. Danielle felt that the bride was not killed because she was hated. She risked her personal relationship with her town folks to get to the bottom of ...

Missy Porter, the young heroine, has a special knack for stumbling directly into mysteries. She finds herself in Venice, Italy where her father Rob Stone Porter and cousin, Jack Porter are working on a case for their investigative company North & North. Her sightseeing turns into more adventure then she bargained for when she learns that Jack is hiding a secret. Once his secret is revealed the item in which he is protecting puts them all in danger. Missy’s unique ability to see supernatural things helps her understand the great importance of the item that pertains to one of the Seven ...

In *Cipher, Mobsters & a Sphinx,* retired cipher decoder Candeedo Brewdinkle seeks the peaceful life of Killian Cove after years of globe-trotting adventures. Alongside his witty, mysterious feline companion, Bartholomew, Candeedo settles into a quiet routine of crossword puzzles and decoding cryptic messages sent by Norman, the local bookstore owner. He anticipates a tranquil life in this charming seaside town, but things take a sudden dark turn. A mysterious coded message leads Candeedo to Norman’s bookstore, where he stumbles upon a chilling discovery: a dead body, a missing bookmark ...

Army veteran, MASON HOOD, has a promise to keep and a demon to defeat. Fresh off the front lines of World War Two, he moves to Bluebird Valley in rural Southeast Missouri and brings the war with him. Local schoolmarm, STELLA REYNOLDS, is still reeling from the death of her husband at Pearl Harbor. To honor his memory, she vows to assist and protect any veteran who comes her way. But Mason isn’t just any veteran. When a brutal murder sets the entire valley on edge, Stella is told that Mason needs her. She rushes to his side and ends up in a place she never wanted to revisit. Torn between ...

Amateur sleuths, Rod & Bryony Kane race to solve a murder mystery after a sudden storm strands them on an isolated island resort in Lake Superior.

Abbie's holiday spirit vanishes when she overhears a troubling conversation. But her friends are certain she must have misunderstood. The Cozy Chess Club brainstorms theories, but clues are hard to find. When all hope fades, a mysterious angel appears and takes them on an extraordinary adventure where important truths from the past, present, and future are revealed. Can Abbie’s friends help her regain her Christmas spirit before the day ends and the long holiday break begins?

Who Killed the Life Coach? Life coach Gilbert is offering seminars on how to better your life and Coco has the honor of catering the event. She's excited until Gilbert gives her a dressing down on her presentation and food. What a jerk. Then the jerk ends up dead clutching a half eaten Coco specialty...a cupcake. While her friends and handsome police officer Logan don't think she had anything to do with the crime, it doesn't matter. Most of the town does. Coco is determined to clear her good name, but will it come at a cost? ***Find out in the 3rd book of the Mad Batter Bakery Cozy Mystery ...

Ordinary Elementary is anything but ordinary. Below the classrooms are winding, abandoned, underground passages filled with lost treasures. Fifth-grader Graysen Foxx, aka The Gray Fox—finder of secrets, solver of mysteries, and explorer of the unknown—is hot on the trail of the legendary treasure of long-since-retired Principal Redbeard, which includes a decades’ worth of confiscated gadgets, rare comic books, first-edition Pokémon trading cards, an original Rubik’s Cube, and a retro football handheld video game.

Disappearing wasn’t going to be enough…they needed a plan…some answers…and a safe place where they couldn’t be found…and time to figure out what to do next….and why their pursuers are interested in Harper’s father…and are willing to do anything to draw her out. Now it appears that they have an unknown and unlikely ally…maybe two. But what does it mean when one of their allies becomes the new target… An attack on the Mulholland’s wasn’t expected…and though much could be tied to Mick Johnson this wasn’t his style…or his target. Suddenly there is another target....

A collection of five ingenious short stories featuring husband and wife sleuths Imogen and Hugh Croft. The Flawed Emerald When Imogen Croft bumps into an old friend at a railway station, the young woman asks for her help. Imogen is required to get to the bottom of a recent spate of vicious hate mail which threatens to end a burgeoning love affair. But Imogen's conclusions are not at all what her friend expected. The Witch's Burial An archaeological dig at the ancient Chapel of St Peter's turns up a skeleton, roughly hidden in a shallow grave. It becomes clear that the group are facing a ...

Something horrifically sinister lurks in the town of Mountain Springs… Sharon Triplett’s life-change was to retreat to the majestic mountains, settle into her inherited family home with her two kids, plucky pet parakeet, Seymour, and try to recover from the tragic death of her husband, a hotshot, undercover, city detective. It was an elegant plan. It should have worked. But then, astoundingly, Seymour, began eerily communicating to her in her dead husband’s voice and Sharon’s life was flipped upside down. Sharon’s been keeping it all hush-hush. Impressive, considering she also has...

During the final years of the Soviet Union, its government started building an ultra-secret airbase in the center of a vast wilderness. Its secrecy outstripped its management such that construction continued despite its abandonment. Occasionally, an errant aircraft drops somebody on its tarmac, and they are never seen alive again. At the end of a late night international flight from India to Russia, a weary traveler finds himself deposited in a lonely ramp of an empty terminal. As he navigates its endless gates and corridors, this hapless traveler begins to realize he has landed in no ...

🍲 "Murder is on the menu." 🍲 When a politician drops dead after choking on a mysterious USB drive hidden in his soup, chef Cee-Cee’s career goes up in flames—literally. Accused of murder and entangled in a web of small-town secrets and organized crime, she’s got more on her plate than just the dinner rush. Armed with nothing but her wit, her whisk, and a few loyal friends, Cee-Cee must uncover the truth hidden in that deadly bowl of soup before she becomes the next course. Murder, mayhem, and a dash of dark humor simmer in this page-turning cozy culinary mystery. Perfect for ...