Holiday Mystery Thriller

It’s a cold and snowy Christmas Eve in the rowdy mining town of Deadwood in the Dakota Territory. Rather than enjoy some drinks in front of a warm fire with her friends, contracted Slayer Clementine Johanssen has her horse saddled and weapons packed to head out into the hills and hunt down some deadly scallywags—alone. When her friends catch wind of her intentions, they set out to waylay her long enough to change her way of thinking...in spite of her mule-headedness.

Savannah Martin has always been a good girl, doing what was expected and fully expecting life to fall into place in its turn. But when her perfect husband turns out to be a lying, cheating slimeball - and bad in bed to boot - Savannah kicks the jerk to the curb and embarks on life on her own terms. With a new apartment, a new career, and a brand new outlook on life, she’s all set to take the world by storm. If only the world would stop throwing her curveballs.

For Lance and Leah, it was supposed to be a quiet Christmas vacation. But when the spirits start visiting, silenced in death and unable to speak, Lance quickly realizes he’s up against a type of evil he’s never encountered before. To make matters worse, Lance isn’t feeling quite like himself.

In the quaint town of Wisterious Bay, Alice, a spunky witch, just wants to spend her time quietly practicing her spells, and running her crystal and magic candle shop. But her peaceful existence is thrown into jeopardy when right before the Halloween celebrations are about to begin, she finds a body in her shop. Join Alicia, Felix her "humorous" talking skeleton, Augustus, the banished reaper, and Zoraida the newest familiar as they try to figure out who the killer is before Alicia ends up in jail for a crime she didn't commit. If you enjoy quirky characters, comedic cozy mysteries, and a ...

Claire Murray has no idea why handsome, popular Dave Rickerson would want to ask her on a New Year's date. They've never even spoken before and suddenly he's pulling out all the stops to get her to go. Is there something he's not telling her or is this a fairy tale New Year's Eve about to come true? This sweet romantic short story is a companion to Adventures of a New Year's Kiss (a cozy mystery novella featuring Suzie Whitsett). Numerous Funeral Crashing characters appear in it. For more about the order of the books - The Funeral Crashing Mystery Series: #1 - Adventures in Funeral Crashing...

The festive season is in full swing - parties, champagne and Christmas crackers abound. You're having a breather at the hotel bar when a stunning young woman catches your eye. Could she really be interested in you? She flutters her eyelashes and takes your hand. Her Christmas party dress glitters with sequins. What you don't know is that your life is now in her hands - as she leads you up to her room there's only one thing that will determine whether you live or die. Are you a good person? Are you really?

Seamus, a down-to-earth park ranger, has always been modest about his background. Living with three roommates and driving a trusty old pickup truck, he never gave Shayla any reason to suspect he was anything but ordinary. Until they land in Ireland, and Shayla discovers he's practically Irish royalty. A holiday that was meant to be filled with festive family fun now carries the weight of public scrutiny. The getting-to-know-you dinner party sets the stage for a complicated holiday. But the celebration takes a dark turn when a guest ends up dead.

A man dies during a dinner party Zak and Zoe are attending, Alex has a famous friend staying with her, a suspicious federal agent shows up creating more questions than answers, and what should be a fairly cut and dried murder investigation turns into a complicated mess, which makes it difficult to tell the good guys from the bad guys.

Kris Kringle had a hell of a Christmas last year. This year isn't shaping up to be any better. The Workshop might have provided the enemy with a piece of jewelry she now wears around her neck. What is the purpose?

Penny Küfer's latest assignment feels like a walk in the park: she is supposed to ensure the safety of a world-famous shipowner and his fiancée on the maiden voyage of a stunning new cruise ship. But what sounded like luxury and relaxation on the high seas quickly turns into a survival trip. Instead of breathing fresh sea air and putting her feet up by the pool, Penny finds herself dealing with a deadly mystery surrounding a legendary pearl. The first murders are not long in coming...

This wry collection of Hanukkah noir features eleven stories by critically acclaimed authors that run the gamut from hardboiled to heartfelt, curated by New York Times bestselling author Tod Goldberg. Across eleven stories, award-winning authors spin tales of family, corruption, buried treasure and delightful yet twisted capers that will entertain listeners through all eight nights of the Festival of Lights.

In book nine in the series, Abby works with Lonnie and Lacy to uncover secrets long buried in the mansion on the bluff Lonnie is refurbishing, Georgia meets a mysterious woman with a secret of her own, and a new group of guests check into the inn each with a story of their own.

Adam and Jess move into a new house with their three young children: a rambling Victorian villa right at the very top of their price range. Before long Adam discovers a door hidden behind a fitted wardrobe, concealing a secret room. Inside Adam discovers an array of forgotten items, among them a wallet, an antique watch and an old mobile phone. Jess thinks they should simply throw them away. But Adam resists. He is fascinated by these items and how they came to be inside the hidden room.

Dark and hazy nights were both their sword and shield... Liz Danger surrounded her. Escape seemed impossible. Hope came from the last place she expected. She knew his name...everyone did. But she knew nothing about the man he really was. Or if he had any chance at saving her. Sam The plan was a good one. If it worked. He had the perfect cover story. He’d be the one asking all the questions. Looking for answers was the story of his life and everyone knew it...expected it. This time though...the stories could turn out differently than expected. Sam and Liz knew the trip wouldn’t be easy ...

It's December in White Eagle, and Tess and Tony are preparing for a huge Christmas celebration. The town is planning their annual festival, which has Tess and Tony struggling to stay ahead of things. In addition to their work with the festival, Tess fills in for the mail carrier who took over her route, and Tony spends long days with Shaggy working to finish the development of their most recent video game. In spite of their busy schedules, things seem to be going smoothly until an unexpected visitor comes to town with an unusual request.

Peace on Earth isn’t everyone’s cup of tea in Charlotte MacLeod’s “A Cozy for Christmas”. Peter Lovesey’s “The Haunted Crescent” delivers a holiday ghost story with a twist. A training session for department-store Santas turns up Saint Nicks who are anything but angels in Isaac Asimov’s “Ho, Ho, Ho”. Marcia Muller’s “Silent Night” finds a tough private investigator searching San Francisco’s Tenderloin district - and discovering something unexpected.

The Silly Season has arrived in Cape Discovery! Tessa Wakefield’s a softie and can’t say no to acting as one of Santa’s elves in the annual holiday parade. But when the jolly guest of honor topples off his sleigh and kicks the bucket on the town’s main street, all of Santa’s little helpers come under suspicion. Tessa’s determined not to trade her Santa hat for her sleuthing one. But even the loudest Christmas carols can’t drown out the hum of local gossip or dampen Tessa’s curious spirit, and she finds herself tangled in a murder investigation.

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.

When Lucy Layton leaves New York City to attend her aunt’s funeral, she has no idea where her trip back home will lead. The last thing she expects is to inherit her aunt’s dog, her house, and the attached dog grooming salon. But when she discovers that her aunt was murdered, she is compelled to stay in Shongoloo and investigate. With new dog Ollie by her side, she begins to question a cast of colorful suspects. But someone wants Lucy to disappear, and they’ll stop at nothing to make that happen. Can she solve the murder before it’s too late?

It was supposed to be a holiday to fix the cracks in our fractured family. I knew the seven days would be endless, but I never imagined that one of us would only survive for six of them… As I carry my case into the charming and rustic cottage and smile at my sister-in-law, Kelli, I allow myself a moment of hope. Perhaps this holiday will force our family to address our long-held grudges and leave with the promise of a happier future.