Humourous Mysteries

July 4th Parade Ends in Murder Why would anyone kill a 100 year old man on his birthday?The Pelican Cove police are clueless. Jenny steps in to find most of the victim's large family hated him. She will pursue the most unlikely string of clues to uncover a mystery that spans generations. Her startling discovery will shock the entire community. Can she apprehend the murderer in time? Meanwhile, the busy tourist season spurs Jenny to dish out treats like iced coffees and crab cakes. She's happy being wooed by two hot and eligible men while her friend Heather tries her hand at online dating. ...

A forged heirloom. A ruined reputation. And a spoonful of secrets. In a town where legacy is everything, forgery is personal. Magda Lane authenticated the silver. Ivy put it on display. One quiet swap and now the café is unraveling and Magda’s name is going down with it. The lock wasn’t picked. The display wasn’t touched. But the spoons? Fakes. Magda doesn’t do scandal. She does antiques and quiet afternoons. But now everyone’s looking at her like she got it wrong. A slick auctioneer with a legacy to reclaim. A locksmith willing to turn a blind eye. And Janice Bell, gracious, ...

Hi, my name is Lydia, and I’m a gypsy. Or, I was a gypsy. Now, I’m not really sure what I am. What I do know is that I’m in trouble. That’s the reason why I’m in the process of moving to Haven Hollow: because I need the safety and protection only a hollow can offer. After a witch named Indigo walked into my occult shop and literally blew up, her soul affixed itself to mine, and now I’m basically possessed. To make matters worse? Whoever was responsible for Indigo going ‘boom’ knows she’s not exactly dead and gone. Which means he’s now after me. As if I didn’t have ...

Felicity Griffith’s barely had time to acclimate herself to her new role as assistant to her grandmother, the famous online advice columnist “Dear Dolores”, when a series of events sends her life spiraling out of control once again. When her best friend Cindy wins a modeling contest, the photographer ends up dead, and the clues point to Cindy as the prime suspect, leaving Felicity with no choice than to investigate the murder herself. Meanwhile, Felicity’s grandmother wants to see her married and thinks Hidden Bay’s mayor, Tim, is the perfect match. What starts out as giving the ...

Lexi’s life is a balancing act and it’s about to come crashing down. She was considered the best bank fraud investigator in the country. Unfortunately, now she’s in disgrace and working at the last bank that will employ her. And even that bank president would love to find any excuse to fire her. But when the bank's wealthiest client insists on hiring Lexi to find his missing daughter, the bank president can’t refuse. Lexi tracks the naive young heiress to a remote resort, deep in the jungles of Sumatra. It’s a place where rich guests disappear and things don't add up. Even worse, ...

It’s Halloween in Abbott Cove, and Grandma Grant is keen to win the pumpkin pie competition. In fact she’s so eager to win, Harper suspects her grandmother may have used magic to enhance her entry. Already concerned and on the lookout for odd signs of magic, Harper’s stress levels shoot through the roof when someone is poisoned during the competition. Fearing her grandmother may be the number one suspect, Harper gets to work, determined to solve the mystery of the poisoned pumpkin pie. Note: this is a 15,000 word short story.. This story was first published under the name D. S. Butler...

What is truth when nothing is real Hidden away in the Gulf of Mexico lies an island with a dark past. Once a haven for bootleggers and outlaws, Oyster Island now hosts the renovated Majestic Hotel & Casino. It’s not only the living that calls this place home. Ghosts, ghouls, and creatures of the night roam freely, haunting the island’s residents and visitors. One fateful night, a magical flying unicorn visits Odette Mouton and takes her on a wild ride to the island’s backside, where she discovers a time portal. Guided by a time-walking calico cat, she embarks on a journey that blurs ...

He just wants to run space cargo. Alien warlords want him dead - with a billion credit price on his head. Now, everyone with a gun and a spaceship wants to cash in. But, humans are not easy to kill, especially a battle hardened Marine warrior from Earth. He is angry, frustrated and uncertain about where his life is going, but knows one thing - he absolutely hates the arrogance of the wealthy elite who paid the billion credit bounty. And, he’ll make them pay with their precious, jewelry studded lives if it is the last thing he does. They thought it should be easy. After all, he is just a ...

Vera Thimble fell for a man whose family is one of the oldest in NYC—they own lots of things. Actually, she fell backwards on the escalator and broke his finger in the tangle. She's a veterinarian, so tried to fix it for him, naturally. It seems he fell in love with her for that kind gesture. Who knew that broken bones would be the highlight of their romance? But given she wasn’t his usual lovely actress or supermodel type, Vera was flattered. Until she found out what he really had planned for her and the family jewels. Now the cops wonder just what she did with the body.

Binge-read the three-book boxset of Witch's Guide to Haunted Properties in Los Angeles! Meet Fiorentina "Fio" Valentine, an accidental witch prone to stumble upon all the disasters in the world! She sees ghosts, and the ghosts just can't leave her alone. FREE on Kindle Unlimited! Book 1: Kickstart My Witch Meet Fio Valentine. The Napa Valley native is desperately seeking work after yet another job goes up in smoke. Her third employer in a row has gone out of business, and her only lead for gainful employment comes from the familiar voice of her late great grandma Jane, who tells Fio in a ...

Oopsie. The Gray-Haired Knitting Detectives accused the wrong person of murder. Poor Milly is furious after being hauled into the police station to be interrogated. She is not letting those knitters get away with pointing their fingers at her! Absolutely not. Instead, she insists they solve the murder and clear her name. Naturally, the knitters jump at the chance to solve another mystery. They don’t care if the victim was hated by one and all. They’ll find the murderer! Can the Gray-Haired Knitting Detectives wade through the suspects to find the actual killer? Each book in the Gray-...

Inspired by vintage Film Noir and Alfred Hitchcock, enjoy this eclectic collection of short stories regarding clumsy attempts at retribution or retaliation, also known as a bit of comeuppance. Come on, everybody has that urge now and then. BTW: resemblance of these characters to ANY colleagues of friends (past or present) is PURELY coincidental! (No, really!). Stories include: OFF THE BEATEN PATH: A bickering couple and a robbery that goes from bad to worse . . . to unexpected. LIVING DOLL(Badgers and Colors): A little girl, a doll who looks like her and people who don’t seem to notice ...

"It's okay to love me, Joey. But don't be in love with me." New York, 1941. Joey El Bueno is just a smart-aleck kid, confounding the nuns and bullies at St. Stephen's School on East 28th Street, when he first meets Jane Bent, a freckle-faced girl with red pigtails and yellow smiley-face barrettes, who seems to know him better than he knows himself. A magical afternoon at the movies, watching Carey Grant in Gunga Din, is the beginning of a puzzling friendship that soon leaves Joey baffled and bewildered.

Lyla Cowan still isn’t sure she’s doing what she should be. Democratic Union and Naranja space proved to be hostile, but they finally convinced her to upgrade. So where next for her fledgling mercenary misfits? They’ve been invited to Karn, but is the League of Worlds’ space too tame? But adjacent to Karn is the third of the core belonging to the kangaroo like Ralnor. No-one knows anything about what goes on there, except the Ralnor value law and order above all. But where the Keerah impose military order, the Ralnor are supposed to enforce laws. Exactly what the difference is, no-...

A visit to Notre Dame... What could possibly go wrong? For Ava Sext -- Parisian bookseller and part-time sleuth -- everything. Roped into attending an impromptu seance, she's faced with a spirit's desperate plea to solve his murder. Dubious but curious, Ava's skepticism shatters when death strikes Notre Dame itself. Alongside Henri De’Ath, her bookselling partner, she races against time to unmask the killer. Turns out that talking to the spirits is easier than avoiding becoming one. “Death in Notre Dame” -- a lighthearted cozy mystery set in Paris, a city where food, wine and crime ...

Lyla Cowan has just had a shock, but to everyone else it was inevitable. Her life is a roller coaster ride these days, but it feels like home to her now. As Halloween grips Haven Station, she’s thinking about the next mission. Out on the edge of the galaxy is a small cluster where people just want to be left alone. But that’s not happening anymore. And no-one knows what’s going on. One couple do, but they can’t do anything on their own. They need someone who will step up and help. But who’s going to help the Unseen? The Hunter Imperium Universe Is best read in this order: The ...

A rock star wedding. A missing bride. A mystery to solve – and the clock is ticking! Rock musician Tayler is just hours away from saying ‘I do’ to his fiancée Poppy when she disappears from their luxury hotel. Amber, an amateur sleuth with ambitions to prove herself good enough to join the Celebrity Crimes Investigation Agency, is soon battling to solve the case. Is the bride-to-be even still alive? Amber has just 24 hours to find Poppy or it's game over... Join Amber as she attempts to rescue a celebrity wedding day from the brink of disaster!

Since You're Leaving Anyway, Take Out the Trash is a rollicking Texas mystery debut jam-packed with humor - and a heaping helping of romance to boot! Down in Salt Lick, Texas, a lot of folks got sass, but beauty salon proprietor Debbie Sue Overstreet has a bit more than most.

Harriet, Jack, and Toby are treasure hunters, searching the Minecraft world for its most valuable hidden secrets. In an abandoned mineshaft, they discover what they hope is an enchanted book. But what they've found turns out to be much more valuable. William is one of Minecraft's most renowned explorers. He's a legend in the world of Minecraft, but, under suspicious circumstances, he's gone missing.

Lyla Cowan has given up fighting the changes in her life. The Unbound Mercenary Company is expanding ahead of schedule, and she’s just rolling with it now. They’ve made a name for themselves fighting pirates. But there are always more pirates. The human spine is on the way back to Ralnor space, if you take a dogleg. And with the lower end opening up for new colonization at long last, the piracy problem there needs a solution. What do you do with the unkind element making lives harder? You get Lyla interested. When Unkind is as Unkind does, you need the Unbound. The Hunter Imperium ...