Women Detectives

A summer cruise. Horseplay and hijinks. And DEATH on the high seas! Starry eyed intern Meg Butler has embarked on her dream job, only to be thwarted at the first step. No, she didn't mean to poison the guests at the Sail Away party. Her boss thinks otherwise and is ready to send her back home. When a healthy young man is found dead in his cabin, Meg thinks its murder! But who will believe her? Flanked by a motley group of interns and crew members, Meg stumbles her way across Alaska, separating the clues from the red herrings, determined to find the guilty passenger. Meanwhile, things are ...

Darcy Ingram's time in supernaturally-tinged Brookhaven has been anything but idyllic. She solved one murder, but now a friend is begging for help finding his missing sister. A day cruise with her co-workers sounds like just the break she needs. But when a passenger dies under unusual circumstances, she finds herself tangled up in another mystery.

When champion figure skater Michaela Glover returns to her hometown of Woodbridge for a special performance, Detective Amanda Steele is part of the cheering crowds. But when Michaela is discovered dead in her dressing room after the show, Amanda is the first to investigate the shocking scene. There is no sign of foul play, and the room is overflowing with flowers from Michaela’s adoring fans. But Amanda’s heart stops at the sight of a few roses tied with black ribbon and a note that reads “You’ll be sorry”.

In the winter of 1924, Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher travels to a school friend's house to witness the estate's famous Guy Fawkes celebration. But she gets more than the quiet weekend at the quaint family manse that she was originally hoping for. The home is the site of some severe family tension. The Viscount and head of the family is a strict and unyielding sort, insisting that everyone - especially his children - meet his own unreasonable expectations. On the evening of the Guy Fawkes celebration, the Viscount is found dead on the floor of his study, killed by his own hand.

Flower Thief Stabbed to Death When garden wars stir up trouble in Pelican Cove, no one expects it to lead to Murder! The victim’s grieving wife begs cafe owner turned amateur sleuth Jenny King to uncover the truth, impelling her to navigate small-town secrets, nosy neighbors, and a puzzling trail of clues to figure out whodunnit. With suspects at every turn and no solid proof, Jenny must race against time to catch the killer—before they strike again. Meanwhile, her plans to renovate the Boardwalk Café spark unexpected tensions among her group of quirky friends, the Magnolias. Can Jenny...

Have you ever had a moment that has changed your entire life? Marta Morales’ – a maid based out of Chicago, Illinois – life changes when she watches a cell phone video that was not meant for her eyes. Soon, her life is shaken – but she’s not so sure that’s a bad thing. Marta Morales is forty-year-old divorcee with little do save for cleaning and fantasizing about the life she used to lead – that of being a police officer on the sunny island of Puerto Rico. One day, while cleaning out the office of a recently-fired attorney, Marta watches a video featuring important people ...

In September 1926, the Honorable Daisy Dalrymple Fletcher visits Sybil Sutherby, a school friend now living in Derbyshire as the confidential secretary to a novelist. Suspecting that something is seriously amiss, Sybil has asked Daisy to discretely investigate. Upon arrival, Daisy finds a household of relatives and would-be suitors living off the hospitality of Humphrey Birtwhistle, who had been supporting them through his thrice-yearly, pseudonymous Westerns. When he took ill, though, Sybil took over writing them while he recovered, only to see the sales increase. Now, she fears that someone in the household is poisoning Birtwhistle to keep him ill and Sybil writing the better-paying versions.

Murder for hire in a Southern college town. When Sgt. Cory Marin and Marty Washington investigate the execution style murder of a female grad student, they discover that everyone involved with the victim has something to hide. The deeper Cory digs, the more she identifies with the victim, who may have been killed because of information she uncovered. When Cory discovers the victim was pregnant, she is more than ever determined to find the shooter and the person who hired him. As she doggedly pursues the case, she battles demons of her own. She is haunted by memories of her failed first ...

Love is complicated but death is permanent... A man is shot dead in the street. A close friend is accused of murder. A Russian crime lord lurks in the shadows. Local reporter Adele Plank knows that in the San Juan Islands things are rarely what they seem and that secrets run as fast and deep as the waters that surround them. She must fight to uncover the truth and stay one step ahead of those who would silence her forever. "A well-crafted series with a beautiful location and a variety of wonderfully interesting characters." -Barbara Jean Lemon

Sometimes the sweetest small towns can be big on bitter secrets … Security analyst Grace Jordan never imagined she’d be solving a murder when she returned home to Sweet Cove, North Carolina. Or, that she was good at it. Harboring a decades-long secret of her own, Grace leaves her carefully controlled, predictable city life for Sweet Cove to help her whimsical Aunt Lyla run her bookstore after the death of Lyla’s sister. When a local businessman ends up dead surrounded by a mysterious collection of books, accusations fly, and Grace is determined to put her analytical smarts to work to ...

Caterer Goldy Schulz has been hired to host a hockey party. But the proceedings won’t be all fun and games. Unfortunately, her client won’t be satisfied until Goldy adds a hefty serving of revenge. Patricia McCracken is certain that her obstetrician and her penny-pinching HMO are responsible for the loss of her baby. Now she is suing both, and she wants Goldy’s advice on coming out on top. For Dr. John Richard Korman, aka the Jerk, is none other than Goldy’s abusive ex-husband.

Have you ever hated a lawyer? Michael St. John never lost a criminal case. He wasn’t a nice guy. He cheated his clients, destroyed criminal evidence, paid off judges, and ran around on his wife. He was an albatross around the neck of the Richmond Police Department. The District Attorney’s office loathed him until they found his mutilated corpse one beautiful, crisp fall morning, after an unusual outburst in Court the day before. Little did they know that Attorney St. John’s body was key evidence in a far more heinous crimes to come. Mic, K9 Angel and Dottie must solve this case before...

"The combination of devious plotting with religious reflection and self-deprecating wit is unique in today's cozy field, and it's one that deserves plenty of plaudits." Criminal Element on the Max Tudor series A Murder at Morehead Mews is a novella starring Magdalene Duchateau, an amateur sleuth at large in between-the-wars London - although Magdalene would bristle at the suggestion she is an amateur. The story appeared originally in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine and was nominated for a 2020 Derringer Award. It was also shortlisted for the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine Readers Award.

When teenagers discover a body along the river in Grand Rapids, Lieutenant Jo Riskin and Detective Lynae Parker are called to the scene. The brutality of the murder is shocking, even without the corpse missing a hand. They soon find out that the suspect pool is huge, as the victim was not exactly a pillar of the community. When a second body is found, the similarities between the two crimes are unmistakable, and Jo fears they may have a serial killer on their hands. Teaming up with a handsome investigator from out of town, Jo and Lynae race the clock to find the killer before he claims ...

A Cupcakes-And-Crime Caper Roger Owen’s business isn’t doing well, and when he takes his wife and son to glitzy, glamorous Las Vegas for some quality family vacation time, he brings along a surprising +1: his mistress! "Winters will have you giggling into your book!" Life seems to pick up for Roger when he wins a huge jackpot… until someone gleefully kills him on the casino floor. Caught in the hot seat as suspect number one, Roger’s wife Wendy hires Tiffany and Ian to clear her name and to solve the mystery of who really killed Roger Owen—even though it may very well be black ...

Cynically exploiting the Christmas Eve suicide of her husband Alasdair, beautiful Eilish Macbeth has turned tragedy into triumph by writing a million-selling book for children who have suffered the heartbreaking loss of a parent. But then a witness emerges who claims that Alasdair Macbeth was murdered, plunging private investigator Maggie Bainbridge into a case that is as perplexing as any she ever has worked on. Can Maggie and her little team battle their way through a mountain of lies and deceit to get to the truth?

A Luxury Cruise. A Murder at Sea. A Treasure Worth Killing For. What starts as a relaxing cruise for Addi, Sam, and Cece quickly turns into a nightmare at sea. One minute, they’re enjoying ocean views—the next, they’re stranded in a lifeboat, heading toward a deserted island. Somewhere nearby, stolen World War II gold is hidden beneath the waves. But before they can even begin to unravel the mystery, a private investigator is murdered aboard the ship, leaving them with more questions than answers. With a killer on the loose, sharks circling the island, and danger at every turn, the ...

Bubble, bubble, toil, and murder... When a woman is found dead near her village in Norfolk, the verdict is suicide. Not everyone agrees. Detective James Simpson is ordered to investigate and he brings Agatha Aston, Betty Simpson and Talleyrand the hound, with him. They stumble across a tale of murder that stretches back two centuries. Part occult story, part murder mystery - this creepy tale is steeped in witchcraft and strange rural festivals where everything is not as it seems. The second Agatha Aston murder mystery is full of laughs, twists and things that go bump in the night. Golden ...

Now that Madison Reynolds has agreed to be part of a reality-television home remodeling show, she barely recognizes her own life. The show is an instant success, bringing cameras and reporters right to her doorstep, eager to chronicle her every move in the small Texas town. With In a Pinch Temporary Services hovering on the thin line between prosperity and extinction, Madison takes on another quirky case, this one concerning a property dispute. Complications turn a simple mission into all-out danger, and once again Madison finds herself embroiled in an intriguing mystery.

When Addi and her friends board a cruise going a slightly different route, they're prepared for trouble. But not this much trouble. First, they're attacked by pirates. Then, they have to work with a new, unknown crew. And then - there's a murder. Now, it's up to Addi and her friends to find a killer on board their ship, before they strike again... Praise for A.R. Winters: "The perfect balance of being lighthearted, but still a serious page-turning mystery." - Jaycie D, Amazon.com "A fun cozy mystery with engaging and entertaining characters" - lq, Amazon.com "For fans of Janet Evanovich, ...