Recently laid off from her advertising job, separated from her husband Charley, and colliding head-on with a midlife crisis, Jane is trying to make ends meet as an antique "picker" foraging for killer stuff at suburban Chicago's estate sales and auctions, garage sales and flea markets.tBefore long she's addicted to the hunt, spending her Friday nights with the classified ads and a street map, outlining her weekend plan of attack. Jane knows that finding the real treasures is all about being in the right place at the right time.But just as she's settling in to her new routine, Jane finds herself in just the wrong place and at quite the wrong time: stumbling over her neighbor Sandy's dead body. Soon she's the prime suspect. After all, everyone on the block seems to have seen her kissing Sandy's husband at a recent dinner party. Leaning on her best friend Tim, a flower shop owner and fellow junk hound, as well as Evanston police detective Bruce Oh, Jane has no choice but to hunt for the truth. Hopefully her knack for uncovering valuables in the least likely of places will extend to discovering clues as well. Like the vintage postcards, Bakelite buttons, and Fulper lamps that she dreams of finding, to Jane the truth just might be priceless.Sharon Fiffer's mystery debut is a fabulously entertaining read and an intriguing puzzle featuring a heroine that's a dynamic mix of Miss Marple, Kinsey Millhone, and Leigh and Leslie Keno.

    But she didn't expect her sleuthing skills to come in so handy in a little seaside town . . .Addie left some painful memories behind in the big city, including the unsolved murder of her fiancé and her father's fatal car accident. After an unexpected inheritance from a great aunt, she's moved to a small New England town founded by her ancestors back in colonial times—and living in spacious Greyborne Manor, on a hilltop overlooking the harbor. Best of all, her aunt also left her countless first editions and other treasures—providing an inventory to start her own store.But there's trouble from day one, and not just from the grumpy woman who runs the bakery next door. A car nearly runs Addie down. Someone steals a copy of Alice in Wonderland. Then, Addie's friend Serena, who owns a nearby tea shop, is arrested—for killing another local merchant. The police seem pretty sure they've got the story in hand, but Addie's not going to let them close the book on this case without a fight . .

    Thirty-four year old cosmetics saleswoman Chloe Cook is busy searching for a love that lasts in the tourist town of Cape Cod when a murder strikes.The victim is Marty Diamond, a mattress mogul known for his high pressure sales tactics and schlocky TV ads.Unfortunately, the local police detective suspects that Chloe's good friend Kristina Miller is the killer.To prove Kristina's innocence, Chloe has to take matters into her own hands and find the real killer herself.Books In The Chloe Cook Series:Book 1 -- Mattress Mart MurderBook 2 -- Reunions Can Be DeadlyBook 3 -- Killer Finale

    But for the newly svelte Bretta, the flower business in River City, Missouri, is more than just wreathes, zinnias, or roses. It's about people, joy, grief, and love. And now, it is also about murder...Isaac Miller was a quiet Amish farmer found dead in his own field of carmine asters, baby's breath and statice. When Isaac's brother, suspicious of the authorities, asks Bretta to intervene in the investigation, she enters the world of the devout, isolated Amish, their not always-so-understanding neighbors, and a thorny patch of deals between flower growers and purveyors. Soon, Bretta knows that someone wanted something that Isaac had kept secret. But finding out what that is will mean weeding out some dangerous truths from some deadly lies-and cutting a killer down to size...

    Willow McQuade must find the killer before he strikes again.Dr. Willow McQuade, N.D., a twenty-eight-year-old doctor specializing in natural remedies, has decided to take sabbatical and visit her Aunt Claire, the owner of Nature’s Way Market and Cafe in idyllic Greenport, Long Island. The idea of rest and relaxation is quickly forgotten when Willow arrives from a morning meditative walk to discover her Aunt Claire dead in the store, a strange almond-like smell emanating from her mouth and a bottle of flower essences by her side.Despite her Zen nature and penchant for yoga, Aunt Claire had a knack for getting into confrontations with folks. An activist, she held weekly meetings for different causes every week in the store. The police want to believe the death is accidental—but Willow thinks she may have been poisoned.Things get worse when Aunt Claire’s valuable recipe for a new natural age-defying formula, Fresh Face, is stolen during a store break-in, and an attempt is made on Willow’s life. Desperate for a way out of the mess, she turns to a handsome young cop Jackson Spade. Together the two set about solving the case the natural way—through a combination of hard work, common sense, and a dose of luck.

    After paying a visit to her Aunt Adele, she fell in love with the tiny town of South Lick. And when she spots a For Sale sign on a rundown country store, she decides to snap it up and put her skills as a cook and a carpenter to use. Everyone in town shows up for the grand re-opening of Pans ‘n Pancakes, but when the mayor's disagreeable assistant is found dead, Robbie realizes that not all press is good press. With all eyes on her, she'll have to summon her puzzle-solving skills to clear her name, unscramble the town's darkest secrets, and track down a cold-blooded killer--before she's the next to die...

    But even on this small island, where everyone knows their neighbors, there are secrets that no one would dare to whisper. Anna Winslow, her husband Burt and their teenage son have deep roots on Quarry Island. Burt and his brother, Carl, are lobstermen, just like their father and grandfather before them. And while some things on the island never seem to change, Anna’s life is about to take some drastically unexpected turns. First, Anna discovers that she has a younger sister, Izzie Jordan. Then, on the day she drives to Portland to meet Izzie for the first time, Carl’s lobster boat is found abandoned and adrift. Later that evening, his corpse is discovered—but he didn’t drown. Whether it was an accident or murder, Carl’s sudden death has plunged Anna’s existence into deadly waters. Despite barely knowing one another and coming from very different backgrounds, Anna and Izzie unite to find the killer. With their family in crisis, the sisters strive to uncover the secrets hidden in Quarry Island—and, perhaps, the ones buried within their own hearts. Sure to be an intoxicating read for fans of Sarah Graves and Leslie Meier, Death and a Pot of Chowder is the first Maine Murder mystery by Cornelia Kidd.

    Natalie Barnes buys the Gray Whale Inn, a bed and breakfast in Maine, and publicly opposes Bernard Katz's proposed resort development, which threatens a colony of black-chinned terns, and when Katz is found dead, Natalie must find the true killer in order to clear her own name.

    When Emma discovers that Arabella has a cache of vintage lingerie, Emma realizes they have hit on a fabulous theme for Sweet Nothings. Unfortunately she also discovers a dead body and enough secrets to make everyone in town look suspicious! Emma ends up facing down a murderer with nothing but a bullet bra for a weapon!

    law firm, Kendra Ballantyne is now a freelance pet-sitter. When her clients start getting knocked off one by one, Kendra fears she's being set up. Aided by sexy detective Jeff Hubbard, she's got to find out why, and fast. This killer's animal instincts are downright dangerous.

    Sarah's self-prescribed therapy happily involves hitting all the garage and tag sales in and around her small town of Ellington, Massachusetts. If only she could turn her love for bargain hunting into a full-time career.One man's junk is another man's treasureBut after returning from a particularly successful day searching for yard sale treasures, Sarah finds a grisly surprise in one of her bags: a freshly bloodied shirt…that undoubtedly belongs to her ex, CJ, who now happens to be Ellington's chief of police. If that's not bad enough, it seems Tiffany has gone missing. Now it's up to Sarah to prove that her cold-hearted ex is not a cold-blooded killer…But finding that treasure can be murder.

    Georgiana has a sinking feeling that Martha may have been retired permanently-and suddenly it's up to a plumber's apprentice to flush out a killer.

    But someone’s about to pop their cork…After losing her job as a photojournalist, Penny Lively is trying to get her life back in focus. Inheriting the family winery from her late aunt may be the fresh start she needs. Thankfully she’s got her niece Hayley and her handsome winery manager Connor to help. But the person in need of more urgent assistance is Antonia Martinelli, the owner of the neighboring winery, who has her own barrel full of problems. Someone’s spoiling her wine, and with the upcoming Autumn Festival, she needs Penny’s nose for clues to sniff out the culprit.But Penny’s search for answers sours after the body of a staff member is found in a grape crusher. Since Hayley was the last to see him alive, she’s the prime suspect in the case. Now Penny must hurry to find the real killer before Hayley withers on the vine…

    As an antiques dealer, Josie knows how to make an honest assessment, and she's about to land her largest account. But when the owner of the collection is found stabbed to death, Josie's fingerprints are all over his possessions…and the murder weapon. Suddenly Josie's innocence appears as tarnished as an old relic. Everybody's got their eyes on her, especially the local police chief who may or may not be in love with her. Now it's just a matter of time before Josie can produce enough evidence to clear her name--or fall into the clutches of the real killer and find herself CONSIGNED TO DEATH

    Now it's an authors' getaway, but Cat won't let anyone get away with murder . . . The bed-and-breakfast is open for business, and bestselling author Tom Cook is among its first guests. Cat doesn't know why he came all the way from New York, but she's glad to have him among the quirkier-and far less famous-attendees. Cat's high school sweetheart Seth, who's fixing up the weathered home, brings on mixed emotions for Cat . . . some of them a little overpowering. But it's her uncle, the local police chief, whom she'll call for help when there's a surprise ending for Tom Cook in his cozy guest room. Will a killer have the last word on the new life Cat has barely begun?