Book picks similar to
Drugged on Deck by Susan Harper


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mystery
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cozy-mysteries

Sweet Revenge


Maisy Morgan - 2019
    What she didn’t plan on was bringing Tripp, her less than thrilled fourteen-year-old grandson with her. Soon after their arrival, things start happening fast. First, Tripp gets attacked by a cat named Sweet Feet. Then the town reveals some of it’s deep, dark secrets, and, to Mary’s surprise, Preston, a local police officer, asks her out on a date. But, halfway through their date, they get interrupted…by a murder. And it wasn’t just any murder…it was the beloved local pastor. Turns out Mary and Preston make quite the detective duo. Even Tripp gets in on the detective work. But now he’s in danger. Who would want revenge on the local pastor? And will Mary be able to get to Tripp before he becomes the next victim? And how does Mary get that rainbow cake to taste so darn good?

Panic at the Pier


Mel McCoy - 2019
    They head down to Cascade Cove, Florida, where her eccentric grandpa, Larry, and sassy cousin, Emma, run a pet boutique on the boardwalk. Antics between Rugby and Emma’s feisty cat, Misty, quickly ensue, but that’s just a small price to pay to spend quality time with her family while preparing the boutique for the busy season. But then her plans are quickly capsized… Soon after arriving, a mystery unfolds, starting with the washed-up body of a local landowner, a lost corgi carrying an antique locket, and a family secret that may hold the key to the puzzle. Will Sarah be able to wade through the wave of suspects in order to piece the puzzle together? And will she solve the mystery before peak season ends up being a flop? Join Sarah and the rest of the gang at Larry’s Pawfect Boutique in this fun Whodunit Pet Cozy Mystery Series. So, get nestled in your favorite chair, put on a pot of tea, and escape into the cozy beachside town of Cascade Cove!

Give Me Chocolate


Annie Hansen - 2013
    She accepts her sister's generous offer to live in the apartment above Chocolate Love, her sister's specialty dessert shop in the Historic District of Geneva. Kelly's life starts to turn around when she reconnects with an old flame. Just when it looks like she's getting her life back on track, she stumbles over a dead body. The suspicious death sends her hopes for a better future plummeting. Has her violent past and the danger she faced in California followed her home to Geneva?

Sinister Cinnamon Buns


J. Lee Mitchell - 2018
     Recipes included in each book. In Castle Creek West Virginia, rivalries run deep, but has this tiny town’s biggest rivalry finally led to murder? When widely disliked socialite Macie Dixon is found dead on the set of her cooking show, suspicion falls on her rival, elderly family matriarch, and owner of the Red Herring Inn, Liddy Lou Cormier. As the investigation heats up, friendships will be tested, and long buried secrets will come to light. With the evidence stacking up against Liddy Lou, her granddaughter Q’Bita will risk her relationship with Sheriff Andy Hansen, and her own life, to clear her Nana’s name. It will take every ounce of Q’Bita’s culinary cunning, and a little help from her best friend Jamie and brother-in-law Rene, to figure out who’s behind the sinister cinnamon buns that killed Macie Dixon. Sign up for the Red Herring Inn newsletter using the link on the About J Lee Mitchell page to get access to contests, freebies, and an inside look at upcoming books. New subscribers will receive BONUS CONTENT as a thank you for signing up.

The Corpse in the Cabana


Shéa MacLeod - 2016
    Now that her career has taken off, she’s headed to a writers’ conference at an exotic Florida resort complete with white sand beaches and swaying palm trees where she plans to lounge in the shade drinking frosty beverages with little umbrellas. And, of course, no sojourn to tropical climes would be complete without her boozy, wise-cracking best friend, Cheryl. When Viola discovers the diva of the author world dead (as a doornail) of unnatural causes, the police immediately consider Viola their prime suspect. But when the head detective turns a gimlet eye on Viola’s best friend, the author has had enough! Along with help from hunky fellow writer, Lucas Salvatore, Viola is determined to ascertain who killed the corpse in the cabana before she, or Cheryl, wind up in jail. Or worse.

Keeping Secrets


Zanna Mackenzie - 2017
    Needing a job – any job – she becomes an assistant in a shop selling magical candles, charms and crystals. When she learns the truth behind the town’s paranormal vibe and discovers the locals have supernatural abilities, she starts to wonder whether running from her past has landed her in even more trouble in the present!A controversial development of executive homes on what used to be a pretty area of riverside meadows is stirring up bad feelings in Glen Falls. So, when the development is hit by vandalism, there’s a rather long list of suspects – including Kat’s new employer. Desperate to keep her boss and good friend out of serious trouble with the police, Kat wades into sleuthing mode, attempting to catch the vandals herself before things can spiral dangerously out of control.With a broken heart and more than enough crazy stuff already on her plate, risking a new romantic involvement is the last thing she needs, but then she meets the gorgeous and mysterious Alex. As the architect in charge of the housing development everybody hates, Alex is Public Enemy Number One in Glen Falls – another reason why Kat should stay as far away from him as possible. Unfortunately that’s proving rather difficult to do...Soon, she’s way out of her depth and battling magical forces, mysteries and major mayhem – as well as trying to fight her growing attraction towards the intriguing Alex, a man who seems to be keeping even more secrets about his current life than Kat is about her past.Can she track down the culprit before their vandalism escalates to murder and they end up in a prison cell? Why is charming Alex being quite so secretive? Is Kat’s disastrous past about to catch up with her?

It's Just a Little Crush


Caroline Fardig - 2013
    Residents are stunned when the body of a young woman is found strangled, and reporters at the Liberty Chronicle are thrilled, rather disturbingly, over the biggest news story to hit town this century. Lizzie Hart has even bigger problems. Lately, she can’t seem to concentrate on her job as copy editor at the Chronicle with the new hunky investigative reporter, Blake Morgan, swaggering around the office. How can a girl work when she’s using all of her energy combating Blake-induced hot flashes and struggling to repress the giggly inner schoolgirl that’s constantly rearing her dorky head? It’s a good thing that Blake barely knows Lizzie exists. After an odd string of events, however, Lizzie begins to wonder if Blake is really as fabulous as she has fantasized. When Lizzie and Blake find a co-worker dead, Blake’s personality changes completely—and not in a good way. Even though the police rule the death as an accident, Lizzie immediately suspects foul play and senses a connection to the recent murder. She is determined to bring the killer to justice, but is having some trouble getting her Nancy Drew on thanks to the pesky stalker she’s picked up—Blake Morgan. Wait, didn’t she want him to follow her around and pay attention to her? Not like this. Blake has turned from cool and smooth to cold and downright scary, making Lizzie wonder if he should be next on her suspect list.

The Cats that Surfed the Web


Karen Anne Golden - 2013
    She's okay with the conditions in the will: Move from New York City to the small town of Erie, Indiana, live in her great aunt's pink Victorian mansion, and take care of an Abyssinian cat. With her three Siamese cats and best friend Colleen riding shotgun, Katz leaves Manhattan to find a former housekeeper dead in the basement. There are people in the town who are furious that they didn't get the money. But who would be greedy enough to get rid of the rightful heir to take the money and run? Four adventurous felines help Katz solve the crimes by mysteriously "searching" the Internet for clues.  Binge-read all eight in the series for a "you-can't-put-it-down" roller-coaster ride.  With over three hundred 5-star reviews, this Amazon bestseller is sure to please.

The Dessert Corpse


Tracey Quinn - 2018
    The Breezy Spoon is a big success, and when hunky and flirtatious fireman Mark Adams offers to rent Dani his downstairs apartment, things are really looking up.... until a dead body with a chocolate pie smashed in his face shows up in the dumpster behind the diner! Trying to get to the bottom of the mystery isn't easy when dealing with the quirky and eccentric residents of East Spoon Creek City, and it gets even harder when the body keeps disappearing and popping up around town! There's not a moment to lose when dark secrets threaten to come to light, and Dani discovers that one of her customers just might be a serial killer!

Antiques & Avarice


Jane Firebaugh - 2015
    It will make you smile and keep you guessing from start to finish! Olivia McKenna has her own antique shop in the beautiful White Mountains of New Hampshire, where she makes just enough to keep her Golden Retriever, Molly, stocked in treats. But her peaceful existence is about to get turned upside down. One day, while she's out antiquing, she discovers a body in a quaint little antique store. And that leads to a fateful meeting with Josh Abrams, the stunning state trooper with the sexy blue-green eyes who's leading the investigation. Can Olivia help Josh solve the mystery? Will their instant attraction turn into true love? Order the paperback today and find out!

Play Dead


Leslie O'Kane - 1998
    But with a natural nose for crime, Allie soon suspects murder—leaving her dejected canine client as possibly the sole witness to the crime. With the scent fresh, Allie is quickly on the case – but a second murder curtails her investigation. Before taking another step, Allie needs to count her enemies: several suspicious dog owners, a boyfriend with a temper (and a demand for vengeance!), and a mysterious door-to-door salesman with a curious tale to tell… Bizarre salesman, vicious boyfriend and suspect dog owners – one thing is for sure – Allie’s life may never be safe until one of these characters lands in the pen…

Woof at the Door


Laura Morrigan - 2013
    But when a Doberman turns out to be the only witness to a crime, Grace will have to let the cat out of the bag in order to catch a killer. Grace Wilde’s job is anything but normal. When she’s not helping out at the zoo by comforting agitated lemurs, she’s listening to the woes of annoyed house pets. Grace’s life gets even more complicated, though, when the cops summon her to a crime scene to help deal with the murder victim’s terrified Doberman. The pooch turns out to be the only one who saw what happened the night of the shooting—and only Grace can get the information out of him. The problem is, how will Grace tell the distractingly gorgeous Sergeant Kai Duncan that it’s the dog who’s giving her the intel without spilling her big secret or sounding crazy? Left on her own, Grace will have to follow the pup’s lead to track down the killer. But she’ll have to be careful—or curiosity may end up killing the cat whisperer.

Like a Bad Penny


Harper Crowley - 2019
    The good, the bad, and the ghoulish, streaming live and in color to thousands of subscribers. When Meredith and her team of ghost hunters take on a case in the tiny town of Oak Cliff, Georgia, they don’t expect anything out of the ordinary, just a ghost in a white dress that may or may not be related to a missing persons investigation. But this case is unlike anything Meredith has taken on before. Oak Cliff is a town awash in mysteries and lies, and the spirit Meredith’s searching for may not be the only one haunting the MacIver mansion.Determined to unearth the truth, Meredith and her team dig their way through layers of mysteries and strange occurrences, getting closer to the truth—and real danger. Because it’s becoming clear that someone, or something, wants the past to stay buried, at any cost, and Meredith’s search for the truth just might get her and her team killed. Fans of Amanda Lee and Rose Pressey, get ready to start an exciting new series...

Death of a Dishonorable Gentleman


Tessa Arlen - 2015
    Pulling together the food, flowers and a thousand other details for one of the most significant social occasions of the year is her happily accepted responsibility. But when her husband's degenerate nephew is found murdered, it's more than the ball that is ruined. In fact, Lady Montfort fears that the official police enquiry, driven by petty snobbery and class prejudice, is pointing towards her son as a potential suspect.Taking matters into her own hands, the rather over-imaginative countess enlists the help of her pragmatic housekeeper, Mrs. Jackson, to investigate the case, track down the women that vanished the night of the murder, and clear her son's name. As the two women search for a runaway housemaid and a headstrong young woman, they unearth the hidden lives of Lady Montfort's close friends, servants and family and discover the identity of a murderer hiding in plain sight.In this enchanting debut sure to appeal to fans of Downton Abbey, Tessa Arlen draws readers into a world exclusively enjoyed by the rich, privileged classes and suffered by the men and women who serve them. Death of a Dishonorable Gentleman is an elegant mystery filled with intriguing characters and fascinating descriptions of Edwardian life—a superb treat for those who love British novels.

Cherry Pies & Deadly Lies


Darci Hannah - 2018
    The annual Cherry Blossom Festival has just kicked off at the Cherry Orchard Inn in Door County, Wisconsin, and the manager of the Bloom family orchard has been found dead beneath the cherry blossoms. Worse yet, all evidence points to Whitney's father as the killer. After she races home to help, things really land in the pits for Whitney when she discovers that Jack MacLaren, her old high school nemesis, is Cherry Cove's only police officer. Putting her cherry-tastic treats on hold, Whitney matches wits against Jack. But will she have what it takes to clear her father's name and sift out the real Cherry Cove killer?"The first in an amusing new series features a fearless, reckless sleuth who unravels a complicated mystery while juggling her sex life and her future plans."--Kirkus Reviews"Whitney is a well-drawn, sympathetic character, and the small-town frame, with a close-knit community and a cherry orchard, will appeal to cozy readers who enjoy Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen mysteries."--Booklist"Hannah displays... talent."--Publishers Weekly"Great fun and extremely well-written. The crime, the characters--everything comes together...an extremely "tasty" story you will definitely devour in one sitting."--Suspense Magazine