Book picks similar to
Puzzling Ink by Becky Clark


mystery
cozy-mystery
cozy-mysteries
fiction

Mrs. Morris and the Ghost


Traci Wilton - 2019
    But when she decided to open her B&B there, she expected guests--not ghosts...A grieving young widow, Charlene needed a new start--so she bought a historic mansion, sight unseen, and drove from Chicago to New England to start turning it into a bed-and-breakfast. On her first night in the house, she awakens to find a handsome man with startling blue eyes in her bedroom. Terror turns to utter disbelief when he politely introduces himself as Jack Strathmore--and explains that he used to live here--when he was alive. He firmly believes that someone pushed him down the stairs three years ago, and he won't be able to leave until someone figures out who. If Charlene wants to get her business up and running in time for the Halloween tourist rush, and get this haunting houseguest out of the way, she'll have to investigate. Though truth be told, this ghost is starting to grow on her . . .

A Pattern for Murder


Ann Yost - 2018
    She is, after all, an Agatha Christie fan who has a year of law school under her belt!But as more bodies turn up and lies are revealed, it becomes clear that not everybody in Keweenaw is as innocent as Hatti thought.Publisher's Note: While you don’t need to be a knitter to enjoy this series, you just might pick up a fun and rewarding hobby in addition to enjoying a thoroughly delightful, clean and wholesome, mystery with a good dose of humor.The BAIT & STITCH SERIES:A Pattern for MurderA Double-Pointed MurderA Fair Isle Murder

Murder at Hawthorn Cottage


Betty Rowlands - 1990
    Now, she flees London, her devoted but over-protective lover and her kindly but dominating agent, and takes refuge in the Cotswolds. With no more serious distractions than Iris, her eccentric, artistic neighbour, her cheerful, romantic domestic help Gloria and a rector who is a secret devotee of her fiction, Melissa dreams of undisturbed peace for the production of yet more bestsellers.But a series of bizarre telephone calls leads to a meeting with an engaging young journalist convinced that a real crime has been committed. When a corpse is discovered in woodlands a short distance from her isolated cottage, curiosity gets the better of judgment. In the course of a little gentle sleuthing, Melissa finds the truth stranger than her own fiction and uncovers a story of villainy, frustration and despair which leads to further violent death before the mystery can be resolved.

Button Holed


Kylie Logan - 2011
    Her reputation draws a Hollywood starlet to the Button Box to shop for one-of-a-kind buttons to adorn her made-to-order wedding gown.But after the Button Box is ransacked and the actress murdered, Josie's cozy world is thrown into chaos-and a killer is out to keep Josie's lips buttoned up...permanently.

May Day


Jess Lourey - 2006
    Due to a dead-end job and a cheating boyfriend, the Twin Cities have lost their charm, and Mira decides to begin a new life in rural Battle Lake. Right away she is offered jobs as an assistant librarian and part-time reporter, and falls into an unexpected romance with a guy who seems to be the perfect man until he turns up dead between the reference stacks her tenth day on the job. Anxious to learn more about the man who had briefly stolen her heart, Mira delves into the hidden mysteries of Battle Lake, including a old land deed with ancient Ojibwe secrets, an obscure octogenarian crowd with freaky social lives, and a handful of thirtysomething high school buddies who hold bitter, decades-old grudges. Mira soon discovers that unknown dangers are concealed under the polite exterior of this quirky small town, and revenge is a tator-tot hotdish best served cold.A hip, humorous, and gripping account of small-town murder, this novel is the first in a series of cozies featuring Mira James, an urban woman with rural Minnesota roots.

In for a Penny


Kelsey Browning - 2013
    Desperate to keep up the family name and give the man a decent burial, penniless Lil cooks up a shady deal that lands her smack-dab in the slammer.Burdened by her shameful secret and a crumbling family estate, Lil entrusts Summer Haven’s care to her best friend, Maggie, who recruits two more over-fifty ladies to help. But when Maggie discovers that Lil’s restitution is ten times the amount she “borrowed” from the federal government, she’s convinced Lil has taken the fall for someone else’s crime.Will these gals be able to get some vigilante justice for Lil, or will the swindler get away with hoodwinking a sweet little old lady?Recipes included!(Originally published as In for a Penny in the Granny/G Team series)

Written Off


E.J. Copperman - 2016
    Rachel is busy finishing up her next book, when a man calls out of the blue asking for help in a missing persons case. The caller's name? Duffy Madison.Is this real or has she lost her mind? She doesn't have much time to find out because a serial killer is on the loose, kidnapping and murdering mystery authors. And Rachel may just be the next target.Full of uncanny intrigue and witty humor, E.J. Copperman's imaginative series debut Written Off is sure to be a favorite amongst Copperman's many fans new and old.

Grave Reservations


Cherie Priest - 2021
    When Leda, sole proprietor of Foley's Flights of Fancy, impulsively re-books Seattle PD detective Grady Merritt’s flight, her life changes in ways she couldn’t have predicted. After watching his original plane blow up from the safety of the airport, Grady realizes that Leda’s special abilities could help him with a cold case he just can’t crack. Despite her scattershot premonitions, she agrees for a secret reason: her fiancé’s murder remains unsolved. Leda’s psychic abilities couldn’t help the case several years before, but she’s been honing her skills and drawing a crowd at her favorite bar’s open-mic nights, where she performs Klairvoyant Karaoke—singing whatever song comes to mind when she holds people’s personal effects. Now joined by a rag-tag group of bar patrons and pals alike, Leda and Grady set out to catch a killer—and learn how the two cases that haunt them have more in common than they ever suspected.

The Big Chili


Julia Buckley - 2015
    But when one of her clandestine concoctions is used to poison a local woman, Lilah finds herself in a pot-load of trouble…After dreaming for years of owning her own catering company, Lilah has made a start into the food world through her Covered Dish business, covertly cooking for her neighbors who don’t have the time or skill to do so themselves, and allowing them to claim her culinary creations as their own. While her clientele is strong, their continued happiness depends on no one finding out who’s really behind the apron.So when someone drops dead at a church Bingo night moments after eating chili that Lilah made for a client, the anonymous chef finds herself getting stirred into a cauldron of secrets, lies, and murder—and going toe to toe with a very determined and very attractive detective. To keep her clients coming back and her business under wraps, Lilah will have to chop down the list of suspects fast, because this spicy killer has acquired a taste for homicide…

Crimes on Campus


Susan Harper - 2019
     A cozy mystery from #1 Bestselling author Susan Harper Woodville is a small college town in the Smokey Mountains. When a murder shocks the community, long time friends Tori and Jordan must put their heads together and find a killer. Can they keep their beloved college focused on higher learning or will it be overcome by heinous crimes? Crimes on Campus is the first book in the College Town Cozy Mystery series. If you enjoy cozy mysteries with interesting characters, it’s time to go back to school to solve a mystery. Download Festivals and Fatalities and start solving your next mystery today! Always FREE on Kindle Unlimited

Sprinkles of Suspicion


Kim Davis - 2020
    Unfortunately, that was only the beginning of her troubles.Distraught after discovering the betrayal by her husband and best friend, Tori, cupcake caterer Emory Martinez allows her temper to flare. Several people witness her very public altercation with her ex-friend. To make matters worse, Tori exacts her revenge by posting a fake photo of Emory in a compromising situation, which goes viral on social media. When Tori is found murdered, all signs point to Emory being the prime suspect.With the police investigation focused on gathering evidence to convict her, Emory must prove her innocence while whipping up batches of cupcakes and buttercream. Delving into the past of her murdered ex-friend, she finds other people had reasons to want Tori dead, including Emory’s own husband. Can she find the killer, or will the clues sprinkled around the investigation point the police back to her?

Peonies and Peril: A Cozy Animal Mystery


Sue Hollowell - 2020
    

Death at a Country Mansion


Louise R. Innes - 2020
    Unfortunately, it’s curtains down on the dysfunctional diva when she’s found dead at the bottom of a staircase in her elegant home. Solving an opera singer’s murder may not be the typical hairdresser’s aria of expertise. But Dame Serena was the mother of Daisy’s best friend Floria, so Daisy must do-or-dye her best to get to the roots of the case. When a priceless Modigliani painting in the house is reported missing, the mystery gets even more tangled. Even though the gruff but handsome Detective Inspector Paul McGuinness tells the stylist to stay out of his hair, Daisy is determined to make sure the killer faces a stern makeover—behind bars. “A promising debut with scads of interesting characters, a spirited heroine, and a hint of romance.” — Kirkus Reviews“Enjoyable…will appeal to readers of Elizabeth J. Duncan’s 'Penny Brannigan' mysteries.” —Library Journal“Death at a Country Mansion has more twists than a French braid.” —Sherry Harris “If you enjoy British manor houses, a touch of budding romance, and a good mystery (like I do), I highly recommend Death at a Country Mansion.” —Vikki Walton “A little romance, a little art history, and a gorgeous mansion . . . a page-turner that is fun and intriguing.” —ACF Bookens

Murder in a Scottish Shire


Traci Hall - 2020
    . .   For a twenty-eight-year-old single mum, Paislee has knit together a sensible life for herself, her ten-year-old son Brody, and Wallace, their black Scottish terrier. Having inherited a knack for knitting from her dear departed grandmother, Paislee also owns a specialty sweater shop called Cashmere Crush, where devoted local crafters gather weekly for her Knit and Sip.   Lately, though, Paislee feels as if her life is unraveling. She’s been served an eviction notice, and her estranged and homeless grandfather has just been brought to her door by a disconcertingly handsome detective named Mack Zeffer. As if all that wasn't enough, Paislee discovers a young woman who she recently rehired to help in the shop dead in her flat, possibly from an overdose of her heart medicine. But as details of the death and the woman’s life begin to raise suspicions for Detective Inspector Zeffer, it’s Paislee who must untangle a murderous yarn . . .

Never Buried


Edie Claire - 1999
    Too bad his body didn't!Advertising copywriter Leigh Koslow doesn't pack heat--just a few extra pounds. And she doesn't go looking for trouble. When she moved into her cousin Cara's refurbished Victorian house, she wasn't planning on discovering a corpse--certainly not one that had been embalmed ten years before. But as anyone in the small Pittsburgh borough of Avalon could tell her, her cousin's house has a history attached. A history dating back to two mysterious deaths in the summer of 1949.Someone wants Leigh and Cara out of the house--someone who has something to hide. But that someone doesn't know Leigh's impetuous cousin, and when Cara digs her heels in, Leigh looks to her old college chum, local policewoman Maura Polanski, for help. But the answers the trio find only point to more questions. Were the scandalous deaths of fifty years ago really an accident and a suicide? Or were they murder?The nearer the women get to the truth, the more desperate someone becomes. Because some secrets are better off kept. Especially when they hit close to home!