Now I’m struggling to figure out which problem to solve first!My business partner seems to want to share more than our lease, but I have to take that step very slowly. Of course, I can’t in good conscience leave the kittens to wander the streets. Then again no business means no money.

    Think innkeeper Dick Loudon and mystery writer Jessica Fletcher. Put 'em together, flip 'em around and what do you get? Kelly Green and Harry Leland. One is the new owner of the Beach Lovers Inn in Myrtle Beach, SC. The other is a mystery writer staying at the inn who sees mysteries and murders everywhere.When Kelly’s aunt decides to retire, she jumps at the opportunity to run the inn. But soon after, a guest is murdered and Kelly and Harry are determined to find the killer before any more guests check out for good.First in a new cozy series by critically-acclaimed, bestselling author J.R. Ripley.

     Back home on Sweetwater Island after a decade long absence, Wendy is looking to start anew. Armed with a place to live and her trusty dog, Trixie, all Wendy needs is…well, everything. Money. A job. A plan. When one of the locals on the island assumes she’s a dog walker, she jumps at the chance to make a little money. But walking dogs leads her directly into the path of Caroline Ford. Or, rather, the body of Caroline Ford. An unfriendly police chief soon suspects that Wendy might be involved in the crime and she immediately sets out to prove her innocence. As she works to clear her name, she meets several islanders who already have the wrong impression about her…and who might be the one responsible for Caroline Ford’s murder. The situation turns dire when Wendy realizes she’s not just a suspect…she might soon be a victim, too. She knew coming back home wouldn’t be easy. She just didn’t expect it to be deadly, too.

    An escape to a quaint beach town. Will a mysterious murder derail a second chance at her dream?Tilly Griffin did everything by the book. Everyone else’s book. Now it was her turn to write a new chapter, three thousand miles from her former life. Her dream of opening a bakery like her grandma Luna was now becoming a reality.No sooner does she arrive in the charming beach town, when she and her quirky uncle are tangled up in a mysterious death. When a kite competition judge is found murdered in the bookstore next to her uncle's Checkered Past Antiques shop, Tilly questions her decision to move to Belle Harbor, and everything about her new life.As the clues emerge, and the small-town secrets are revealed, Tilly’s uncle finds himself smack dab in the middle of the investigation, and surrounded by suspects. Will the murderer be nabbed in time for the bakery’s grand opening or will this close the book on Tilly’s dreams?Cupcakes and Catastrophe is Book 1 in the Belle Harbor Cozy Mystery series. A light, cozy mystery in a quaint beach town with a fun loving, amateur female sleuth, her quirky uncle, and enough antiques and pastries to fill your home and your belly. No gore, swearing or cliffhangers. Can be read as a standalone.

    Shelby’s life gets interesting after the quirky and colorful resort baker takes her under her wing, a scruffy beach dog moves onto her porch, and she adopts an adorable kitten. When a disagreeable tourist dies, suspicion is cast on Shelby’s new friends and acquaintances. Wanting to clear their names, she dives into tracking down the real killer. But it may be perilous for Shelby! Danger at the Dive Shack, the first book in the Dive Shack Mysteries series, is a clean cozy mystery novella with a tropical twist. It can be read as a standalone, but you will enjoy reading the continuing series. Recipes included!

    After being ghosted at my own wedding, I decided to leave California and return home to Maine where I grew up. While my parents are enjoying an all expenses paid cruise, aka as my non-refundable honeymoon, I’m house sitting for them back in Clover Creek.My lifelong dream of owning my own bakery finally comes true but unfortunately, it’s only because the owner of the bakery turns up dead in the cupcake truck that I was driving. And to make things worse, I’m the prime murder suspect because she decided to leave both her bakery and her house to me in her will, despite the fact that I just met her two weeks ago.In the process of being arrested, I also became a kitty mom to an adorable ruddy Abyssinian who thinks he’s a dog and suffers from separation anxiety. Now, it will take of my mystery movie watching know-how to help solve this crime myself.

    A small town with busybodies and open secrets. Can a new girl in town start a new life before a murder investigation ends it? Tracy Adams had three things going for her in her just-above-average boring life namely: 1. A good job 2. A good job... that she liked 3. A good job that she liked... and that paid VERY well When she lost her job and had to move back to the small town where she grew up, it seemed like her life had lost all purpose. Helping out at her aunt's floundering floral shop seemed like the perfect distraction before she decided what to do next. When her aunt's competition, a nasty and egotistical know-it-all is found dead, the rumor mill in Fern Grove goes into overdrive. With an important piece of evidence linking Tracy to the scene of the crime, she becomes a person of interest in the murder investigation. This leaves her feeling vulnerable and confused. Moving back to Fern Grove was meant to be the start of a new life but this murder mystery is fast ending what has hardly begun. Will she retain her wits and piece together the clues that will lead her to the killer? If you want to enjoy a light-hearted read, with an amateur female sleuth and a gripping murder mystery with a touch of romance, then you'll love Tracy Adams and all the friendly and not-so-friendly characters in Fern Grove. No cliffhanger, swearing or graphic scenes! Buy Carnation and Deadly Fixations to discover how events unfold in this cozy murder mystery.

     It’s Christmas time in the snowy, quaint town of Middlebridge, Wisconsin, and Jennifer Hunter -- a sweet, organized second-grade teacher who has a mind for sleuthing -- is ready to spend her Christmas break crocheting, baking, and relaxing. But before the school bell can ring for Christmas break, her best friend and Middlebridge’s Lieutenant, Jake Hollow, shows up in her classroom, but he’s not there to bring a cup of Christmas cheer. There’s a murder in town, and he needs Jennifer’s help solving the crime. Jennifer soon discovers that not only is the killer targeting retired Santa Clauses, but he’s also staging his victims like scenes from the Charles Dickens novel A CHRISTMAS CAROL. As Jake and Jennifer follow the clues, more questions than answers start to arise: What is this Society of Santas they keep hearing about? Why is the killer leaving behind empty pudding packages at each crime scene? And what in the world does the book A CHRISTMAS CAROL have to do with the victims? Add to that a tight-lipped orphan boy who’s housing a pack of puppies in one of the victim’s buildings, a quirky book store owner who lies about ever having sold a copy of A CHRISTMAS CAROL and Jennifer’s date with a fellow school teacher that ends in total disaster. In between holiday parties, family obligations, baking, and creating handmade Christmas presents, Jennifer must craft together an investigation that catches the killer and saves the Santa Clauses in town. Otherwise, the night before Christmas might be their last. This clean, cozy mystery will captivate readers with Jennifer’s amateur sleuthing that entangles her in snow-deep shenanigans, cryptic car chases, and more chocolate pudding than she ever imagined. Readers will fall in love with the quick-witted and craft-loving Jennifer Hunter, who is down-to-earth and has a heart as warm as a crackling fire on a cold winter’s night. The charming friendship between Jennifer and Lieutenant Jake Hollow epitomizes the quaint, familial feel that lives in small towns, especially those sleepy hamlets with snow-capped houses and a love for Christmas. THE SLAY OF THE SANTAS is an exhilarating page-turner with cliffhangers around every corner, and it will bring the joy of the holiday season all year round. Readers who love cozy mysteries like Jessica Beck’s PUMPKIN PLEAS, Betty Hechtman’s BY HOOK OR BY CROOK, and Joanna Campbell Slan’s KIKI LOWENSTEIN SERIES and readers who have holiday favorites like Charles Dickens’s A CHRISTMAS CAROL, Louisa May Alcott’s LITTLE WOMEN, and O’Henry’s “THE GIFT OF THE MAGI,” will be enchanted by Kacey Gene’s THE SLAY OF THE SANTAS.

    So when her real estate developer boyfriend offers her a sweet catering gig, she jumps at the chance to cook for his gala and rub elbows with the town’s elite. The problem? That fancy gala is only happening because her best friend’s home was burned down by an arsonist. And the more Bethany learns about her boyfriend’s planned development, the more she suspects that he might have had something to do with it.Determined to uncover the arsonist’s identity, Bethany cooks her way through the gala, listening to the secrets, lies, and gossip swirling around Hosanna Street. But when someone close to her is killed during the party—and the murder weapon is found in her pot of clam chowder—Bethany finds herself in more than a little hot water.---------------------------------------If you like smart culinary mysteries with quirky characters and quaint seaside towns, you’ll love the Death du Jour series that follows Bethany Bradstreet as she builds her career and solves crimes with the help of her friends. Crime Chowder is the first book in the Death du Jour series. This book has clean language and mild suspense with no cliffhangers. It contains depictions of an LGBT relationship.P.S. – There’s a dog in it.

    Two years later, with her children grown and the rest of her life ahead of her, she's ready to have the adventure she'd planned before her life was turned upside-down. She's excited to visit the U.S. Virgin Islands on her very first cruise.After boarding the most beautiful cruise ship she's ever seen, Ellie's surprised when she's assigned a cabin inside the cruise line's new singles club at sea, but she quickly sees that her new friends aboard could use some advice when it comes to romance. Unfortunately, Ellie's matchmaking efforts are interrupted when a fellow passenger finds a finger with a big diamond ring on it in her Sangria Surprise!Passengers are scandalized and tongues are wagging all around the ship. The ship's security chief seems eager to brush the crime under the rug while others are eager to point fingers at Ellie's favorite bartender. After thirty years married to a small town police chief, Ellie's picked up some sleuthing skills of her own, and she knows that justice demands honest answers to the questions rocking the ship. Who does the finger belong to? How did it end up in the boozy drink special of the day? And what other secrets lurk beneath the Caribbean sun?It's all hands on deck for adventure with this matchmaking sleuth.

    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!

    A dead mentor. A new boss. What else could go wrong? Lillian Booth is pushed to her limits when she’s assigned the worst yet most important case of her career. Trying to disbar a lawyer who abused his clients for years behind closed doors.But after a series of sinister events, she’s forced to co-counsel with Henry Alton, a man who detested her beloved and now-deceased mentor.Lillian and Henry have one goal. To win.But Lillian fears failure if she and Henry can’t get along. And to get along requires her to uncover the origin of Henry’s hatred.Then survival becomes more important as a mysterious attacker targets them as the case races toward a possibly deadly conclusion. A Devilish Punishment is the first book in the Devil Springs Cozy Mysteries Series.

    After the death of her mother—and twenty years after being abandoned by her father—Pippin and her twin brother, Grey, are back. Inheriting their parents’ old beach house on Rum Runner’s Lane is like a strong wind at their back, pushing them to safe ground. They are home at last.But what was supposed to be a chance at a new life turns sinister when her father’s old fishing boat reveals a dark secret. As the truth about what really happened to Leo Hawthorne unspools, Pippin realizes that an ancient curse her parents fought to break has found her.Now Pippin must embrace her fate as a bibliomancer and learn how to ‘read’ the books she’s always shied away from. Only then will she be able to discover the truth about what really happened to her parents and continue their efforts to break the curse that has haunted the Lane family for two thousand years.“A magical blend of books, mystery, and smart sleuthing, Melissa Bourbon’s Murder in Devil’s Cove offers mystery readers everything they crave and stands out in the crowded cozy genre. This captivating new series will leave readers spellbound.”-NYT and USA bestselling author, Ellery Adams

     Adult triplets Cassie, Callie and Lonnie Parker, have thrown their hearts and souls into planning the Scrabble tournament Callie is hosting at the local high school. But, when a bookcase full of dictionaries lands on a beloved teacher, murmurs of foul play threaten the entire competition. With the new-to-the-county detective, who doesn't know the townspeople yet and a school full of suspects, can these siblings work together to find the killer, keep everyone else safe, and move all the pieces into place to run spectacular tournament?

    What a joy to be able to attend the holiday concert without worrying about how her chorus will perform. But wait. Where's the principal? Susan offers to check, only to find the principal lying dead on her office floor. Of course, now that she's retired she has time to help the local police (one of whom is her daughter) solve the mysterious crime. Did the principal die of natural causes? The bruise on her face doesn't seem severe enough to be fatal. What about that funfetti cupcake sitting on her desk? Could she have been poisoned? Susan has just found the perfect retirement activity, much to her daughter's chagrin. And when the principal's teenage daughter, one of Susan's all time favorite students, asks for help - how can she say no? Little does she realize that this crime will take her far from the schoolhouse doors, as she investigates a mystery that extends back into one family's painful past.