Castelmezzano, The Witch Is Dead


Adriana Licio - 2020
    Meeting at the fabled Witches’ Cave, they put aside their woes – the naked body of Sibilla, Castelmezzano’s beautiful witch, lies dead at the foot of the old oak tree. Did she plummet from the sky during a Sabbath flight as the superstitious locals are whispering? Or was the far more worldly evil of a human hand involved?When suspicions fall on Cassandra, Sibilla’s sister in the Art of Witchcraft, Dora and Etta fear the carabinieri have fallen prey to prejudice and local folklore. While Dora remains convinced of Cassandra’s innocence, Etta’s hunch takes her to a completely different conclusion, but could the truth really be so devious? And can she stop the killer before she becomes the next victim?•••Fans of cosy mysteries won’t want to miss this intriguing tale of deceit and betrayal, new from the author of the thrilling An Italian Village Mystery series.Castelmezzano, The Witch is Dead is the prequel to the The Homeswappers Mysteries a humorous cosy series from Italian author Adriana Licio exploring the most delightfully murderous European travel destinations on and off the beaten track.Each book can be read as a standalone or you can enjoy the whole series:0. Castelmezzano, The Witch is Dead – An Italian Cosy Mystery (A Prequel Novella)1. The Watchman of Rothenburg Dies – A German Cosy Mystery2. A Wedding and a Funeral in Mecklenburg – A German Travel Mystery3. An Aero Island Christmas Mystery – A Danish Cosy Mystery4. Prague, Secrets from the Past – A Czech Travel Mystery (to be released in Spring 2021) (More books and more adventures to come!)Written in British English, this is a clean cosy mystery series with no violence, sex or strong language.

Sweet Murder


Tegan Maher - 2017
    But that's just the beginning. She has the Magical Oversight Committee on her back because she can't keep her unruly little sister in line and the hunky new city-slicker sheriff would like to take her to dinner, except he suspects her of murder. To top it off, her possessed miniature donkey is being particularly calamitous and the old hens at the local beauty parlor are laying bets on her love life. A skydiving best friend and a bossy, living-impaired aunt become the least of her worries when the killer decides to bump up the plan by bumping her off. Can she figure it out in time to save all that she holds dear, or will Noelle be next on the list of folks who've turned up dead?

Sunshine Hunter


Maddie Cochere - 2012
    Often, she is simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, and things go downhill quickly. All of the books cross genres of chick lit, mystery, romance, humor, and action, bringing you a fast-paced, easy-breezy read.Working in a weight-loss center by day and a racquetball club by night, Susan Hunter enjoys her life, the sport, and her friends. ... Sunshine Hunter opens with Susan finding out her new boyfriend of three months is married. To escape the drama, she accepts an offer from her best friend to tag along for a week in Florida. Here the mystery begins, and Susan believes she and her friend are being stalked. She also learns of a murder back home in Ohio and soon finds out she's wanted for questioning. The story takes an adventurous turn when she ends up in the Gulf of Mexico. ... Humorous, sometimes ominous, Sunshine Hunter is quirky and fun! Approx. 52,000 words.

Truly, Madly


Heather Webber - 2010
    But when her parents temporarily step down from the family business, Valentine, Inc., it’s Lucy’s turn to step up and help out—in the name of love. Plus, her rent is due. Here’s the problem: Lucy doesn’t have the knack for matchmaking. According to family legend, every Valentine has been blessed by Cupid with the ability to read “auras” and pair up perfect couples. But not Lucy. Her skills were zapped away years ago in an electrical surge, and now all she can do is find lost objects. What good is that in the matchmaking world? You’d be surprised. In a city like Boston, everyone’s looking for something. So when Lucy locates a missing wedding ring—on a dead body—she asks the sexy private eye who lives upstairs to help her solve the perfect crime. And who knows? Maybe she’ll find the perfect love while she’s at it…

Wicked Days


Lily Harper Hart - 2015
    She certainly doesn’t need to second guess her life, or her witchy ways ... that is until Shadow Lake’s newest police detective enters her life. Jack Harker is haunted by a past he refuses to talk about, and he’s not looking forward to a future with anyone – especially a sassy witch with boundary issues. Jack and Ivy find their paths crossing on a regular basis when a dead body is discovered on the edge of Ivy’s property. Jack doesn’t want any romantic entanglements, but there’s just something about Ivy that keeps drawing him in. When the truth is finally revealed, Jack has to decide what he believes – and he has to do it before a murderer turns his attention to Ivy. Can Ivy heal Jack’s wounds? Will she even get a chance to try?

Brownies and Broomsticks


Bailey Cates - 2012
    So when her aunt Lucy and uncle Ben open a bakery in Savannah's quaint downtown district and ask Katie to join them, she enthusiastically agrees. While working at the Honeybee Bakery—named after Lucy's cat—Katie notices that her aunt is adding mysterious herbs to her recipes. Turns out these herbal enhancements aren't just tasty—Aunt Lucy is a witch and her recipes are actually spells! When a curmudgeonly customer is murdered outside the Honeybee Bakery, Uncle Ben becomes the prime suspect. With the help of handsome journalist Steve Dawes, charming firefighter Declan McCarthy, and a few spells, Katie and Aunt Lucy stir up some toil and trouble to clear Ben's name and find the real killer..

Deadly Claws


Jenna St. James - 2021
    When she retires from capturing criminal supernaturals for the government, she figures her days of chasing bad guys is over. Little did she know her new job as the game warden on Enchanted Island would thrust her right back into harm's way...and she wasn't even officially on the clock yet! But when Sheriff Stone enlists her help to find out who killed an island resident, Shayla readily agrees. Between sorting through alibis, gathering clues, and mentoring a wayward teenager on how to be a witch...Shayla's life is hectic. If only her estranged dad--the King--wouldn't insist she take her bodyguard, Needles, with her everywhere she goes. Just when Shayla believes she's identified the killer, a new threat emerges...leaving her to make a snap decision that may cost her her life. This new paranormal cozy series with a twist on midlife discovery will leave you guessing and hungry for more!

The Ex Who Wouldn't Die


Sally Berneathy - 2012
    Then she discovers he'd been dead for several hours at the time she thought he rescued her. And not just dead…murdered.On the good side, at least they are no longer married.But she's the primary suspect in Charley's murder and, as if that isn't bad enough, Charley's ghost shows up in her apartment. He was rejected, kicked back, not allowed to go into the light. The situation was bad enough when he was alive and trying to charm his way back into her life, but now he claims to be unable to go more than a few yards away from her. She can't even be certain he isn't peeking when she undresses for bed.Even death did not them part.As Amanda puts her life in danger in an effort to bring Charley's murderer to justice and send him into the light or the dark or anywhere away from her, she learns her knowledge of Charley's misdeeds is only the tip of a toxic iceberg. Charley blackmailed his murderer, blackmailed Amanda's father, lied about his family being dead when he is actually related to half the town of Silver Creek, Texas, and, with his treachery, has stirred up secrets that will change Amanda's life.

Murder on the Menu


Nancy Skopin - 2015
    When the brutal murder of socialite, (and stripper), Laura Howard lands on her desk, she finally encounters a case worthy of her talent.Murder on the Menu is the first in a series of mysteries featuring Nikki Hunter. The only child of a Cossack and a former nun, Hunter is a smart, tenacious thirty-five-year-old, who lives aboard a sailboat in the San Francisco Bay Area and works out of a ground floor office in the marina complex where she lives.When the Howard murder goes unsolved, the victim’s mother contacts Nikki, who agrees to a preliminary investigation, and discovers that Laura was about to inherit several million dollars. The list of suspects grows as Nikki delves into Laura’s past. Nikki befriends Homicide Detective Bill Anderson, and he confides to her that three recent murders, including Laura’s, have peculiar similarities.Nikki enlists the aid of her best friend and fellow boat-dweller, Elizabeth Gaultier, and while the two are conducting interviews they discover they’re being tailed by another PI. When the interviewees start turning up dead, Nikki tells Detective Anderson everything she’s uncovered, but it’s too late. Nikki has already become the killer’s next target.

Murder With a Psychic Touch


B.T. Alive - 2019
    A mysterious "Grandma" invites her to stay at the lovely Inn.Then a fellow guest drops dead.And Summer's the only suspect.Until now, Summer's always been a loner. (Except for her beloved cat.) Can she get over her haunted past and work together to catch the killer……with new friends who may have secret powers of their own?You'll love this fun, fast-paced cozy, because it has fresh paranormal powers, a huge warm family, and a twist ending you'll never suspect.Get it now.

Murder at the Filmore


Zelda White - 2018
    It looks cut and dry: a suspect fleeing the scene, a scorned wife, a mythical murder weapon. But then a retired detective by the name of Virginia Holmes arrives. There's more to this mystery than meets the eye ... and the murderer might still be inside the hotel.

#2 Bundle of Fun


Lizz Lund - 2014
    Plural. Her catering disorder runs neck-and-neck with her weird luck, and her cat’s weirder tendency toward gnawing elf gear. Okay, and getting kidnapped a couple of times in one week is a little strange, too.Her next door neighbor Vito's past as ex-leader of the Moils, the Jewish-Polish Family from Bumville, New Jersey, comes to light and throws a dollop of dilemmas into an already simmering plot.Top it all off with a counterfeiting ring, a county-wide dearth of holiday wrapping tape, and a mass of pets running loose at the local mall, and what do you have? A recipe for disaster that Mina whips to a froth.Christmas Bizarre will keep you smiling when you’re not shouting up a belly laugh. Set in Lancaster, “Pee-Ay” you’ll discover a lively cast of characters, funny dialogue and lots of twists and turns. Hang on tight -- you’re in for a slalom of a holiday ride. CONFECTION CONNECTION Valentine’s Day stinks - literally - after a shift at The Shrimp Shack, getting showered with a vat of marinara and being haunted by a messy ghost.The romance holiday looms large for Mina Kitchen - a forty-something single without a boyfriend in sight, and a catering disorder to beat the band. Everyone else is all set: even her Swiffer-addicted neighbor Vito (the ex-leader of the Moils, the Jewish-Polish Family from Bumville, New Jersey) has a significant other. Who knew?And then there’s her best friend Trixie. She’s got a steady boyfriend, and a full time job with plenty of OT, too. She’s even quit smoking! Except now she’s a jelly junkie. Well, not just jelly - any sweet will do.What’s a girl to do? Set her sights on handsome Chef? Or dare a flirt with juicy James? Who you gonna call? GumBuster! Wait, that’s just one of Mina’s new part time jobs.Romance fills the air (or is that fried chicken?) but dates remain elusive as a series of mysterious thefts rattle the shop owners of Lancaster "Pee-Ay". Can mild-mannered Mina land a full time job, a boyfriend and save Trixie’s waistline without getting konked by some creepy crook? Vinnie, her mini mountain lion-sized tabby keeps assuring her everything will turn out fine - but he’s been wrong before.Confection Connection is packed with laughs, mysterious thefts and a ghost - with a cherry on top - recipes. Set in Lancaster, “Pee-Ay” you’ll discover quirky characters, hysterical dialogue and funny surprises simmering away. ˃˃˃ “Christmas Bizarre (Mina Kitchen Mystery 2) is a hilarious sequel to Kitchen Addiction!” "It kept me laughing all the way through and brought to mind Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum stories. Ms. Lund has a bit of a winner on her hands here... Very well written, excellent, quite lovable characters and some very witty lines made this into a book that I would read again...

Paper Phoenix


Mickey Friedman - 1986
    Maggie Longstreet has plenty of them after slimy, ambitious Richard trades her in for a more recent model. She’s so depressed she can barely get out of bed when Larry Hawkins, a seemingly not-at-all depressed acquaintance, commits suicide out of the blue. Suddenly Maggie goes on high alert, remembering something her evil ex said about Larry—something highly suspicious. And from there, it's just a short segué to a bracing new development: “When some women get divorced they go back to school, I thought. Some do volunteer work at the hospital, or join communes and learn to birth calves. Some have affairs with inappropriate men. My new interest is burglary. Maggie Longstreet, former wife and mother, past president of the Museum Guild, now starting a career as a second-story woman.” Fortunately, Maggie isn’t alone in her adventure—a very attractive, much younger man proves a lot more fun than Richard ever was. In fact, the real delight of this witty, sly mystery is seeing Maggie come alive again after a suffocating marriage. Set in the’70s, it has a bit of that Mad Men feel of women on the brink of something big. And completely unexpected. You know Maggie’s going to be okay when she says: “I’d rather have had one of those cute little guns with a mother-of-pearl handle, but this (diamond pin) would have to do. I concealed it in my hand. At least now I was armed—or pinned.”

The Vampire Knitting Club


Nancy Warren - 2018
    With Gran's undying love to count on and Cardinal Woolsey's, Gran's knitting shop, to keep her busy, Lucy can catch her breath and figure out what she's going to do. Except it turns out that Gran is the undying. Or at least, the undead. But there's a death certificate. And a will, leaving the knitting shop to Lucy. And a lot of people going in and out who never use the door—including Gran, who is just as loving as ever, and prone to knitting sweaters at warp speed, late at night. What exactly is going on? When Lucy discovers that Gran did not die peacefully in her sleep, but was murdered, she has to bring the killer to justice without tipping off the law that there's no body in the grave. Between a hot 600-year-old vampire and a dishy detective inspector, both of whom always seem to be there for her, Lucy finds her life getting more complicated than a triple cable cardigan. The only one who seems to know what's going on is her cat ... or is it ... her familiar?

The Case of the Wayward Witch


A.A. Albright - 2019
    But with Uncle Faster out of action, and a boyfriend-killing witch on the loose, it might finally be Katy’s time to shine. Going deep undercover at a necromancy supply store seems like a terrifying plan, but Katy soon discovers that her new friends and neighbours aren’t quite as evil as she was led to believe. She begins to suspect that she might be tracking the wrong witch, after all. Will Katy discover the real killer in time? And will she prove, once and for all, that women are up to the job? In the latest tale from A.A. Albright, you’ll meet the feisty Katy Kramer, a wizard-turned-dog called Hamish, a sarcastic cat called Cleo, and a whole new cast of characters. A few old favourites might also pop in to say hello…