And the deafening music blaring from next door is not helping. Shane furiously bangs on the neighbour's door, ready to let rip. But Francine just happens to be a twenty-two-year-old woman who will not be argued with... and Shane is about to find out that life can really imitate art.So begins the first tale in this terrifying collection of short stories—a delicious cornucopia of homicidal maniacs, vampires and lust-crazed teenagers—that showcase the macabre genius of Richard Laymon.

    After baking a zillion pumpkin cookies, ghostly cupcakes, and an all-black cake for a young witch’s wedding, the gang is looking forward to a gala costume party at the neighborhood bookshop. But when one of the guests is murdered and a rare book vanishes—practically in front of their eyes—the evening takes a whole different turn and Sam finds herself in the midst of another mystery. BONUS: Includes 10 recipes from the author’s personal collection. Praise for Spellbound Sweets, from the anthology Midnight Mysteries: “This was my first time reading Connie Shelton, but it will not be the last. I love her writing style and love her main character, Samantha Sweet, whose series I will be buying. I tend toward more "heavy" mysteries, but this example of the cozy genre makes me want more. This was a real whodunit in the classic sense, with actors, a bakery, an antique book store, and witches to enliven the story.”— Riverlizzie, 5 stars on Amazon “Connie Shelton’s Spellbound Sweets novella is delightful. Just reading about Samantha Sweet and friends at her pastry shop will leave you drooling in anticipation of delicious treats. Join the Halloween party at a bookstore where someone dies and a rare book is now missing. This makes me crave another book in this series.” –Joanne K, 5 stars, Amazon “Connie Shelton created a book full of mystery, perfect from the first page! Don't you think there's always some mystery in the bookshops?” – Maria, 5 stars, Amazon "Spellbound Sweets"- Delectable yet witchy storyline that never wavered from the bakery aroma for too long! A longer read but worth the extra time for sure. The teamwork between Samantha and Beau was a main draw as well as attention to detail, down to the last frosted cookie.” – Janine Thiemann, 5 stars, Amazon “Spellbound Sweets by Connie Shelton was fun – although I think I gained weight reading about Samantha Sweet and the “crew” at her pastry shop. It is one of a few Samantha Sweet Magical Cozy Mysteries I’ve read and I’ll find previous stories to catch up.” – GDS, 5 stars, Amazon

    Are you cozy?Good. Now imagine how much more cozy you’ll feel when you add a book to the scene.BLACK CAT CROSSING offers the perfect finishing touch for all that autumnal bliss. This collection of 11 all new, never-before-read cozy mysteries is thrilling without being terrifying—yup, it’s just what the witch doctor ordered.From talking pet detectives to strays harboring magical secrets, friendly ghosts in need of aid, vampires who don’t bite, and even poison apples intended for costumed princesses, come celebrate Halloween with ten sweet and delicious stories that will keep you up well past your bedtime.Note: While intended for a grown-up audience, these stories are clean and wholesome and okay to share with the younger readers in your life, too. Enjoy!Black Cat Benefit by Molly FitzSecrets of the Black Cat by Mila RiggsBlack Cat Comes Back by Emmie LynA Wash & Werewolf by S.E. BabinA Haunted Offer by Carolyn Ridden AspensonKitty Cat Caper by Stephanie DamoreBewitching Henry by Michelle FrancikPoison Apple Potion by Nyx HalliwellMagic and Mystery by Izzy WilderThe Witch Wears Prada by Lisa SiefertBlackjack Crossing by F.M. Storm

     Book 1 - Rosalind - Peter Gilbert, Duke of Sudworth is a good man, but at the moment he's angry and very very bitter. He has inherited the title and the debt that the selfish lives of his deceased brother and father created. Facing bankruptcy, he has determined to keep his heritage at whatever cost. Only those closest to him know the real reason he is desperate to save his family home - the member of his family his father was ashamed off. Rosalind Johnson, is the eldest daughter of a 'cit', a man who has earned his fortune through business. As an ambitious father he is determined that his four daughters will marry the highest titles in the country, whether they like it or not, and he is prepared to pay to achieve his goal. Rosalind has no choice to marry a stranger and take on a life and Society that looked down on someone who came from trade. She would need all her resourcefulness to cope. Two people forced together because of circumstances that they did not create would be set for a shaky start at best, but with local gossip, illegitimate children and an alleged affair, things were never going to be quiet in the home of the Duke and Duchess of Sudworth. Book 2 - Annabelle - Annabelle Johnson has a secret. It could ruin her. But yet, she remained in a darkened room with a gentleman. Perhaps it was because for the first time she felt safe in a gentleman’s company. Compromised and hiding a damning secret was never going to be a good mix. Annabelle had to think of something before her secret ruined her and hurt the man she had married. Lord Stannage, Earl of Garston was a handsome man. A pity then that everyone who met him only noticed his different coloured eyes. In a society that only perfection was accepted, he was never going to feel welcomed. He avoids society apart from when he becomes too lonely. Two people, both hurting and afraid, needing each other’s strength before their living nightmare can ease. Will they find the courage to trust and listen to each other, or will they continue on their path to heartbreak? Book 3 - Grace - Grace Johnson does not want to marry a titled gentleman. She is only happy and at peace when spending time in a garden - any garden. When she visits her sister, the Duchess of Sudworth, Grace is disappointed that even her beloved sister is not listening to her. Grace hates matchmaking schemes but seems powerless to stop them. Harry Long is Head Gardener at Sudworth Hall. He is a good and loyal member of staff. The day that Grace walks into his life turns everything upside down. For the first time he is taking risks for the beautiful pixie that has walked into his life but, his actions could cost him everything. An innocent picnic threatens Grace and Harry in ways that neither could have predicted, but their lives and the lives of those around them will never be the same because of it. Book 4 - Eleanor - Eleanor Johnson, the youngest of the Johnson sisters, is plain. No one will ever write sonnets about her but she does not wish for sonnets; just someone to love her for herself. She has lived in the shadow of her three older, more beautiful sisters all her life. Now, not only plain she has made a fool of herself in the worst possible way. Joseph Heaton is sick of the fickleness of society. He has become one of those in society famous for their notoriety in putting people down. He is to find that one arrogant sentence was to cost him the woman that, unwittingly had become the most important person in his life.

     Ava Fortune's got it all... magic, love, and a bakery. She just can't seem to stay out of trouble, especially now that her dad is getting married. And now Ava's father's been framed for murder… Obviously, she can't let this case rest. Ava can't let her dad down. She needs to find the real killer before he strikes again or her dad ends up behind bars forever. With her aunts and best friend there to help her, Ava can't possibly fail. Or can she? She wonders if this time the killer just might win. Can Ava save her father before it's too late, or is her magic all used up? Page Count: around 330 pages

    Snow is falling, the decorations are up, and the Christmas parties are in full swing. A visit to the Christmas tree lot reveals a gorgeous new arrival. Lowther Zanzibar claims to be in the village to simply sell trees, but whenever a fallen cupid is around, trouble follows. And when relationships start going wrong, Tempest tries to figure out what’s happening. The problem is, she’s distracted by the strange new feelings she has for someone who's not her boyfriend! Wiggles must take on the challenge of figuring out why the village is suddenly full of terrible love matches. If he fails, this Christmas will turn into the weirdest time of the year, not the most joyful. Grab a mince pie and a glass of eggnog, and enjoy this fun cozy mystery. This is a short novel (31,000 words) featuring your favorite Crypt witch characters. Expect red herrings, some unusual suspects, and a fun, festive happy ending.

    Such a beautiful girl, but life was doing a number on her. She had been dealing with heartache pretty much since she graced the world with her presence seventeen years ago. At a young age, she’s become familiar with watching her mother be her boyfriend’s punching bag. All Ryan wanted in life was for her mother to leave her abusive boyfriend, Malik, so the two of them could peacefully live their lives. Not only was she dealing with emotional problems stemming from her mother’s relationship, but she was a high school senior dealing with depression and low self- esteem, simply because she didn't see the beauty in the heavy set, black queen looking back at her in the mirror. She then meets Messiah Washington. A guy who's musically talented, sexy, a few years older than Ryan, and could have any woman he wanted, but he was interested in Ryan. The title of this book is Miami’s Superstar because even with all the turmoil that Ryan was dealing with, she was talented. Some would even say that she reminds them of a younger Whitney Houston. The question is, does Ryan know that? Can she become the Miami Superstar that Messiah is setting her out to be, or will she just throw it all away?

    Preparations are well underway for celebrations to commemorate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, and in the City construction work is almost complete and ready for London to host the 2012 Olympic Games. In Cornwall, the inhabitants of Trengillion, having decided they would also like to celebrate the Queen's sixty year reign, begin to organise festivities which, unbeknown to them, will long be remembered for all the wrong reasons. Meanwhile, for retired headmaster Ned Stanley, talk of the Diamond Jubilee stirs many memories and emotions, for it is sixty years since he first set foot on Trengillion's soil. Trengillion's Jubilee Jamboree is the 7th and final book in the Cornish Mystery Series. The series covers village life over a period of sixty years, from 1952 to 2012.

    Not only that but she’s left trying to figure out her next move after a bomb is dropped on her. Trinity is trying to move on with her life after all the drama with Lucas but when his accident causes her to be by his side she sees moving on isn’t as easy as she thought. Now she has to try to maintain a new relationship while showing she’s still loyal to the ones that’s been there from the beginning. Will things work out in her favor? Brady and Trinity are getting ready for their new addition but when outside forces come in threatening to tear them apart they must show there love is strong enough to overcome them. Brady makes a decision that will not only affect him but his family as well, now he must deal with consequences, but will Renee be willing to stick by his side? Meanwhile, the DEA is still on the boys back, Trevor is still lurking in the shadows, and death is trying to knock on the crew's door. Will they be able to make it through this crazy ride or fall victim to the madness?

    They have a million followers who check out their channel for pranks and couple travel videos. Chloe thinks life is perfect until she finds out that her prince charming is cheating. Humiliated and disrespected, Chloe gives up her YouTube channel and is back at square one, living on her best friend Layla’s sofa. Without Eric she feels like she can’t go on; that is until she runs into a handsome stranger, Cole Lewis, that reignites her need to create. What she doesn’t know is that her new boo is one of the most feared men in Atlanta. He runs the city with an iron fist and likes to be low-key, which doesn’t fit into Chloe’s public lifestyle. Somehow they learn to manage their relationship, but not without a few hiccups (like Eric trying to coming back in the picture and online haters who don’t want Chloe to be happy). 
 Layla has always been there for her best friend and that doesn’t stop when Chloe is at her lowest. Layla encourages Chloe to move on and forget about Eric. She wants her friend to be happy and she knows that Cole would be perfect for her. While trying to play match maker she goes through changes of her own with her high-school-sweet-heart-turned-fiancé, Ken. He is not the man that she thought he was. While dealing with a broken heart, she meets a man that takes her breath away, causing her to face a difficult question. Will she leave the love she’s known for years and try something new, or continue to hold her man down even though he hurt her? 
 Giving My Heart to the King of Atlanta is filled with love and drama. Chloe and Layla must go through their fair share of trials to get their happy endings.

    When she arrives, Barry Ashford, the RCMP officer Sarah is supposed to irritate, has just saved a woman from a suicide attempt. To the media and the public, Barry Ashford is a hero. To Sarah, he is breaking the law and getting away with it because he's a member of the street gang in blue. Since Vivian hasn't revealed exactly what Barry is up to, Sarah doesn't have much to go on. The message was simple: Antagonize RCMP Officer Barry Ashford until he confesses his crimes to her. Sarah's efforts to goad him don't work. Eventually, the entire Kelowna RCMP detachment is looking for Sarah on harassment charges. She can't afford to be arrested and she can't afford to fail Vivian. With her options running out, she abducts Barry, ties him up in the basement of her rented home, and interrogates him. Vivian leaves Sarah another message that Barry is only the barnacle on the Mother Ship. She needs to look deeper for a darker truth, one much larger than Barry. When Sarah comes face to face with that truth, she discovers an evil too large to handle on her own. One that will kill her unless Vivian intervenes. The Redeemed (Sarah Roberts Book Eleven) Four Catholic priests have been murdered in Los Angeles, each killed in a different way. Each priest's name is carved into a small crucifix found with the body. Someone with a deep-rooted hatred of Catholicism is targeting priests with a suspected history of deviant behavior. The lead detective, David Hirst, calls on his friend Parkman for help and asks if he could bring Sarah Roberts along. Since Sarah is on a quest to redeem herself with her colleague Parkman after she had let him down in the past, she agrees to go to L.A. and do whatever she can to aid in the investigation. When they arrive, they head straight to the crime scene of yet another dead priest. With Sarah's history of antagonizing cops, and a recent feature in newspapers around North America regarding the death of a Canadian officer, the LAPD don't want her help. Within days, Hirst regrets his decision and asks Sarah and Parkman to leave. But the killer has other plans. According to the Bible, since Sarah is an automatic writer and talks to her dead sister, she is a practitioner of witchcraft and she works for the devil. Therefore she has to die, too. Before she has a chance to leave L.A., the priest killer has carved her name into a small crucifix. What he has in store for her is reminiscent of Eve in the Garden of Eden, a snake and a very painful way to die. The Haunted (Sarah Roberts Book Twelve) Two decades ago, Sarah's sister Vivian was murdered. Vivian's consciousness has manifested itself in Sarah Roberts through Automatic Writing, but is now merging into Sarah's mind at a new level, and Sarah must relive Vivian's brutal death almost daily. Sarah moves into a cabin in northern California to be alone, to work things out. She visits a local psychologist to deal with what's happening to her, and researches the name Cole Lincoln, her old babysitter. Lincoln was a police officer who lived next door to her. He abused her and threatened her life if she ever spoke of it. But he seems to have disappeared. Members of the police force where he used to work won't even acknowledge his name. But Lincoln is alive and well. Since Sarah's name hit the national media with a cop killing in Canada and the priest killer case in Los Angeles, Cole has followed her exploits, watched her, and has waited for the day she would come after him. That day has come.

    

    Or that was the way it used to be. Three hot brothers enjoy their work and each other's company, taking advantage of nearby parks for camping and fishing expeditions. But things go awry on a camping trip for Christian, the eldest brother, and that sets off a chain of events that leads each brother on an adventure of keeping the town safe from the dark shifters and finding their mates! If you like paranormal romance with danger, action, and heart-pounding romance, then you won’t want to miss The Holbrook Brothers Shifters series. Grab your copy today! Wild Temptations When a trip to the great outdoors goes horribly wrong, a small-town ER nurse soon finds herself with more than she can handle. Christian Holbrook is looking forward to a quiet, relaxing weekend of fishing with his brothers, complete with their usual jokes about his lacklustre love life. But when he discovers a mysterious cave hidden deep among the trees, the creature that lurks within changes his life forever. Libby Grimes is an ER nurse in a small country town. Tasked with the stressful job of caring for her wheelchair-bound mother, her long days and sleepless nights are haunted by the strange disappearance of her father. She knows he wouldn’t abandon them – but all her clues led to dead-ends. When Christian checks into her hospital, her mystery takes a new turn. Libby soon finds herself drawn to him. As their feelings grow, can Libby she help Christian overcome the darkness forming inside him? Or will his new powers be her end? Finding the Wolf Two artists brought together by a dangerous world of wolf shifters. Eric Holbrook lived for the perfect shot. He dedicates his life to the moments when everything is flawless and the planets seem to align. But growing up in small-town America, he struggles to break from his future of hometown newspapers and an ex happily married to his boss. When his chase for the perfect picture drives him toward secrets he never thought possible, he soon ends up thrust into a dangerous world of shifters. Misty Miller finds herself once again in her hometown, miles away from her art career in Chicago. Finding refuge in clay, wire and metal, she hopes the country setting will breathe inspiration into her work. But when Eric lands on her front porch, her art soon falls to the sidelines. Through the fur and fangs, Misty finds herself clawing to keep him grounded – and struggling to make sense of the new reality that has revealed itself to her. As their bond strengthens, will lust and discovery be enough to see them through the fear and danger that the shifter world brings? Or will Eric’s drive end up being more than just the death of his career? A Dangerous Curiosity She’s a big-city girl with a dark secret. He’s a small-town guy destined to become a wolf shifter. Brighton Holbrook had everything planned for his future – a good education, a family company, and supportive brothers. But when his brothers begin acting strangely, he becomes determined to find out what they’re hiding. And when he discovers their secret, there’s no going back. Lily Tucker is a city girl, groomed to take over her family’s business. But when her grandmother falls ill, she’s forced to travel to a small country town to care for her – and to protect her family’s dark secrets. She expected a quiet, boring town, but it soon becomes anything but when Brighton walks into the bar. He’s handsome, wild, and the spark between them is instantaneous.

    Too bad the gods have other plans.Cleo Harwell is hoping for breathing room to settle into her new life as an Earth witch... and time to explore her connection with Marcus.However, when a boy's night goes horribly wrong, Marcus is convinced the gods will do anything to keep them apart. In order to keep Cleo safe, he vows to keep his distance.But Cleo doesn't need a protector. She's a powerful midlife maven with the magic of the Earth at her fingertips. She wants a partner to stand at her side, and she thinks Marcus could be the one.Cleo pushes Marcus to make the ultimate choice: is it better to be safe and secure, or should they risk it all for a chance to find true joy?**A paranormal women's fiction about midlife women, mythical gods, and the magic that happens when life forces you to change.**

    After getting into trouble with the Witching Police, she's sent back to her sleepy home village of Bone Bridge, on magical probation for thirty days. Banned from using magic and under the watchful eye of her younger sister, Ari is all set for a quiet month. That's when a body is found at the village fair. The sleepy little village of Bone Bridge hasn't seen a murder in 200 years, and now a body has been found in the most unusual way. Ari and her sister can't help but find themselves swept up into a murder investigation, and try as she might, Ari starts to realize that there's no avoiding trouble, even if she wants to. Solving the murder is one thing, but Ari’s convinced that there are other mysteries afoot as well. She suspects she’s being framed for the ‘trouble’ that landed her back home in the first place, but everyone else thinks she’s stark raving mad. Being back home is certainly weird, it's been three years since Ari was last in town and her ex-boyfriend and police Sergeant, Dave, only seems to have grown more handsome in that time. With a murderer on the loose, prize pumpkins being stolen, and a curious magical mystery at the center of her house, staying out of mischief and having a quiet probation might just prove to be more difficult than Ari thought.