Portrait of a Gossip


Melanie Jackson - 2012
    It comes as no great surprise when the small artists' colony of Bartholomew's Woods ends up with a dead resident. Harvey Allen was a professional gossip, hated the length and breadth of the state for his scandal-mongering in the press, and it seemed that one of Juliet's talented but idiosyncratic neighbors had finally had enough of his pernicious tale-bearing and decided to paint him out of the picture. Juliet may sympathize, but she also knows that once a person resorts to murder to hide a secret, chances are good that they may choose to kill again. Can she find the murderer before the killer paints the town red?Move over Miss Marple, there's a new slueth in town. If you are a fan of Ngaio Marsh or Agatha Christie you are going to love Juliet Henry and the residents of Bartholomew's Woods.

Throw a Monkey Wrench


Karen Chester - 2016
    She’s hired to throw a housewarming party for the brash and arrogant Tony Barnet, who’s eager to impress the big end of town. But when the party ends in disaster, Tony is quick to blame Emma, and the subsequent rumors spell doom for Emma’s business. Thank goodness she still has the job of planning Sean and Madison’s wedding. Sean, one of the notorious McCluskey clan, is about to marry Madison, the beautiful daughter of the rich and powerful Whites. But when Tony Barnet is killed, the police swiftly arrest Sean McCluskey. Though the evidence is damning, Emma is convinced her friend is innocent. With Sean facing prison, the wedding in jeopardy, and her fledgling business in danger of tanking, Emma must unravel the mystery and expose the real killer before it’s too late. The Emma Cassidy Mystery series: Book 1: Throw a Monkey Wrench Book 2: Pushed to the Limit Book 3: Murder Most Likely (coming in 2016)

Summerhouse Reunion


Kathi Daley - 2020
    After Kayla’s death, Kelly returns to the island where she joins three friends from her past, to commemorate both, Kayla’s life, and the life of a sixteen year old girl who disappeared from the island twenty five years earlier. Now in their early forties, each of the four remaining friends struggle to find a way to deal with their loss while also dealing with their own personal crisis.Meanwhile, the new sheriff on the island, also a childhood friend, seems to have stumbled onto an interesting pattern the previous sheriff overlooked all together. Apparently a sixteen year old girl has gone missing from the island every fifth summer since Peggy disappeared. Some were assumed to have run away, while others were reported as missing, but one thing is for certain, none of the girls were ever seen again.As the sheriff, the women, and other friends from the past, work together to piece together the random clues they hope will provide a mirror to the past, disturbing evidence begins to surface suggesting that the next girl to disappear will disappear this summer.The Summerhouse TrilogySummer ReunionTopsail SundaysCampfire Secrets

A Body in the Bargain


Charlotte Moore - 2016
    She writes, paints watercolor landscapes and reads Jane Austen over and over. Kylie’s been married since she was 19, has twin boys and loves hunting for bargains and selling her crafts on-line. Kate and Kylie have been best friends since third grade at River Valley Elementary School. When Kate inherits her grandmother’s old house and decides to move back to peaceful River Valley, she finds there’s anything but peace in the Valley. First, she arrives to find that all her late grandmother’s old furniture has been stolen. Kylie comes to the rescue, and just a few days later the two of them are right in the middle of a murder investigation. Through it all, with Kylie’s help, Kate’s turning the old house into her own home with yard sale and thrift shop bargains and getting to know two very different men. From the author of the Hunter Jones mystery series, A Body in the Bargain is about people you might know and one or two you might just want to avoid.

Murdered by Words


Dianne Harman - 2016
     Kat is the one who finds her murdered editor and she and several others are worried that she'll be the next one to be murdered. She has to find the murderer to save her reputation and her life, but who did it? Was it her editor's husband? Was it the woman who had become obsessed with any book she considered to be morally objectionable? Or was it the "trophy wife" of the local banker?

Pooches, Pumpkins, and Poison


Carolyn Ridder Aspenson - 2020
    Widow Missy Kingston takes on the job of a lifetime—and it’s not the one at her town’s animal shelter. It’s Halloween season, and the local animal shelter’s pooch adoption manager, Missy Kingston, is excited to show off the available dogs at her town’s Halloween festival!But when she discovers the festival’s organizer dead in a pile of pumpkins, Missy’s convinced there’s more to the story than meets the eye.When Missy sets out to investigate the murder on her own, what she discovers could solve the case—but only if the killer doesn’t get to her first.

The Return of Betty Snickerdoodle


Pepper Frost - 2021
    Bea's made millions off those syrupy holiday romance novels — and now Cash wants a piece of the action! What Cash doesn’t know is that Bea’s no ordinary septuagenarian millionaire. She’s a fearless, wily ex-poker pro who loves nothing more than being underestimated. And now she’s concocted a high-stakes plan to teach Cash a lesson. It’s a gamble that just might blow up in Bea’s face. Luckily, she has a friend in her corner — Angela Garcia, the brilliant, beautiful marketer who used social media to make Betty Snickerdoodle a publishing phenomenon. Cash will stop at nothing to get what he wants. Can Bea and Angela stop him – and save their publishing enterprise – before it’s too late?

True Blue Murder


Elise M. Stone - 2016
    The former librarian has developed her first hybrid, a plant with unusual deep blue flowers, and hopes to win a first place ribbon. Maybe even best in show. But her excitement turns to dread when the aggravating Bette Tesselink, her fiercest rival, turns up dead, and she becomes the logical suspect. There’s never been a murder in the village of Rainbow Ranch, and it soon becomes apparent that the young Chief of Police is in over his head. Under pressure from the mayor, Lilliana is afraid he’ll arrest her in order to close the case. Her only option is to begin her own investigation and find the murderer before she winds up in jail. The first in a new cozy mystery series sure to engage you with its fascinating characters and twisty plot.

Killer Bait


Martina Dalton - 2019
     Much to the chagrin of her brother, Zen, a homicide detective, Clarity throws caution to the wind and jumps into the investigation with both feet. Zen’s ultra-handsome detective partner, Hunter, encourages Clarity to learn self-defense—especially since she’s getting closer to discovering who the killer is. Using her social media sleuthing skills, she sets out to bait the murderer. Is she clever enough to entrap the killer? Or will she end up as the catch of the day?

Apple Pie and Trouble


Amber Crewes - 2018
    Hollywood decided she wasn’t good enough. She left Hollywood broken but with a burning desire to start afresh in the Pacific Northwest, pursuing her second dream – opening a bakery. She never expected that the owner of a rival establishment would be found dead and all eyes would be focused on her as the prime suspect. As the new girl in town with a new bakery store, she’s determined to clear her name and find the murderer; otherwise she’ll have to leave Sandy Bay penniless and pitiful and possibly the murderer’s next victim. No cliffhanger, swearing or graphic scenes!

Mocha Latte, Malice & Murder


Sara Bourgeois - 2019
     Kari and Kasi Sweet aren’t twins, but they are as close as two sisters can be. Not only do they share a house, but they both own and run On Bitter Grounds. The little coffee house is their pride and joy, and it’s one of their small town’s most popular businesses. One night while out on an after-dinner stroll, the Sweet sisters are doing a little window shopping. Their favorite store is closed for the evening, but the lights are still on, and Kari and Kasi think their friend might let them in for a little after-hours shopping. What they find is not what they bargained for, and the sisters stumble upon the body of Lila Baldwin. Who would want one of Mills Township’s most successful businesswomen dead? Can the sisters figure out who committed the heinous crime, or will they find themselves caught in a killer’s deadly snare?

Murder in the Aisle


Kris Pearson - 2019
    That’s until Vicar Paul and I find Isobel Crombie lying dead in a sea of flowers in the aisle of Saint Agatha’s church. Who’d kill a harmless old girl like her?In no time flat I’ve scored a house-and-pet sitting gig – Isobel’s remote seaside cottage and her two darling dogs. It comes complete with hollyhocks and seagulls and a SEAL from California who looks a lot like a younger Jon Bon Jovi. He's certainly cute, but aren’t his questions about Isobel's house a bit – well, suspicious? Then I find a secret office stuffed with alarming files about car thefts and Black Ops assassins. Maybe Isobel wasn't as harmless as we all thought? Sleuthing’s more fun than I’ve had in ages, but how safe am I on my own now things are unraveling? Little white Bichons are hopeless attack dogs.

The Darling Deli Series Boxed Set


Patti Benning - 2016
    SUMMER PRESCOTT BOOKS is thrilled to present the first boxed set in the hugely popular Darling Deli series by Cozy Author Patti Benning!!!!Enjoy the first three books in one of the most delicious Cozy Culinary series ever, all in one volume, and at a special price! These mysterious and mouthwatering books will leave you hungry for more.

Assault and Batting


Tess Rothery - 2019
    A good job, a home in the city, and someone she loves to share life with. But when her mom dies unexpectedly, she doesn’t hesitate to drop everything for her family. With a baby sister still in high school, an elderly grandfather at home, and the family quilt shop to run, she knows where she needs to be. Belle, Taylor’s sister, fears their mom’s death is her fault. She thinks her birth mom may just have wanted her back badly enough to kill. To lay Belle’s fear to rest, the Quinn girls search out exactly what happened the night of the accident. But in doing so, Taylor finds herself tangled in a mess of secrets, envy, and small town gossip that threatens to unravel the family she loves. Ripping out the stitches that hold her family together may be the only way to keep their lives from falling apart.

Strawberry Crunch & Murder


Lori Woods - 2018
    With her new dessert shop opening soon, Molly is excited to be following her dream. The last thing she expects is to be caught up in the solving the murder of the town’s bully. Using her former investigative journalism skills, and with the help of the handsome police officer, Molly makes it her mission to find the killer before they strike again. Book 1 in the Sweet Treat Cozy Mystery series, which can be read in one to two hours! Perfect for a lunchtime read or if you want to enjoy a quick light-hearted read, with a parrot-loving amateur sleuth, set in a seaside town with quirky characters.  No cliffhanger, swearing or gory scenes!