Book picks similar to
Lady Gold Investigates by Lee Strauss


mystery
short-stories
historical-fiction
historical-mystery

Murder on the Road


Adriana Licio - 2019
    Instead, she finds herself a suspect in a brutal murder.Anxious to clear her name, Giò embarks on her own investigation, eavesdropping on the gossip in her sister’s perfumery and the cafés of Maratea as she pieces together the evidence. But something about the case isn’t adding up. Or is Giò allowing her attraction to a fellow suspect to distract her?Wanting to distance herself from danger, Giò keeps her feelings in check. But when new evidence turns the whole case on its head, danger is exactly what is waiting for her.◆◆◆ Murder on the Road is the first book in the compelling and heartwarming An Italian Village Cosy Mystery series. If you want a taste of Mediterranean village life, take a bite of this tasty treat, now! ◆◆◆*Beware - this book is written in British English with a smattering of Italian here and there.---This fun lighthearted cosy mystery can be read as a standalone or you can enjoy the whole series in order:• Book 0.5 (prequel) - And Then There Were Bones• Book 1 - Murder on the Road• Book 2 - A Fair Time for Death• Book 3 - A Mystery Before Christmas• Book 3.5 - When the Clock Chimes Two (A short story)• Book 4 - Peril at the Pellicano Hotel

Who Shot the Serif?


Daisy Robyns - 2019
    Jamie confronts Earleen Culp, the ruthless owner of the local stationery shop, in front of the most popular breakfast spot in the small town of Cedar Valley. Of course, Earleen professes shock and innocence, so when she’s found dead in front of Jamie's home the next morning, Jamie becomes the prime suspect.Jamie's one cross-stroke short of acquittal, and even her best friend has her doubts. But Jamie's not the only one in town with a motive for wanting Earleen silenced for good. To clear her name, Jamie's going to need every last drop of ink in her quill. With the hot police chief Ridge, and her makeup artist friend Nora on her side, she’s prepared to go out with a flourish if that's what it takes to catch the real murderer. She’s desperate to save her hand lettering business, but will her quest lead her right into a killer’s snare?

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)

Killer Cleavers & Cupcakes


Mel McCoy - 2020
    One luxury cruise ship heading to the Bahamas. And an elusive killer running amok with a penchant for cleavers.After overstuffing her husband with a button-bursting amount of cookies and cakes, Ruth Shores—charmed mother, grandmother, wife, and retired pastry chef—decides to take a dream job in the kitchen of the brand-new, luxury cruise ship, Splendor of the Seas. Luggage rolling behind her, she sets out on her first day, and it's everything she imagined. That is, until she runs into the rudest, most inconsiderate person she’s ever crossed paths with: Loretta Moran.That’s okay—Ruth refuses to allow a stranger to ruin her idyllic new life. But when a body is found in the kitchen, both women become prime suspects in a murder investigation. Compelled to prove their innocence, Ruth and Loretta must work together, all while desperately covering up a mouse running loose in the dining room. Can they set their differences aside to unveil the real killer before they both lose their jobs—or worse, their lives?Pranks. Scandals. Cover-ups. All wrapped up in this fun and quirky cozy mystery!Killer Cleavers and Cupcakes is the first book in this nutty, lighthearted Cruise Ship Cozy Mystery Series. So, get nestled in a cozy chair, pour your favorite beverage, and get ready for an exciting Bahamas escapade aboard the Splendor of the Seas!

Deadly Secrets


Terry Odell - 2011
    And to Gordon, a promise is a promise, even if the person you made it to isn't around anymore. However, doubts creep in, and he wonders if he was shoved into the job because his mentor thought he couldn't cut it on the streets. Everything changes when a fatal traffic accident well outside Mapleton seems connected to elderly Rose and Sam Kretzer, two of Mapleton's most beloved citizens. The arrival of Megan, the Kretzer's grown ward, and Justin, their grandson add to his troubles when Megan is mugged. In addition, Justin is renovating his grandparents' house despite their objections, and then someone breaks in and the house is ransacked. When Gordon ties the car accident to a grisly murder in Mapleton—the first anyone in town can remember—he's afraid he's into more than he bargained for. His fears are realized when his investigation seems to link the Kretzers to a Nazi war criminal. Can he work with the big-city detective brought in to assist? Will he be able to solve the crime without revealing the secrets of his citizens? DEADLY SECRETS revolves around a secret journal kept by a Nazi during WWII, and the lengths people will go to protect those they love. Set in a small Colorado community, Deadly Secrets deals with people trying to do what they think is right while protecting those they love.

Killer Apple Pie


Carolyn Q. Hunter - 2017
    HUNTER!!!Bertha Hannah’s two passions in life are books and piping hot homemade pies, and when an opportunity arises for her to open her own pie and book shop, she jumps in headfirst, only to find that preparing to open her own shop isn’t exactly a piece of cake.In the midst of getting organized and putting the pieces in place for her grand opening, tragedy strikes, far too close for comfort. All the while mourning the untimely death of an old friend, Bertha finds herself having to deal with pompous detectives, money-grubbing investors and unruly customers, which truly threatens to upset her apple cart.Will she be able to unravel the mystery which has presented itself at the worst of times? Or, will her dream business be finished before it even starts?

Red Tape


Michele Lynn Seigfried - 2013
    He has been harassing the employees in the small, Jersey shore town where she works and becomes the prime suspect when multiple attempts to sabotage the municipal building are made. Chelsey begins to piece it all together and finds herself framed for a crime she did not commit. She narrowly escapes several attempts at her demise, only to find herself in a much more precarious situation. Will she make it out alive or end up a tragic victim at the hands of a madman?

Triple Dipped Murder


Gretchen Allen - 2018
    Trying her best to protect a trusted employee, she finds herself smack dab in the middle of investigating a murder that rocks the tiny town to its foundations. Situations get sticky as secrets are exposed, forcing Yvette to race against the clock to solve the crime in this edge-of-your-seat Cozy Mystery.

Murder Under Construction


Maddie Cochere - 2014
    She wants two things in life - a new career as a private investigator, and to lose the sixty pounds she packed on after her divorce.When she crashes her bike in a construction site, she lands on a girl with a large knife in her chest. Jo enlists her sister, Pepper, and their journalist friend, Jackie, to help solve the dead girl's murder. Things become creepy for Jo when the murdered girl appears in her dreams to offer unusual clues to her death.Murder Under Construction is a humorous mystery with Jo's family adding to the antics of the three women. Mama caterwauls, Jackie's two children offer sleuthing assistance, and her brother, Hank, laughs at all of them from the sidelines. Murder Under Construction is light, easy-breezy reading from Maddie Cochere.

Passport to Murder: A Collection of Travel Cozy Mystery Shorts


Traci Andrighetti - 2020
    Enjoy!Titles include:Mirto Magenta by Traci AndrighettiTo escape a hellish New Orleans summer, PI Franki Amato takes a dream case investigating a theft in Sardinia’s Gulf of Angels. Will she find the culprit and get her slice of beach heaven? Or will dark forces on the island send her to the bottom of a watery inferno?Jewel of the Aisle by Laura DurhamA destination wedding at a historic Bahamian hotel. A missing diamond ring. A wedding planner who’s vowed to unmask the thief.Death In The Dormitory by Nikki HaverstockArchery coach and occasional amateur sleuth Di is looking forward to a relaxing weekend chaperoning a tournament with her Great Dane, Moo. But when a rival's team coach is taken away in an ambulance, Di suspects foul play. How will she prove her suspicion when everyone thinks it’s an accident? Goats in the Machine by Lucy JacksonMysterious ghosts from the present evoke ghosts from Fancy's past when she joins a friend on a culinary Caribbean adventure.Darby O’Kill by Zara KeaneChaperoning a group of seniors around Ireland, I expected a weekend filled with ceilidh music and incontinence pants. Instead, I got whiskey-swilling hard rock devotees…and a corpse.The Larceny in the Luau by Shea MacLeodA priceless jewel is stolen during a luau. Can Viola find the culprit before the police arrest the wrong person?Death In Venice by Sara RosettWhen honeymooning location scouts Kate and Alex visit Venice, they find romance . . . and murder.Vangie Vale and the Full Metal Frangipane by R.L. SymeEven after crossing a border, somehow, trouble finds Vangie. The mountains of Western Canada aren’t safe from the full-metal frangipane...

Kate Shackleton's First Case


Frances Brody - 2018
    Kate Shackleton, thirty years old, is taking tea with her friend, Doris who is on a visit from London. In the genteel environs of Harrogate's premier tea room, violence is the furthest thing from anyone's mind. But when Doris is set upon by a mystery assailant, it's up to Kate to find out why - and in doing so, she soon develops a taste for detective-work.A heroine ahead of her time, this is the story of how Kate Shackleton became Yorkshire's most tireless private investigator.

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?

Cozy Leading Ladies


Julie Smith - 2017
    PLUS a romantic puzzler bonus, which isn’t at all what you might expect…From murder at a conference in fashionable Provence to an underground feminist bordello in San Francisco (with a pit stop on the Gulf Cost where a killer’s on the loose while a hurricane closes in), Cozy Leading Ladies is sure to satisfy mystery readers who love their independent female sleuths. (Friendly piece of advice: it’s probably best to read the collection with a box of chocolates or your favorite brand of potato chips really nearby). Vol. 1: DEATH TURNS A TRICK, the FIRST book in the Rebecca Schwartz mystery series by Edgar Award Winner Julie Smith A ROLLICKING TALE OF MURDER, ROMANCE, AND A BORDELLO… Rebecca Schwartz, nice Jewish lawyer with a few too many fantasies, is happily playing the piano in a whorehouse when she suddenly finds herself assigned to make sure a near-naked state senator escapes a police raid. That dirty job done, a lovely evening turns even more delightful when she’s picked up by the cops and spends the next two hours at the Hall of Justice. Could this day get any worse? Of course! Guess who arrives home to find a dead hooker on her living room floor? Vol. 2: THE AURA, the FIRST Kate Benedict Paranormal Mystery by Carrie Bedford Life spins out of control for London architect Kate Benedict when she sees a dancing aura above certain people’s heads that seems to signal death. Suddenly she’s psychic. But that can't be! Psychic’s not acceptable in her circle, where the supernatural is strictly for the superstitious. And yet…people are dying. People close to her. Vol. 3: THE 13th FELLOW, A Mystery In Provence by Tracy Whiting POETRY, MURDER, BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE ... AND PROVENCE! American Professor Havilah Gaie has always seen herself as “an academic version of Pam Grier’s characters: smart, quick on their feet, loyal with a keen sense of purpose.” Now she’s got a chance to suit up for action because suddenly she’s a witness in a murder. Vol. 4: HURRICANE SEASON: Florida Panhandle Mystery #1 by Michaela Thompson “Miss Marple meets Eudora Welty (with a trace of Erskine Caldwell)” –KirkusThe 1950s fairly leap off the page in this classic cozy mystery set in northern Florida in the Eisenhower era, complete with Johnny Ray on the jukebox and a Womanless Wedding—this one interrupted by an explosion at a moonshine still. Lily Trulock, owner of Trulock’s Grocery & Marine Supply, leads a pretty quiet life until a stranger comes to town. Before she can say, “down the hatch,” Lily’s at the center of a vicious murder and a no-holds-barred bootlegging war—and a nasty storm’s on the way. Vol.

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.

Scarlet Oaks and the Serial Caller (Scarlets Oaks Book 1)


Michaela James - 2017
    But when an eerie sounding caller is identified as the bay area’s latest serial killer, it appears her life will never be same.With the killer continually calling into Scarlet’s show, while managing to stay one step ahead of the San Francisco police, Scarlet begins to fear she’s his next victim. Enlisting best friends, Niles and Tom, and their often-hilarious help, Scarlet sets out to find the elusive Serial Caller … before he finds her.Root for Scarlet during this heart-pounding and alternately humorous mystery thriller. Fall in love with unforgettable characters, recognize familiar family members and hold on tight for an adrenaline-filled ride.If you’re a Stephanie Plum fan, make room for Scarlet Oaks!This is the first book in the Scarlet Oaks Series. Start the adventure - buy Scarlet Oaks and the Serial Caller today.