Book picks similar to
Nose for Trouble by Doranna Durgin


mystery
dogs
first-in-series
paper-box-f

Undertaking Irene


Pamela Burford - 2014
    To dead people.Life gets complicated for Jane and her Death Diva business when she’s hired to liberate a gaudy mermaid brooch from the corpse during a wake—on behalf of the rightful owner, supposedly. Well, a girl’s got to make a living, and this assignment pays better than scattering ashes, placing flowers on graves, or bawling her eyes out as a hired mourner. Unfortunately for Jane, someone else is just as eager to get his hands on that brooch, and he’s even sneakier than she is, not to mention dangerously sexy.Just when she thinks her biggest problem is grand theft mermaid, things take a murderous turn. But hey, when you’ve teamed up with a neurotic seven-pound poodle named Sexy Beast, how can you go wrong?

Mayhem at the Orient Express


Kylie Logan - 2013
    South Bass, an island on Lake Erie, is home to an idyllic summer resort, but these three ladies keep disturbing the peace.The initial book choice is Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express, and that sets their mouths to watering. The Orient Express is the island’s newest Chinese restaurant. They might not agree about much, but the ladies all love the orange chicken on the menu. But their meal is spoiled when the restaurant’s owner, Peter Chan, has the bad fortune of getting murdered. Now, with Christie as their inspiration, the League of Literary Ladies has a real mystery to solve…if they can somehow catch a killer without killing each other first.

Murder at the Pier


Rayna Morgan - 2016
    Their sleuthing is much to the dismay of Lea’s husband Paul, and his best friend, a clever homicide detective. There’s no shortage of suspects since the victim was despised by several people in town including a humiliated fiancé jilted at the altar, angry co-workers frustrated by his undeserved success, a married lover and her devoted spouse, an employee wrongfully terminated, and dangerous criminal associates. You’re guaranteed to love the sisters’ spunk, intelligence, and tenacity as well as the twists and turns of this intriguing plot. These irrepressible siblings are up to the challenge and only stop when the mystery is solved.

Gone With The Ghost


Erin McCarthy - 2017
    Except that’s exactly what happened. Ryan is very much dead, having shot himself with his own police-issued gun. Guilt and grief shouldn’t cause hallucinations though, but six months after Ryan went into the ground, Bailey is freaking out and swearing his ghost is standing in her kitchen. Which he is… Ryan claims he didn’t commit suicide, but was murdered, and he needs Bailey to help him find his killer so he can earn his ticket out of purgatory. Ryan’s counting on a stairway to heaven, as opposed to wings, since that might be a little unmanly for a cop, even a dead one. An expert in home design, with her own staging business, Bailey can tell you where to place a couch to improve flow and comfort, but solving a crime? Not her area of expertise. But with help from Ryan’s former partner, Marner, she is unraveling the mystery of what happened to Ryan that day… and unwittingly putting herself in grave danger. Murder By Design Series Book 1- Gone With The Ghost Book 2- Silence of The Ghost Book 3- Once Upon a Ghost Bestselling author Erin McCarthy offers her signature humor in this fun series about an uptight fashion-conscious home stager who finds herself stiletto-deep in murder...

Confessions of a Red Herring


Dana Dratch - 2018
    Alex Vlodnachek has been a reporter for 12 years, a P.R. rep for three months, and a murder suspect for all of 24 hours. When her agency's double-dealing CEO is stabbed, scheming co-workers cast the new redhead as a compelling red herring. The story is media catnip—especially her salacious nickname: Vlod the Impaler. Even Alex has to admit she looks guilty. Out of a job and under suspicion, Alex is running low on cash, when she’s visited by a second disaster: her family. Soon her tiny bungalow is bursting with her nearest and not-so-dearest. To keep herself out of jail—and save what’s left of her sanity—Alex returns to her reporting roots. She goes undercover to reclaim her life, break the story, and unmask a murderer. Pretty much in that order. What she doesn’t know: The killer also has a to-do list.And Alex is on it.

Dial C For Chihuahua


Waverly Curtis - 2012
    But you can call me el Jefe."Pepe may have soft white fur, big brown eyes, and mucho attitude--but he's no furry fashion fad. Pepe can talk--even if his new owner, Geri Sullivan, seems to be the only person who can understand him. When Geri takes on her first assignment for a quirky investigator named Jimmy G and stumbles over a Seattle millionaire's corpse, Pepe proves to be worth his weight in liver treats. Suspicion falls on the not-so-grieving widow, who wants to finance a reality TV show, Dancing With Dogs. Normally, Pepe wouldn't be caught muerte in a sparkly costume. However, he has to sniff out the real killer and keep Geri safe. Lesser dogs might flinch. But Pepe isn't the kind to turn tail and run. . .

A Veiled Deception


Annette Blair - 2009
    At the engagement party, the ‘Jezebel’ trying to steal Sherry’s fiancé is found strangled with a bridal veil, making Sherry the prime suspect. Besides seeking the real killer, Maddie alters Sherry’s vintage wedding gown, worn by generations of the groom’s family, and something odd happens. The gown gives Maddie visions, clues to the past . . . and the murder? Maddie learns she’s psychometric, a psychic gift she inherited from her late mother, who was a broom-carrying witch, it turns out. What other gifts did she inherit? When not sleuthing, Maddie acquires the old Underhill Funeral Chapel Carriage House, including Dante Underhill, a chatty debonair ghost in tux and top hat, who can’t seem to leave the building. Watch out Mystic, Connecticut! Here comes Vintage Magic, a shop for vintage couture and designer originals, featuring a psychic sleuth, a hunk of a ghost, with a sprinkle of magic thrown in for ‘charm.’

Dead Canaries Don't Sing


Cynthia Baxter - 2004
    But thanks to her dogged persistence and her knack for landing on her feet, Jessie’s got murder on a very short leash.The sun is barely up and the day is already going to the dogs. Literally. As Dr. Jessica Popper embarks on a house call to a local horse farm, her one-eyed Dalmatian, Lou, and her tailless Westie, Max, stumble upon something unexpected: a corpse half buried in the woods. As Max happily digs up the dead canary planted near the body, Jessie realizes that this corpse was clearly about to sing. But about what? Or whom?Enlisting the aid of her on-again, off-again lover, PI Nick Burby, Jess applies the stubbornness of a bloodhound and the agile moves of a cat to identify a menagerie of suspects…including one who wants her off the case badly enough to kill again.

The Cat of Amontillado


S.M. Reine - 2019
     A man like Mr. Poe. Brilliant. Handsome. Fluffy. A psychic cat who can shapeshift into a human. A vampire's shriveled husk is found long-dead in a wine cellar underneath Haven, a retirement resort where immortals pass infinite time. The only rule in Haven is zero violence, and there's zero tolerance. Mr. Poe must team up with the local sheriff, Gwyneth Gresham, in order to solve the murder, bring justice to the deader-than-usual victim, and survive Miss Draconia's Knitting Circle. For a budding detective like Mr. Poe, one little murder mystery won't even give him paws.

The Wedding Cake Murder (The Arizona Summers Mysteries Book 1)


Susan Keene - 2019
    Is it a murder or an accident? Arizona Summers and her psychic dog Nutmeg love to solve crimes. The new chief Keith Wesley makes it clear he doesn’t want her help. Once he realizes Arizona is the go-to person with whom the townspeople share their deepest and darkest secrets. The handsome new chief tries to get back in Arizona’s good graces but she doesn’t make it easy. It’s hard for Ary to keep the restaurant she owns running smoothly when her mother, Emma causes chaos at every turn. Even her Aunt Sandy, who referees her sister and niece, shakes her head at Emma’s shenanigans. Join the fun and the humor of this great mystery series. Get your copy today.

A Murderous Valentine (Admiral Shackleford Mystery #1)


Beverley Watts - 2021
    Having been instrumental in improving the lives of so many (his words - others might be inclined to call it something slightly different...), he was struggling to reignite the spark in his own love life with the feisty Mabel. Short on ideas, he decides to gatecrash his much put upon former Master At Arms and best friend Jimmy Noon's Valentine idea and ends up in the middle of a murder mystery weekend... where real murder is on someone else's script. Stranded in the middle of nowhere with a hotel full of potential murderers, the unstoppable duo embark on a series of blundering escapades in an attempt to uncover the Murderous Valentine... The Admiral and Jimmy may be more Laurel and Hardy than Holmes and Watson, but can they catch a murderer...? This humorous cozy mystery short read is the first in The Admiral Shackleford Mysteries.

Buried in a Book


Lucy Arlington - 2012
    Being paid to read seems perfect to Lila, although it's difficult with the cast of quirky co-workers and piles of query letters. But when a penniless aspiring author drops dead in the agency's waiting room-and Lila discovers a series of threatening letters-she's determined to find out who wrote him off.

How to Wash a Cat


Rebecca M. Hale - 2008
    First in an adorable new series!A deceased uncle and a surprising inheritance propel a woman and her two very curious cats into the mystery surrounding his death.An investigation that starts amid the curios and novelties of a San Francisco antiques shop follows a twisted trail of dangerous deception that leads all the way back to the days of the Gold Rush itself.

Stay Calm and Collie On


Lane Stone - 2017
    Surely she can survive a weeklong visit from Lady Anthea Fitzwalter, her well-to-do business partner from England. But before Sue can serve her guest a spot of tea, she discovers more-than-a-spot of blood inside the company van—and all over the driver’s dead body . . .Someone abandoned the van full of dogs at the Lewes ferry terminal and got away with murder, leaving Sue and Lady Anthea pawing for clues. With a fundraising gala approaching and Buckingham Pet Palace facing scandal, can two very different women work together to fetch the culprit from a list of dodgy suspects—or are they heading toward a proper disaster?

Witch Is When It All Began


Adele Abbott - 2015
    Private investigator, Jill Gooder, has been hired to find a serial killer because, as usual, the police can't buy a clue. Jill, the not so proud owner of a crazy, one-eyed cat, probably can't expect too much help from her PA/Secretary, Mrs V, who spends all day knitting. And just in case all of that wasn't bad enough, Jill's just about to discover she's a witch. ...break out the custard creams.