Book picks similar to
A Lonely Death by Gillian Larkin


cozy-mysteries
cozy-mystery
mystery-cozy
1st-in-series

Death Takes A Break: A Taylor Texas Mystery


Vikki Walton - 2019
    She returns home to Comfort, Texas, only to be thrust into the middle of a land dispute and developers intent on gaining the Taylor Ranch property. When one of the developer’s employees dies on their property, Christie must extend her break to help her father. Christie sets out to find the killer before they strike again. But will the truth unravel everything? If you love Texas, country life and pies, you’ll enjoy this humorous cozy mystery set in the beautiful hill country. Meet the characters who may remind you of your cantankerous grandpa or your quirky next-door neighbor. Pie Recipe included!Buy Death Takes a Break and get roped in to a your new favorite cozy series.

Potion Problem


Linnea West - 2019
    Along with her twin sister Lavender and niece Diggy, their job is to help the paranormal world with problems, big and small. But their first case isn’t small. The leader of a coven has been murdered and it is up to them to solve it. Just as they are easing into the case, Lavender is kidnapped and Vinnie and Diggy are left to solve the case on their own. The only problem is that Vinnie is a non-magical witch and Diggy is only part way through witch training. Will they be able to solve the case and look for Lavender at the same time? Read Potion Problem, the first book in the four book Halloween Helper’s Cozy Mystery series as Vinnie and Diggy work to get Lavender back while helping the paranormal world.

A Wedding to Die For


A.R. Winters - 2018
     "Winters will have you giggling into your book!" Aria's a little concerned about her parrot familiar Kiwi's addiction to unhealthy snack food, and her mother's penchant for meddling in her love-life. But these problems fade away when Fletcher is found dead, possibly killed by magic! Aria, the last person to see Fletcher alive, quickly finds herself juggling more than just Kiwi’s unhealthy eating habits. Who could really be behind Fletcher’s murder? Her new bridezilla-esque client, who seems interested in Fletcher’s estate? The dark witch, Hazel, whom Aria never quite trusted? Maybe even Mayor Donovan, who’s clearly in cahoots with an out-of-town property developer… Aria must clear her name, all while juggling the demands of her bridal boutique and unusual customers… thankfully, smart-mouthed Kiwi is always on hand to “help”! Praise for A.R. Winters: "The perfect balance of being lighthearted, but still a serious page-turning mystery." - Jaycie D, Amazon.com "A fun cozy mystery with engaging and entertaining characters" - lq, Amazon.com "A cute light read with a final twist at the end." - Stacey Puleio, Amazon.com This is a humorous cozy mystery featuring a strong female protagonist who just happens to be a witch, some unusual friends and family, and a mystery that needs solving! It has no graphic gore, bad language or sex.

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...

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?

Death in the English Countryside


Sara Rosett - 2014
    Afraid that Kevin has slipped back into some destructive personal habits he struggles with, Kate travels to England to salvage Kevin’s and the company’s reputation before word gets out that he is missing. Things go from bad to worse when Kate arrives in Nether Woodsmoor, a quaint village of golden stone cottages and rolling green hills, only to find no trace of Kevin except his abandoned luggage. Even the rumpled, easygoing local scout they consulted, Alex, doesn’t know where Kevin might be. Increasingly worried about Kevin and with an antsy director waiting for updates about the preproduction details, Kate embarks on a search that includes a pub-crawl and cozy cottages as well as stately country manors. But Kevin remains missing, and she begins to suspect that the picturesque village and beautiful countryside may not be as idyllic as they seem.

Into the Lion's Den: (A Christian Amateur Sleuth Mystery)


S.E. Biglow - 2021
     Reverend Margot Quade never expected to be dropped in the midst of a murder. She just wanted to get reacquainted with her hometown of Port Marie, Vermont, maybe find her place in the world again after serving her tour of duty. But when a friendly dinner with a member of her unit turns deadly, she's pulled into a mystery she can't help but solve. Then things go from dead to worse when she and all the suspects are stuck in the victim's home during the worst snowstorm her little town has seen in decades. Now she'll need more than a prayer to discover the truth behind who wanted the victim out of the picture ... and to stay alive herself. To complicate matters, her strained relationship with her cousin, who just happens to be the attending officer, threatens to ruin the whole investigation. Can Margot and her cousin set aside their differences and bring a killer to justice? Or will the real reason behind the murder haunt Margot as much as her past? Scroll up and one-click now to see why fans of Alison Golden and Mindy Quigley will love INTO THE LION'S DEN.

Curtains for Romeo


C. Rysa Walker - 2019
    She just played one on TV. Will that be enough to help her find the killer? Acting jobs are scarce now for former TV teen detective Antigone Alden. So when a teaching position opens up at Southern Coastal University, Tig packs up her teenage daughter and heads home to the Outer Banks of North Carolina.But house she inherited from her mother isn't entirely empty. Her mom seems stuck between this life and the next, and now Tig is a local reporter's prime suspect in the murder of the former theater professor. Given his reputation as a ladies' man, however, there are plenty of people with a motive. Previously published as Jessa Archer

Another Three Dogs in a Row: Golden Retriever Mysteries


Neil S. Plakcy - 2020
    

The Big Lead


Libby Kirsch - 2015
    Being on live TV in a small town has never been so funny, until Stella covers the town’s first murders in years.When the prime suspect’s girlfriend enlists Stella to help clear his name, she uncovers another shocking crime that could expose a handful of powerful insiders.Who is honest, who can’t be trusted, and who committed the murders? Stella is on a tight deadline to find out. Can she help free an innocent man, or will the real culprit get away with murder?

The Curse: A Cozy Mystery From the 1920s


Alice Simpson - 2018
    Jane grapples with a vandalized shop, a kidnapping, a creepy doll with seemingly supernatural powers, and a stolen diamond necklace. What do all these have in common? It's up to Jane to find out. About the Jane Carter Historical Cozy Mystery Series: This quirky historical cozy mystery series is set in the fictional American city of Greenville during the 1920s, and features Jane Carter, a young widow who returns home to live with her father after the tragic death of her journalist husband. Jane’s father owns a local newspaper, and wants Jane to take it over someday, but Jane is adamant that she has no desire to be a reporter. Instead, she turns her talent for writing to concocting melodramatic romances for fly-by-night rags who almost never pay on time. This work pays so poorly that Jane supplements her income by becoming an agony aunt, soliciting letters from the lovelorn through advertisements in the back of women’s weekly magazines. Jane dispenses advice to all and sundry, but her personal life is in shambles. Jane claims that she's holding out for a millionaire before she marries again, but the only man who makes her heart beat faster is Jack, a reporter on her father's staff. Not only has Jane vowed she will never be a newspaper man herself, she's doubly insistent on never again marrying one. While trying to turn out enough column inches of overwrought romantic bilge to keep her old car on the road, and herself in shoes, Jane runs into the most extraordinary circumstances. In Jane's madcap world, it's a constant round of kidnappings, curses, stolen jewels, counterfeit paintings, and hidden stashes of gold. There's plenty of crime to go around, but nary a murder. Accompanying Jane on her adventures is her best friend, Florence. Jane and Flo may get into one perilous situation after another, but they are never damsels in distress, because, as Jane puts it, "A real lady always carries her own pocket knife." Neither Jane nor Flo think it beneath them to slip a cosh into their handbag, either, should the situation call for it. All this getting into harm's way alarms the Carter's housekeeper, Mrs. Timms. Mrs. Timms believes it's her mission in life to turn motherless Jane into a proper lady, but seeing as Jane has just turned twenty-four, Mrs. Timms considerable efforts appear to have been in vain. However, the housekeeper won't give up trying, just as Jane won't give up on seeing Mrs. Timms and her father center-aisling it to the alter and saying, "I do." If you like light-hearted historical mysteries with quirky characters and a bit of zany humor, this may be the series for you! These are murderless mysteries. Despite a constant crime wave, there seem to be no murders in the city of Greenville. There may be plenty of peril in the form of kidnappings, heists, and the occasional assault, but nobody ever dies, and justice is always served. There’s plenty of romance, but sex is strictly behind closed doors. Suitable for readers looking for a "clean" mystery novel. This series may be of interest to fans of: Lee Strauss (Ginger Gold Mysteries), Jaqueline Winspear (Masie Dobbs Mysteries), Patricia Wentworth (Miss Silver Mysteries), Jessica Ellicot (Berl and Edwina Mysteries Series), Clara Benson, L. B. Hathaway (Posie Parker Mysteries), Leighann Dobbs (Hazel Martin Mysteries), T. E. Kinsey (Lady Hardcastle Mysteries), Margarete Addison (Rose Simpson Mysteries), Emily Organ (Penny Green Mysteries), and the Phryne Fisher Mystery Series.

Ghosts and Garlands


Morgan Vale - 2020
    A quiet evening with her best friend turns spooky when they encounter a ghost in her basement. Not just any ghost, though — the town’s storied founder herself.Now Kat, Pepper, and her snarky familiar Albus have a job to do. A grieving neighbor needs their help, and it wouldn’t be a holiday without a little ghostly intervention, right?And a witchy New Year!

Amanda Cadabra and The Hidey-Hole Truth


Holly Bell - 2018
     After all, her family’s bus went over a Cornish cliff. Now the presentable but irritating Inspector Trelawney is dogging her footsteps as he investigates the unexplained deaths. But that’s the least of her problems. Amanda has just got a furniture restoration job at the old English Manor of Sunken Madley with its murky past. Armed only with a wand and Tempest, her grumpy reincarnated cat, she’s going in. A body, ghosts, hidden tunnels, chills and unexplained lights; can Amanda solve the mystery in time and save the village from the scandal of murder?Please note that to help the reader to be immersed in Amanda's world, this British-set story uses British English spelling, grammar and usage, and includes accents, dialects and a magical language.

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?

Cupcakes and Crime


April Browne - 2020
    Sophia Bell, owner of Mama Ginger's Bakery and a not very skilled kitchen witch, is hired to cater the highly anticipated event.But the job is no icing on the cake, especially when she winds up as the prime suspect in the murder investigation. Her mother's legacy on the line, Sophia launches her own investigation. With the help of her southern assistant, some honesty magic, and two fluffy dogs, Sophia uncovers a secret she never thought possible.A murderer is living in Gold Valley, and Sophia is next on the list.