Death by Inferior Design


Leslie Caine - 2004
    The prize? A big feature in Denver Magazine, showcasing their interior design business. Who could have dreamed the uproar to ensue in a neighborhood full of eccentric homeowners, jealously hidden secrets and a few marriages in need of total makeovers. Trapped together in the midst of chaos, could the charming Steve turn out to be a…friend? But between her custom, cushy pillows and dramatic drapery, Erin uncovers a very undecorative dead body, too many suspects, and a killer who seems to have designs…on her!

The Stationmaster's Cottage


Phillipa Nefri Clark - 2017
    Questions needing answers.”Those words gave Christie Ryan a reason to stay in River’s End, when she should have gone home after Gran’s funeral. Inheriting a rundown cottage, far from her jet-setting life, she is drawn into a fifty-year-old mystery.Who wrote the letters hidden in the attic, an outpouring of love to a woman Christie suspects she is related to? What is the significance of a damaged painting kept by Gran but clearly painted in this seaside town?Local artist Martin Blake may have the answers she seeks, but refuses to help. His dog adores Christie, but Martin keeps his feelings locked away.As Christie faces difficult decisions about her own future, will the consequences of righting old wrongs be too high a price to pay?**New edition April 2019 completely re-edited**

Playing With Poison


Cindy Blackburn - 2012
    But when a body lands on her couch, and the cute cop in her kitchen accuses her of murder, even Jessie isn't sure what will happen next. Playing With Poison is a cozy mystery with a lot of humor, a little romance, and far too much champagne.

The Celtic Dagger


Jill Paterson - 2010
    Assigned to the case is Detective Chief Inspector Alistair Fitzjohn. Fitzjohn is a detective from the old guard, whose methodical, painstaking methods are viewed by some as archaic. His relentless pursuit for the killer zeros in on Alex’s brother, James, as a key suspect in his investigation.Compelled to clear himself of suspicion, James starts his own investigation and finds himself immersed in a web of intrigue, ultimately uncovering long hidden secrets about his brother’s life that could easily be the very reasons he was murdered.This gripping tale of murder and suspense winds its way through the university’s hallowed halls to emerge into the beautiful, yet unpredictable, Blue Mountain region where more challenges and obstacles await James in his quest to clear himself of suspicion and uncover the truth about his brother.

A Trace of Smoke


Rebecca Cantrell - 2009
    Ernst, a cross-dressing lounge singer at a seedy nightclub, had many secrets, a never-ending list of lovers, and plenty of opportunities to get into trouble.Hannah delves into the city's dark underbelly to flush out his murderer, but the late night arrival of a five-year-old orphan on her doorstep complicates matters. The endearing Anton claims that Hannah is his mother. and that her dead brother Ernst is his father.As her investigations into Ernst's murder and Anton's parentage uncover political intrigue and sex scandals in the top ranks of the rising Nazi party, Hannah fears not only for her own life, but for that of a small boy who has come to call her 'mother.'

Strong Spirits


Alice Duncan - 2003
    Kincaid comes to Daisy to help solve her husband's disappearance, Detective Sam Rotondo isn't far behind.Sam isn't fooled by Daisy's choice of "vocation" and blackmails her into spying on the Kincaids.Then Daisy reads Sam's cards... and the tables turn.

Watched


Cindy M. Hogan - 2011
    to change fifteen-year-old Christy's life. It takes murder.A witness to the brutal slaying of a Senator's aide, Christy finds herself watched not only by the killers and the FBI, but also by two hot boys.She discovers that if she can't help the FBI, who want to protect her, it will cost her and her new friends their lives.Young Adults, teens, and adults will love this exciting suspenseful adventure with a dash of romance. You won't want to put it down

Long Time Coming


Edie Claire - 2003
    But back at home, the past is ready and waiting to haunt her...Eighteen years have passed since Joy's childhood best friend, Jenny, met her death in a tragic car accident just a few days after their senior prom. A broken Joy left their small Kentucky hometown shortly after - determined never to come back. But when her father's illness forces her to return, she realizes that neither time nor distance have truly healed her troubled soul.Plagued with nightmares of the accident and crippled by a vague fear whose source she can't identify, Joy realizes that in order to move on she must face the truth behind several disturbing gaps in her memory of that fateful spring. But the only person who can help her is a man she despises - Jenny's erstwhile boyfriend Jeff, now a respected doctor, whose carelessness as a teenager was the cause of Jenny's horrendous death - and Joy's own emotional destruction. Can she ever forgive? She may have no choice but to try. Because both the danger she sensed - and the childhood friendship she treasured - now suddenly seem very much alive...

Dangerous Habits


Susan Hunter - 2014
    When she links the two deaths to a shocking scandal, the story she uncovers could be her last byline. Dangerous Habits is the first standalone book in the Leah Nash series of complex, fast-paced murder mysteries featuring quick-witted dialogue, daring female characters, and plots with lots of twists and turns. ___________________________ What readers are saying about Susan Hunter and DANGEROUS HABITS: ★★★★★ "Highly recommended! I can't wait for the next Leah Nash novel!”★★★★★ “This was a great read! The intricate plot is woven together with intrigue, well-crafted settings and complex characters, all of which draw the reader into the story and keep one engaged until the very end. I look forward to the next Leah Nash mystery thriller.”★★★★★ “I started to read this to help me go to sleep, but the sun just came up. I couldn’t put it down even for a short break. Surprise after surprise. I guarantee you will not see the end coming. Enjoy!”★★★★★ “Ms. Hunter’s whole Leah Nash series is as good as, maybe better than, most of the bestselling books I’ve read. Do you ever find a book that’s so good you just have to have all the books by that author? This is it .... Get these books, you’ll love them.”

Thorns of Rosewood


Gina Marie Barlean - 2014
    The town holds a secret—her birth mother’s identity. Gloria’s parents worry she won’t like what she finds, but once Gloria starts unraveling the story, she can’t be dissuaded. Gloria is armed with three pieces of knowledge about the woman who gave her up for adoption. 1) The woman was in her forties. 2) She lived in Rosewood. 3) She was accused of murder in 1974. No wonder Gloria’s parents don’t want her to dig into her past. How many women in Rosewood in 1974 could have been accused of murder? Only four, it turns out. Articles in the newspaper archives show a picture of four women dubbed The Thorns of Rosewood. The women were suspects in the disappearance of a judge’s wife, but once again, Gloria knows three things: 1) No body. 2) No proof. 3) No charges. It looks as though the Thorns got away with murder. Gloria wants the truth. Did these Thorns of Rosewood murder the judge’s wife? She finds the four women at an assisted-living facility in Lincoln, Nebraska. They tell her they are ready to confess. This is Gloria’s chance to get the story of a lifetime and find out who her birth mother is…and why that woman gave her away.

Daddy's Home


A.K. Alexander - 2010
    Crime scene investigator Holly Jennings is on the trail of a twisted and sadistic serial killer who seeks out single mothers, marries them, then slaughters his new family when they fail to measure up to his "perfect family" fantasy.

Shadows of the Past


Patricia Bradley - 2014
    When she finally has a lead on his whereabouts, Taylor returns home to Logan Point, Mississippi, to investigate. But as she is stalking the truth about the past, someone is stalking her.Nick Sinclair pens mystery novels for a living, but the biggest mystery to him is how he can ever get over the death of his wife--a tragedy he believes he could have prevented. With his estranged brother the only family he has left, Nick sets out to find him. But when he crosses paths with Taylor, all he seems to find is trouble.

A World I Never Made


James LePore - 2009
    The body, however, is not Megan's and it becomes instantly clear to Pat that Megan staged this, that she is in serious trouble, and that she is calling to him for help. This sends Pat on an odyssey that stretches across France and into the Czech Republic and that makes him the target of both the French police and a band of international terrorists. Joining Pat on his search is Catherine Laurence, a beautiful but tormented Paris detective who sees in Pat something she never thought she'd find-genuine passion and desperate need. As they look for Megan, they come closer to each other's souls and discover love when both had long given up on it. Juxtaposed against this story is Megan's story. A freelance journalist, Megan is in Morocco to do research when she meets Abdel Lahani, a Saudi businessman. They begin a torrid affair, a game Megan has played often and well in her adult life. But what she discovers about Lahani puts her in the center of a different kind of game, one with rules she can barely comprehend. Because of her relationship with Lahani, Megan has made some considerable enemies. And she has put the lives of many-maybe even millions-at risk.A World I Never Made is an atmospheric novel of suspense with brilliantly drawn characters and back-stories as compelling as the plot itself. It is the kind of novel that resonates deeply and leaves its traces long after you turn the final page.

Russian Roulette


Mike Faricy - 2011
    OR SO DANGEROUS... PI Dev Haskell wakes up one morning in dire need of an asprin, a cup of coffee, and an hour in the sauna. It seems he's just spent a wild night with his beautiful bombshell of a client, Kerri, and she's left him a note. A smart and sly man who fancies himself just a little more savvy and debonair than reality confirms, Dev thinks he's got it made. But he has absolutely no idea what he's getting into when he agrees to track down Kerri's sister Nikki. Turns out both women are involved in an elaborate human trafficking ring with Braco the Whacko, a notorious Russian mobster, at the helm. Soon Dev finds himself at odds with local police, Homeland Security, and an FBI task force, as well as in and out of the hospital thanks to a gunshot wound and a bit of shrapnel in the rear, not to mention on the run from a neurotic underworld boss and a psychotic killer: it must be love... In a bizarre but compelling mixture of crime and offbeat comedy, Dev proceeds to messily balance both sides of the law in a wacky tale that will keep you on your toes while laughing out loud.

Blood Land


R.S. Guthrie - 2012
    L.A. Chicago. New York. But when a savage murder brutalizes a small town and neighbor turns on neighbor, a tough-as-nails cop is essential to restoring order. Blood Land is a gritty, emotional saga set in the Wyoming badlands with both greed and vengeance at its core.When billions of dollars in natural gas rights hang in the balance and the town's top law officer's wife is slain by her own blood, a reluctant hero is forced to battle his own demons and ultimately choose between justice, revenge, and duty.In the tradition of Dennis Lehane, Tony Hillerman and James Lee Burke, Guthrie's sparse, haunting storytelling compliments his talent for creating richly-drawn, unflinching law officers with human frailties and a sense of justice.