amateur sleuth

Organized for Homicide by Ritter Ames

Who Knew planning a cross-country move could be so deadly…?

Organization expert Kate McKenzie is looking forward to her newest contract: organize the cross-country move for a divorced father and his two children. But when a dead body turns up, Kate’s carefully organized plans are thrown into chaos. Was it an accident? Or murder? Kate aims to find out when the victim’s teenage daughter becomes the police’s lead suspect. While the police follow the chain of evidence, Kate follows her gut, leading her on a dangerous investigation that could result in more than one death if she doesn’t watch her step…

Organized for Homicide is the second title in the popular Organized Mysteries series from USA TODAY bestselling author Ritter Ames, which features a small town New England setting and interesting characters, along with humor, strong family and friendship ties, and absorbing cozy mysteries.

Featured Book: Flo Charts by Sam Cheever

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Come to Silver Hills. Where new friends are made and a grim reaper is born.

Agnes Willard is moving into Silver Hills. She’s worried about the change and concerned about fitting in. Luckily for her, Florence Bee has decided to take Agnes under her wing.

When Agnes’ cat Tolstoy escapes as they’re getting Agnes settled into her new apartment, they quickly find him across the hall, perched on a dying woman’s chest.

The new friends soon learn three things from the experience:

1. The cat definitely has an instinct for and proclivity toward people who are on death’s doorstep. 2. Finding and avoiding a killer is a really tough way to spend your first days in a new place. And 3. Agnes truly does have a unique talent for debauching a crime scene.

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Wheel of Death – a Mystery Written by 22 Authors

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Wheel of Death – a Mystery Written by 22 Authors

Authors: Bart J. Gilbertson, Rae Sanders, Annie Irvin, Jennifer Vido, Laura Shea, Emma Pivato, Joyce Oroz, Christian Belz, T’Gracie and Joe Reese, Trisha Durrant, Owen Magruder, David Selcer, Zaida Alfaro, Karen Shughart, Lane Buckman, Carmen Will, Leslie Stansfield, Julie Seedorf, Lorrie Holmgren, Elizabeth Jukes, Patricia Rockwell

When Glory Lockhart is prodded into going on a blind date by her friend Connie, no one could have predicted the strange and terrifying turn of events that would take place when her gentleman caller, Tom Rankin, takes her for a romantic ride on a Ferris wheel at a county fair. But when the wheel returns to the ground, Glory finds Tom dead–shot in the back. Immediately, questions course through Glory’s mind–why was Tom killed and who killed him? She had barely met this man, but now she feels connected to him in the most permanent and horrible way possible. As the widow of a former local police officer, Glory’s head is soon humming with plans to solve the mystery surrounding this man and his gruesome demise on the wheel of death.

Featured Book: Ruthless, Book 6 of the Mia Kazmaroff Mysteries by Susan Kiernan-Lewis

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A new serial killer always kills on Friday and next morning sends a body part and note saying where to find the body to Atlanta Major Crimes division. When Mia’s new stepsister is abducted, Mia thinks she knows things the police don’t. Should she stay out of it and let the police do their job? One thing is sure: The clock is ticking down and unless someone acts quickly, her stepsister will be the killer’s next victim.

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Death of a Honeymoon by M K Scott

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Death of a Honeymoon by M K Scott

Detective Mark Taber and his new bride Donna, an amateur sleuth, are ready to take a much-needed break from crime-solving and finally enjoy their long-awaited honeymoon in the quartz-rich mountains of Arkansas, but unfortunately for them, crime never takes a break.

When their car breaks down at the site of the first murder the county has seen in a century, they find themselves in a bind – no transportation and at the center of an overwhelming firestorm for an overworked sheriff. He needs their help.

Will they temporarily forgo their plans to find a murderer or will the possibility of netting quartz clusters and county fair winning recipes pull them in another direction?

Featured Book: Yesterday’s Tears by Sam Cheever

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It’s never a good idea to spend too much time in a haunted mansion, and Anna’s favorite cowboy ghost does his best to talk her out of it. But the opportunity to pick from the beautiful antiques left to her in a Crocker resident’s will is just too tempting for Anna and Pratt to pass up. So they’re going in…

They’re prepared to deal with a few cold spots. Maybe the occasional flickering light. But what Anna and the boys weren’t counting on was bumping up against the ghost of Josiah Bumgartner, a contemporary of Joss’ from the 1800s. And when Josiah claims the old woman who lived in the house hid his bones around the place, Anna agrees to help him find them. But something much darker is at work there. And, unfortunately for our happy little gang of antique hunters…Anna seems to have unwittingly stepped right into the middle of it.

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Featured Book: Lethal in Old Lace by Duffy Brown

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In Savannah there are two things guaranteed to get folks talking…weddings and funerals. Reagan Summerside agreed to marry the delish Walker Boone and her neighbors, Annie Fritz and Elsie Abbot, have stepped up their business as professional mourners to assure one and all a memorable sendoff. This seems like a good idea until bodies go missing and the sisters are accused of knocking people off for profit. Reagan needs to find the killer to save her friends while everyone with an opinion tries to hijack her wedding plans.

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Brewing Death by P.D. Workman

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Erin is finally safe and sound in Bald Eagle Falls, with her sister in town and the chance to finally get to know her. She’s done with secrets and murder. But fate and a killer have other things in mind, and before she knows it, she is faced with an unexplained death, with Erin and her friends in the middle of it.

Tea and trouble are brewing in Bald Eagle Falls, and Erin doesn’t want to find herself in hot water.

Targeted Age Group:: 35+

What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
This is the fifth book in the Auntie Clem's Bakery series. Erin Price, the owner of Auntie Clem's Bakery, bakes gluten-free, vegan, and allergen-free treats for those with special diets. And solves murders on the side, of course. Personally, I am celiac and vegan with multiple allergens, so I had the background knowledge needed for Erin's baking. I wanted to write a fun culinary cozy series that would educate people on special diets while entertaining them at the same time.

Bonded for Murder by Bruce W. Most

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Clients call her Angel of the Outlaws. Ruby Dark is a fifty-year-old red-haired Lamborghini-driving widow who took over her husband’s Denver bail-bond business after his unsolved murder. Brash, with a shadowy past, Ruby is not a lady to be trifled with should you jump one of her bonds. Bayne Gibson, a wealthy radio-station owner, has made that mistake. He is charged with the murder of his inflammatory talk-show host, found dead in Gibson’s penthouse pool. Ruby posts the $2 million bond, the largest of her career. But Gibson skips his preliminary hearing and disappears. Her business on the line, Ruby goes after him with the help of her best bounty hunter and her nephew Jason, who works for her while studying night-school law. When a second murder occurs, Ruby’s hunt turns personal. And it’s never smart to make things personal for Ruby Dark.

Targeted Age Group:: 18 and above

What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
I came across several articles about the often disreputable bail bond business and thought a bail bond agent would make an interesting amateur detective. They see the inside of the criminal justice system, deal with some nasty people, and themselves work in a maligned business. What more could I ask for! The plot stemmed from the true story of the murder of a "shock jock" political talk show host in Denver.

Featured Book: Disturbing the Peace by Winona Kent

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Disturbing the Peace is a 22,000 word novella which introduces us to professional musician and amateur sleuth Jason Davey.

Jason’s last job was aboard the Star Sapphire cruising from Vancouver to Alaska. Now Jason’s back on shore, and he has a regular gig at a jazz club in London.

When Dominic, Jason’s film-student son, asks his dad to help track down a missing musician for a documentary he’s making, Jason leaps at the chance.

Ben Quigley played rhythm guitar in Jason’s parents’ folk group Figgis Green in the late 1960s. And he dropped off the face of the earth four years ago.

Jason’s search ultimately takes him to Peace River, Alberta – 300 miles from Edmonton in the Canadian north. And what he discovers there is both intriguing – and disturbing.

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