Women Sleuths Christmas

In Jewel Bay, all is merry and bright. At Murphy's Mercantile, AKA the Merc, manager Erin Murphy is ringing in the holiday season with food, drink, and a new friend: Merrily Thornton. A local girl gone wrong, Merrily's turned her life around. But her parents have publicly shunned her, and they nurse a bitterness that chills Erin. When Merrily goes missing, and her boss discovers he's been robbed, fingers point to Merrily - until she's found dead.

A French patisserie opens in the village of Ashton Mead in time for Christmas. Local residents are pleased, but Hannah, owner of the Sunshine Tea Shoppe, feels threatened by the competition. When the owner of the patisserie is killed, Hannah is suspected of murdering her business rival. Her friend, Emily, is determined to clear Hannah's name. She seems to be facing an impossible task… until her little dog Poppy makes a surprising discovery.

When asked to help judge the prestigious Chocolate Championship Showdown Competition at the last minute, Cinnamon Peters is hesitant about putting down her rolling pin in place of a clipboard. But when she discovers that one of her co-judges will be famous celebrity chef Cliff Copperstone, Cinnamon agrees to help. It's a decision she'll live to regret. When a blizzard hits Christmas River on the day of the competition, Cinnamon finds herself not only in the middle of a crisis, but also in a mystery as sinister and dark as a bar of bittersweet chocolate.

It's Christmastime, but not everyone is jolly - especially not Vonne Barnett. Her dead body has been found in Victoria Square. Katie Bonner, the manager of Artisan's Alley, happens to be at the tea shop Vonne's mother, Francine, owns when the news is delivered. Vonne left a trail of men behind her so the suspects are many - but the clues are few. A broken teacup leads Katie to one of the suspects, but before she can investigate, she's attacked. Katie may be closing in on a murderer, but time is ticking because the murderer is definitely closing in on her.

Lori Shepherd and her family spend Christmas in the cottage willed to her by her late Aunt Dimity, but when she discovers a stranger barely alive in the snow, she teams up with a priest and together they unveil the tragic secret that led the stranger to her door.

"The entwined stories and Amato's passionate narration will remain in listeners' minds long after the mysteries are solved." —AudioFile on In the Shadow of Vesuvius In the latest installment of Tasha Alexander’s New York Times bestselling series, Lady Emily must solve a string of high stakes...

What happened to Search and Rescue volunteer Wes Dulany? That's the question on everyone's mind this fall in the small town of Christmas River, Oregon. And it's especially on the mind of pie baker extraordinaire Cinnamon Peters, who returns home after spending the summer working in Portland to find that one of the town's most beloved citizens has gone missing while looking for legendary treasure in the Christmas River National Forest. A dangerous game is afoot in Christmas River - and the stakes are higher than anybody ever imagined.

Holly Wood is days away from saying "I do" to Nick Claus when a chilling discovery threatens to turn her dream wedding into a nightmare. While touring the grand Olde Jolly Hall, Holly stumbles upon a hidden passageway—and the body of Beatrice Harper, the long-missing owner. As whispers spread through the charming town and the mystery deepens, Holly must untangle a web of lies, old rivalries, and hidden motives. Suspicion falls on Charles Harper, Beatrice's enigmatic brother.

Interior designer Shelby Nelson is looking for a new start. She gets a lucky break when she's hired to help decorate the homes in a wealthy subdivision for the holidays. But not everyone is thrilled with being forced to follow the strict rules set by the homeowners' association. And the person they're angriest with is Heather Redstone, the president of the HOA. So when Shelby is found standing over Heather's dead body under the Christmas tree, she quickly becomes the prime suspect. To clear her name, she’ll need to find the killer.

It's autumn in Christmas River, and things in the small Central Oregon town are getting downright spooky this season. When Cinnamon Peters discovers an old class ring hidden behind the wall of her shop's kitchen, the pie baker extraordinaire becomes abruptly entangled in a decades-old unsolved mystery. But shortly after finding the heirloom, Cinnamon is plagued by a series of inexplicable accidents.

As Mallory begins to plan a gala for an influential family, one of their employees is poisoned, and it's up to Mallory to solve the crime before time runs out.

An abused widow, a dead doctor and a suspicious stranger. Not exactly the stuff of a merry little Christmas; but a parish minister can't really escape the holidays, or can she? Olympia Brown is the interim minister in the exclusive town of Loring by the Sea where a prominent doctor is about to be murdered. Shortly before Christmas, two very different people come to the church seeking refuge. One is the about-to-be widow and her twin daughters. The other, an undocumented man, living in the shadows of polite society. Both need help and sanctuary. Both will become suspects in the murder. Olympia battles history, tradition and the rule of law as she tries to season justice with mercy, seek truth and convince the church elders open their hearts and their doors as easily as they do their wallets.

No place is more perfect for the winter holidays than the charming mountain town of Estes Park. As the Cozy Corgi Bookshop and Bakery glistens with lights and garlands, Winifred Page allows the seasonal merriment to brush away all worry and fear. Watson, her grumpy corgi, is about as far from stressed as possible-after all, with the holiday baking, delectable crumbs are everywhere.

Librarian Abby Fawn is starstruck when her favorite romance author, Nadine White, has rented a cozy camper at the Happy Trails Campground for the winter months. Abby is devastated to find out Nadine White is nothing like the person she portrays in interviews or on social media. In fact, Nadine White is not nice at all, and Abby lets her feelings known that she thinks Nadine is a fraud...after she finds out Nadine has a ghost writer. When Nadine White is found dead in the Normal Library, Abby Fawn is Detective Hank Sharp's number one suspect.

Mildred Kilgore and Earlynne Biddle are planning to open a bakery on the square - if they can come up with the right recipes. Charlie Dickens faces two of the biggest puzzles of his career as an investigative reporter, and one of them involves his wife. Cute little Cupcake's talent as a singer and dancer makes her a tempting target for an unscrupulous exploiter. Lizzy must enlist the Dahlias to protect her while she herself is confronted by a romantic puzzle. And Sheriff Norris is forced to reopen a puzzling mystery that the town thought was solved.

Being an undercover poison taster for the rich and famous is hard enough without being dragged into clearing the name of your former nemesis.... Especially when you think he might be guilty. To make matters worse, Izzy and her elderly accomplice aren't the only ones digging into the murder case, and the other parties are a whole lot more dangerous. And if her old nemesis didn't do it, then the real killer won't appreciate their interference.

Charlene's parents are in town for Christmas, and her mother is driving her up a tree. Her bed-and-breakfast's resident ghost, Jack, isn't fond of her either - and he's showing it with some haunting high jinks. But when Charlene takes her mom and dad out for dinner, the less-than-seasonal spirits take a deadly turn.

For all its merriment, Christmas can also bring melancholy-and in Magic Springs, Idaho, Mia finds that the season has brought her an unhappy ghost who's pulling poltergeist-style pranks to get her attention. When she demands an explanation, the ghost just sends a message: Ask Mary Alice-that is, Mia's beloved Grans, who's been training her to develop her witchy talents. If anyone can figure this out, it's Grans . . . even if she still hasn't managed to free Mia's cat from a previous spell that she cast.

A week before Christmas, Aggie bumps into Officer Tom Wood, her on-again, off-again boyfriend at a new exclusive restaurant. Unfortunately, Tom is not dining alone. A beautiful, young woman accompanies him. Tom introduces her as an old friend. Even though Aggie plays it off as not being jealous; her friends Betty and Roger want to learn more about this mysterious woman. Will this beautiful old friend ruin Aggie’s festive mood?

Slàinte! A Christmas Eve party at snow-covered Vik castle, where the Christmas Star diamond is on display. Good food, dancing and a visit from Santa. What could possibly go wrong? When Santa appears down the chimney, looking far more crispy than expected, it is clear that something has gone very wrong. With the castle cut off from help, a murderer in their midst and the Christmas Star stolen, it's up to Losers Club to investigate. As they follow the network of secret passages to learn more about their fellow guests, they realize that everyone has a motive. Including one of their own.