A cozy kind of Christmas The annual Christmas parade and tree lighting is interrupted when a corpse—rather than Santa—takes center stage. With her father’s investigation into the original crime under question, Fee pursues the truth while trying to hang onto her holiday spirit without spoiling her chances at a date with Sheriff Crew Turner. PLEASE NOTE (possible spoiler alert): Deck The Halls and Murder takes place AFTER Fiona Fleming Cozy Mysteries #4 (Ghosts and Goblins and Murder). Reading to that point prior to this volume is strongly recommended. cozy murder mystery series, cozy mystery series, cozy murder mystery book, cozy mystery book, Christmas cozy murder mystery, Christmas cozy mystery book, Christmas cozy series, Christmas cozy book

Someone's trying to kill contractor -- and sleuth -- Josie Pigeon's Christmas as this delightful and successful series continues.

A swashbuckling kind of life I could honestly say there was nothing more incredible than opening my eyes to find a pair of gorgeous blue ones staring right back at me. I’d been enjoying this particular view for the last six months, with many, many more mornings to come. The rest of our lives together, to be exact, minus a few the delicious man I’d married was out of town. How lucky could I possibly get? Happily married and ready for the truth, Fee and Crew go on an official search to find out if Reading’s hoard actually exists. But treasure hunting takes a nasty turn when one of the dive team searching for gold goes belly up. To make matters worse, a second death adds to Fee’s body count, leaving her juggling two murders and more mysteries than even a Fleming knows what to do with. In this final installment of the Fiona Fleming Cozy Mysteries, will Fee finally uncover the secret of her namesake, Blackstone Corporation, Captain Reading’s lost treasure and more? cozy murder mystery series, cozy murder mystery, cozy murder mystery books, cozy murder, cozy murder mysteries, animal cozy mystery, animal cozy

Three days before Christmas, Alvirah Meehan, the famous lottery winner and amateur detective, meets Regan Reilly in a New Jersey dentist's office. Regan is there in search of her busy father, who is scheduled for a routine visit. However, it is soon apparent that Luke Reilly is not going to keep his appointment. But Regan's worry turns to panic when a call comes through on her cell phone telling her that her father and his driver, Rosita Gonzalez, are being held for $1,000,000 ransom. She turns to Alvirah, because although Regan is a licensed detective in L.A., it is Alvirah who has the valuable contacts amongst the ranks of New York's law enforcement community. As Regan and Alvirah desperately try to meet the harsh demands and tough deadline of the kidnappers, Luke and Rosita, held captive on a decrepit houseboat moored in the Hudson River, are becoming increasingly terrified. And to make matters worse, a winter storm is gathering, putting their lives in even greater danger.... DECK THE HALLS is filled with twists and turns, intrigue and danger, as well as a hearty dose of holiday cheer. Mary and Carol Higgins Clark have created a breathless, yet heart-warming story of suspense in their first collaboration - a Christmas classic for many holiday seasons to come.

USA Today bestselling author It’s Christmas on Mackinac Island—and homicide just rode in on a horse-drawn sleigh…Includes a yummy fudge recipe! In the cozy warmth of their new home on Michigan’s Mackinac Island, newlywed seniors Frances and Douglas Devaney savor the picture-postcard snowy scenery through their kitchen window. But when they spy a horse-drawn sleigh dashing through the snow bearing a frozen stiff, their blood runs cold. The victim is banker Warren Engle, stepson of a close friend of Frances. With amateur sleuth Allie McMurphy, their boss at the Historic McMurphy Hotel and Fudge Shop, busy filling holiday orders for peppermint candy fudge, the couple tackle the case themselves, plowing through clues to rein in the runaway culprit . . . “Indulge your sweet tooth in this entertaining series.” —Miranda James, New York Times-bestselling author of the Cat in the Stacks Mysteries “Her heroine…has a wry narrative voice that never falters.” —Carole Bugge, author of the Claire Rawlings Mysteries

'Christmas carols are sung in church, therefore Christmas carols have always been sung in church. Christmas carols have these words and this tune, therefore Christmas carols have always had these words and this tune. Well, not really. Our carol tradition, like us, is a rich and dynamic mixture. An ecosystem, not a still life.' Written with effervescent charm and professional knowledge, composer and conductor Andrew Gant reveals the fascinating musical and social history behind our favourite Christmas carols. From the Annunciation to Epiphany, the episodes of the Christmas story link the tales and anecdotes behind twenty-seven carols from a variety of traditions and places of origin: those that come from folk song; those we owe to Victorian moralists, and those that are, in fact, French. As Andrew says, 'Some carols were born to Christmas, some have achieved Christmas, and some have had Christmas thrust upon them.' This wonderful, rich musical treat gives us a unique insight into our Yuletide traditions and customs. A delightful gift for anyone who loves to sing, or who just loves Christmas trivia, this is the ideal companion with which to while away those lazy days between Christmas and New Year. 'Ding dong! This is my kind of Christmas present. A musical Christmas cracker - fascinating and full of interesting surprises.' Gyles Brandreth 'Enlightening and entertaining. You'll never hear or sing these carols in the same way again' Anne-Marie Minhall 'And I thought I knew about Christmas carols.' John Rutter 'An unexpected romp through a festive slice of musical history, with Gant our thoroughly entertaining guide.' BBC Music Magazine

Television dramas, reality shows, and police procedural mystery novels may try to replicate the truth of a cops life, but sometimes the real story is strangerand more entertaining. In more than thirty engaging anecdotes, Cop Stories gives a no-holds-barred inside look at the experiences of Dick Ellwood, police officer for the Baltimore Police Department from 1965 through his retirement in 1990. He vividly depicts the teeming street life of one of the most dangerous cities in the nation. From walking a beat in his boyhood neighborhood and his adrenaline-fueled work in vice to his ascent to detective and eventually supervisor in the homicide unit, Ellwood doesnt miss a chance to get down and dirty with the gritty details you wont find on primetime TV. In addition to investigating murders, arresting prostitutes, and fighting corruption, Ellwood had his lighter moments. He arrested his childhood hero, Mickey Mantle, for public drunkenness, and was propositioned in a gay night club. He also participated in history by working the race riots of 1968 and learned more than he wanted to know about arson. Spanning the turbulent times of the sixties through the decadence of the eighties, Cop Stories reveals what it truly means to protect, serve, and live the life of a tough, dedicated cop.

Like other fictional characters, female sleuths may live in the past or the future. They may represent current times with some level of reality or shape their settings to suit an agenda. There are audiences for both realism and escapism in the mystery novel. It is interesting, however, to compare the fictional world of the mystery sleuth with the world in which readers live. Of course, mystery readers do not share one simplistic world. They live in urban, suburban, and rural areas, as do the female heroines in the books they read. They may choose a book because it has a familiar background or because it takes them to places they long to visit. Readers may be rich or poor; young or old; conservative or liberal. So are the heroines. What incredible choices there are today in mystery series! This three-volume encyclopedia of women characters in the mystery novel is like a gigantic menu. Like a menu, the descriptions of the items that are provided are subjective. Volume 3 of Mystery Women as currently updated adds an additional 42 sleuths to the 500 plus who were covered in the initial Volume 3. These are more recently discovered sleuths who were introduced during the period from January 1, 1990 to December 31, 1999. This more than doubles the number of sleuths introduced in the 1980s (298 of whom were covered in Volume 2) and easily exceeded the 347 series (and some outstanding individuals) described in Volume 1, which covered a 130-year period from 1860-1979. It also includes updates on those individuals covered in the first edition; changes in status, short reviews of books published since the first edition through December 31, 2008.

Gruesome murders, faculty politics and good old fashioned corruption form the backdrop for this crime thriller. Someone is killing the faculty at the university in novel and spectacular ways. Starting from what looks like a case of a jealous lover taking his passion into his hands, the murders evolve over time as the killer or killers becomes more adept. Are the murders connected by participation in the free wheeling 'Journey's of Self-Discovery' hosted by one of the victims or is there a deeper more sinister connection? As the killer's taste for ritualistic dismemberment becomes evident, the hunt is on to stop him, her or them before they kill again. Still grieving from the death of his wife on the infamous highway 85, Professor Will Sharpe becomes deeply involved in the case. The first victim is a good friend, and as he identifies participants in the 'Journey's of Self-Discovery' he finds himself deep in trouble. The logical skills he practices as a scientist become critical to solving the case before the murderers skip town, carrying their ill-gotten gains.

It wouldn't be Christmas without the "things." How they came to mean so much, and to play such a prominent role in America's central holiday, is the tale told in this delightful and edifying book. In a style characteristically engaging and erudite, Karal Ann Marling, one of our most trenchant observers of American culture, describes the outsize spectacle that Christmas has become.