Women Sleuths Christmas

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.

A drive-by murder signals the end of a relaxed Christmas. Donna refuses to accept that organized crime is moving into town, but to do so, she must find the murderer. In the meantime, she needs to host a Victorian tea, pin down a certain detective's romantic intentions, keep a boozy Santa sober, deal with a cursed clown doll, and hide a hunky underwear model. It's just another holiday at The Painted Lady Inn.

If you love small towns, endearing relationships, food, animals, and a touch of murder, you will love this new mystery series by Kathi Daley, author of the popular Zoe Donovan Cozy Mystery Series. Set in the small town of White Eagle, Montana, the series features Tess and her dog Tilly, who spend their days delivering the latest gossip along with the daily mail. When a close friend is murdered, Tess and Tilly join forces with the reclusive genius in town to sleuth out the truth behind the shocking murder that is rocking the community as it prepares for the annual Christmas Festival.

For nearly 20 years, Chester Claus had run a year-round Christmas-themed diner in Wrangler’s Hill. For many Indiana locals, he was the embodiment of the holidays - gregarious, portly, his eyes radiating amusement as he handed out candy to children. The idea of anyone wanting to murder him was simply preposterous. But when Claus is found dead in his kitchen during the Christmas Feast, poisoned with his own favorite knife, it falls on Indiana’s finest amateur detective, Geneva Pomolo, and her partner, Iris Reeves, to investigate.

Everybody's looking forward to Christmas, but not Celia.Why? Because she's been making promises all year that she can't seem to keep. Promises to take her young children on a luxurious holiday. Promises to her clients to make them look like a million bucks over the holiday season. She's in for a shock when a client dies at one of the corporate functions she's a part of. The incident seems coincidental, until someone else dies. It seems Celia is the common denominator at both scenes. Celia's blood pressure goes through the roof when she's identified as a person of interest.

After more than a decade away, Mira James isn’t keen on returning to her Minnesota hometown for the holidays. Her childhood memories aren’t particularly jolly. Even less festive is the news of a serial killer on the loose. With only ten shopping days till Christmas, the Candy Cane Killer has been very busy slashing through the snow. Eager to earn her official PI stripes, Mira is anxious to track him down. But when the latest victim is a woman from her high school graduating class, the investigation hits a little too close to home.

With the festive season fast approaching, amateur sleuth Juno Browne helps organise a Christmas Fair to raise funds for Ashburton’s local animal sanctuary. The event is a success, but whilst Santa is handing out presents in the fairy-lit grotto, a murder is being committed in a dark corner of the garden. Juno discovers the body of Bob the Blacksmith, found clutching a horseshoe decorated with a sprig of elder. Suspicion falls on Bob’s longsuffering wife, Jackie, and on Don Drummond, with whom Bob violently quarrelled in the past

Kiki is eight months pregnant and trying to cram as much ho-ho-ho into the holidays as possible. When a customer drops dead during an offsite event, this intrepid scrapbooking sleuth is left holding the bag. After her name is cleared, Kiki isn't one to sit around while her friends are threatened with false imprisonment. Instead, she vows to wrap up this case and tie it with a bow. Leave it to Kiki to determine who was nice, and who was very, very naughty, indeed. A nasty Christmas Grinch is targeting one of Kiki's friends—and that's just not kosher.

Christmas is approaching, and private investigator Geneva Pomolo is spending a blissful week at a local bed and breakfast. But her hopes of a few idle days spent reading and relaxing are shattered by a scream in the night. A woman stumbles into her room with a strange tale of ghostly apparitions and a phantom figure clutching his severed head. Geneva dismisses the story as the ravings of a fantasy-prone woman, but soon it becomes clear that the bed and breakfast is crowded with more ghosts than a Dickens novel.

Sophie is thrilled her life is going so well. Her pub is (mostly) financially secure. She’s dating her hunky pub manager. Her best friend, Oliver, is visiting from California and she’s rented out her macabre guesthouse to a group of skiers on holiday. She’s even handling the cold weather with aplomb. That is, until they are hit by an unexpectedly bad Nor’ Easter. Now, the skiers, along with most of her staff, are stuck at Steamys pub. Sophie is creative, so she’s confident she can make the most of a bad situation. Then one of the skiers is found dead, frozen outside her llama, Jack’s, barn.

It’s time to deck the halls! The holidays have arrived in Friendship Harbor, Maine, and pub owner Sophie LaFleur is eager for the extra tourism money to save her struggling business. With her pet llama the star of the school Christmas pageant, Fleece Navidad, and a pub holiday party in the works, it’s going to be a holiday to remember. Especially when the out-of-town choral vocalist staying in Sophie’s guesthouse is found dead. She’s hit her last high note, and now it's up to Sophie to solve her murder while ensuring everyone in town is having a holly jolly good time.

December 1935. Director Monty Harrison's production of A Christmas Carol has had a troubled run on its tour of regional theatres. With tensions amongst the cast running high, the company reach their final stop—London's Theatre Royale. Catastrophe, however, strikes on opening night: Scrooge dies on stage, the result (it is presumed) of a heart attack. But the show must go on. Until, that is, a leading theatre critic—and old rival of Monty's—is killed backstage.

And high-ranking members have taken an interest in FBI Special Agent Megan Luchek. Money Makes It Deadlier: Agent Luchek steps into high heels and deep danger when she gets assigned to investigate a bank. Revenge Makes It Sweeter: Megan gets a late-night summons to the hospital to speak with a gunshot victim. Christmas Makes It Chaos: Agent Luchek goes to Philadelphia for an antiterrorism conference only to face off against real terrorists. Treachery Makes It Tense: Megan gets an unlikely ally in the desperate fight to save Dan’s family from a madman.

December in Savannah, Georgia, is a sight to behold. Twin sisters Tabby and Sage Winslow are busier than ever setting up for the big celebration. But that isn’t the only thing on the sisters’ minds. Both Sage and her fellow employee Mary Nicole are vying for the sought-after assistant-manager job at the plant nursery. But when Loren Lee, their boss, is found dead and Sage becomes the police’s favorite suspect, both Winslow girls know that they’ll need more than a flicker of magic and their sisterhood to solve the murder and clear Sage’s name.

Six ambitious bakers are competing for glory and a grand prize, showcasing their most delicious candies, cookies, and desserts. Courtney detects some on-set grinchiness from her coworkers, especially judge Shannon Collins, but she's hoping the sweet treats will restore everyone's festive spirits. That Christmas wish swiftly fizzles when assistant director Kinzy Hummel is found strangled - with an apron from Shannon's new product line....

The police hone in on Austin’s ex-girlfriend as their number one suspect, but Scarlett isn’t sure they’ve found the right culprit. Her feelings about the woman are complicated, and she is tempted to let the police handle this mystery. But pleas from Austin and her insatiable curiosity won’t let her sit idly by without poking around in search of some answers.

Love is in the air when Hollywood arrives in Mermaid Bay, and the town may never be the same. Fans will do almost anything to get a glimpse of the actors or a chance to be an extra in the Love Channel's "My Coastal Valentine." Crowds flock to the cozy beach town from all over and business is booming for Christmas shop owner Jade Hicks, until the body of a testy reporter is found in one of the actors' rooms. And if murder isn't bad enough, someone tries to kill the show's star, hunky Raphael Allard.

As Christmas approaches and the snow falls deep, a malevolent force stalks the ancient corridors of Castle Kintochlochie. Someone, or something, is determined to derail Lady Ophelia's love affair with estate manager Hamish, so ruggedly handsome yet wildly unsuitable. She must call upon her wits—not just to discover the culprit...but, perhaps, to escape murder.

Edna Davies is frantic. Concern for an invalid husband has put her behind and now, with less than a week before Christmas and with family gathering for the first time in years, she hasn't even put up a tree. As a winter storm descends on the town, the owner of a local cat shelter is found dead and Mary Osbourne disappears. Trying to juggle holiday plans with the search for her neighbor, Edna meets a killer and may miss Christmas.

In Amish Christmas Mystery, Ettie must unwrap the truth before her daughter gets a one-way ticket to the slammer. This Yuletide, the stakes are high, the snow is deep, and the mystery is as thick as a fruitcake. Warm up to this intriguing cozy mystery that will keep you guessing 'til the last carol is sung!