Muskets, Mutts, And Murder (A Samantha Davies Mystery Book # 8) by S.A. Kazlo

Spring has finally sprung in Wings Fall, New York and Samantha Davies-Johnson along with her fellow rug hookers, the Loopy  Ladies, are participating in an annual reenactment at a local pre- Revolutionary War fort, Fort Henry, as camp followers. The Loopy Ladies instead of rug hooking are doing their patriot duty and are knitting hats for veterans. A number of their significant others are among the reenactors and will be recreating the battle between the French and the British. Sam's newish husband, Hank, who is the lead detective on the Wings Falls Police and her Southern Belle cousin, Candie Parker-Hogan's husband, Mark, the Mayor of Wings Falls, are newly minted reenactor soldiers participating in the event. 

All seems to be going well until Orville Garber and Wesley Munro get into a heated argument as to who should fill the recently vacated commander of their unit, a prized position. Wesley feels it should go to him since he is descended from the original commander of the fort. Sam has her hopes on Orville getting the honor as he was her much-loved high school math teacher. 

As the day progresses, a mock battle is held. After all the musket smoke clears, a French reenactor is found dead on the battlefield. Only gunpowder charges were to be used at these events. Who used a real musket ball and why? Unfortunately for Orville, the musket ball is traced back to him by the three slashes he etches into his musket balls identify it as his. Samantha can't believe the kind and patient man who helped her all those years ago to pass math would do such a thing.

To add to Samantha's stress, her beloved dachshund, Porkchop, is behaving in a very unwelcoming manner towards his girlfriend, Nina, Hank's miniature bulldog. Can Sam figure out what has caused Porkchop's change of affection towards his BFF before any fur flies and at the same time prove Orville innocent before the real murderer targets her?  (Summary via Goodreads)

I could live in Wings Falls, I would totally fit in immediately.  If only it were a real place and not the setting of the Samantha Davies Mystery series written by S.A. Kazlo.  And with Muskets, Mutts, and Murder being the eighth book, I'm pretty sure I would know my way around this delightful town .... and I would try to stay clear of the murders and the investigations but with Sam and her cousin Candie being my best friends, I can't promise that.

In Muskets, Mutts, and Murder Sam and Candie are hanging around with their Loopy Ladies group knitting hats to go to local veterans while their husbands, lead detective of Wings Falls Police Department, Hank and the town Mayor, Mark, participate in an re-enactment at the local British fort.  They think the re-enactment of the French and British battle goes well until one of the participant's is laying on the ground when the smoke clears.

Even though the talk around the incident is that the gentlemen suffered an ankle injury, Sam knows that to be incorrect when the coroner arrives.

Sam also knows that even though she is married to the lead detective, there will be no secrets spilled during pillow talk so when her old math teacher is arrested for the murder, her and Candie will do what they can to fill in the blanks.

I cannot stress it enough how awesome this series is.  Not only will readers fall in love with Wings Falls and the businesses, but the people are a huge part of it as well.  Just hanging out with Sam and Candie at their favorite table at Sweetie Pie's or all of them at The Smiling Pig would be a treat.  And even though I am more of a cat person, I would love cuddles with Sam's dog,Porkchop, Hank's dog, Nina and Candie's dog, Annie. And who couldn't listen to Candie's southern talk all day ?

Truffle Trouble (An Amish Candy Shop Mystery # 10) by Amanda Flower

Combining the sugar rush of candy making with a fascinating look at Amish life, a quirky whodunit, and a sweet romance between chocolatier Bailey King and Sheriff Aiden Brody, Amanda Flower’s USA Today bestselling Amish Candy Shop Mysteries continue, as summer wedding season comes to the village of Harvest, Ohio…

Horror d'oeuvres

Summer is finally upon the village of Harvest, Ohio, nestled in picturesque Amish Country, and folks are abuzz over their very own Bailey King’s upcoming June wedding. The Amish Candy shop owner and star of TV’s Bailey’s Amish Sweets is marrying Holmes County Sheriff Aiden Brody. To sweeten the occasion will be a scrumptious giant chocolate truffle wedding cake, made especially for the happy couple by Bailey’s New York City mentor, Jean Pierre. Other than the risk of the ring bearer, Jethro the pig, taking a bite out of the confection, what could go wrong?

As it turns out, a food-related disaster does befall the day. But with Bailey in the mix, it’s nothing so pedestrian as a peckish pig. At the reception, a wedding guest dies after sampling the hors d'oeuvres. Café owner and new caterer Darcy Woodin, who made all the food except the desserts, is pegged by police as the number one suspect. Even more incriminating, the victim is one of Darcy's ex-boyfriends . . .

Still, Bailey is friends with Darcy, and she’s certain the young woman is innocent. Even before the first dance with her new husband, Bailey’s on the case. Can she help solve it in time for her honeymoon—or will a killer try to end her happily ever after before it’s even begun . . .?

Recipe included!   (Summary via Goodreads)

The Amish Candy Shop Mystery series by Amanda Flower is a great series to get lost in, there is so much to love, and with Truffle Trouble being the tenth book in the series, I think you are guaranteed a good read !!

In Truffle Trouble Bailey and Aiden are finally getting married and everyone is invited !!  Harvest Square is going to be the place to be, for all of Harvest, Ohio.  Not only are friends and family invited but the English and Amish communities are invited as well.  And with Bailey as popular as she is and Aiden being the County Sheriff, it is going to be the event of the year.

Unfortunately, that is not true when Bailey goes into the kitchen and finds the caterer, and her friend, Darcy, standing over a dead body ..... on Bailey's wedding day !!

Obviously, the newlyweds postpone their honeymoon so that Aiden can work the case.  Luckily, they didn't go on their trip because Bailey finds her grandmother collapsed on the floor of the candy shop the next day.  

There is so much going on that I cannot imagine Bailey being able to think straighten, especially when she is roped into helping with the Summer Soiree which is scheduled for later in the week when she should be on her honeymoon.  She does it only because it gives her a chance to talk to the people involved seeing as the murdered victim was one of winery owners as well as a participant on the event.

Every time Bailey thinks that she has narrowed the suspect list down she finds out something else about someone and that adds to the list.  However, she is determined to find out who killed Jason and clear her friend's name.

Readers cannot help but love this series. With the characters, the town, the Amish and English communities working together and the animals, Jetro especially, will pull you in !!  Once you start reading, you will not want to stop ... my advice to you is make sure you have chocolate on hand.

Death On Location (Sam Lawson Mystery series Book # 5) by David K. Wilson

Entertaining, funny and suspenseful, Death on Location is the fifth installment in the popular Sam Lawson Mystery series by David K. Wilson.

When the alligator-eaten remains of an 80s TV star are discovered while filming a movie in the East Texas swamps, local detective Sam Lawson is hired to find out if the actor was just an unfortunate midnight snack or the victim of murder.

However, the producer who hired Sam has a plot twist of his own. He insists that one of the movie’s actors shadow Sam to see how a real detective works. Josh Cole, known for his straight-to-cable romantic comedies and aww-shucks personality, is eager to learn and Sam soon finds he can use his celebrity status to his advantage. The two soon form an unlikely partnership that has them investigating beautiful actresses, a giant Bigfoot and a local drug kingpin. From alligator-infested swamps to a Dallas strip club, Sam and Josh retrace the victim’s final days in hopes of shining a spotlight on the murderer.

But while Sam is busy solving this murder, a serial killer from his past is lurking in the shadows… with his eye on Sam’s fiancé.  (Summary via Goodreads)

Death on Location by David K. Wilson is the fifth book in the Sam Lawson Mystery series and you cannot help but love the main character and with him switching from being a police officer to a private investigator will have you loving him more ... if that is possible.

In Death on Location Sam is hired by the producer of a movie that is filming in the area when one of the actors is found dead.  The body, or parts of the body after what looks like an alligator attack, is found on site where the movie is being filmed and the producer wants it solved immediately.  So, even though Sam's old co-workers are on the case, he is hired.  Unfortunately, Sam is provided a "partner", Josh Cole another actor from the movie.  Josh has always done romance movies, and this is his first as a detective.

Even though they are an unlikely pair, they work together well and play off each other's weaknesses.  And when the police make an arrest on the case, Sam can't help but feel that they are wrong, so he and Josh still investigate.  Luckily, they do or the real killer would have gotten away .....

There is more going on in Sam's life also that keeps interfering, but he is able to stay on course and work everything out even when the other case he is working on takes a turn .....

The Sam Lawson Mystery series is a captivating series to get hooked on, there is so much to love.  Even though Sam can be rough at times, you know he is focused and determined and cares which makes you love him more.  I highly recommend grabbing your copy and digging in.

A Scoop of Deceit (Coffee & Cream Cafe Mystery series Book 7) by Lena Gregory

 From author Lena Gregory comes another decadently delightful cozy mystery ...

Spring has finally sprung on the south shore of eastern Long Island, New York, and Danika Delaney is ready to take a break from running her old-fashioned malt shop, the Coffee & Cream Café, to help her mom start planting for the season. With visions of colorful tulips and delicate daffodils in mind, Danika and her mother browse through the local garden center, where they can’t help but notice a confrontation between out-of-towner Sebastian Krane and the local cashier. Unfortunately, as Krane storms off, aggravated and not paying attention, he hops into his BMW, and crashes right into Mrs. Delaney as she’s backing up in her borrowed pickup truck. As if that weren't enough to put a damper on her sunny mood, Krane then has the nerve to file a lawsuit against her. But when Dani shows up at his mansion to try to straighten things out, she finds him dead, with a knife in his back. Apparently, someone had it out for Sebastian. Someone other than her mother. A fact Dani she sets out to prove with the help of her sidekicks, Gwen and Eli, wading through a slew of shady suspects from the victim's stormy past. Can Dani clear her mother's name and find the truth behind Krane's murder? Or will Dani be in danger of pushing up daisies herself this spring?

What critics are saying about Lena

"Readers are going to fall in LOVE. I can tell you right now that this series is going to be a huge success!!!"
~Cozy Mystery Book Reviews

"I didn’t want it to end!"
~Kings River Life Magazine

"Author Lena Gregory sure didn’t disappoint. She cooked up a tale so tasty I devoured it!"
~Lisa Ks Book Reviews   (Summary via Goodreads)

A Scoop of Deceit is the seventh book in the Coffee & Cream Cafe Mystery series by Lena Gregory and seeing as this is a cozy mystery series, I would like to talk about some other things within this book and series.

In this series you have main character Danika, Dani, her enormous family, her tight circle of friends, the business her uncle gave to her to run, the adorable town they all live in and a dreamy detective.

Dani has taken over her uncle Jimmie's ice cream shop and turned it into Coffee & Cream Cafe serving ice cream and tasty coffee drinks.  Even though Uncle Jimmie "retired", he still spends a lot of time there allowing Dani to hang out with her best friends, Eli and Gwen.  And with Eli dating Dani's sister Meghan, they are getting closer.  Plus, it helps when the friends have sleepovers, Meghan usually makes a killer dinner .... because, yeah, they are most likely discussing the latest murder in their little town.  Another thing that is great with this series is that no matter what is going on on Sunday, the entire family, and it is big, along with some friends, all gather at Dani's mom's house for Sunday dinner.

Now in A Scoop of Deceit Dani goes with her mom and aunt to the local garden center to pick up plants for Dani's mom to plant. Unfortunately, as they leave, they are involved in a car accident with a gentleman who isn't very nice.  Even though they know it was his fault, he threatens to sue.  Luckily no one was hurt but the next day when Dani goes to Mr. Krane's house to try to talk him out of suing her mom, they find him dead, with a knife in his back.

And once Dani, Eli and Gwen start looking into Mr. Krane and his life, they realize the suspect list is longer than you could imagine and they find it hard to feel sorry for him. And even though dreamy detective Jake keeps telling Dani to leave the investigating to him, she still gets in hot water .... but for a good reason.

I would read this series without the murders and Dani working the cases, but there would have to be a reason for the detective's presence, he has to be there.  This series could easily be a romance series .... I would be all for that !!  But I'll stick with it as a cozy mystery series as it is intended.

Spellbound by Murder (A Mystic Hollow Bookshop Mystery Book 1) by Stacie Ramey

Gilmore Girls meets Charmed in this spellbinding cozy mystery featuring a magical bookshop run by three generations of women.

When her grandmother suffers a nasty fall and asks for help managing the family business, coffee-addicted single mother Veronica Blackthorne moves her sixteen-year-old romcom-obsessed daughter to Mystic Hollow, Connecticut. Veronica is ecstatic to return to New England, but when she arrives, she quickly finds out that Mystic Hollow Books, her grandmother’s pride and joy, needs more than a little TLC.

Hoping to save the bookstore from a big box rival, Veronica enlists her sometimes-mentor and sometimes-crush Adam Whitford, a controversial but popular author, as the keynote speaker to kick off a literary festival that will hopefully bring in a new wave of customers. But when Adam turns up dead, all that romantic potential turns into a nightmare as Veronica becomes the prime suspect in his murder.

As the local sheriff investigates his murder, Veronica decides to take matters into her own hands to solve the case and clear her name. With the bookstore’s future on the line, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Until her gran reveals the biggest secret of all–the bookstore is magical and it was a botched love spell that led to this entire mess.

Witty and heartfelt, this mystery explores the price of magic and how it might be heftier than one can hope, perfect for fans of Amanda Flower and Nina Simon.  (Summary via Goodreads)

Spellbound by Murder is the first book in Stacie Ramey's A Mystic Hollow Bookshop Mystery series and I loved it and I think you will also.

In Spellbound by Murder main character Veronica who is living in Florida with her teenage daughter Phoebe gets a call from her grandmother that she needs Veronica to come home to Mystic Hollow.  She claims that she took a bad fall and needs help with the family bookstore.  But when they arrive it seems Gran is fine, but Veronica overlooks that little lie because she really is happy to be home and Phoebe seems to like it also.

They are just in time to help finish organizing the literary festival and Veronica comes to the rescue when the keynote speaker cancels.  She is able to get a friend and author to come take her place.  Veronica and Adam have a little history, so she agrees to meet him in the bell tower the one night .... unfortunately, she gets there just as he goes over the edge.  

When the local sheriff, Mack, zones in on Veronica as a suspect, she obviously is going to do what she can to prove her innocence.  Little did she know that she would have two tech savvy teenage girls, her grandmother, an owl and the magic surrounding the bookstore and Mystic Hollow.

I am a fan of magic, who isn't since Harry Potter was published, and when you can add it to solving a murder .... yes please !!  And it doesn't matter who many stories you read with magic in them, they are all different and draw the reader in, like they have a spell attached to them.

I highly encourage you to read this book and put it on your watch list for future books.  I'm sure it will cast its spell on you ......

Dazzling Death (A Cosmetic Crimes Mystery Book 4) by Arlene Kay

When faded movie star Teagen Doyle swans into Harbor Bay, trouble follows her. She lures artist Marketta Davis into joining her and proceeds to seduce Marky’s fiancé, Dr. Roddy Park. Disaster ensues when billionaire Brendan Doyle storms into town, determined to reclaim his wife. Murder, lust, and larceny confound Harbor Bay until the intrepid sleuths from Poppet intervene.  (Summary via Goodreads)

In Dazzling Death, the fourth book in the Cosmetic Crimes Mystery series written by Arlene Kay, main character Marky Davis is just trying to enjoy and life her life.  Unfortunately, that is not to be ...

When Teagen Doyle, who was a soap opera star years ago and her husband come to town, everyone goes crazy !!  Teagan and Brendan take residence at Madge Stone's estate and Marky dislikes her instantly which should be fine, they do not run in the same circles.  But for some reason Teagan is drawn to Marky and especially to Roddy, Marky's fiancé and hires both of them.  She hires Marky to paint her portrait and Roddy to be the face of her latest business venture, Teagan's Tinctures.  But Teagan has more in mind for Roddy as she goes about seducing him .... 

Although Marky's heart is broken, she tries to put Roddy and Teagan out of her mind and focus on her business, Poppet.  Sadly, that changes when Teagan dies during a romantic dinner with Roddy !!  Marky doesn't approve of what he did but she knows deep down that he is not capable of murder, so she decides to try to prove his innocence.

However, before she can get anywhere with Teagan's murder, something else happens in their little town of Harbor Bay that sends Marky rolling.

Readers will fall in love with this story instantly.  You will love the characters and all their sass, the town, the businesses and all the craziness within.  Trying to solve Teagan's murder will be difficult so I would just encourage you to sit back and let the story draw you in and ride it through.

Murder at an Irish Session (Irish Village Mystery Book # 12) by Carlene O'Connor

As pregnant Siobhán O’Sullivan awaits bringing her new life into the world, she’s bringing new life to her village of Kilbane in County Cork, Ireland, with a music and matchmaking festival. But one matchmaker is about to find out that Cupid’s arrow can be fatal in the latest Irish Village Mystery from USA Today bestselling author Carlene O’Connor.

Siobhán loves to see the joy playing trad music brings to her brother Ciaran, but his concern that he’ll never find a mate pulls at her heartstrings. So, she proposes that Kilbane host a music and matchmaking festival to draw single trad musicians. While renowned matchmaker Liam Noone plays Cupid with his Lucky Book, music—and hopefully love—will fill the pubs and the autumn air.

Turning over his precious Lucky Book to Siobhán for safekeeping, Liam takes the stage to introduce matched musician couples who will kick off the festival in the
town square. Suddenly all goes black. When the lights come back on, the matchmaker has met his maker, impaled through the heart with an arrow made from the sharpened bow of a bass.

Was it the fiddle player, the flute player, the drummer, the piper, the squeeze box player, or the bass player who struck a sour note? Garda Siobhán and her husband Macdara must pick up the tempo to make whoever committed this crime of passion face the music…  (Summary via Goodreads)

Even though Siobhan has her hands full, with her new promotion to Detective Sergeant as well as being pregnant with twins, she will always look after her siblings and their happiness.  And in Murder at an Irish Session, the twelfth book in Carlene O'Connor's Irish Village Mystery series, the focus is on her younger brother Ciaran.

Seeing as Ciaran is a fiddler player and interested in music, when Siobhan learns of a matchmaker who combines music and love, she works with him and his assistants to host a festival in Kilbane.  The host, Liam, brings his two assistants as well as a group of couples that he successfully matched a year ago to town.

Unfortunately, at the beginning of the festival there is a lighting problem and when it is fixed and the lights come back on, Liam is dead, shot in the heart by bow and arrow.  Readers may think that this would be an easy case to solve, but with this being O'Connor's twelfth book, she knows what she is doing .... and she will have you guessing until the very end.

I am a huge fan of mysteries and cozy mysteries; however, I never try to solve the case.  Although there have been a few times where I was pretty sure I knew who the guilty party was.  I like to relax and read the story and just get lost in it all.  O'Connor knows how to write the story keeping readers on the edge of their seats.  And I hope you are a fan of this series as well and have come to love Siobhan, her family and Kilbane as much as I have.  If not, you have plenty of time to catch up.