Mystery

All the words we know : a novel

Nash, Bruce (Novelist), author.

Rose may be in her eighties and suffering from dementia, but she's not done with life just yet. Alternately sharp as a tack and spectacularly forgetful, she spends her days roaming the corridors of her assisted living facility, musing on the staff and residents, and enduring visits form her emotionally distant children and granddaughters. But when her friend is found dead after an apparent fall from a window, Rose embarks on an eccentric and determined investigation to discover the truth and uncover all manner of secrets... even some from her own past.....

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Hotel Ukraine

Smith, Martin Cruz, 1942-2025, author

In the latest installment of Martin Cruz Smith’s celebrated Arkady Renko series, the legendary Moscow investigator seeks to solve the murder of a diplomat as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine wears on and the effects of Renko’s Parkinson’s Disease worsen. Helped by his lover, journalist Tatiana Petrovna, Renko traces the murder to a Russian paramilitary group aided by a government official who also used to be a romantic partner of Renko. Before long, those responsible for the killing look to similarly dispatch Arkady and Tatiana—all of it leading to a thrilling and action-packed climax. Hotel Ukraine upholds Martin Cruz Smith’s reputation as a master of modern detective fiction and Arkady Renko’s standing as one of the genre’s most complex protagonists.....

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Kiss her goodbye

Gardner, Lisa, author.

A young mother haunted by war, determined to make a fresh start. But sometimes, the sins of the past aren't so easy to escape. Recent Afghan refugee Sabera Ahmadi was last seen exiting her place of work three weeks ago. The local police have yet to open a case, while her older, domineering husband seems unconcerned. Sabera's closest friend, however, is convinced Sabera would never willingly leave her three year old daughter. At her insistence, missing persons expert Frankie Elkin agrees to take up the search through the broiling streets of Tucson. Just in time for a video of the young mother to surface--showing her walking away from the scene of a brutal double murder. Frankie quickly realizes there's much more to the Ahmadi family than meets the eye. The father Isaad is a brilliant mathematician, Sabera a gifted linguist, and their little girl Zahra--she has an uncanny ability to remember anything she sees. Which given everything that has happened during the girl's short life, may be a terrible curse. When Isaad also disappears under mysterious circumstances and an attempt is made on Zahra's life, Frankie realizes she must quickly crack the code of this family's horrific past. Someone is coming for the Ahmadis. And violence is clearly an option. When everything is on the line, how far would you go to protect the ones you love? Frankie is about to find out.....

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Murder by memory

Waite, Olivia, author.

A mind is a terrible thing to erase... Welcome to the HMS Fairweather, Her Majesty's most luxurious interstellar passenger liner! Room and board are included, new bodies are graciously provided upon request, and should you desire a rest between lifetimes, your mind shall be most carefully preserved in glass in the Library, shielded from every danger. Near the topmost deck of an interstellar generation ship, Dorothy Gentleman wakes up in a body that isn’t hers — just as someone else is found murdered. As one of the ship’s detectives, Dorothy usually delights in unraveling the schemes on board the Fairweather, but when she finds that someone is not only killing bodies but purposefully deleting minds from the Library, she realizes something even more sinister is afoot. Dorothy suspects her misfortune is partly the fault of her feckless nephew Ruthie who, despite his brilliance as a programmer, leaves chaos in his cheerful wake. Or perhaps the sultry yarn store proprietor — and ex-girlfriend of the body Dorothy is currently inhabiting — knows more than she’s letting on. Whatever it is, Dorothy intends to solve this case. Because someone has done the impossible and found a way to make murder on the Fairweather a very permanent state indeed. A mastermind may be at work — and if so, they’ve had three hundred years to perfect their schemes... ....

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Kiss her goodbye

Gardner, Lisa, author.

A young mother haunted by war, determined to make a fresh start. But sometimes, the sins of the past aren't so easy to escape. Recent Afghan refugee Sabera Ahmadi was last seen exiting her place of work three weeks ago. The local police have yet to open a case, while her older, domineering husband seems unconcerned. Sabera's closest friend, however, is convinced Sabera would never willingly leave her three year old daughter. At her insistence, missing persons expert Frankie Elkin agrees to take up the search through the broiling streets of Tucson. Just in time for a video of the young mother to surface--showing her walking away from the scene of a brutal double murder. Frankie quickly realizes there's much more to the Ahmadi family than meets the eye. The father Isaad is a brilliant mathematician, Sabera a gifted linguist, and their little girl Zahra--she has an uncanny ability to remember anything she sees. Which given everything that has happened during the girl's short life, may be a terrible curse. When Isaad also disappears under mysterious circumstances and an attempt is made on Zahra's life, Frankie realizes she must quickly crack the code of this family's horrific past. Someone is coming for the Ahmadis. And violence is clearly an option. When everything is on the line, how far would you go to protect the ones you love? Frankie is about to find out.....

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Deeds left undone

Crosby, Ellen, 1953- author.

When a vineyard accident during harvest season leaves Lucie Montgomery without a valuable employee, it's her worst nightmare. But before she can search for a replacement, there's more bad news: Paul Merchant, her winery manager's husband, is found dead at the bottom of his swimming pool. Police rule Paul's death an accident, but his wife insists he was murdered because of his leadership of Don't Pave Paradise, a conservationist group lobbying to keep the region's beautiful country roads unpaved. And six weeks ago, Paul's predecessor also died under mysterious circumstances. As Lucie is drawn into investigating Paul's death, she discovers more than one motive for the crime--and more than one person in their close-knit community who wanted Paul dead. And when she finds an old photo of a beautiful local heiress who died tragically in a fire eighty years ago among Paul's papers, she starts to wonder if the modern-day crime might have roots in the past. Either way, someone is determined to make sure Lucie, who's agreed to continue the work of Don't Pave Paradise, hits a dead end before she even gets started. Even if it means committing murder. Again.....

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A catered bake-off

Crawford, Isis, author.

What’s the worst that could happen on a reality show bake-off filmed at a picturesque estate? As it turns out, a whole lot. Thrown into the fray against four seasoned competitors, the Simmons sisters face more than just cameras broadcasting their frosting mishaps on local TV. Right from the get-go, their small screen debut sours with suspicious ingredients and malfunctioning appliances. Then there’s the inexplicable invasion of goats that sends the entire production into a tailspin, followed by a flurry of ominous notes delivered anonymously to the cast and crew. Tensions really reach a boiling point when one of the judges meets a grisly end — death by exploding espresso machine! With a dangerous mystery solidifying, Bernie and Libby whisk through the vast property on a mission to uncover who could have taken down the show’s discerning food critic. But when the bake-off serves another victim, the sleuthing siblings find themselves racing to catch a mixed-up killer before the final timer dings.......

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A novel murder : a mystery

Nevin, E. C., author.

Welcome to the Killer Lines Crime Fiction Festival, the place for star writers of the genre to meet their adoring fans. But be careful -- this year the murders aren't just on the page. In the quaint English town of Hoslewit, the biggest names in crime writing have congregated to celebrate all things bookish and murderous. Author Jane Hepburn is determined to make her time at the Killer Lines festival worthwhile. This is her chance to change her fortunes and make her fictional Private Detective Baker a household name. And if she has to resort to sneaking into the book tent after hours to rearrange some books so hers are front and center, so be it. But when Jane encounters the dead body of renowned (and reviled) literary agent Carrie Marks, the festival takes on a decidedly different tone. Joined by Carrie's newest client, debut novelist Natasha Martez, and the agency's hapless intern, Daniel Thurston, Jane decides to put her fictional sleuthing skills to use in the real world--she's going to solve the murder. But the list of suspects is long: seemingly everyone at the festival has a motive to kill Carrie, and the more Jane and her new friends investigate, the closer they come to a dangerous truth--one that's stranger than fiction.....

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Tricks of fortune

Chern, Lina, author.

Katie True has gotten her crap together... sort of. Now that the sinister events of the past year have wound down, Katie has finally made her dream come true and opened her own tarot reading room -- even if it's in her sister's old real estate office in an outdoor strip mall. It's a good start, but her momentum grinds to a halt when the murder of beloved veteran police officer, Matthew Peterson, shakes her and her small community to the core. Katie is torn. Lieutenant Peterson had saved her life as a child and holds a special place in her past. Even worse, her closest friend Gina -- who knows Katie better than she knows herself -- is the primary suspect. As the investigation unfolds, the details surrounding Peterson's death become increasingly murky, as does Gina's innocence. All Katie knows is that following her intuition has gotten her this far. But will her trusty tarot deck help her when the truth about the people she loves is too terrible to face?....

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The curious inheritance of Blakely House

Politano, Joanna Davidson, 1982- author.

It is 1901 when clockmaker and tinker Sydney Forrester receives a most unusual inheritance. Blakely House, the island estate of an estranged uncle she's never met, seems almost alive, revealing and hiding its secrets at will. It is filled with remarkable inventions, including an intriguing unfinished automaton Sydney is itching to get her skilled hands on. The estate is also home to a number of peculiar people--including two men intent on removing this interloper from the island. Convinced that Sydney has something to do with their uncle's death, the late master's nephews contest the will and work against their cousin at every turn. Sydney finds a sometimes-ally in the estate's butler, an ex-adventurer who ran aground on the island years ago. But when a mysterious man washes ashore with a stunning surprise that upsets everything, Sydney must prove she has inherited the late master's brilliance as well as his property -- or someone else will.....

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A catered bake-off

Crawford, Isis, author.

What’s the worst that could happen on a reality show bake-off filmed at a picturesque estate? As it turns out, a whole lot. Thrown into the fray against four seasoned competitors, the Simmons sisters face more than just cameras broadcasting their frosting mishaps on local TV. Right from the get-go, their small screen debut sours with suspicious ingredients and malfunctioning appliances. Then there’s the inexplicable invasion of goats that sends the entire production into a tailspin, followed by a flurry of ominous notes delivered anonymously to the cast and crew. Tensions really reach a boiling point when one of the judges meets a grisly end — death by exploding espresso machine! With a dangerous mystery solidifying, Bernie and Libby whisk through the vast property on a mission to uncover who could have taken down the show’s discerning food critic. But when the bake-off serves another victim, the sleuthing siblings find themselves racing to catch a mixed-up killer before the final timer dings.......

View in Catalog

A novel murder : a mystery

Nevin, E. C., author.

Welcome to the Killer Lines Crime Fiction Festival, the place for star writers of the genre to meet their adoring fans. But be careful -- this year the murders aren't just on the page. In the quaint English town of Hoslewit, the biggest names in crime writing have congregated to celebrate all things bookish and murderous. Author Jane Hepburn is determined to make her time at the Killer Lines festival worthwhile. This is her chance to change her fortunes and make her fictional Private Detective Baker a household name. And if she has to resort to sneaking into the book tent after hours to rearrange some books so hers are front and center, so be it. But when Jane encounters the dead body of renowned (and reviled) literary agent Carrie Marks, the festival takes on a decidedly different tone. Joined by Carrie's newest client, debut novelist Natasha Martez, and the agency's hapless intern, Daniel Thurston, Jane decides to put her fictional sleuthing skills to use in the real world--she's going to solve the murder. But the list of suspects is long: seemingly everyone at the festival has a motive to kill Carrie, and the more Jane and her new friends investigate, the closer they come to a dangerous truth--one that's stranger than fiction.....

View in Catalog

All the words we know : a novel

Nash, Bruce (Novelist), author.

Rose may be in her eighties and suffering from dementia, but she's not done with life just yet. Alternately sharp as a tack and spectacularly forgetful, she spends her days roaming the corridors of her assisted living facility, musing on the staff and residents, and enduring visits form her emotionally distant children and granddaughters. But when her friend is found dead after an apparent fall from a window, Rose embarks on an eccentric and determined investigation to discover the truth and uncover all manner of secrets... even some from her own past.....

View in Catalog

The curious inheritance of Blakely House

Politano, Joanna Davidson, 1982- author.

It is 1901 when clockmaker and tinker Sydney Forrester receives a most unusual inheritance. Blakely House, the island estate of an estranged uncle she's never met, seems almost alive, revealing and hiding its secrets at will. It is filled with remarkable inventions, including an intriguing unfinished automaton Sydney is itching to get her skilled hands on. The estate is also home to a number of peculiar people--including two men intent on removing this interloper from the island. Convinced that Sydney has something to do with their uncle's death, the late master's nephews contest the will and work against their cousin at every turn. Sydney finds a sometimes-ally in the estate's butler, an ex-adventurer who ran aground on the island years ago. But when a mysterious man washes ashore with a stunning surprise that upsets everything, Sydney must prove she has inherited the late master's brilliance as well as his property -- or someone else will.....

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The ex-girlfriend murder

Chao, Gloria, 1986- author.

The body in the closet was going to be a problem. Kathryn Hu knew it. Yes, Tucker Jones was a cheating scumbag, and yes, she’d agreed to meet Olivia and Elle—Tucker’s other girlfriends—to exact revenge for all he’d put them through… But then they found him. Dead. Do they look guilty? Yes. Do they feel guilty for having wished him dead just hours before? Maybe a little. But—solid motive and a crime scene covered in their DNA aside—they’re innocent. They swear. To clear their names, Kat, Olivia, and Elle team up to find the real killer. But as they go undercover and lie to everyone, including the hot detective working the case, they realize that every person in their ex's life had a reason to want him dead. Will they uncover the truth before they go down for a murder they didn't commit?....

View in Catalog

Tricks of fortune

Chern, Lina, author.

Katie True has gotten her crap together... sort of. Now that the sinister events of the past year have wound down, Katie has finally made her dream come true and opened her own tarot reading room -- even if it's in her sister's old real estate office in an outdoor strip mall. It's a good start, but her momentum grinds to a halt when the murder of beloved veteran police officer, Matthew Peterson, shakes her and her small community to the core. Katie is torn. Lieutenant Peterson had saved her life as a child and holds a special place in her past. Even worse, her closest friend Gina -- who knows Katie better than she knows herself -- is the primary suspect. As the investigation unfolds, the details surrounding Peterson's death become increasingly murky, as does Gina's innocence. All Katie knows is that following her intuition has gotten her this far. But will her trusty tarot deck help her when the truth about the people she loves is too terrible to face?....

View in Catalog

Hotel Ukraine

Smith, Martin Cruz, 1942-2025, author

In the latest installment of Martin Cruz Smith’s celebrated Arkady Renko series, the legendary Moscow investigator seeks to solve the murder of a diplomat as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine wears on and the effects of Renko’s Parkinson’s Disease worsen. Helped by his lover, journalist Tatiana Petrovna, Renko traces the murder to a Russian paramilitary group aided by a government official who also used to be a romantic partner of Renko. Before long, those responsible for the killing look to similarly dispatch Arkady and Tatiana—all of it leading to a thrilling and action-packed climax. Hotel Ukraine upholds Martin Cruz Smith’s reputation as a master of modern detective fiction and Arkady Renko’s standing as one of the genre’s most complex protagonists.....

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The blue horse

Borgos, Bruce, author.

A controversial wild horse round-up in the high desert of Nevada results in two murders and too many suspects for Sheriff Porter Beck to deal with. A helicopter driving a controversial round-up of wild horses suddenly crashes and the pilot is found to have been shot. Then the person coordinating the round-up for the Bureau of Land Management is savagely murdered, buried up to her neck and then trampled to death by the very same wild horses. And there's no lack of suspects-with the wild horse advocacy group having sworn to protect the horse At Any Cost! Now the state and federal agencies are showing up looking for answers or at least a scapegoat. Sheriff Porter Beck has had better days. Porter Beck's new girlfriend, Detective Charlie Blue Horse, arrives to help with the investigation, which leads them to Canadian Lithium mining operation near the round-up area that sets off Beck's mental alarm bells. Brinley, Beck's sister, is leading a group of troubled kids in a wilderness program, when one of them, Rafa, bolts one night. When Brinley catches up to him, they're just outside the mine-in the wrong place, at the wrong time. With his personal life in turmoil, too many suspects and too many secrets, the feds pushing for a quick resolution, and his impetuous (if skilled) sister in the mix, one wrong step could be deadly for Porter Beck.....

View in Catalog

Murder by memory

Waite, Olivia, author.

A mind is a terrible thing to erase... Welcome to the HMS Fairweather, Her Majesty's most luxurious interstellar passenger liner! Room and board are included, new bodies are graciously provided upon request, and should you desire a rest between lifetimes, your mind shall be most carefully preserved in glass in the Library, shielded from every danger. Near the topmost deck of an interstellar generation ship, Dorothy Gentleman wakes up in a body that isn’t hers — just as someone else is found murdered. As one of the ship’s detectives, Dorothy usually delights in unraveling the schemes on board the Fairweather, but when she finds that someone is not only killing bodies but purposefully deleting minds from the Library, she realizes something even more sinister is afoot. Dorothy suspects her misfortune is partly the fault of her feckless nephew Ruthie who, despite his brilliance as a programmer, leaves chaos in his cheerful wake. Or perhaps the sultry yarn store proprietor — and ex-girlfriend of the body Dorothy is currently inhabiting — knows more than she’s letting on. Whatever it is, Dorothy intends to solve this case. Because someone has done the impossible and found a way to make murder on the Fairweather a very permanent state indeed. A mastermind may be at work — and if so, they’ve had three hundred years to perfect their schemes... ....

View in Catalog

Deeds left undone

Crosby, Ellen, 1953- author.

When a vineyard accident during harvest season leaves Lucie Montgomery without a valuable employee, it's her worst nightmare. But before she can search for a replacement, there's more bad news: Paul Merchant, her winery manager's husband, is found dead at the bottom of his swimming pool. Police rule Paul's death an accident, but his wife insists he was murdered because of his leadership of Don't Pave Paradise, a conservationist group lobbying to keep the region's beautiful country roads unpaved. And six weeks ago, Paul's predecessor also died under mysterious circumstances. As Lucie is drawn into investigating Paul's death, she discovers more than one motive for the crime--and more than one person in their close-knit community who wanted Paul dead. And when she finds an old photo of a beautiful local heiress who died tragically in a fire eighty years ago among Paul's papers, she starts to wonder if the modern-day crime might have roots in the past. Either way, someone is determined to make sure Lucie, who's agreed to continue the work of Don't Pave Paradise, hits a dead end before she even gets started. Even if it means committing murder. Again.....

View in Catalog

The ex-girlfriend murder

Chao, Gloria, 1986- author.

The body in the closet was going to be a problem. Kathryn Hu knew it. Yes, Tucker Jones was a cheating scumbag, and yes, she’d agreed to meet Olivia and Elle—Tucker’s other girlfriends—to exact revenge for all he’d put them through… But then they found him. Dead. Do they look guilty? Yes. Do they feel guilty for having wished him dead just hours before? Maybe a little. But—solid motive and a crime scene covered in their DNA aside—they’re innocent. They swear. To clear their names, Kat, Olivia, and Elle team up to find the real killer. But as they go undercover and lie to everyone, including the hot detective working the case, they realize that every person in their ex's life had a reason to want him dead. Will they uncover the truth before they go down for a murder they didn't commit?....

View in Catalog

The blue horse

Borgos, Bruce, author.

A controversial wild horse round-up in the high desert of Nevada results in two murders and too many suspects for Sheriff Porter Beck to deal with. A helicopter driving a controversial round-up of wild horses suddenly crashes and the pilot is found to have been shot. Then the person coordinating the round-up for the Bureau of Land Management is savagely murdered, buried up to her neck and then trampled to death by the very same wild horses. And there's no lack of suspects-with the wild horse advocacy group having sworn to protect the horse At Any Cost! Now the state and federal agencies are showing up looking for answers or at least a scapegoat. Sheriff Porter Beck has had better days. Porter Beck's new girlfriend, Detective Charlie Blue Horse, arrives to help with the investigation, which leads them to Canadian Lithium mining operation near the round-up area that sets off Beck's mental alarm bells. Brinley, Beck's sister, is leading a group of troubled kids in a wilderness program, when one of them, Rafa, bolts one night. When Brinley catches up to him, they're just outside the mine-in the wrong place, at the wrong time. With his personal life in turmoil, too many suspects and too many secrets, the feds pushing for a quick resolution, and his impetuous (if skilled) sister in the mix, one wrong step could be deadly for Porter Beck.....

View in Catalog