Looking for something to read? Check out some of the new titles releasing during the week of January 1 – 7, 2023 with three debut series. I hope a few of these books take you to an exciting place. Have fun reading!

A Ruff Week by Lorraine Bartlett (Cozy)
When five abandoned puppies were found behind Victoria Square, merchants and Artisan Alley vendors scrambled to claim them. But one of those adoptions hasn’t worked out. Katie Bonner has one week to find Lily a new home or she’ll be turned in to a kill shelter. When door after another slams in her face, Katie fears she won’t be able to stop what seems inevitable, as the only person interested in saving Lily has plans that would destroy this sweet dog’s nature. Format: Digital

The Blue Bar by Damyanti Biswas (Thriller) *first in a new series*
After years of dancing in Mumbai’s bars, Tara Mondal was desperate for a new start. So when a client offered her a life-changing payout to indulge a harmless, if odd, fantasy, she accepted. The setup was simple: wear a blue-sequined saree, enter a crowded railway station, and escape from view in less than three minutes. It was the last time anyone saw Tara. Format: Print and Digital

Hide by Tracy Clark (Police Procedural) *first in a new series*
When a young red-haired woman is found brutally murdered in downtown Chicago, one detail stands out: the red lipstick encircling her wrists and ankles. Detective Harriet Foster is on the case, even though she’s still grieving the sudden death of her partner. As a Black woman in a male-dominated department, Foster anticipates a rocky road ahead acclimating to a new team—and building trust with her new partner isn’t coming easily. Format: Print and Digital

Last Seen in Santorini by Vivian Conroy (Historical 1930s)
Miss Atalanta Ashford is sightseeing near Venice when a mysterious veiled lady approaches her with the urgent request to look into her daughter’s mysterious death on the idyllic Greek island of Santorini. Whilst working as a companion for the eminent Bucardi family, the unfortunate girl took a plunge from the dramatic cliffs during a walk alone. But is all as it seems? Format: Print and Digital

Misfire by Tammy Euliano (Thriller)
Kadence, a new type of implanted defibrillator, misfires in a patient visiting University Hospital for a routine medical procedure—causing the heart rhythm problem it’s meant to correct. Dr. Kate Downey, an experienced anesthesiologist, resuscitates the patient, but she grows concerned for a loved one who recently received the same device—her beloved Great-Aunt Irm. Format: Print and Digital

Nothing To Die For by Richard Houston (Cozy)
Jake Martin solves a locked-room murder with the help of his Golden Retriever, and seventy-year-old neighbor. It looks like a Fremont county commissioner has committed suicide because no one could have left the room after shooting her, but Jake isn’t buying it. Format: Digital

Entertainment to Die For edited by G. Kinman, M.Taylor, and S. Rowland (Crime Fiction)
In Entertainment to Die For, a Sisters in Crime Los Angeles anthology, you will find stories by first-time authors and stories by multi-published authors—all are killers (on the page, anyway). Sleuth along with the sleuths in these 18 suspenseful tales and solve the mysteries. Each story is a gem. Introduction by Sisters in Crime founder and best-selling author, Sara Paretsky. Format: Print and Digital

Fatal Fascinator by Jenn McKinlay (Cozy)
It’s wedding season and Viv’s longtime frenemy Piper May is getting married. She convinces Viv and Scarlett to take on the job of designing the headpieces for her “wedding of the year.” The well-to-do bride and her entourage are delighted to have Viv and Scarlett as their famous hat designer guests, but the hat-making pair are really just looking forward to a getaway at a castle in Sussex. It is to be a weekend full of events, culminating in the big ceremony. Format: Print and Digital

Of Mushrooms and Matrimony by Amy Patricia Meade (Cozy)
Literary caterer and owner of Cookin’ the Books café Tish Tarragon is pushing thoughts of her impending eviction aside to prepare an appetising welcome buffet for a wedding weekend at Abbingdon Green Bed and Breakfast. While there, Tish witnesses one of the guests, controversial TV chef and restaurant critic, Gunner Randall, threatening staff after missing breakfast and making do with a mushroom omelet. Format: Print and Digital

Murder, She Wrote: Death on the Emerald Isle by Jessica Fletcher/Terrie Farley Moran (Cozy)
Jessica Fletcher is quick to accept an invitation to replace a speaker who couldn’t attend a Book Festival in Belfast, Ireland. When her Cabot Cove neighbor Maeve O’Bannon hears about the trip, she asks Jessica to deliver some paintings to her family in the village of Bushmills. Happy to extend her travels and see more of the Irish countryside, Jessica agrees. Format: Print and Digital

Meat Thy Maker by Tamar Myers (Cozy)
Schmucker Brothers’ Sausages are the talk of the town. The good folk of Hernia are obsessed with the delectable meaty treats, and the prospect of going into partnership with the brothers is proving equally irresistible to investors far and wide, including Magdalena Yoder’s current guests at the Penn-Dutch Inn – grocery store chain CEOs Christine Landis and Kathleen Dooley, restaurant owner Terry Tazewell, and Mr Duckworth Limehouse. Format: Print and Digital

A Murderous Persuasion by Katie Oliver (Cozy)
Phaedra Brighton has her life all figured out—she has a profession she enjoys, a wonderful (if exasperating) cat, and a cozy carriage house on the grounds of her aunt’s inn. She needs no Captain Wentworth to sweep her off her feet (though, she would not mind a Mr. Darcy). Format: Print and Digital

Brackish Water by Neil S. Plakcy (Crime Fiction)
FBI Special Agent Angus Green returns to the world of stolen art when a Cuban refugee uses the location of an old master painting to negotiate for his freedom. The perilous waters along Florida’s coastline get easily breached by those smuggling drugs, stolen goods, and human refugees. Angus wades in eagerly, as always, only to discover hidden currents and dangerous obstacles. Format: Print and Digital

The Summer House at Larkspur by Kay Pritchett (Cozy)
When Mosey Frye, real estate agent and amateur sleuth, hunts for a summer house on the grounds of an abandoned plantation, she finds not only the house but also skeletal remains at the bottom of an old cistern. That same day, news of the horrific stabbing death of an eremitic nun leaves the citizens of Hembree in hang-jawed shock. Given that the tumble-down estate belonged to the dead nun’s family, Mosey insists there must be a connection between the two events. Format: Print and Digital

Courting Dragons by Jeri Westerson (Historical 1500s) *first in a new series*
1529, London. Jester Will Somers enjoys an enviable position at the court of Henry VIII. As the king’s entertainer, chief gossip-monger, spy and loyal adviser, he knows all of the king’s secrets – and almost everyone else’s within the walls of Greenwich Palace. Format: Print and Digital

The Long Way Out by Michael Wiley (Crime Fiction)
Wrongly convicted and later exonerated of killing two boys, Franky went on to uncover the real murderer. Now a ‘free man’ but living on the edges of society, for some he will always be tainted by his dark past. Format: Print and Digital