Searching for something to read? Check out some of the new titles releasing the week of July 27 – August 2, 2025 with four debut series. I hope a few of these books take you on a reading adventure!

JULY 28
The Only Way is Burglary by Lou Collins (Cozy Mystery)
Just as Chloe Essex thought Speckled Hill was finally returning to its peaceful ways, a prancing pig and a rash of baffling burglaries disrupt village life. When one of her gang becomes the latest victim, Chloe embarks on an unusual quest to unveil the truth. With her ragtag team, she follows a trail of wacky clues, from the local pub to the parish church. As they inch toward unmasking the burglar, the once-idyllic village’s future teeters on the edge. Format: Print, Digital

JULY 29
Asylum Hotel by Juliet Blackwell (Traditional Mystery)
Aubrey Spencer loves photographing classic old buildings and abandoned places that hold old secrets. The Hotel Seabrink, perched overlooking the sea, is one such place. Currently abandoned but scheduled for a major renovation, it has a torrid history. Back in the 1920s it hosted A-list celebrity clientele, and now the locals insist it is haunted by the ghosts of two young women who died there. When Aubrey goes to photograph the site before the renovation begins, she bumps into a man named Dimitri Petroff, a minor online celebrity who shares her fascination with old buildings, the Hotel Seabrink in particular. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Icing on the Murder by Valerie Burns (Cozy Mystery)
Aunt Octavia would be so proud! Maddy has turned Baby Cakes Bakery—named for her 250-pound English Mastiff, Baby—into a runaway success, and she’s marrying the love of her life, veterinarian Michael Portman. #DreamWedding! Plus the timing couldn’t be better: the country’s biggest bridal expo has come to New Bison, Michigan, and Maddy has secured a spot for Baby Cakes to showcase their cakes. She’s also entered a contest for an all-expenses-paid wedding extravaganza offered by world-renowned wedding planner Serafina. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Solid Gold Murder by Ellen Byron (Cozy Mystery)
With the summer season looming, former Hollywood sitcom writer Dee Stern has one small goal—scrubbing her motel’s unflattering moniker as the “Murder Motel.” Dee and ex-husband-turned-business-partner Jeff Cornetta are excited to introduce a family-friendly panning activity complete with fool’s gold just in time for the peak tourist months. Except neither could have anticipated the discovery of a real gold nugget or the ensuing social media frenzy. In a flash, the viral sensation draws grizzled prospectors, wide-eyed adventurers, and trend-chasing thrill seekers to the abandoned mines scattered around the woods . . . Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Seven Secret Spellcasters by Lynn Cahoon (Cozy Mystery)
Besides her witch’s training, Mia has a lot on her plate with her catering business and cooking school in the Idaho town of Magic Springs. As All Hallows Eve approaches, Mia has almost completed her apprenticeship with Grans and must decide if she will join the coven. At the same time, her boyfriend Trent’s familiar, Cerby—an adorable Maltese whose powers are far greater than his six-pound fluffy body might suggest—has flunked out of hellhound training at the werewolf camp. Something about a dragon? Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Black Forest Mystery by Kathi Daley (Cozy Mystery) *first book in a new series*
After connecting with Cricket and Marnie Abernathy, owners of All About Bluebells, Piper meets Paisley Bradford, a young woman with a dream of opening her own bakeshop. The two quickly form a bond and join the warm, welcoming courtyard family—including Lou, Cricket, Marnie, and the rest of the crew you know and love. Piper manages to land a job planning an exclusive black-tie event to be held at a local estate only to find a body in the bedroom just hours before the first honored guests are due to arrive. Format: Print, Digital

Tea with Jam & Dread by Vicki Delany (Cozy Mystery)
Long ago, Lily’s grandmother Rose worked as a kitchen maid at Thornecroft Castle, and now Elizabeth, dowager countess of Frockmorton, is celebrating her one hundredth birthday. Rose still has fond feelings for her onetime employer, so a group trip to Yorkshire is planned. It’s also an opportunity for Lily to visit her boyfriend, who’s currently working in England—and to indulge in some British tea. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Mayhem at a Halloween Wedding by Emmeline Duncan (Cozy Mystery)
There’s more to celebrate this Halloween when Bailey’s college friend Raven prepares to walk down the aisle in spooky seasonal style. As a bridesmaid, Bailey is overwhelmed helping with wedding preparations while the annual holiday festival scares up business for her bookstore. She also finds herself playing peacekeeper between fellow bridesmaids Colby and Ivy, whose arguments add even more conflict to the already simmering tensions within the wedding party between the groom’s traditional family and the bride’s bohemian parents. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Savvy Summers and the Sweet Potato Crimes by Sandra Jackson-Opoku (Cozy Mystery) *first book in a new series*
When Savvy Summers first opened Essie’s soul food café, she never expected her customer-favorite sweet potato pie to become the center of a murder investigation. But when Grandy Jaspers, the 75-year-old neighborhood womanizer, drops dead at table two, she suddenly has more to worry about than just maintaining Essie’s reputation for the finest soul food in the Chicagoland area. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Something Whiskered by Miranda James (Cozy Mystery)
Charlie Harris and his wife, Helen Louise Brady, have arrived in Ireland for their honeymoon. After a few days in Dublin, they head to County Clare, ancestral home to Helen Louise’s extended family, the O’Bradys. Her cousin Lorcan runs Castle O’Brady as a bed-and-breakfast with his wife Caoimhe and their daughter and son-in-law. But upon arrival at the castle, the newlyweds are shocked to see a body falling from the roof. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

She Didn’t See it Coming by Shari Lapena (Psychological Thriller)
Bryden and Sam have it all: thriving careers, a smart apartment in a luxury condominium, supportive friends and a cherished daughter. The perfect life for the perfect couple. Then Sam receives a call at his office. Bryden – working from home that day – has failed to collect their daughter from daycare. Arriving home with their little girl, he finds his wife’s car in the underground garage. Upstairs in their apartment her laptop is open on the table, her cell phone nearby, her keys in their usual place in the hall. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

The Edinburgh Murders by Catriona McPherson (Historical Mystery 1940s)
Welfare Officer Helen Crowther has enough on her plate between her hectic job, her complicated love life, and her growing reputation as a troublemaker. Last year’s scandal did nothing to help with the disapproval she already gets as a woman in her line of work. All she wants now is to focus on doing what she loves: helping the poor of the Fountainbridge ward in the city of Edinburgh. The last thing she needs is another string of murders to distract her . . .Format: Print, Digital, Audio

The Good Liar by Denise Mina (Traditional Mystery)
A year ago, a father and his fiancée were brutally murdered in their opulent London townhouse, sparking the most high-profile murder investigation in recent history. Blood spatter expert Doctor Claudia O’Sheil’s evidence put the killer behind bars—or so everyone believes. But since the trial, Claudia’s learned a horrific truth: her evidence and her testimony were wrong. And someone she knows made sure of it. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

You Belong Here by Megan Miranda (Psychological Thriller)
Beckett Bowery never thought she’d return to Wyatt Valley, a picturesque college town in the Virginia mountains steeped in tradition. Her roots there were strong: Beckett’s parents taught at the college, and she never even imagined studying anywhere else—until a tragedy her senior year ended with two local men dead, and her roommate on the run, never to be seen again…Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Ghostwriter’s Guide to Murder by Melinda Mullet (Traditional Mystery)
Maeve Gardner kills people for a living. A dodgy occupation perhaps, but as ghostwriter for the long-running Simon Hills mysteries, Maeve has planned the perfect murder time and again, and she enjoys it. She dreams of writing something under her own name someday rather than babysitting her adopted character Simon, but at least she’s writing. And as one of the burnt-out souls who’ve run away from dry land to live on London’s waterways, she has the joy of working from the home she loves: a colorful houseboat. Life on the canals is grand, but when her cheating ex-boyfriend turns up floating facedown in the water outside her boat, murdered, and the police arrest her, the plot takes a wayward turn. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

That Missing Piece Is Killing Me by Roz Noonan (Cozy Mystery)
The owner of a dance and martial arts studio, 63 year-old Michelle Chong is a well-liked fixture in the West Hazel community, despite being married to the famous—and famously temperamental—artist, Lars Olsen. That’s why when she disappears, people don’t blame her for fleeing her dysfunctional marriage. Still, Alice has her suspicions, especially after learning about Lars’ violent past—and current affair. Format: Print, Digital

The Last Letter of Rachel Ellsworth by Barbara O’Neal (Traditional Mystery)
Recently and abruptly divorced Veronica Barrington is anxious for a new direction when she answers a listing for a travel companion. It’s from Mariah Ellsworth, a young woman adjusting to an injury that ended her Olympic career. She’s also grieving her mother, Rachel, a lauded food writer, and Mariah aims to trace the steps of her mother’s final, unfinished project so she can heal and also honor the woman she misses. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Death And The Runaways by Heather Redmond (Historical Mystery 1800s)
On a day out in Hyde Park to celebrate the peace treaty with France, Mary and Jane are less than charmed by their brother Charles’s courtship with a girl from the local cheese shop. When Miss Winnet Davies is not swooning from the heat, she’s imploring Charles to buy her a pretty dress. But he hasn’t a tuppence—nor have they, as their father, philosopher William Godwin, is facing the prospect of debtor’s prison. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Mean Moms by Emma Rosenblum (Domestic Thriller)
Meet Frost, Morgan, and Belle—a wealthy, gorgeous group of New York City moms, the queen bees of downtown Manhattan. Their children attend Atherton Academy, the top private school in the city, and their social lives revolve around elaborate themed parties. On the first day of school, the arrival of a new mom and mysterious beauty from Miami, Sofia shakes up their world. When Sofia quickly integrates herself into their clique, inexplicably bad things start to happen to the women. Is someone at school out to get them? Format: Print, Digital, Audio

The Mudflats Murder Club by Brian Thiem (Traditional Mystery) *first book in a new series*
Former homicide detective and recently widowed Sean Tanner has settled into Spartina Island’s private retirement community, hoping to find solace after his wife’s death in their chosen paradise. He soon finds himself drawn into the Mudflats Murder Club, an enthusiastic group of retired detectives, prosecutors, and forensic experts who are engrossed in solving the 38-year-old unsolved murder of Theresa Goldberg. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

The Game is Murder by Hazell Ward (Private Investigator Mystery)
You are invited to a very special murder mystery party. The game is simple: Listen to the witnesses. Examine the evidence. Solve the case. Be careful. Trust no one. All might not be as it seems. If you agree to play the role of the Great Detective, you must undertake to provide a complete solution to the case. A verdict is not enough. We need to know who did it, how they did it, and why. Are you ready? Can you solve the ultimate murder mystery—and catch a killer? Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Murder At The Wham Bam Club by Carolyn Marie Wilkins (Historical Mystery 1920s) *first book in a new series*
After the death of her brave Harlem Hellfighter husband during the First World War, young widow Nola Ann Jackson returned to her hometown of Agate, Illinois, to live with her Aunt Sarah, a known local psychic. Under her aunt’s care and tutelage, Nola has been learning how to tap into her own intuitive gifts and communicate with the spirits. And she will rely on their insightful guidance when she’s asked to help investigate a woman’s disappearance. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

JULY 31
Dreaded Deliverance by Ana Bisset (Cozy Mystery)
When the Coral Cove Hideaway Resort hosts the Past Life Connections Retreat, Parker Dread expects little more than a few questionable soul readings and overzealous aura cleanses. What she doesn’t expect is murder, a viral Cajun grandmother, and a preacher with more to hide than he’s ready to confess. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Alchemy, Alibis, and Apple Pie by Ashley E. Shannon (Cozy Mystery)
When a tourist drops dead during the annual pie-eating contest in Eureka Falls, it’s the kind of messy scandal even the town gossips didn’t see coming. The victim, who clearly couldn’t resist a second slice of apple pie, appears to have been poisoned. And with a lineup of contestants all holding forks and secrets, everyone’s a suspect. Format: Print, Digital

The Cadence Hills Guest by Finn Stakers (Cozy Mystery)
Fischer James needs a summer reset. A grueling year in the counseling office at Bumpus Mills High has left her drained, burned out, and desperate for escape. An adventure a thousand miles from home — a chance to be someone else for a while — should be the perfect distraction… if only she can leave the weight of her hometown behind. Format: Print, Digital

AUGUST 1
Who Is The Liar by Laura Lee Bahr (Suspense)
In a tight-knit town in the 1980s, a child-killer is on the loose. And Topaz’s parents are on edge. At ten years old, Topaz is so vulnerable. But she has nothing to worry about. Her eldest sister, Ruby, has made sure of that. Swearing Topaz to secrecy, Ruby reveals she has trapped the monster in their root cellar. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Unsafe Haven by Paige Black (Thriller)
Officer Eden Mercer and her K-9 partner, Shadow, are called to a welfare check in Nightfall, Oregon—until they find a counselor murdered in her home office. But she was more than a licensed therapist. She secretly ran a network helping domestic abuse victims escape their attackers. Now her records are missing—and the women she protected are being targeted. Format: Print, Digital

Last Seen by J.T. Ellison (Psychological Thriller)
Halley James knows her marriage is over. But she’s not prepared for the rest of her life to fall apart too. She just lost her job at the forensics lab. Her dad needs emergency surgery. But the biggest blow comes back home in Marchburg, Virginia, where she discovers her mother didn’t actually die in a car crash. Her mom was murdered—and her father lied about it all these years. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Mocha Madness by Sarah Macey (Cozy Mystery)
Southsea’s Glorious Festival is in full swing, and Sarah Meadows is taking her latest addition, coffee van Tallulah on the road—with Charlie and Robyn serving espresso and charm to the crowds. But when rock star Jake Cross collapses mid-performance in a haze of smoke and screams, the music grinds to a halt… and murder takes centre stage. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Note: in some cases, print releases for digital titles will be forthcoming.