Looking for something to read? Check out some of the new titles releasing during the week of October 8 – 14, 2023 with three debut series. I hope a few of these books take you to an exciting place. Have fun reading!

OCTOBER 10
Let It Crow! Let It Crow! Let It Crow! by Donna Andrews (Cozy Mystery)
Meg has been roped into participating in a weaponsmithing competition, a Forged in Fire wannabe organized by a blacksmith friend. Meg originally turned down an invitation to participate, but the night before the filming starts, someone attacks Faulk, her blacksmithing mentor, breaking his arm and eliminating him from the contest before it begins. Meg agrees to step in as his replacement to keep the project from failing. She’s not thrilled that the filming will take place during December – Christmas is already a crazy time for her. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Widow’s Blush by Michelle Bennington (Historical Mystery 1800s) *first book in a new series*
In the spring of 1803, England’s foreign secretary is dead, and his widow, Lady Violette Hawkestone, insists that Ravenna help discover the killer. Ravenna, only nine months a widow, doesn’t want to get involved, but when an investigator, Mr. Chadwick, appears to suspect her, Ravenna fears he’s going to uncover a past she’d rather forget. In an effort to protect her own secrets and to protect her stepson, who’s in line for the foreign secretary position, she can lose no time in discovering the killer’s identity. Format: Digital

Overdue or Die by Allison Brook (Cozy Mystery)
Carrie Singleton has more than her fair share on her plate: her job at the Clover Ridge Library, preparing for her wedding to Dylan Avery, and hoping that the local art gallery doesn’t steal away one of her part-time employees. Her fiancé Dylan accompanies her to the beautiful home of Victor Zalinka—art collector and successful businessman—to select paintings for an art show at the library. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Baking Spirits Bright by Sarah Fox (Cozy Mystery)
Winter has arrived in Larch Haven, Vermont, bringing with it holiday cheer, lots of snow, and freezing temperatures. Becca Ransom is squeezing in time to skate on the frozen canals and drink hot chocolate by a roaring fire while also whipping up new creations for her family’s chocolate shop and experimenting with holiday flavors like eggnog, gingerbread, and peppermint. At the same time, Becca is preparing for the Baking Spirits Bright holiday baking competition, a popular annual event. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Brush Up On Murder by Sybil Johnson (Cozy Mystery)
As Valentine’s Day approaches, residents are training for the annual Love Run and expressing their undying affection for each other by attaching love locks to the pier railings. But a string of bank robberies is ruining the romantic vibe. Format: Print, Digital

A Murder of Crows by Dharma Kelleher (Thriller)
Young tattoo artist Avery Byrne refuses to accept that her friend’s death was an accident. Armed with determination and a thirst for justice, Avery dives into Phoenix, Arizona’s adrenaline-fueled world of street racing and vintage hot rods. Format: Print, Digital

Sugar Plum Poisoned by Jenn McKinlay (Cozy Mystery)
When up-and-coming singing sensation Shelby Vaughn arrives in town for two weeks of concert dates, she hires her old friend Angie and the rest of the bakery crew to supply cupcakes for the VIP guest lounge every night. After overhearing Shelby in a heated argument with her manager, Mel is concerned, but she and the crew decide to make the best of their time working with the star. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

The Case of the ’66 Ford Mustang by Tom Meschery (Traditional Mystery)
When Victor and Vincent learn that their beloved older brother Mario murdered his girlfriend, Grace Conner then committed suicide, the twins set out to prove the Oakland police department is wrong. Mario must be vindicated, and family honor must be preserved. Victor again takes on the principal detective duty. Vincent agrees to working the Brovelli Brothers’ used car business with the understanding that he is ready at any time to help his twin. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

The Alchemist of Monsters and Mayhem by Gigi Pandian (Traditional Mystery)
Alchemist Zoe Faust is no stranger to magical mayhem, but when her boyfriend’s new tea shop is vandalized and his special tea blends stolen, she plunges into a baffling mystery to save him. The clues lead Zoe and her gargoyle sidekick Dorian to an eerie mansion high in the Portland hills, filled with creeping carnivorous plants and enigmatic topiary monsters. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Mardi Gras and Magic by Jen Pitts (Cozy Paranormal Mystery) *first book in a new series*
When a self-proclaimed witch shows up at her mother’s funeral, she brings more than sympathy for Althea’s loss. Luella insists Althea comes from a long line of witches and that she is the coven’s only hope for survival. While she doesn’t believe Luella, she agrees to visit her family home in the French Quarter of New Orleans. Format: Digital

The Dog’s Image by Neil S. Plakcy (Traditional Mystery)
The real challenge emerges with the mysterious demise of a prominent gallery owner. Lili finds herself entangled in a web of intrigue when she is asked to identify esteemed artists who graced an event she photographed two decades ago. As shadows of the past resurface, the couple’s wedding concerns pale in comparison to the enigma unfolding before them. Format: Digital

Twas the Bite Before Christmas by David Rosenfelt (Traditional Mystery)
Reluctant lawyer Andy Carpenter is at the Tara Foundation’s annual Christmas party. The dog rescue organization has always been his true calling, and this is one holiday tradition he can get behind because every dog that’s come through the rescue―and their families―are invited to celebrate. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

OCTOBER 13
Eat, Pray, Hex by Tara Lush (Cozy Paranormal Mystery) *first book in a new series*
When hot flash–prone cookie shop owner Amelia inherits a spooky Florida inn, she plans to sell it fast. But the place is haunted by an unsolved murder, and her dead aunt tasks her with using her newfound psychic powers to crack the case. Format: Digital

Whipped Crime by Angela K. Ryan (Cozy Mystery)
Much to Anna’s delight, Ava Grant, a childhood friend of Bella’s, and her husband purchase a home across the street from Mile Long Beach. As the renovations get underway, the job superintendent slips to his death on one of the jetties at the cove. It looks like an accident, but Anna suspects foul play. Format: Digital

OCTOBER 14
Betrayed by the Truth by Daniella Bernett (Traditional Mystery)
An inconvenient alibi…a priceless treasure…an MI6 mole It’s a lethal cocktail Journalist Emmeline Kirby and her jewel thief/ insurance investigator husband Gregory Longdon become targets after a desperate stranger asks them to deliver a fortune in rare red diamonds to hotelier Alexander Colefax. Before they can ask any questions, the man is killed. Driven by dark secrets, Colefax is willing to flirt with treason if it means getting what he wants. His coterie included the son of a Kremlin elite and a Russian mafia boss. Format: Print, Digital