Looking for something to read? Check out some of the new titles releasing during the week of September 15 – 21, 2024 with four debut series. I hope a few of these books take you to an exciting place. Have fun reading!

SEPTEMBER 15
Poison and Pudding by Kat Bellemore (Cozy Mystery)
Starlight Ridge’s first annual surfing competition is right around the corner when retired sisters, Jo and Dorothy Darby, finally get settled into their new bakery. Not willing to miss out on the fun, they, along with the rest of the town, close up shop for the day to support their local surfing champion, Isaac Larson. Foam fingers included. But when Isaac’s arch-rival is flung off his board and never resurfaces, the competition grinds to a halt. Upon recovering the body, the local doctor discovers the fall was no accident. The man has been murdered. And all eyes are on Isaac as the culprit. Format: Print, Digital

The Art of Murder by Sarah Osborne (Cozy Mystery)
Mabel Aphrodite Brown looks forward to a much-anticipated week in Québec with her family and closest friends, Lurleen and Danny. Danny has found the perfect spot with a baker he knows in a small French-speaking village along the Saint Lawrence River. Ditie can get bread-baking tips from the baker while Lurleen and the rest of the family take French lessons from the baker’s wife. Danny has made all the arrangements. But you know what they say about best-laid plans! Format: Digital (Print to follow)

Meditation and Mischief by Elizabeth Pantley (Cozy Mystery)
This book club does more than read their books – they are absorbed into them to become the amateur sleuths! In order to leave the book, they must solve the mystery and reach The End. In this journey they travel to The Golden Island Wellness Retreat for yoga, meditation, workshops, and spa treatments. They’ll bond with nature and improve their spiritual wellbeing. They’ll find their inner peace – and a dead body, of course. Format: Print (Digital and Audio to follow)

SEPTEMBER 17
Revenge at the Rodeo by Jamie L. Adams (Cozy Mystery)
Lily Cranston is still at the helm of Calico Rock Mine and Ghost Town, enjoying its success as Grady, California’s premier tourist attraction. The town is abuzz with excitement as the annual rodeo approaches, promising thrills and entertainment for all. However, the festivities take a dark turn when one of the rodeo clowns is found dead, casting a pall over the event. Format: Print, Digital

The Sullivan’s Island Supper Club by Susan M. Boyer (Cozy Mystery)
Welcome to Sullivan’s Island, an idyllic beachside town just outside Charleston, South Carolina. This serene, unspoiled sanctuary offers tourists a picturesque taste of the lush Lowcountry while the locals enjoy a laid-back, small-town lifestyle. Amidst an eclectic mix of newcomers and natives, lifelong resident and social maven Tallulah Wentworth’s legendary monthly dinners have united an unlikely group of women into the very best of friends. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Killer Under Contract by Catherine Bruns (Cozy Mystery)
With the real estate world thriving and her daughter’s wedding around the corner, Cindy York is busier than ever. The happy couple is searching for the home of their dreams and Cindy is only too happy to help. When her daughter locates her dream home, Cindy is less than thrilled to discover that the listing agent is Hillary Ryder, a condescending snob who once dated Cindy’s husband before they were married. For her daughter’s sake, Cindy agrees to make a fresh start. But when she arrives for the listing appointment and finds Hillary’s lifeless body, she realizes that her troubles are just beginning. Format: Digital (Print and Audio to follow)

All God’s Sparrows and Other Stories by Leslie Budewitz (Historical Fiction)
Born into slavery in Tennessee, the remarkable “Stagecoach Mary” Fields was a larger-than-life figure who cherished her independence, yet formed a deep bond with the Ursuline Sisters, traveling to their Montana mission in 1885 and spending the last thirty years of her life living there or in nearby Cascade. Mary is believed to have been the first Black woman in the country to drive a U.S. Postal Star Route, the source of her nickname. Format: Print, Digital

I Dreamed of Falling by Julia Dahl (Psychological Thriller)
Roman Grady is the sole reporter for the local newspaper in a tiny Hudson Valley town – a town so small that every store opening and DUI is considered newsworthy. But when Roman’s longtime girlfriend, Ashley, the mother of his four-year-old son, is found dead, he realizes he had no idea what was really going on in her life. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

But Not for Me by Allison A. Davis (Historical Mystery 1950s) *first book in a new series*
Kay Schiffner is a practicing lawyer by day, during a time when women were rarely hired as lawyers, and at night, secretly follows her passion for playing jazz at the Blue Moon in San Francisco’s Fillmore District, a neighborhood where good white women weren’t supposed to go. Format: Print, Digital

Autumn Embers by Tina deBellegarde (Cozy Mystery)
Bianca St. Denis travels to Kyoto to return a priceless artifact recovered in Batavia-on-Hudson during last summer’s flood. It’s late October, and the city of 2,000 shrines is in full autumn splendor. While she’s in Japan’s ancient capital, Bianca visits with her son, a student at Kyoto University. Ian shows her the sights and introduces her to his circle of friends—his chosen family. Format: Digital (Print to follow)

A Holiday for Homicide by Devon Delaney (Cozy Mystery)
Despite being a seasoned competitor, nothing could have prepared Sherry Oliveri for the thrill of being chosen for a three-day cooking challenge on national television. She’s dying to tell her friends, but she and everyone else involved in the contest has been sworn to secrecy until it airs. Still, that’s not stopping someone from penning cryptic notes about the show for the whole town to read, which has the production crew on edge—right up until one of them is found dead. Format: Print, Digital

Ashes Never Lie by Lee Goldberg (Traditional Mystery)
Vacant homes in a new housing development are erupting into flames in broad daylight with no apparent cause. It’s a perplexing mystery for dogged arson investigator Walter Sharpe and his restless new partner, Andrew Walker, an ex–US marshal who craves action. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Dangerous Play by Elise Hart Kipness (Domestic Thriller)
After a tumultuous murder case that almost cost more than her job, sports reporter Kate Green is back on assignment covering women’s Olympic soccer. Between her experience with athletic stardom and days playing with Savannah Baker, head coach of the USA team, Kate is sure to get the story that will reestablish her career. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Murder in Las Plazas de Toros by Paula Mays (Traditional Mystery) *first book in a new series*
Marco never dreamed that going to see the making of a music video would lead to an expansive investigation into the sudden death of a world-famous singer, Kijamba. Marco is teamed with Detective Alberto Flores of the Malaga police force in picturesque Southern Spain. Their fraught alliance could be the undoing of both their careers as the search for Kijamba’s killer leads them to a web of corruption that extends beyond music. Format: Digital (Print to follow)

We Solve Murders by Richard Osman (Cozy Mystery)
Steve Wheeler is enjoying retired life. He still does the odd bit of investigation work, but he prefers his familiar routines: the pub quiz, his favorite bench, his cat waiting for him at home. His days of adventure are over. Adrenaline is daughter-in-law Amy’s job now. Amy Wheeler thinks adrenaline is good for the soul. Working in private security, every day is dangerous. Format: Print, Digital, Audio

Snowed by Twist Phelan (Teen and Young Adult Mystery) *first book in a new series*
As if navigating the eighth grade weren’t challenging enough for twelve-year-old spy aficionada Ophelia (Phee) Mahoney, she’s caught in an avalanche of trouble when she investigates a classmate’s disappearance on a school ski trip and a hit-and-run that leaves a friend in a coma. Format: Print, Digital

SEPTEMBER 18
The Geek is Up by Ryan Hoffman (Cozy Mystery) *first book in a new series*
Casey Schmitt always aspired to be a detective. Teaming up with his trusty friend Myles Wilson, they form the formidable Schmitt & Wilson Investigations, along with a little help from Scout, Casey’s loyal trained beagle. When Cassie Murphy seeks their help in locating her missing brother, Eli, a brilliant but elusive young man, the trio dives head-first into a high-stakes search. As the countdown to a crucial tech summit looms, Casey’s brilliant mind, Myles’s undeniable charm, and Scout’s unparalleled knack for sniffing out the truth are put to the test. Format: Digital (Print to follow)

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