The Baroness’ Choices of New Books Publishing This Week
2024, Week 23’s New Books
My choices for this week include a Cozy Culinary Paranormal Mystery, a Legal Thriller, a Cozy Culinary Mysteries, a Cozy Animal Mystery, a Historical Mystery, a Psychological Thriller, a Cozy Animal Culinary Mystery, and a Cozy Crafts and Hobbies Mystery.
It’s officially summer! Okay, it’s not really summer yet, but I like to think it is. Do you have any plans for summer? Especially if you have any kids, and even if you don’t. We don’t really have anything planned except for reading.
Jen has a book from this list for her TBR, so expect that review in a couple of weeks.
Here are my choices for New Books Publishing Week 23 of 2024!
Chilled to the Bone by Amanda M. Lee
Two Broomsticks Gas and Grill Witch Cozy Mystery #9
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Genre: Cozy Culinary Paranormal Mystery
Stormy Morgan is flying high. She’s engaged. She’s used to her new routine. She’s even learning about being a witch. All of that changes when a local podcaster’s house goes up in flames and a body is found inside.
Carl Winslow was not a nice man. He spent his time stalking local family vloggers so he could cast aspersions on their life choices. One family in particular draws his ire, and he fights with them the night of the fire. Are they to blame for the podcaster’s death, though?
Stormy and her fiancé Hunter Ryan are on the case, and the further they dig into Carl Winslow’s life, the more they realize that nothing in Shadow Hills is as it seems.
Stormy was already working against forces she didn’t see coming. There’s a conspiracy of people who were apparently waiting for her to manifest her powers working against her, though. They have plans for her. They also had plans for Carl.
As evidence begins mounting, it points to one particular person. Only Stormy is convinced it has to be someone else. She’s determined to get to the source of the death and destruction wreaking havoc on her once quiet small town.
She has to survive to find her answers, though, and that’s not a given.
It’s a race against the clock. Either Stormy finds what she’s looking for and stops Shadow Hills’ most recent threat, or everybody suffers in the wake of yet another bout of magical mayhem.
Who will survive? You’re about to find out.
Don’t Ask, Don’t Follow by Mary Keliikoa
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Genre: Legal Thriller
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Murder, dark family secrets, and the unwavering bond of sisterhood— regardless of the cost
Beth Ralston, a paralegal in Portland, Oregon, would rather be racking up billable hours than mingling at an office party— especially when her sister Lindsay, aka her plus one, is a no-show.
After making her obligatory rounds, Beth returns to her office to find that her boss, who she’ d talked with moments before, has been murdered. She sees a woman fleeing the scene. Wait— was that Lindsay? Unable to catch up to her in time, Beth waits for the police to arrive and notices that Lindsay has left her phone behind with an unsent text message to Beth displayed on the screen: “ Don’ t ask. Don’ t follow.”
Lindsay is unreachable for days, and when Beth starts to come under suspicion for the crime, she decides that waiting is impossible. While retracing Lindsay’ s steps, determined to bring her home, Beth uncovers what her sister, an investigative reporter bent on changing the world, was trying to expose— corruption, secrets, and betrayal on an unimaginable level. Revealing the truth might bring back the one person she’ s desperate to find— but it could also destroy the only life and family Beth’ s ever known.
Perfect for fans of Gregg Olsen and Karin Slaughter
Fondant Fumble by Jenn McKinlay
Cupcake Bakery Mystery #16
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Genre: Cozy Culinary Mystery
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The Fairy Tale Cupcakes crew helps two professional football players in knead when the athletes are suspected of murder and their dream of opening a bakery is crushed, from New York Times bestselling author Jenn McKinlay.
Professional football players Keogh Graham and Tyler Matthews want to open a Fairy Tale Cupcakes franchise. They’re spending the off-season in Scottsdale working in Mel’s bakery, learning about the business and how to bake show-stopping cupcakes. The popular athletes bring a boom of customers to the store as football fans flock to see the friends mixing batter and piping icing.
Everyone’s excited the athletes are pursuing their dream of owning a bakery—except for those who fear the players will ditch football for fondant and retire early from professional sports. The angry naysayers include their team owner and Keogh’s sports agent, along with some very vocal fans.
When the owner of their team, the Arizona Scorpions, is found dead on the floor of their new bakery following an argument with Keogh, the pros become prime suspects. As the investigation heats up, Mel and the rest of the cupcake bakery crew must step up and prove their franchise owners are innocent before it’s game-over for the new bakers.
Kill or Bee Killed by Jennie Marts
Bee Keeping Mystery #2
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Genre: Cozy Animal Mystery
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Perfect for fans of Laura Childs and Amanda Flower, this second Bee Keeping mystery takes Bailey Briggs to the brink as murders threaten the future of her granny’s Bee Festival.
The small town of Humble Hills, Colorado, is abuzz with excitement over the upcoming annual Bee Festival, sponsored by Bailey’s Granny Bee and the Honeybuzz Mountain Ranch. The long weekend of festivities includes a beauty pageant, beekeeping demonstrations, a local restaurant bake-off, and a 3K Bear Run where all the participants are dressed as bears. The bake-off brings in a television crew from California to film, so it’s the most drama-filled part of the weekend, especially when the famous celebrity host winds up dead.
Because the celebrity was holding her bracelet and had been witnessed having an altercation with Bailey’s best friend Evie shortly before his death, everyone suspects Evie of the murder—and Bailey is quickly on the hunt for clues to clear Evie’s name, alongside Granny Bee and her bunch of geriatric misfit friends. Bailey’s potential new honey, Sheriff Sawyer Dunn, is none too pleased to have Bailey buzzing around the investigation, but Bailey’s determined to uncover the truth, rescue her grannie’s beloved Bee Festival, and save her bestie.
They say you get more flies with honey, but in this case, more honey may mean you end up dead. And a little competition never hurt anyone—unless it ends up killing you.
Murder on the Med by Nancy Cole Silverman
Kat Lawson Mystery #3
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Genre: Historical Mystery
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A travel feature turns into a deadly investigation for Kat Lawson when she discovers a missing passenger, presumed overboard, may have been used as a mule to smuggle ancient artifacts aboard Athena, a luxury cruise ship designed for retired seniors at sea.
Kat Lawson has got a plumb assignment, or so she thinks. Travel International has rewarded her with a vacation cruise along the Amalfi Coast to report on a new floating senior retirement center. After working undercover as a travel reporter for the FBI and barely escaping her last assignment with her life, Kat’s job is to relax, take notes, shoot pictures, and report back on an extravagant cruise from Naples to Positano. What could go wrong?
But once aboard, Kat quickly learns it’s not all smooth sailing. Kat finds a handbag for Dede Drummerhausen, the woman who owns the suite where Kat is staying, and hidden inside is a gold coin. Rumor abound. Passengers and some of their possessions have gone missing. The residents are restless, and some on board are suspicious of a travel reporter who might uncover their secret mission. When Athena’s captain discovers Kat snooping below deck, she soon realizes, like the antiquities hidden onboard, that she’s been kidnapped and that her job and her life are in danger.
Olive You to Death by Lynn Cahoon
Tourist Trap Mystery #16
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Genre: Cozy Culinary Mystery
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In the coastal town of South Cove, June is tourist season—and wedding season. Unfortunately, Jill Gardner’s own wedding has been delayed. But that just gives her more time to search for a missing bride—and a killer . . .
Things are looking up for the owner of Coffee, Books, and More—Jill’s finally getting her MBA, and though her wedding to police detective Greg is postponed a few months, she still has plenty to celebrate. A girls’ weekend in Santa Barbara is just the ticket. But back in South Cove, someone else’s big day has become a big problem. Antiques dealer Josh Thomas and Mandy Jensen were planning a small private ceremony under an olive tree on the historic Jensen farm—until Mandy went missing . . .
Is this a case of a runaway bride—or a guilty groom? Greg zeroes in on Josh but finds him so annoying that he quietly asks Jill’s help in keeping his number-one suspect distracted. She knows that Josh is searching for something else besides his fiancée—a bank robber’s buried gold bullion. And when the professor he’d been discussing it with turns up dead, she can’t help wondering if what looked like cold feet was actually cold-blooded murder . . .
Over the Edge by Kathleen Bryant
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Genre: Psychological Thriller
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In Sedona’s red rock canyons, a former reporter must piece together her shattered memories in time to stop a killer in this cat-and-mouse thriller, perfect for fans of CJ Box and Anne Hillerman.
After a disastrous mistake ended her career as a crime reporter, Del Cooper returns to Sedona and takes a gig with a down-on-its-luck tour company while she rebuilds her life. Her peaceful small-town escape ends when, hiking in a remote red rock canyon, she finds the broken body of a murdered man.
At first, she believes the murder is connected to a proposed land trade that will pave the way for a luxury development on the edge of town, but it seems money isn’t the killer’s only motive. As she digs deeper, she uncovers the small town’s darkest secrets, all leading her to Lee Ranch, a former filming location for Western movies. Two women disappear after Del interviews them, and rumors begin to spin faster than Sedona’s famed energy vortexes. But she knows the truth: Someone is watching her from the shadows.
Desperate for answers, Del ventures into the wilderness to lure the killer into the open. But out here in the red rocks, bodies can be lost forever.
Puzzling Pizza by Mildred Abbott
Cozy Corgi Mystery #33
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Genre: Cozy Culinary Animal Mystery
Witchy cats, jack-o’-lanterns, swirling snow, and …deadly poker games?
Glowing Halloween lights amid the wintry snowfall add a touch of dark magic to the mountain town of Estes Park—a perfect time for Winifred and her corgi sidekick, Watson, to savor some cheesy pizza. The stakes are high at Rocky Mountain Pie’s poker championship and tattoo charity event, and when one participant loses more than the jackpot, Fred is just in time to witness his ghastly demise.
With no time for bewitching books by a toasty fire in the Cozy Corgi Bookshop and Bakery’s mystery room, Fred is on the case. And while neither ghouls nor murderers can stand in the way of dirty chais and Katie’s savory pretzel buns, Fred and Watson will follow every crumb trail through a cobweb of poisonous secrets to unmask a killer.
(This culinary cozy mystery includes a recipe for hauntingly delicious caramelized onion, goat cheese, and sundried tomato pesto pretzel buns.)
Sorry, Knot Sorry by Lois Winston
Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery #13
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Genre: Cozy Crafts and Hobbies Mystery
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Magazine crafts editor Anastasia Pollack may finally be able to pay off the remaining debt she found herself saddled with when her duplicitous first husband dropped dead in a Las Vegas casino. But as Anastasia has discovered, nothing in her life is ever straightforward. Strings are always attached. Thanks to the success of an unauthorized true crime podcast, a television production company wants to option her life—warts and all—as a reluctant amateur sleuth.
Is such exposure worth a clean financial slate? Anastasia isn’t sure, but at the same time, rumors are flying about layoffs at the office. Whether she wants national exposure or not, Anastasia may be forced to sign on the dotted line to keep from standing in the unemployment line. But the dead bodies keep coming, and they’re not in the script.
Craft tips included.
The Stranger in the Library by Eva Gates
Lighthouse Library Mystery #11
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Genre: Cozy Crafts and Hobbies Mystery
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Outer Banks librarian Lucy is working on an art show at the library when paintings–and people–start to go missing, in this 11th Lighthouse Library mystery from national bestselling author Eva Gates.
When a traveling show of impressionist art comes to Nags Head, North Carolina, librarian Lucy and the staff at the Bodie Island Lighthouse Library are inspired to create an educational display about art history. Their launch of the display is a huge success, but the morning after, they discover that a reproduction of a famous painting has gone missing.
No one knows why anyone would bother stealing it: the picture is of no value–the real, priceless painting is under lock and key at the art show itself. Lucy gets an invite to the glitzy opening night for the real show, where she notices unusual tension among the show’s organizers. Then, the man scheduled to give the welcoming speech fails to arrive, and a party-goer is discovered drowned in a fish pond.
Meanwhile, Louise Jane is totally captivated by Tom Reilly, a handsome, charming art dealer lurking at the edges of the receptions on both nights. Tom slipped away from the party early, and he cannot be located by the police. Who, Lucy asks, is Tom Reilly, the shadowy figure threatening to break Louise Jane’s heart?
Something is afoot in Nags Head, and it’s up to Lucy and her friends to get to the bottom of it before it’s not just paintings being framed.
A Lethal Lake Effect by Lorraine Bartlett
Victoria Square Mystery #9
Publication Date: June 6, 2024
Genre: Cozy Animal Mystery
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Things go awry for Katie Bonner when her former mother-in-law, Margo, throws a housewarming party at her lakeside rental and one of her guests ends up dead in the water. Maxwell Preston was a devoted husband–and a not-so-great dad. He was a beloved pharmacist who didn’t take care of his ramshackle property, which is destined to be a hot commodity on Victoria Square when his heir puts it up for sale. But most of all, Preston was a stranger to the others who attended the party.
Meanwhile, Nona Fiske takes charge of Victoria Square big summer extravaganza—a disaster in the making as what little power she’s seized has gone straight to her head. The Davenport sisters have their own agenda, and they’ve not only been poking around to find out more about the dead man, but what other mischief has been going on around the Square.
So, who killed Maxwell Preston and why? That’s what Katie wants to know—and she’s willing to risk everything to find out.
Callahan and the Spy by Rebecca Barrett
Cat Callahan Mystery #5
Publication Date: June 6, 2024
Genre: Cozy Animal Mystery
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Dax and Callahan have drifted south now, Dax working on a small construction project for the owner of the Paradise Bed & Breakfast in Key West, while Callahan makes himself at home, scrounging the occasional gourmet fish dinner and chumming around with the island’s Hemingway cats. But trouble soon shows up when Ginger Browne, the inn’s owner, discovers that a guest has perished in their nicest suite.
Liberty Anderson was a pretty young woman with plenty of money and the urge to party, and one of the men she approached in a local bar the night of her death just happened to be Trout Richardson, owner of a struggling boat charter business and Ginger’s friend. Within a short time, most of the other guests have vacated the B&B, leaving Ginger to worry about the bills and about Trout’s involvement with the dead woman.
The police aren’t looking at any of the really important clues, Callahan thinks, after his preliminary examination of the body and the contents of the victim’s purse. And Trout seems unusually wary of having cops asking questions of him. Will Callahan be able to find out what really happened and restore Ginger’s business before the posturing local police detective bungles the case entirely, and could it be true that there’s a spy in their midst?
Well, that’s it for the New Books Releasing Week 23 of 2024
Drop a comment if you like one of the books above or if you have one to recommend.
Thank you for stopping by,
Happy Reading!
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Thank you, Karen, for including OVER THE EDGE with all these beautiful books!