The Baroness’ Choices of New Books Publishing This Week
2025, Week 13’s New Books
My choices for this week include Cozy Culinary Paranormal Holiday Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Cozy Animal Mysteries, Middle Grade Adventure Fantasies, Cozy Paranormal Mystery, Cozy Crafts and Hobbies Mysteries, Historical Mystery, Psychological Thriller, Young Adult Fantasy, Adventure Romantic Mystery, Historical Romance, and Romantic Comedy.
Can you believe that March is almost over?! Didn’t it just start like last week? It was another busy week of reading for me, and I am loving all the fantastic books.
All of the books this time sound so good.
Here are my choices for New Books Publishing Week 13 of 2025!
A Spirited Blend by Lauren Elliott
Crystals and CuriosiTEAS Mystery #3
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Cozy Culinary Paranormal Holiday Mystery
Goodreads | Bookhype | BookBub | StoryGraph | Amazon
For charmed tea shop owner Shay Myers, getting steeped in Bray Harbor, California’s October festivities is spookier than she ever could have bargained for—especially when a bone-chilling murder mystery spells grave danger . . .
With Halloween around the corner, Shay Myers is brewing witchy seasonal sipsat Crystals and CuriosiTEAS—while simultaneously steaming over pub owner Liam Madigan’s decision to take anybody but her to the town’s Monster Mash dance. Her romantic premonitions have missed the mark since she settled into coastal Bray Harbor, opening the door to questions about whether she’s really the gifted seer her late mother imagined. It’s why she second guesses the dark vision in her tea leaves about a local citizen and their obsession with genealogy, Irish folklore, and magic . . .
But when bad omens come true, Shay doesn’t have time for self-doubt. A woman’s body has been discovered, frozen in a strange pose with an eerie black butterfly on her forehead, leading to suspicions that the victim took a conjuring ritual too far due to limited experience—or was murdered by someone with too much. As an investigation stirs up a sinister connection to a boardwalk mystic shop, Shay, guided by her knowing dog, Spirit, finds herself tracking down a shady figure from her past, navigating the sudden reappearance of her ex-husband, and chasing down a wickedly perceptive criminal who might finally be her match!
Bridal Shower Murder by Leslie Meier
Lucy Stone Mysteries #31
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Cozy Mystery
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When her daughter gets engaged in Tinker’s Cove, Maine, reporter Lucy Stone finds herself feeling like a steamed lobster while dealing with her future son-in-law’s family—and a summer bridal shower that leads to murder . .
Lucy Stone is thrilled about her youngest daughter Zoe’s engagement to Chad, a rising minor league baseball player with dreamy eyes and plenty of Southern charm. Yet there’s no denying the whirlwind romance has turned Lucy’s life upside down in more ways than one—especially when she learns about Chad’s complicated background and close ties to Tinker’s Cove. The secrets and rumors are enough to send her investigative reporting instincts into overdrive . . .
Trouble really crashes in the moment Lucy meets her in-laws-to-be, Penny and Nate Nettleton. Persuasive Penny proves to be intent on taking over wedding preparations, even arranging a Tuscan-themed bridal shower before Zoe publicly announces her engagement. It’s a shock when the event goes off without a hitch. But the real shock comes when prominent guest Hetty Furness, the head of the Tinker’s Cove Historical Society, goes missing—only to be found dead, the victim of a brutal murder . . .
Lucy is determined to reveal who committed the vicious crime as she navigates her new reality with the Nettletons. Racing to determine if Hetty’s extensive knowledge of local history—and hidden scandals—led to her demise, Lucy soon realizes she’ll need to put her sleuthing talents to work like never before to guarantee wedding bells to ring for Zoe and Chad . . . and that she survives to see her daughter walk down the aisle!
Cat Got Your Killer by Sofie Ryan
Second Chance Cat Mysteries #12
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Cozy Animal Mystery
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Sarah Grayson, secondhand store owner, and her clever rescue cat Elvis are right on the tail of a criminal in the charming new Second Chance Cat Mystery.
Summer is around the corner and Sarah is making sure the store is stocked and ready for tourist season. But while the weather’s heating up, Sarah gets involved in a case that is decidedly cold, when a man who was linked to a drowning death years ago is found dead himself, on the same stretch of beach. Some of Sarah’s friends from the store knew the victim—and the young woman who drowned—very well and are concerned they could be dragged into the case.
It’s beginning to look like an innocent man may be in prison and that drowning death might in fact be the work of a killer who has struck again. Between Charlotte’s Angels, the group of senior citizen private detectives who operate out of the store, and Elvis’s abilities to sniff out trouble, Sarah won’t let a second chance at catching this purr-petrator pass her by.
Cincinnati Lee, Curse Breaker by Heidi Heilig
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Middle Grade Adventure Fantasy
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From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler meets Indiana Jones! A young adventurer races to break the family curse by repatriating the artifacts her famed ancestor “saved.” Perfect for fans of Rick Riordan, Kwame Mbalia, and Rena Barron.
Cincinnati Lee’s great great (great?) grandfather is famous. His adventures discovering ancient artifacts have been made into movies, and his work is widely respected by museums across the world. The thing is, in that line of work, you’re bound to get cursed. And that leaves your great great (great?) granddaughter to break the curse by returning the artifacts you “preserved.”
Cincinnati’s own adventure begins in the Cosmopolitan Museum in New York City, where her single mom works and Cincinnati has grown up. Soon she learns about the ancient Spear of Destiny—and its potential to right all the wrongs in her family’s past. Or bring about the end of the world. It all depends on whose hands it falls into. Cincinnati must beat two relic hunters to the spear, and her quest will take her to surprising locations throughout the city and even across the Atlantic Ocean. Along the way, she’ll make a new friend (which is not the easiest thing to do), make some enemies (surprisingly easy to do), and ultimately learn what makes the world worth saving. Acclaimed author Heidi Heilig makes a dazzling middle grade debut with an irrepressible hero, a compelling cast of friends and enemies, nonstop action, and a thoughtful approach to viewing our responsibilities to each other and the world around us.
Corsets and Casualties by Gayle Leeson
Ghost Fashionista Mysteries #6
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Cozy Paranormal Mystery
Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Karen’s or Jen’s Book Review
Stitched together with charm and mystery, this is one ghostly fashionista adventure you won’t want to miss!
For retro fashion designer Amanda Tucker, creating showstopping Halloween costumes seemed like the week’s biggest challenge—until her ghostly companion, Max, discovers an antique Bible tied to her own family history. When the Bible, purchased at an estate sale, is revealed to have belonged to Max’s grandmother, Amanda finds herself caught in a whirlwind of hidden relatives, long-buried secrets, and family intrigue.
Meanwhile, Amanda’s assistant, Zoe, struggles to decide between chasing her dreams in fashion and giving in to her mother’s demands to work at the family diner. As if the week couldn’t get more tangled, Amanda’s grandfather and Max’s nephew uncover shocking news at the estate sale’s auction house: the proprietor has been shot.
With Designs on You hanging by a thread, Amanda and Max must unravel the mysteries of the past before they sew up a perilous future. Will their sleuthing skills save the day, or will these secrets prove too dangerous to handle?
Essence of Foul Play by Daryl Wood Gerber
Aroma Wellness Mystery #1
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Cozy Crafts and Hobbies Mystery
Goodreads | Bookhype | BookBub | StoryGraph | Amazon | Karen’s Book Review
Emma Brennan may have her head in a cloud of eucalyptus, but her feet are firmly planted on the ground in breathtaking Carmel, California, as she prepares to open her new spa business, Aroma Wellness. But all the reiki, shiatsu, and massage in the world can’t help her relax when she’s accused of murder . . .
Everything is going smoothly as Emma prepares for the grand opening of the spa. The therapy rooms are painted. The sales shop and café are stocked with meditative and delicious goodies, from essential oils to avocado masks and prickly pear massages. The fountain in the Courtyard of Peace is burbling with good vibrations. In fact, there isn’t a whiff of trouble until that morning when Emma is shocked to learn that a rival spa owner has been bludgeoned . . . with an item from the goodwill basket Emma gave her. Worse, a witness is pointing the finger at Emma . . .
With the police treating Emma like she’s the only suspect, and the town’s anti New Age anything posse badmouthing her every step of the way, she’s left with no choice but to conduct her own investigation. Incensed by the accusations but empowered by her cousin, her nana, and her trusted Birman cat, Vivi, Emma reviews the potpourri of possible suspects, determined to uncover the essence of foul play—before she’s cold-pressed for murder . . .
Homicide in the Indian Hills by Erica Ruth Neubauer
Jane Wunderly Mystery #6
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Historical Mystery
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Intrepid American newlywed Jane Wunderly learns that tigers aren’t the only dangers lurking in 1920s India, when a murder in a popular resort town threatens to destabilize the local government and undermine the resistance movement for Indian self-rule . . .
Ooty, 1927: Accompanying Mr. Redvers on an assignment to Ootycamund to quell revolutionary rumblings, Jane finds there’s more than meets the eye to India’s Queen of Hill Stations. Ooty’s lush tea plantations and tranquil gardens barely conceal its secrets–scandalous affairs, political sabotage, and a mounting anti-colonial movement. Even Redvers intends to subvert his official mission in Ooty, by arranging a series of clandestine meetings with local resistance leaders. But it’s not until the shocking death of a British national that Jane and Redvers are truly drawn into Ooty’s deepest shadows.
Jane’s suspicions that the death is more than a tragic accident are soon confirmed, but word of a murder could stoke Ooty’s simmering tensions into a full boil. Navigating corrupt local officials, festering personal vendettas, and a complicated network of bureaucratic entanglements that lead to the top tiers of government, Jane and Redvers edge closer to the truth…and its deadly consequences. Someone is willing to spill blood to protect their interests, will Jane become just another of Ooty’s darkest secrets?
I Would Die for You by Sandie Jones
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Psychological Thriller
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From the New York Times bestselling author of the Reese’s Book Club Pick The Other Woman and The Guilt Trip comes an electrifying next novel.
California, 2011: Nicole Forbes lives a quiet life in the small seaside town of Coronado with her husband and daughter. She is not expecting a writer to knock on her door asking for her personal insight into the downfall of the biggest British band of the 1980s―unveiling the threads of a life she left behind years ago. The same day, her daughter goes missing and the school claims her aunt picked her up . . . but she doesn’t have an aunt. Convinced of a link between the two, Nicole is forced to revisit long-abandoned memories from her past to protect everything she now holds dear.London, 1986: Sixteen-year-old Cassie is obsessed with Secret Oktober, the hottest band of the moment. Harboring an intense crush on the leading man, Ben Edwards, she will do anything she can to capture his attention among the throngs of groupies at the band’s scandalous backstage parties. But when Ben discovers her older sister Nicole singing at a local bar one night, he can’t help but feel drawn to her, setting in motion a collision course that could tear their family apart.
Infused with the sounds of the 80s, this thrilling novel from the inimitable Sandie Jones explores the chaos that the frenzy of fandom can provoke.
Isle of Ever by Jen Calonita
Isle of Ever #1
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Middle Grade Adventure Fantasy
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Bestselling and beloved author Jen Calonita delivers the first in a brand new series featuring a girl who will inherit a mysterious fortune if she can break a centuries-old curse!
Days after her twelfth birthday, Everly “Benny” Benedict learns she’s the heir to a fortune! But to collect the inheritance, she first has to play―and win―a game. Following clues that her ancestor left, Benny must locate a small island that vanished long ago, according to legend.
She has only two weeks to play the game and find the island. If she’s successful, she’ll break a two-hundred-year-old curse. If she fails, the fortune will be forfeited. And if she’s not careful, she’ll cross paths with someone else who is after the island’s secrets, and who will stop at nothing to get them. Because, as it turns out, there’s far more than a fortune at stake.
Lovely Dark and Deep by Elisa A. Bonnin
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
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From author Elisa A. Bonnin comes Lovely Dark and Deep, a YA dark academia novel exploring magic, loneliness, and the power of found family.
Hidden off the coast of Washington, veiled in mist, there is an island that does not appear on any map. And on that island is Ellery West.The acclaimed school for magic has always been home for Faith. After an international move and a childhood spent adjusting to a new culture and a new language, Faith feels like Ellery is the only place she can be herself. That is, until Faith and another student walk into the forest, and only Faith walks out.
Marked with the Red Stripe across her uniform that designates all students deemed too dangerous to attend regular classes, Faith becomes a social pariah, an exile of Ellery West. But all she has to do is keep her head down for one more year so she can graduate, and get to keep her magic. Because when students fail out of Ellery West, they have their magic taken away. Forever. And Faith can’t let that happen.
Except terrifying things are happening to students, and the dark magic that was unleashed in the forest still seems to be at work. To stop it, Faith and the other Red Stripes will have to work together, risking expulsion from the magical world altogether.
One Sharp Stitch by Allie Pleiter
Nimble Needle Mystery #1
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Cozy Crafts and Hobbies Mystery
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When thirty-something Shelby Phillips returns to her quiet hometown just outside of Asheville, North Carolina, she reluctantly takes over her mother’s Nimble Needle needlepoint shop—and gets entangled in a murder investigation . . .
It’s only temporary. That’s what Shelby Phillips tells herself when she returns to excruciatingly harmless Gwen Lake after her graphic arts career—and the office romance blooming with it—get tossed like rejected design mockups. Her plan is as simple and fool-proof as a tent stitch: manage the family needlepoint shop during her parents’ RV vacation. It’s just a month. It’s not as if they’re retiring . . . right?
When Shelby becomes responsible for hosting a trunk show with local vendors, she’s determined to pull it off. Even if that means dealing with former classmate Kat Katsaros, a rising entrepreneur specializing in needlework scissors. Kat has changed since high school—and she’s angling to take over the Nimble Needle herself. The tension unspools when Shelby makes a terrible discovery on the morning of the event: Kat’s dead body.
Shelby can’t believe the death was an accident. That’s why she’s set on exposing who committed the murder with Kat’s own equipment. She finds help in a new friend, a potential crush, and the surprising support of her sister and the Nimble Needle stitchers. Still, Shelby must move quickly to stop the crafty culprit before her maybe not-so-temporary new life in Gwen Lake comes apart at the seams . . .
The Big Fix by Holly James
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Adventure Romantic Mystery
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Katherine Center’s The Bodyguard meets The Fall Guy starring Ryan Gosling in a modern blend of screwball action and romantic attraction when a case of mistaken identity lands a college professor on the run with a mysterious—and dangerously hot—fixer . . .
When bookish Penny Collins reluctantly lets her sister drag her to an estate sale at a neighbor’s house, she’s hoping for a little diversion rummaging through dusty antiques. Instead, she ends up in a public squabble over candlesticks with the deceased owner’s nephew, Anthony—right before a dead body tumbles out of a closet.
Penny’s plan for the summer involved finalizing tenure at the university where she’s a computer sciences professor. Instead, she’s suddenly on the run with a man she barely knows, scaling walls, evading bullets, and accidentally stabbing henchmen. It seems the wrong people have got it in their heads that she’s Anthony’s girlfriend and, by association, in possession of something they desperately need—and will do anything to get.
As for Anthony, he has a top-secret occupation as a fixer, but a recent fix went dangerously awry, and now he and Penny are dodging both a ruthless billionaire and the FBI. And it’ll take all of Penny’s plentiful savvy and common sense, in addition to Anthony’s particular set of skills, to survive long enough for her to see the next semester . . .
The Fatal First Edition by Agatha Frost
Meadowfield Bookshop Mysteries #3
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Cozy Animal Mystery
Coming Spring 2025! The third instalment in the bestselling Meadowfield Mysteries series.
As Ellie and Maggie prepare to officially reopen Meadowfiled Books, the buzz of their launch event grows: Meadowfield’s least romantic man, Benjamin Brown, is launching his first romance novel. The book’s debut is raising more eyebrows than hearts, but it’s Peter Cookson’s sudden return that truly steals the spotlight. Nervous, evasive, and clutching secrets from an old drowning in the village pond, Ellie is unsettled by her father’s return, especially when he clashes publicly with Benjamin at the book launch.
When Benjamin is found dead just days later, all fingers point to Peter, whose past and present are shrouded in suspicion. Determined to protect her father, Ellie digs into the truth—but what she uncovers ties Benjamin’s strange literary ambitions to an unsolved tragedy from Peter’s youth. With tensions rising and time running out, Ellie must unravel the mystery before her family is torn apart forever.
Can Ellie solve the case and keep the bookshop’s grand opening from being overshadowed by scandal—or will Meadowfield’s dark secrets claim another victim?
The Lady Sparks a Flame by Elizabeth Everett
Damsels of Discovery #2
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Historical Romance
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A Lady with a past. A man with ambition. A romance far from London society that might bridge their divides.
Lady Phoebe Hunt never anticipated returning from exile. A fatal choice drove her from England, but the death of her father—and the revelation of his debts—has brought her home. Once she settles her father’s estate, she will return to America, where she has reinvented herself. There’s no reason to remain, not even for one gravitationally challenged but deliciously tempting entrepreneur: Sam Fenley.
Samuel Fenley is all ambition. Rising from shop boy to wealthy investor, he’s left knocking on doors that open only for those with a title. Unless he buys the damned door itself—and the estate that goes with it. Sam offers to relieve Phoebe of her burdens, but is her crumbling mansion all Sam wants? Or is it the Lady herself?
When threats from Phoebe’s past spark new dangers, Sam and Phoebe discover that neither is what the other expected. Standing on the edge of disaster, the disgraced Ice Queen will have to decide if she wants to forge through life alone, or let an unlikely hero melt her heart.
Thrill Ride by Amy Ratcliffe
Publication Date: March 25, 2025
Genre: Romantic Comedy
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Business meets pleasure at a family-owned theme park in this sweet, fun-filled debut from the former Editor-in-Chief at Nerdist, as a thrill ride designer shows a straitlaced suit the lighter side of life—and discovers a whole new perspective of her own . . .
Charlotte Gates grew up in a land of fairy tales and mythological creatures—literally—spending her childhood at her aunt and uncle’s theme park, Lands of Legend. It’s no surprise that she eventually landed her dream job designing thrill rides for a massive, global company. The surprise comes when she’s laid off—and catches her now ex-boyfriend cheating. With her boss. Worse, back in her Ohio hometown Charlotte finds that Lands of Legend is struggling. To stay open, they’ll have to work with an investor . . .
To Charlotte’s horror, Gregory Binns not only doesn’t know the difference between a theme park and an amusement park, he’s also never been on a roller coaster. Even more troubling, she’s certain his ideas will ruin Lands of Legend’s uniqueness. So, Charlotte sets out to make sure buttoned-up Gregory experiences the magic firsthand. Opening the park’s new themed area, Under the Waves, is the perfect opportunity—which brings Charlotte to her next surprise . . .
As Gregory loosens up—even ditching his tie—Charlotte begins to see him in an attractive new light. She even catches herself fantasizing about what a life with less work and more Gregory would be like. But when her old job makes her a tempting new offer, she’s faced with a decision: reclaim the career she worked her whole life to build, or sit tight for a thrilling new shot at love . . .
Well, that’s it for the New Books Releasing Week 13 of 2025
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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