The Baroness’ Choices of New Books Publishing This Week
2023, Week 41’s New Books
My choices for this week include Cozy Culinary Mysteries, Cozy Craft and Hobbies Mystery, Sweet Holiday Romance, Cozy Historical Mystery, YA Fairy Tale and Folklore Adaptation, Romance, Cozy Culinary Paranormal Mystery, and Cozy Paranormal Mysteries.
Once again so many books this week. I am loving all of these holiday books that are coming out. They make me think that I need to get to work on my Christmas shopping list before it gets too hectic out there. Christmas and Halloween themed Holiday books are always the best any time of the year, I think.
Anyway, I will be reading two books off this list!
Here are my choices for New Books Publishing Week 41 of 2023!
Baking Spirits Bright by Sarah Fox
True Confections Mystery #2
Publication Date: October 10, 2023
Genre: Cozy Culinary Mystery
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In a cute new culinary cozy from USA Today bestselling author Sarah Fox, budding chocolatier Becca Ransom must solve a murder before she meets a sticky end.
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. She’s planning to enter an edible model of Larch Haven, with a mountain backdrop made of cake, gingerbread cottages, and chocolate gondolas on sugar-glass canals.
Professional bakers and a local food blogger are also participating in the event and they aren’t about to go down without a fight. The competition quickly heats to a boiling point, with flaring tempers and mysterious happenings. When one of the entrants is found dead, stabbed with Becca’s chocolate chipper, Becca tries to salvage the season by finding the killer. But the heat is on, and Becca is in danger of getting burned.
Brush Up on Murder by Sybil Johnson
Aurora Anderson Mystery #6
Publication Date: October 10, 2023
Genre: Cozy Craft and Hobby Mystery
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Love is in the air in the quiet Los Angeles County city of Vista Beach, home of computer programmer and decorative-painting enthusiast, Aurora (Rory) Anderson.
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.
While Rory helps friends prepare for a Valentine’s Day wedding, a body is found and the groom is implicated in the murder. Convinced of his innocence, Rory puts her heart into the investigation. Can she identify the killer before someone else encounters their own brush with death?
Lights, Camera, Christmas Town by Melinda Curtis, Anna J. Stewart, Cari Lynn Webb, Beth Carpenter, Cheryl Harper, LeAnne Bristow, Liz Flaherty, and Tanya Agler
Christmas Town
Publication Date: October 10, 2023
Genre: Sweet Holiday Romance
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You’re invited behind the scenes of a romance movie set in small, snowy Christmas Town, where you’ll discover eight feel good, sweet romances unfolding among the film’s cast and crew.
Welcome back to Christmas Town, Maine!
What could make the holidays in Christmas Town even more magical? The arrival of a TV movie’s cast and crew to recreate one of their most beloved couple’s happily ever after!
The snow is falling, the chestnuts are roasting, and Posey’s peppermint pies can’t keep up with demand! But there’s also mischief afoot as filming begins. Someone keeps sneaking Elmer the Elf into scenes, the town is buzzing with romantic gossip, and the Knotty Elves once again turn their creative endeavors from knitting to helping others find true love.
You’ve got a VIP pass…
This collection of brand-new stories gives you an all-access pass to the holiday festivities and movie merrymaking. From the producer to the director, the lead actors to the extras, the production crew and beyond, this set of connected, sweet romances from Harlequin Heartwarming authors is sure to win warm your holiday-loving heart!
Compare this read to movies like The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and Love, Actually, as well as all the good feels of a Hallmark, UPTV or Great American Family TV movie. Inside, you’ll find stories featuring best friend to lovers, best friend’s older brother, teen crush, opposites attract, second chance, reunion, bad boy, and later in life romances.
Sugar Plum Poisoned by Jenn McKinlay
Cupcake Bakery Mystery #15
Publication Date: October 10, 2023
Genre: Cozy Culinary Mystery
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It’s Christmastime, and this holiday season, things are heating up for the bakers at Fairy Tale Cupcakes, in the newest Cupcake Bakery Mystery from New York Times bestselling author Jenn McKinlay.
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. Just as the bakers fall into the rhythm of the job, Shelby’s manager is found dead, clutching a bit of fabric from a Santa suit and a cupcake. With the bakery crew and Shelby’s backup dancers all dressed in similar Santa costumes, it’s impossible to say who is the killer. When all suspicions lead back to Shelby, Mel and Angie stand up for their friend, determined to prove her innocence before she’s frosted for a crime she didn’t commit.
The Socialite’s Guide to Death and Dating by S.K. Golden
Pinnacle Hotel Mystery #2
Publication Date: October 10, 2023
Genre: Cozy Historical Mystery
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Perfect for fans of Rhys Bowen and Ashley Weaver, the second Pinnacle Hotel mystery finds another murder that strikes too close to home, and hotel heiress Evelyn Murphy knows she’s the only one who can save the hotel before it’s lights out.
New York, 1958. Even though Evelyn Murphy has made progress conquering her agoraphobia by leaving the Pinnacle, she still feels most comfortable in her father’s hotel. With Malcolm Cooper, her new boyfriend and fellow employee at the hotel, Evelyn feels prepared for whatever happens next. In this case, it’s throwing a big fundraiser with the who’s who of New York City.
The night is a success, and Evelyn finally takes up Malcolm’s offer to finally visit his apartment in Yonkers. As the party ends, they sneak away to the garage to get Evelyn’s car. But Evelyn’s always been good at finding things, and she discovers the dead body of a guest, Judge Baker, in a car—with a needle in his arm.
Detective Hodgson and his new partner, Detective McJimsey, arrive on the scene, but before they can begin to question Evelyn, they are startled by another mysterious discovery: there’s a woman in the trunk of the car, and she screams as soon as she sees Evelyn’s face. Tangled up in the police investigation, Evelyn’s got another problem, too—her father insists she break off her relationship with Mac. The next day, her father is found attacked just like the judge, only this time the detectives find a dead woman nearby.
With Mac accused of the attacks and in police custody, Evelyn will have to find the killer on her own before she’s checked out of the hotel—this time, for good.
To Escape a Wonderland by Cece Louise
Shattered Tales #3
Publication Date: October 10, 2023
Genre: YA Fairy Tales and Folklore Adaptation
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A thieving maid with a secret. A tarnished knight with no purpose. Together, can they find a way out of Wonderland?
Alice once fell in love with the wrong man and paid a devastating price. Now she hides a dark secret and will stop at nothing to discover what happened to the sister she left behind. Bayne, a former knight, only wants a fresh start after his service almost cost him his life—and his mind. He certainly isn’t expecting a run-in with a thieving maidservant from his prior kingdom to change everything.
When the two are captured by outlaws and forced to partake in a traitorous plot, they end up lost in a perilous enchanted land with no way out. They must learn to trust each other—and themselves—if they hope to be freed from a twisted world where nothing is what it seems.
But the clock is ticking and some riddles have no answer. Can they escape before it’s too late, or will they be trapped in a land of madness forever?
To Escape a Wonderland is a retelling of Alice in Wonderland. It is one of twelve novellas in The Shattered Tales, a collection of twelve fractured retellings of your favorite fairy tales. They can be enjoyed in any order, so fall in love with the swoony sweet romance, magical adventures, and tale-shattering twists one happily-ever-after at a time!
A Secret for the Lifeboat Sisters by Tilly Tennant
Lifeboat Sisters #3
Publication Date: October 12, 2023
Genre: Romance
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As the sun warms the sand of Port Promise bay and the sea is stained turquoise, Gaby Morrow is about to discover that her life is going to change forever…
As she looks through the window of Thistledown Cottage, her perfect home with its flower-filled garden and views of the sparkling, white-tipped waves, Gaby Morrow should feel like she has it all. She watches her two gorgeous children race down to the golden beach and waves goodbye to her husband Kilian, his chestnut hair tousled as he heads off for another day working on the lifeboats. To her friends and family Gaby’s life looks wonderful, but deep down Gaby knows that this is a lie.
Recently Kilian has grown distant, a terrible tragedy at sea causing him to withdraw. Try as she might, Gaby can’t get her beloved husband to open up, and she knows Kilian has been lying about where he has been going. Gaby wants to believe she can trust him. But when she discovers that he has been keeping a secret that will change all their lives, will she ever be able to feel the same again?
Gaby’s sisters rally round in her hour of need and remind her of everything she has that is worth fighting for. But just as she makes her decision, she sees helicopters circling the sea and the call she has dreaded her whole life comes in. Kilian’s rescue mission has gone wrong. Will Gaby’s life be turned upside down all over again? And has she only realised what is truly important when it’s too late?
A beautiful and emotional read about losing everything and piecing yourself back together. Fans of Nicola May, Jo Bartlett and Jessica Redland will lose their hearts to A Secret for The Lifeboat Sisters.
Haunted Sweets by Connie Shelton
Samantha Sweet Magical Cozy Mysteries #17
Publication Date: October 12, 2023
Genre: Cozy Culinary Paranormal Mystery
When Emily Plankhurst is visited by the ghost of Gabriel Graystone, and learns he was murdered, she knows she must find justice for him. The only problem is, Gabriel was killed a hundred years ago, shortly after he broke off his engagement to the daughter of a prominent Taos family, and there aren’t many other clues to go by in finding his killer.
Emily, who runs a private research library—a place that’s known to harbor its own share of ghosts—teams up with Samantha Sweet and her daughter to investigate. As they delve into the case they discover that the story goes much deeper than a broken engagement or an old feud. There are hidden places in Taos that no one knows about, and plenty of ghostly old secrets. With danger lurking in the shadows, can they uncover the truth before those secrets catch up with them?
If you enjoyed the cozy Aunt Dimity mystery series, you’ll love this suspenseful story of a librarian, a baker, and their search for justice.
Readers are raving about these lighthearted, relaxing, well-written books—Samantha may not be young, beautiful or have the perfect body, but she is intelligent, independent, and hard working, the kind of person you feel you already know.
Tea Die For by Erin Johnson
Magical Tea Room Mysteries #9
Publication Date: October 12, 2023
Genre: Cozy Paranormal Mystery
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Plucky witch Minnie Wells vows to catch the killer at a haunted writer’s retreat. But she’ll uncover big secrets that will change everything.
Novice witch and aspiring writer, Minnie Wells, secures the Bath Butler Cafe the job of catering a writer’s retreat at a grand old manor outside of Bath. But when a well-known author with ties to the manor’s history dies under mysterious circumstances, rumors fly that she was killed by the aristocratic ghost of a man who’s rumored to have murdered his whole family within its stone walls.
Minnie and her quirky supernatural friends use their special powers to investigate the woman’s death, and get to the bottom of the centuries old manor murders, but discover more than they counted on. As her investigation leads her through secret passages, ancient graveyards and the surprisingly cutthroat writing world, Minnie unravels more mysteries than answers. And when her sleuthing points to an old betrayal that could change everything in the paranormal world of Bath, she finds herself on dangerous ground.
Minnie must use her magic, quick wit and the support of her magical friends to discover the truth and bring the killer to justice, before not only she, but all of Bath, falls under the criminal’s thrall.
Dive into this light-hearted, charming paranormal cozy mystery, where every turn of the page brings new enchantments, twists, and chills. Join Minnie in a delightful adventure that will warm your heart, tickle your funny bone, and leave you utterly bewitched.
Tea Die For is the ninth book in the charming Magical Tea Room Mysteries. These books are fun, clean, imaginative mysteries you’ll stay up all night binging.
Eat, Pray, Hex by Tara Lush
Crescent Moon Mysteries #1
Publication Date: October 13, 2023
Genre: Cozy Paranormal Mystery
Step into the mysterious world of weird Florida, where surprises and spirits are as common as sun and sand…
Amelia Matthews never anticipated inheriting a hotel in in a small southern town, but life’s twists and turns have led her to the Sunshine State. Under the hotel’s quirky, rundown façade lie haunting secrets—an unsolved murder and a restless spirit who keeps turning off the air conditioner. In the summer. In Florida.
From the moment Amelia reluctantly walks through the door of the Crescent Moon Inn, she embarks on an unwelcome spectral adventure. Her companions on this eerie journey include the sassy feline Freddie Purrcury, the overly enthusiastic and hilarious Liz with her New Age bookstore, and the charmingly handsome local historian, Oliver.
Then Amelia discovers her hidden psychic abilities. As spooky happenings escalate, she can’t help but wish for a few minutes of peace. And maybe a margarita.
She faces a decision: sell the inn and run, or embrace her new destiny as a paranormal sleuth. In this spine-tingling cozy mystery, Amelia Matthews unravels the secrets of the inn’s haunted past while navigating psychic powers, an ornery cat, and a quirky crew of new friends. If she doesn’t solve the mystery, she just might become the inn’s next ghostly inhabitant…
Join Amelia in a captivating, laugh-out-loud adventure as she embarks on a quest to uncover the truth, and you’ll find yourself immersed in a world where the line between the ordinary and the supernatural blurs.
Well, that’s it for the New Books Releasing Week 41 of 2023
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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