A Merry Little Murder Plot by Jenn McKinlay

A Merry Little Murder Plot by Jenn McKinlay

I am a sucker for Christmas cozies. So, even though A Merry Little Murder Plot is the 15th in the series and I haven't read any of the others, I picked it up. It worked fine as a stand alone for me. I'm sure reading them all in order would have given me more background on the returning characters, but I never felt like I was missing out on something I needed to know. This winter, the Briar Creek library is hosting a a writer-in-residence, thriller author Helen Monroe. She's a bit stand-offish, but writes in the library daily and participates in talks required by her contract. Lindsey Norris, library director and our amateur sleuth, starts to get concerned when another newcomer, Jackie Lewis, is overly interested in the author, maybe even a bit stalkery. When Jackie is found dead, electrocuted by Christmas lights and holding Helen's manuscript, Helen becomes the main suspect. Lindsey isn't sure she's guilty, but she...
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‘Twas the Knife Before Christmas by Jacqueline Frost

‘Twas the Knife Before Christmas by Jacqueline Frost

'Twas the Knife Before Christmas is a perfect cozy mystery for this time of year. It's Christmassy from beginning (the corpse being found in a candy dish of peppermints) to end (a Christmas Eve party at an inn that may or may not have been built by Santa Claus). Holly is our amateur sleuth. She works at her parents' tree farm where the annual Reindeer Games is underway. She's also the future innkeeper. Her parents are building an inn at the farm to help accommodate all the tourists that come to Mistletoe, Maine. Her friend Caroline is accused of murder, actually arrested, so she takes it upon herself to do some investigating, not trusting her maybe-boyfriend/sheriff to handle the job on his own. In her defense though, Evan, the sheriff, clearly has something else on his mind. It turns out his sister is in some trouble and is hiding out at his house. There were a lot of people in town who...
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Twelve Slays of Christmas by Jacqueline Frost

Twelve Slays of Christmas by Jacqueline Frost

Mistletoe, Maine, the setting of Twelve Slays of Christmas, is a wonderful little town, the perfect place for Holly to head home to after her wedding is called off. Her family and the town welcome her back with open arms and working at the family Christmas tree farm keeps her busy. In all reality, though she's not too heartbroken over her fiancé; he was a jerk anyway, and good riddance. Then she finds one of the townspeople dead at the farm, killed by one of the candy cane shaped markers. It throws her for a loop, which is understandable, and she feels the need to investigate, both to keep the people she loves out of suspicion and to find justice for the victim. Twelve Slays of Christmas is the first in the series and I think Holly will make a good lead character. She's curious and smart, prone to doing what she wants regardless of others telling her to stay out. I...
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