The Woodpecker Always Pecks Twice

The Woodpecker Always Pecks Twice

Author: J.R. Ripley

Publisher: Kensington Cozies

Published: 2019-08-27

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 1496719735

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A red-bellied woodpecker may lead to a yellow-bellied killer . . . One morning when unwilling early bird Amy Simms grabs her binoculars for a closer look at the woodpecker who’s been waking her up, she can't believe her eyes. Across Ruby Lake, through a curtain of rain, she sees a body being tossed out of an upstairs window at the old McKutcheon place. Or at least she thinks she does. The police chief finds no body—only a discarded dressmaker's dummy—and complains that Amy sent him on a wild-goose chase. She should probably focus on minding her store, Birds & Bees, but Amy can't help snooping. And when she turns up another body—a murdered member of her birdwatching group—Amy once again needs to wing it as a sleuth to zoom in on a killer . . . Praise for J.R. Ripley’s Buried in Beignets “Those who like their mysteries relatively nonviolent and delivered with a smile will thoroughly enjoy this little gem.” —Booklist “A fun new cozy series. I would definitely read another, so I hope this is the first of many.” —Myshelf.com


Chickadee Chickadee Bang Bang

Chickadee Chickadee Bang Bang

Author: J.R. Ripley

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Published: 2017-09-12

Total Pages: 292

ISBN-13: 1516103122

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Ruby Lake, North Carolina, might be the perfect place to go birdwatching during autumn, but it’s also a habitat for murder . . . As Birds & Bees owner Amy Simms guides a halfhearted birding group around Ruby Lake, rumors soon start flying about the annual Fall Festival’s classic car and tractor show. Local eccentric Chick Sherman—boasting the hottest ride in town—has ruffled feathers by mysteriously entering the contest, and curious Amy hatches a plan to sneak a glimpse at the phantom automobile before the big event kicks off . . . But competition turns deadly when Amy finally spots the sleek ’56 El Morocco—and it’s on top of Chick’s very dead body. With her neighbor and business partner framed as the murderer and priceless Audubon prints suddenly missing from Chick’s home, only Amy can identify the telltale markings of a killer before another hapless victim is plucked from the flock . . . Praise for J.R. Ripley’s Beignets, Brides and Bodies “Appealing . . . A clever, amusing cozy.” —Publishers Weekly “Ripley’s entertaining second series outing is a tasty option for foodie mystery fans.” —Library Journal


Towhee Get Your Gun

Towhee Get Your Gun

Author: J.R. Ripley

Publisher: Kensington Cozies

Published: 2019-03-26

Total Pages: 261

ISBN-13: 1496719719

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When Birds & Bees owner Amy Simms volunteers to act in a local production of Annie, Get Your Gun, she finds herself upstaged by a killer waiting in the wings . . . Who’s got time for birdwatching? Amy has enough to do running her shop, fighting attempts by the town planning commission to demolish her old Victorian house, and rescuing an injured towhee. Yet somehow she allows herself to get roped into performing in the Ruby Lake, North Carolina, community theater’s new musical after some cast members get injured by mysterious mishaps. The production seems plagued by bad luck, but events turn tragic when a member of the company is found murdered in a locked dressing room. Trading in her binoculars for a magnifying glass, Amy steps into the role of amateur sleuth and soon discovers the victim ruffled a lot of feathers. With a flock of suspects, Amy will need to beat the bushes before the cagey killer takes flight. After all, the show must go on . . . Praise for J.R. Ripley’s Buried in Beignets “Those who like their mysteries relatively nonviolent and delivered with a smile will thoroughly enjoy this little gem.” —Booklist “A fun new cozy series. I would definitely read another, so I hope this is the first of many.” —Myshelf.com


How the Finch Stole Christmas

How the Finch Stole Christmas

Author: J.R. Ripley

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Published: 2017-11-14

Total Pages: 309

ISBN-13: 1516103149

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It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, and the only things on Birds & Bees owner Amy Simms’s wish list are peace, quiet, and birding beside her beau. But in small town Ruby Lake, ‘tis the season to solve murders . . . Before Amy can get into the holiday spirit, she meets Franklin Finch—the cocky new owner of Christmas House Village, one of the most beloved attractions in town. Locals have been squawking over his decision to sack veteran staff members for cheaper help. And when Finch blows off a business deal with Amy, it confirms that he’s the biggest scrooge around. Still, she’s stunned the night his dead body is found swinging in the attic of a festive Victorian . . . Clashing against Chief Kennedy once again, Amy sets off to prove that Finch was murdered. But while her investigation quickly reveals a gaggle of disgruntled ex-Christmas House Village employees and unusual clues, Amy must move with caution as she focuses in on the seedy killer . . . Praise for J.R. Ripley’s Beignets, Brides and Bodies “Appealing . . . A clever, amusing cozy.” —Publishers Weekly “Ripley’s entertaining second series outing is a tasty option for foodie mystery fans.” —Library Journal


Murder in St. Barts

Murder in St. Barts

Author: J.R. RIPLEY

Publisher: Beachfront Entertainment

Published:

Total Pages: 220

ISBN-13: 1892339145

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Charles Trenet of the Gendarmerie Nationale has just arrived on St. Barthelemy for three years in paradise. The exclusive island in the French West Indies lives up to its jet-setters' reputation as a beautiful and peaceful retreat for models, moguls and movie stars. However, Trenet's life is suddenly thrown into turmoil when he is assigned to solve the murder of Bobbi Freon, a rich and eccentric American fashion designer who has been found stabbed to death in his pricey villa. Murder on St. Barthelemy is nearly unheard of, and Trenet's superiors are eager to protect the island's thriving tourist industry by discreetly and swiftly handling this mounting crisis. The inexperienced young gendarme's investigation into the fashion designer's life uncovers a dark world of decadence and unsavory business practices, with the victim's former business partners quickly scrambling to take control of the multimillion dollar company he created. Bobbi Freon clearly was disliked by many people who all stand to gain by his death and Gendarme Trenet must sort through the seemingly endless list of suspects... First in a series, Murder In St. Barts introduces the likeable and boyish Gendarme Charles Trenet in this entertaining tale of murder and redemption.


Cardinal Sin

Cardinal Sin

Author: J.R. Ripley

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Published: 2019-05-14

Total Pages: 316

ISBN-13: 1516106229

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Birds & Bees owner Amy Simms will need help from her fine-feathered friends when an uncommon bird sighting plunges her into a hornet’s nest of black magic and murder most foul . . . Amy’s enjoying a rare moment of relaxation when a customer shows up seeking her expertise in ID-ing an unusual bird she’s seen flying around her wooded cabin at the edge of town. Ruby Lake, North Carolina, newcomer Yvonne Rice resembles an exotic bird herself—apparently the kind that doesn’t fly. When she’s found shot to death in her locked cabin, the only witness found is a statue of a voodoo deity staring down from the mantel. Does the rare yellow cardinal Yvonne spotted hold any clues to her demise? What about the Ouija board spelling out the words I am murdered? As Amy delves deeper into Yvonne’s life and meets her strangely secretive neighbors, she’s determined to stop a fowl-hearted murderer from migrating to a new killing ground . . .


Fowl of the House of Usher

Fowl of the House of Usher

Author: J.R. Ripley

Publisher: Lyrical Underground

Published: 2018-05-15

Total Pages: 203

ISBN-13: 1516106199

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It really is the dead of winter in Ruby Lake when a party becomes an invitation to murder for Birds & Bees owner Amy Simms . . . No one ruffles Amy’s feathers like Craig “The Gigolo” Bigelow. Not only has the two-timer returned to town, but his new girlfriend has invited Amy to a dinner party. And at Usher House of all places—legendary home to ghosts, freak accidents, and now, most horrifying of all, an ex-boyfriend and his fiancé. Regrettably, there are also sick ducks on the property that need attention. For a bird lover like Amy, it’s fowl before pride. When everyone becomes snowbound, Amy can’t imagine the evening getting worse. Until a guest is found with a carving knife stuck in his chest. And he’s not the first to call it a night. Now Amy’s got till dawn to go hunting for a killer—before someone else ends up a dead duck . . . Praise for J.R. Ripley’s Beignets, Brides and Bodies “Appealing . . . A clever, amusing cozy.” —Publishers Weekly “Ripley’s entertaining second series outing is a tasty option for foodie mystery fans.” —Library Journal


A Birder's Guide to Murder

A Birder's Guide to Murder

Author: J.R. Ripley

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Published: 2018-11-13

Total Pages: 268

ISBN-13: 1516106202

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When the guest of honor is killed at an annual birding convention, justice will be swift . . . A flying visit to the City of Brotherly Love takes a murderous turn for Amy Simms, owner of Birds & Bees . . . Amy and her bird-loving crew are ducking out of Ruby Lake, North Carolina to attend the annual American Birding Expo in Philadelphia. The event will generate publicity for Birds & Bees, though assistant manager Esther is strangely reluctant to attend. Before she’s even set up their booth, Amy manages to insult JJ Fuller, famed bird photographer and the expo’s guest of honor. An inauspicious beginning, made worse when JJ is found dead as a dodo, his head caved in by a pair of binoculars. The police suspect Esther is mixed up in murder, and her mysterious past starts coming to light. Amy isn’t sure what to believe. JJ boasted that he would be the first to locate a near-extinct woodpecker. Did a rival decide to beat him—literally—to the punch? With a ZombieFest convention taking place in the exhibit hall next door, there’s all kinds of creepiness to contend with. And somewhere among the birders and the walking dead there’s a killer hoping to fly the coop before justice is served . . .


To Kill a Hummingbird

To Kill a Hummingbird

Author: J.R. Ripley

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Published: 2017-07-11

Total Pages: 287

ISBN-13: 1516103106

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For Amy Simms, owner of Birds & Bees, nothing is more important than impressing her old professor, but this odd bird is about to fall to earth . . . When her favorite ornithology professor comes calling, Birds & Bees owner Amy Simms hangs six hummingbird feeders around the shop to welcome Professor Livingston with a flock of his favorite flying creatures. But Amy soon finds that the sugar water in the feeders brings more than a swarm of hummingbirds. It also attracts murder. Professor Livingston is just as friendly as Amy remembers, but something seems to be troubling him. When Amy pays him a visit that night, she finds the professor slumped over a table with a pair of scissors buried in his neck. And standing over his body is Rose Smith, the local bookseller, who claims she killed him. But while the police believe they have a bird in hand, Amy thinks the real killer may still be in the bush . . . Praise for J.R. Ripley’s Beignets, Brides and Bodies “A clever, amusing cozy.” —Publishers Weekly “Ripley’s entertaining second series outing is a tasty option for foodie mystery fans of Sandra Balzo and Jessica Beck.” — Library Journal


Make Prayers to the Raven

Make Prayers to the Raven

Author: Richard K. Nelson

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2020-05-23

Total Pages: 325

ISBN-13: 022676785X

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"Nelson spent a year among the Koyukon people of western Alaska, studying their intimate relationship with animals and the land. His chronicle of that visit represents a thorough and elegant account of the mystical connection between Native Americans and the natural world."—Outside "This admirable reflection on the natural history of the Koyukon River drainage in Alaska is founded on knowledge the author gained as a student of the Koyukon culture, indigenous to that region. He presents these Athapascan views of the land—principally of its animals and Koyukon relationships with those creatures—together with a measured account of his own experiences and doubts. . . . For someone in search of a native American expression of 'ecology' and natural history, I can think of no better place to begin than with this work."—Barry Lopez, Orion Nature Quarterly "Far from being a romantic attempt to pass on the spiritual lore of Native Americans for a quick fix by others, this is a very serious ethnographic study of some Alaskan Indians in the Northern Forest area. . . . He has painstakingly regarded their views of earth, sky, water, mammals and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. He does admire their love of nature and spirit. Those who see the world through his eyes using their eyes will likely come away with new respect for the boreal forest and those who live with it and in it, not against it."—The Christian Century "In Make Prayers to the Raven Nelson reveals to us the Koyukon beliefs and attitudes toward the fauna that surround them in their forested habitat close to the lower Yukon. . . . Nelson's presentation also gives rich insights into the Koyukon subsistence cycle through the year and into the hardships of life in this northern region. The book is written with both brain and heart. . . . This book represents a landmark: never before has the integration of American Indians with their environment been so well spelled out."—Ake Hultkrantz, Journal of Forest History