Bark If It's Murder
Bark If It's Murder

Author: V.M. Burns

Publisher: Lyrical Underground

Published: 2019-08-27

Total Pages: 163

ISBN-13: 1516107926

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Lilly Echosby just witnessed a murder on a pet cam. Or did she? When a last-minute opportunity arises to accompany her boss to an art auction in Atlanta, Lilly throws some money at the problem of where to board her toy poodle Aggie (short for Agatha Christie). Posh Pet Haven offers the most luxurious canine accommodations in all of Chattanooga, Tennessee. The place even provides pet cams so anxious owners can check in on their pampered pooches. But when Lilly tries to take a peek at her poodle, she gets a terrible shock—she witnesses what she’s sure is a murder. She thinks the victim may be the wealthy co-owner of Pet Haven. The police follow her lead but find no body, no evidence of a crime, and no video record. Starting to feel like the dog owner who cried wolf, Lilly decides to go undercover to catch a killer who may be hiding in plain sight . . .

Murder is a Piece of Cake
Murder is a Piece of Cake

Author: Valerie Burns

Publisher: Kensington Books

Published: 2023-06-27

Total Pages: 274

ISBN-13: 1496738268

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Acclaimed author Valerie Burns returns to her fresh, new culinary cozy series set in a charming small-town and featuring Madison Montgomery, a social media expert turned bakery owner and sleuth. This light, fast-paced mystery will appeal to fans of Joanne Fluke, Laura Childs, Ellery Adams, and Ellie Alexander. With small town New Bison’s Spring Festival just around the corner, the pressure is on Maddy to continue her late great-aunt Octavia’s legacy. That means scoring the top prize and transforming Baby Cakes into Southwest Michigan’s must-visit bakery, even though her inexperience in the kitchen brings nightmares of humiliating tagged photos and scathing reviews. There’s another reason for lost beauty sleep. A second bakery is opening in town under the ownership of CJ Davenport, a shrewd investor with a reputation for sabotaging anyone who gets in his way. And savvy, flashy Maddy tops his list. It’s a sticky spot to be in—more so when Davenport turns up dead with a Baby Cakes’s knife stuck in his back. Maddy’s whole life just went from #thriving to barely surviving. Now, supported by the crafty Baker Street Irregulars and her new boyfriend, she must find the courage to face off against a killer who could very well get her name trending for the first and last time . . . Praise for Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder “Snappy dialogue, a well-drawn supporting cast and an irresistible canine companion all add delicious flavor. Gulp this book down or savor it, but consuming it will guarantee a sustained sugar high.” —New York Times Book Review

A Cup of Flour, A Pinch of Death
A Cup of Flour, A Pinch of Death

Author: Valerie Burns

Publisher: Kensington Cozies

Published: 2024-07-23

Total Pages: 289

ISBN-13: 1496738241

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In this feisty new culinary cozy mystery from Agatha and Edgar Award-nominated author Valerie Burns, social media influencer Maddy Montgomery is adjusting to her new life after moving to small-town Michigan to run a bakery and take care of a gigantic English mastiff—all while solving the murder of a one-time nemesis... The small town, fish-out-of-water, baking-themed mystery for fans of Jenn McKinlay, Mia P. Manansala, Abby Collette, Jennifer J. Chow, Danielle Arceneaux, and Joanne Fluke! “Books, dogs and food — and a well-structured sense of fun — connect almost all of Valerie Burns’s cozy mysteries.” — The New York Times Thanks to Maddy’s social media savvy, Baby Cakes Bakery is becoming a huge success—so much so that she’s attracted the attention of her former nemesis, the fiancé-stealing Brandy Denton. When Brandy blows into New Bison like an ill wind and disrupts a vlog Maddy’s filming, their argument goes viral. After Brandy’s body is found at Baby Cakes, Maddy instantly goes from viral sensation to murder suspect. As Maddy is still reeling from the murder, a stranger shows up in the bakery claiming to have been a friend of Octavia. He believes Maddy is in danger. When a second body washes up on the lake shore, it seems clear someone’s out to kill to keep a secret—and it may have to do with her great aunt. Maddy rallies her aunt’s friends, the Baker Street Irregulars; Sheriff April Johnson; and her veterinarian boyfriend Michael—not to mention her English mastiff Baby—to do some digging and root out whoever’s behind the killings . . .

Murder on Tour
Murder on Tour

Author: V.M. Burns

Publisher: Kensington Books

Published: 2023-11-28

Total Pages: 257

ISBN-13: 1496739493

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Bookstore owner and Michigander Samantha Washington is thrilled to see her debut historical mystery finally on the shelves, but a killer seems determined to steal away the spotlight . . . While Sam wraps up her first whirlwind book tour, Nana Jo has kept Market Street Mysteries running smoothly. The last stop is a prestigious book festival in Sam’s hometown of North Harbor, Michigan. But not everyone thinks the guest of honor, bestselling author Judith Hunter, deserves stellar reviews. Sam witnesses nasty arguments between Judith and two different authors—who accuse her of plagiarism and sabotage . . . When a publicist is poisoned during a cocktail reception, Sam wonders if the killer missed the intended target. It’s a twist that echoes the plot of Sam’s mystery, Murder at Wickfield Lodge. But fact can be stranger—and deadlier—than fiction. How much collateral damage is the killer willing to risk? With feisty Nana Jo and the girls from Shady Acres Retirement Village lending a hand, Sam tries to solve the case before the festival delivers another fatality . . .

Bookclubbed to Death
Bookclubbed to Death

Author: V.M. Burns

Publisher: Kensington Cozies

Published: 2022-12-27

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 1496739469

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When a literary critic is found bludgeoned to death with a copy of The Complete Works of Agatha Christie, Michigan bookstore owner, author, and amateur sleuth Samantha Washington discovers there is such a thing as bad publicity in Agatha Award finalist V.M. Burns’ latest Mystery Bookshop novel. After the local library in North Harbor, Michigan, is flooded in a storm, Sam offers her bookstore as a new venue for the Mystery Mavens Book Club. Unfortunately, she immediately runs afoul of the club leader, Delia Marshall, a book reviewer who can make or break careers—something Sam can ill afford with her debut historical mystery soon to be published. But the next morning, Sam opens her shop to find the unpleasant woman dead on the floor, bashed with a heavy—apparently lethal—tome: the Complete Works of Agatha Christie. While Sam is busy writing her latest British historical mystery in which the queen mother is suspected in the murder of a London Times correspondent, a pair of ambitious cops suspect Sam of the real-life crime. When she gathers Nano Jo and their friends from the Shady Acres Retirement Village to review the case, they discover every one of the Mavens had a motive. With her novel about to hit the stores, Sam must find out who clubbed Delia before a judge throws the book at her . . .

Sit, Stay, Slay
Sit, Stay, Slay

Author: V.M. Burns

Publisher: Lyrical Underground

Published: 2020-12-08

Total Pages: 165

ISBN-13: 1516109961

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When her best friend Dixie is suspected of killing a dog show judge, Lilly must bring one sick puppy to heel . . . Tennessee transplant Lilly Echosby has two great loves: dogs and mysteries. So naturally she's named her poodles Aggie, after Agatha Christie, and Rex, for Rex Stout. Now that she has two dogs to manage, it makes sense to enter Aggie in an obedience competition—especially since her instructor is Lilly's gal pal, Scarlet "Dixie" Jefferson. But when one of the judges for the competition turns out to be Dixie's high school rival, the dog trainer gets hot under the collar. When the woman is found strangled, Dixie becomes the number one suspect. With the help of the other dog club members, Lilly must find the real killer—before the next judge Dixie tangles with throws the book at her . . .

Killer Words
Killer Words

Author: V.M. Burns

Publisher: Kensington Cozies

Published: 2021-11-30

Total Pages: 336

ISBN-13: 149672898X

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Bookstore owner and mystery writer Samantha Washington comes to the aid of the cop who once arrested her own grandmother . . . Sam and Nana Jo are back in sleepy North Harbor, Michigan, where Sam is eagerly awaiting the publication of her first book. In search of more immediate excitement, Nana Jo hits the casino with her fellow Shady Acres Retirement Village gal pals—but they get more than they bargained for when they witness Detective Bradley Pitt decking mayoral candidate John Cloverton. As Sam well knows, mystery novels are full of brilliant detectives, genius sleuths, and hero cops. Detective Bradley Pitt—aka “Stinky Pitt”—is another story. In the past, the dull-witted detective has mistakenly accused members of Sam’s family for crimes they didn’t commit. Now, it’s his turn: when Cloverton turns up dead, he’s arrested. With his predilection for polyester, Pitt has been wanted by the fashion police for years, but Nana Jo knows her former elementary school math student would never commit murder—it doesn’t add up. Somebody’s framed the flatfoot to take a fall, and Sam and Nana Jo must step in to restore the reputation and good name of Detective Pitt. Praise for THE PLOT IS MURDER “A promising debut with a satisfying conclusion.” —Publishers Weekly “Cozy mystery readers and historical novel aficionados will adore this warm-hearted, cleverly plotted new series.” —Kings River Life

Wed, Read & Dead
Wed, Read & Dead

Author: V.M. Burns

Publisher: Kensington Cozies

Published: 2019-04-30

Total Pages: 273

ISBN-13: 1496718305

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Bookstore owner Samantha Washington sells and solves mysteries in North Harbor, Michigan—including the murder of her mother's wedding planner . . . Sam's mother can't wait to wed her wealthy beau, Harold Robertson. The big mystery is how they're going to pull off a lavish wedding in three weeks. Harold's snobby sister-in-law proposes a solution: engage flamboyant wedding planner Lydia Lighthouse. But their beacon of hope quickly sends everyone into a blind rage, most of all the groom-to-be. So when the maddening micromanager is strangled with her own scarf, it's a shock, but not a surprise. It’s a case of art imitating life as Sam pens her next historical mystery set in England between the wars. Lady Daphne Marsh insists on marrying Lord James Browning on Christmas Eve, three weeks hence. But when the fop planning their wedding ends up with a knife in his back, she vows to nab the backstabber before she walks down the aisle. Meanwhile, when she’s not writing, Sam and her beloved and boisterous Nana Jo rush to shine a light on Lydia's killer—so her mother's new husband won't spend his honeymoon behind bars . . . Praise for The Plot Is Murder “Readers of Carolyn Hart and Vicki Delany will appreciate the lively seniors, the humor, and the bookstore environment.” —Library Journal (Starred Review)