October 1890. It’s no surprise that private investigators Prudence MacKenzie and Geoffrey Hunter welcome the opportunity to “get out of Dodge” aka New York City: New York is too hot for them given the sordid sexual nature of their recent investigations. The partners are intrigued to be offered a case in Niagara Falls. They can’t…

Jo Carter is middle-aged and resigned to a life of mediocrity in public relations for a small New York City museum, after a once promising career as a journalist. That all changes after an unusual letter arrives that turns everything upside down for her. Back in high school, her best friend Sam Kennedy had abruptly…

Kensington Books’ latest seasonal collection of culinary cozy novellas is perfect for curling up with a hot beverage and taking a much-needed holiday break! Carlene O’Connor’s Ireland-set tale opens the book and gives the collection its name. Fans of her Irish Village Mystery series will be thrilled to see familiar characters here. Our heroine, Siobhan…

Alice Lee is eighteen years-old when she takes off from her small Wisconsin town, drawn like a moth to the bright lights of New York City. With only six hundred dollars and a vintage Leica camera to her name, she has no idea what she wants to do with her life, only that she wants…

After a delay of three years, I finally got a chance to attend a Kensington CozyClub Mini-Con! In 2019, the pandemic put paid to Kensington Publishing’s usual slate of CozyClub mini-conventions, aimed at lovers of cozy mysteries and held regionally on a regular basis. Now that it’s 2022 however, things have gotten safe enough to…

A man sails to Ranaig, an obscure, fictional Scottish island. He’s on a mission to kill. He’d been working out how to kill Wallace Lockhart for months, evolving and discarding plans one after the other till his researches had eventually led him to this. It matched his existing skills, it embraced elements of poetic justice,…

A Taste of Poison brings to mind the old adage, “too many cooks spoil the broth.” Agatha Christie has gathered a miscellany of mystery writers to her country estate, all Detection Club members. It’s the crème de la crème of Golden Age crime fiction: Dorothy Sayers, G.K. Chesterton, and Anthony Berkeley. Christie’s right-hand woman, head…

This almost Dickensian thriller starts with a young woman who’s just been kidnapped by persons unknown and is being kept in the dark, both figuratively and literally.  After losing her parents at a young age, Amelie Lamont lived on the streets until she was more or less rescued by Carolyn Blakely, the woman who would…

Our heroine, Mac Almeida, and her fiancé, Tim, are getting married! In the lead-up to their New Year’s nuptials, they’re renovating the house that they’ll be living in as a married couple. The old Cape Cod cottage is comfortable but could use a little extra modernization. Mac is most excited at the prospect of installing…

The Earl and Countess of Wrexford are newlyweds but are currently in London instead of honeymooning at the earl’s country seat. It’s a matter of duty calls because of his elevated rank, as Wrexford and his bride are expected to be present during high-profile events. The visit of the Russian tsar certainly applies, “especially with…