At 63, former jazz musician Wade Lovett finds himself something of a trailer park Lothario carrying on affairs with three different women. But when circumstances prompt Carol Smitzky to make a compelling case for a marriage arrangement, he agrees. The next morning, he visits girlfriend number two, Peggy MacCallister, to tell her the news - and finds her lying dead on her kitchen floor.

A successful LA artist, Roman Velasco appears to have everything he could possibly want - money, women, fame. Only Grace Moore, his reluctant, newly hired personal assistant, knows how little he truly has. The demons of Roman's past seem to echo through the halls of his empty mansion and out across his breathtaking Topanga Canyon view. But Grace doesn't know how her boss secretly wrestles with those demons: by tagging buildings as the Bird, a notorious but unidentified graffiti artist - an alter ego that could destroy his career and land him in prison.

A prequel to the nationally best-selling Jeff Resnick Mysteries, this collection of short stories chronicles Jeff's (and his brother, Richard Albert's) backstory. What forces molded these men into the people they are today? Find out in these 11 thought-provoking tales that span from Jeff and Richard's first meeting until two years before the first book in the series, Murder on the Mind. These stories are not mysteries.

Julie Barenson's young husband left her two unexpected gifts before he died - a puppy named Singer and the promise that he would always be watching over her. Now, four years later, 29-year-old Julie is far too young to have given up on love. She may be ready to risk caring for someone again. But who?

As a teenage runaway and child of an addict, Christy-Lynn learned the hard way that no address was permanent, and no promise sacred. For a while, she found a safe haven in her marriage to bestselling crime novelist Stephen Ludlow - until his car skidded into Echo Bay. But Stephen’s wasn’t the only body pulled from the icy waters that night. When details about a mysterious violet-eyed blonde become public, a media circus ensues, and Christy-Lynn runs again.

This set includes the first three novels in the Cape Bay Cafe Mysteries, starring amateur sleuth Francesca Amaro—barista, baker, and owner of Antonia’s Italian Café: Cappuccinos, Cupcakes, and a Corpse; Tea, Tiramisu, and Tough Guys; and Margaritas, Marzipan, and Murder.

In the gentle coastal town of South Cove, California, all Jill Gardner wants is to keep her store - Coffee, Books, and More - open and running. So why is she caught up in the business of murder? When Jill's elderly friend Miss Emily calls in a fit of pique, she already knows that the city council is trying to force Emily to sell her dilapidated old house. But Emily's gumption goes for naught when she dies unexpectedly and leaves the house to Jill, along with all of her problems...and her enemies.

Carrie Singleton is just about done with Clover Ridge, Connecticut until she is offered a job as the head of programs and events at the spooky local library, complete with its own librarian ghost. Her first major event is a program presented by a retired homicide detective, Al Buckley, who claims he knows who murdered Laura Foster, a much-loved part-time library aide who was bludgeoned to death 15 years earlier. As he invites members of the audience to share stories about Laura, he suddenly keels over and dies.

Preservationist Meri Hollis loves her latest project, restoring one of Newport's forgotten Gilded Age mansions. And with summer approaching, she'll be able to spend more time with her Gran on the Rhode Island shore. She has a great job, a loving family and she's pretty sure her boyfriend is going to propose on her thirtieth birthday. But everything Meri believes about family, happiness, truth, and love is shattered when her family's darkest secret is exposed.

Maddie James has arrived in Daybreak Island, just off the coast of Massachusetts, eager to settle down and start her own business - and maybe even fall in love. When a stray orange tabby pounces into her life, she's inspired to open a cat cafe. But little does Maddie know that she's in for something a lot more catastrophic when her new furry companion finds the dead body of the town bully. Now all eyes are on Maddie: Who is this crazy cat-whisperer lady who's come to town?

Susanna Miller loses custody of her 11-month-old son, Tyler, but rather than turning the little boy over to her ex-husband and his new wife, she goes on the run. She dyes her hair, changes her name and escapes from Boulder, Colorado, leaving behind everyone she knows, including Linc Sebastian, the man who has been her best friend since childhood and who knows her better than anyone. Susanna lands in Annapolis, Maryland, alone, frightened, and always looking over her shoulder for someone who might recognize her. Just as she's beginning to feel safe in her new surroundings, she stumbles across information that could save the lives of many people....

Thirty-year-old Daisy DiStefano has two people she holds dear: the grandmother who raised her and her three-year-old son, Elliott. But when Daisy's grandmother is killed, Daisy must take steps to protect herself and her child.

When Skye Denison left Scumble River years ago, she swore she'd never return. But after a bout with her boyfriend and credit card rejection, she's back to home sweet - homicide....

In this gripping adventure - the first V.I. Warshawski mystery - America’s top private eye is tossed into a dangerous adventure when a seemingly straightforward assignment becomes complicated and deadly. Hired by a man who calls himself John Thayer, V.I.’s assignment is to find Thayer’s son Peter’s missing girlfriend. But when V.I. finds young Peter’s dead body instead, her client disappears.

Fed up after 30 years of teaching, Deena has no idea she’s just traded in lesson plans for lethal weapons and report cards for ballistics reports. It’s been fifty years since her uncle disappeared without a trace, but when science and luck collide, a rookie sheriff’s deputy breathes new life into this cold case. And when Deena’s elderly grandmother asks for her help, how can she say no? After all, she’s just quit her teaching job and is looking for a new challenge.