Die, Die, Birdie - A Guest Post and Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Kiki Lowenstein to Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can find Kiki on the pages of the Kiki Lowenstein Mystery series by Joanna Campbell Slan. Die, Die, Birdie is the nineteenth book in the series and was released 

 

Hello from Time in a Bottle!
A Guest Post by Kiki Lowenstein

Hi, Kathy, and all you wonderful cozy mystery readers!

When Joanna asked if I'd like to write something for your blog, I jumped at the chance. As someone who's found herself in the middle of more mysteries than I ever bargained for, I've become quite the cozy mystery fan myself. There's something so comforting about curling up with a good mystery where you know justice will prevail and the amateur sleuth will figure things out—even when that amateur sleuth happens to be me!

My name is Kiki Lowenstein, and I own Time in a Bottle, a craft store here in a St. Louis suburb. A few years ago, if someone had told me I'd be solving murders between organizing cardstock, freezing glue sticks, and teaching classes, I would have laughed. (You do know that freezing glue sticks eliminates those pesky stray strands, don’t you?) But life has a funny way of surprising us.

It all started when my husband George died suddenly, leaving me nearly broke with an eleven-year-old daughter to raise. I desperately needed work, and Dodie Goldfader took a chance on hiring me at her store. I thought I'd be selling supplies and helping customers preserve their memories. I never expected to be preserving evidence and tracking down killers!

What I've learned is … crafters make excellent detectives. We're detail-oriented by nature—we notice when something's even slightly out of place. We're used to figuring out how all the pieces fit together perfectly. And we're persistent! Anyone who's spent hours getting a piece of fabric or ribbon or felt cut just right knows about not giving up when things get tricky.

My crafting background has helped me solve cases in ways the police never expected. I can spot when someone's handwriting doesn't match their usual style, notice if supplies have been tampered with, or recognize when a "perfect" scene has been staged. Plus, working in the crafting community means I hear all the local gossip. Sometimes that gossip contains crucial clues.

The best part about my unexpected detective career is that it's brought wonderful people into my life, including Detective Chad Detweiler, who is now my husband. My coworkers have become like family, and even my daughter Anya has learned to roll with her mom's tendency to stumble into mysteries.

In my latest adventure, Die, Die, Birdie, things get particularly interesting. Without giving too much away, let's say that my child’s request for a new pet turns seriously strange. Yes, he gets the bird he wanted. But he also gets more than he bargained for. Turns out the bird was a witness to a crime and even swallowed some of the evidence. Did you know a small parrot can swallow tiny diamonds and use them to grind up his food? (Hey, I didn’t know that either!)

I hope you'll join me for this new mystery. Like all cozy mysteries, it has that perfect blend of puzzle-solving, community, and characters you'll want to spend time with. Plus, I promise you a lot of laughter and warm fuzzies along the way!

Thanks for letting me visit your wonderful blog, Kathy. Keep reading those cozies—they remind us that even in the darkest mysteries, there's always hope for a happy ending.

Warmly, Kiki Lowenstein

P.S. - Die, Die, Birdie https://amzn.to/46PkAMN is available now, and I promise no crafting supplies were permanently harmed in the making of this mystery!

P.P.S.—Oh, and about those diamonds. Everything comes out in the end. (LOL)

 

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 Die, Die, Birdie (Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series) by Joanna Campbell Slan

About Die, Die, Birdie

Die, Die, Birdie (Kiki Lowenstein Mystery Series)
Cozy Mystery 19th in the Series
Setting - Missouri
Publisher: ‎ Spot On Publishing
Publication date: ‎ July 1, 2025
Print length: ‎ 230 pages

When her son's new pet becomes evidence in a murder case, scrapbook store owner Kiki Lowenstein-Detweiler discovers that some family secrets are worth killing for.

All eight-year-old Erik wanted for his birthday was a bird. What he got was Solo-a traumatized lovebird whose mate was recently devoured by a boa constrictor at a local pet shop.

But when Kiki learns that Solo originally belonged to Ruthie Goldman, a beloved member of their temple community who died after a brutal home invasion, she realizes this is no ordinary rescue pet.

Solo may be small, but he's carrying big secrets-literally. X-rays reveal the tiny bird has swallowed several diamonds from the robbery that killed his previous owner. Now someone is desperately trying to track down Erik's feathered friend, and Kiki's family is in danger.

As Detective Chad Detweiler investigates the diamond theft that triggered Ruthie's fatal stroke, Kiki uncovers a web of family betrayals, frozen embryos, and twisted ideas about genetic purity.

With her trademark blend of humor, heart, and small-town Missouri charm, Kiki must protect her family while helping to solve a murder that hits frighteningly close to home. Because when inheritance, infertility, and identity collide, even the most loving families can harbor deadly secrets.

"Fans of cozy mysteries will delight in this charming blend of family drama, small-town secrets, and feathered friends. Kiki Lowenstein-Detweiler proves once again that the most dangerous mysteries often begin with the most innocent questions."

About Joanna Campbell Slan

Joanna is a New York Times and a USA Today bestselling author

who has written more than 70 books, both fiction and non-fiction. Currently, she writes four ongoing mystery series: the Kiki Lowenstein cozy mysteries (Agatha Award finalist/first novel/contemporary); the Jane Eyre Chronicles (Daphne du Maurier Award for Literary Excellence winner/historical); the Cara Mia Delgatto mysteries (contemporary); and the Friday Night Mystery Club mysteries (set in 1980s). She’s also the editor and co-author of the Sherlock Holmes Fantasy books.

Her publication career began as one of the earliest Chicken Soup for the Soul contributors, and her stories appear in five of those New York Times bestselling books. Joanna’s first non-fiction book, Using Stories and Humor: Grab Your Audience (Simon & Schuster/Pearson), was endorsed by Toastmasters International and lauded by Benjamin Netanyahu’s speechwriter. Her books on scrapbooking have won fans all over the world, and she has taught scrapbooking techniques in Europe and on cruise ships, as well as in the United States.

When she isn’t writing, Joanna is an avid crafter. Contact Joanna at JCSlan@JoannaSlan.com.

Follow her on social media by going here https://www.linktr.ee/JCSlan

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Last Wool and Testament - A Spotlight

Today I'd like to shine a spotlight on the latest release in a series that has the most adorable covers! Last Wool and Testament by Peggy Ehrhart is the twelfth book in the Knit and Nibble Mystery series and was released last month.

Blurb:

Spring has sprung in Arborville, New Jersey, and Pamela Paterson and Bettina Fraser are keeping busy with their knitting group, Knit and Nibble. But it looks like April showers have brought May murders . . . 

Fiber artist Ingrid Barrick has just been found dead in her ransacked house, but the fact that she’d seemed a bit troubled lately—and had been obsessively doodling pictures of bees—has the Knit and Nibblers wondering if this was really a burglary gone bad like the police think. There had been tension with a neighbor who was fuming (and sneezing) over the ragweed in Ingrid’s garden—but allergies don’t seem like grounds for murder.

As they chat with a local beekeeper, learn more about Ingrid’s knitwear-designer ex, and look into a suddenly cancelled tapestry exhibit, Pamela and Bettina are intrigued to find more nature-themed sketches by Ingrid. The question is which of these many threads will lead to the truth about her unnatural death . . .

A Pawsome Summer for Murder - A Guest Post & Giveaway

I'm happy to allow Candie Parker- Hoganto to take over Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can find Candie on the pages of A Pawsome Summer for Murder by S. A. Kazlo. This book is the seventh in the Samantha Davies Mystery series and was released earlier this month.

Good morning, Candie Parker-Hogan here. And yes, I’m as sweet as my name implies. How’s the weather where you call home? Here, in upstate New York, where I live with my hubby, Mark Hogan, it’s colder than one of my Memaw Parker’s stares when I did something to upset the poor darlin.

Speaking of my dear memaw, she and Grandpop Parker raised me from the time I was five years old, when my parents were killed in an automobile accident, on their farm in Hainted Hollar, Tennessee. I spent my childhood playing in the fields, chasing fireflies, and fishing in the farm’s pond. Because I was orphaned at such a young age. I wasn’t blessed with any siblings but my bestie and cousin, Samantha Davies, would spend the summers with me on our grandparents’ farm. We were practically raised together during those sweet summer days.

About fifteen years ago, after breaking up with fiancé number eleven I moved north to Wings Falls New York to be near Samantha. And no, I am not a hussie. All my ex’s and I have remained good friends over the years. And being the refined Southern Belle that I am, I don’t kiss and tell either.

After I moved north, I was hired as the part-time secretary for the mayor of Wings Falls, Mark Hogan. I had given up trying to find Mr. Right, but couldn’t resist Mark’s charms and finally broke my “no dating” rule and went out with him. Well, one thing led to another, and we finally got hitched. I guess twelve is my lucky number.

I’m not only his secretary but I also write romance novels. My newest one, A Hot Day in Paradise, is doing quite well if I don’t say so myself.

Mark and I live in a big ol’ purple painted Victorian-style home, purple being my favorite color.

We have two pets that share our home—a calico cat named Dixie, and a rescue pup of indeterminate breed named Annie. Since I’m past the baby carriage days, and don’t ask how old I am as a Southern lady never tells her age, Dixie and Annie are our fur babies.

Along with my cousin, Samantha, we are hookers. Now don’t go rolling your eyeballs into your cranium. We are rug hookers. We belong to a group called the Loopy Ladies and love to pull loops of wool and fashion them into beautiful mats and rugs.

Wings Falls, where I live, is near a tourist town, Lake George. During the summer Mark and I battle the vacationers and take advantage of the thirty-two-mile-long lake. We stroll the streets and shoreline, sit by the lake and watch boats sail by. During the Fall we become leaf peepers and view the changing leaf colors of the forests that populate the Adirondack Mountains. Winter is time for skiers, but I’m more of a lodge bunny.

The last thing I’ll tell you about myself is this cousin of mine, Sam, has a nasty habit of pulling me into murder investigations. For some reason she keeps stumbling over dead bodies and I can’t leave her out there to discover who the murderer is all by herself. I mean we’re family and I can’t resist her when she pleads for my help. Could you?

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 A Pawsome Summer For Murder (Samantha Davies Mystery) by S. A. Kazlo

About A Pawsome Summer For Murder

A Pawsome Summer For Murder (Samantha Davies Mystery)
Cozy Mystery 7th in Series
Setting - New York
Publisher: ‎ Adk Foothills Publishing (May 1, 2025)
Paperback: ‎ 218 pages

It's summer in Wings Falls, New York and Samantha Davies is geared up for the annual trout tournament sponsored by Al Gorman, owner of the Sport's Shop. Sam, along with her Southern Belle cousin, Candie Parker-Hogan, are determined to beat the pants off their significant others, Sam's new fiancé, Hank Johnson, a detective on Wings Falls police force and Mark Hogan, Candie's husband. The ladies feel they have a secret weapon-they learned from the best fisherman in Hainted Hollar Tennessee, Grandpop Parker. Sam once won a trophy for the largest fish in the Fins and Tails Fishing Derby. To Sam's surprise instead of reeling in the day's biggest catch, she "hooked" into the body of the town's most vocal activist, Luna Wheeler. Raylene Carrigan, owner of a traveling doggie daycare Sam uses for her lovable dachshund, Porkchop, becomes a prime suspect, when it becomes known Luna tried to shut down the town's doggie park she depends on for the pets in her care. Since Sam has successfully helped solve murders in the past, Raylene begs her for help to prove her innocent. Sam reluctantly agrees but knows her fiancé won't be happy with her involvement in yet another murder case. Determined to help Porkchop's buddy, Sam starts digging for clues only to discover that Luna, with her over-zealous demands to many of the town's businesses to recycle, upset more than a few of her friends. Can Sam land Luna's murderer before she gets 'hooked' by the killer?

About S. A. Kazlo

Syrl, a retired teacher, lives in upstate New York with her husband and two lively dachshunds. She writes the Samantha Davies Mystery series, featuring Samantha Davies and her loveable dachshund, Porkchop. When not writing she is busy hooking, rug hooking that is, and enjoying her family. Her newest book, number seven in the series, A Pawsome Summer For Murder, was released May 1, 2025

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Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N – Smashwords – Kobo – Bookshop.org 

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Seams Like the Pefect Crime - A Guest Post & Giveaway

I'm pleased to allow Anastasia Pollack to take over Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can find Anastasia on the pages of the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series by Lois Winston. Seams Like the Perfect Crime is the fourteenth book in the series and was released last week.

My name is Anastasia Pollack, reluctant amateur sleuth of the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries by author Lois Winston. Sometimes my head spins when I think about the changes that have occurred in my life over the last two years. Not so long ago, I was living the American Dream with my husband, two great kids, a home in the suburbs, and a job I loved as crafts editor of a women’s magazine.

The one fly in the ointment was my cantankerous communist mother-in-law who was living with us while she recuperated from a hit-and-run, but Karl, my husband, had assured me her stay was temporary. He didn’t want her in our home any more than I did.

Then Karl dropped dead in Las Vegas, and life has never been the same. I felt like such a cliché—the clueless wife who knew nothing of her husband’s affair. Only Karl’s affair had been with Lady Luck, and his luck had run out. He left me, not only permanently stuck with his mother but also his loan shark, having gambled away everything—including money we didn’t have. The loan shark didn’t care, which I’ve since learned is SOP—standard operating procedure—for loan sharks. Being a Jersey girl, you’d think I would have known that.

You might also think all the above would be enough of a triple whammy for any clueless wife, right? Far from it. My author saw to that, starting with the day I returned to work after Karl’s funeral and discovered the dead body of our fashion editor glue gunned to my desk chair. Suddenly, I found myself with a second career as a reluctant amateur sleuth. It was either that or wind up railroaded for a murder I didn’t commit.

You know the old saying, if you want something done and done right, do it yourself? I’ve learned the hard way that “most likely suspect” and “actual killer” are often far from one and the same. However, too often law enforcement zeroes in on the former without digging further to find the latter. Since that first murder, there have been so many more dead bodies that I’ve lost count. I’ve also nearly lost my own life on several occasions.

However, life has improved significantly since Lois first introduced me in Assault with a Deadly Glue Gun. Much of that has to do with photojournalist (and possible spy), Zachary Barnes. We first met when I rented the apartment above our detached garage to him. No spoilers here, but let’s just say, in the ensuing books in the series our relationship has progressed well beyond the renter/landlady stage.

However, one thing hasn’t changed. The dead bodies keep coming. In Seams Like the Perfect Crime, the fourteenth book in the series, one occurs right across the street from us. Thanks to my author, I get sucked into the investigation, even though I never even met the guy. He’d only moved in three days earlier.

I’m still trying to figure out what Lois Winston has against me. I asked her once. She said it wasn’t personal and handed me some nonsense, about the need for goals, motivations, and conflict in fiction. When I suggested she’d given me plenty without the addition of more dead bodies, she rolled her eyes.

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 Seams Like the Perfect Crime (An Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery) by Lois Winston

About Seams Like the Perfect Crime

Seams Like the Perfect Crime (An Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery)
Cozy Mystery 14th in the Series
Setting - New Jersey
Independently Published (February 4, 2025)
Print length: ‎ 285 pages

When staffing shortages continue to hamper the Union County homicide squad, Detective Sam Spader once again turns to his secret weapon, reluctant amateur sleuth Anastasia Pollack. How can she and husband Zack Barnes refuse when the victim is their new neighbor?

Revolutionary War reenactor Barry Sumner had the odd habit of spending hours mowing a small patch of packed dirt and weeds until his mower ran out of gas. He’d then guzzle beer on his front porch until he passed out. That’s where Anastasia’s son Nick discovers his body three days after the victim and his family moved into the newly built mini-McMansion across the street.

After a melee breaks out at the viewing, Spader zeroes in on the widow as his prime suspect. However, Anastasia has her doubts. There are other possible suspects, including a woman who’d had an affair with the victim, his ex-wife, the man overseeing the widow’s trust fund, a drug dealer, and the reenactors who were blackmailing the widow and victim.

When another reenactor is murdered, Spader suspects they’re dealing with a serial killer, but Anastasia wonders if the killer is attempting to misdirect the investigation. As she narrows down the suspects, will she jeopardize her own life to learn the truth?

Craft projects included.

About Lois Winston

USA Today and Amazon bestselling author Lois Winston began her award-winning writing career with Talk Gertie to Me, a humorous fish-out-of-water novel about a small-town girl going off to the big city and the mother who had other ideas. That was followed by the romantic suspense Love, Lies and a Double Shot of Deception.

Then Lois’s writing segued unexpectedly into the world of humorous amateur sleuth mysteries, thanks to a conversation her agent had with an editor looking for craft-themed mysteries. In her day job, Lois was an award-winning craft and needlework designer, and although she’d never written a mystery—or had even thought about writing a mystery—her agent decided she was the perfect person to pen a series for this editor.

Thus, was born the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries, which Kirkus Reviews dubbed “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” The series now includes fourteen novels and three novellas. Lois also writes the Empty Nest Mysteries and has written several standalone mystery novellas. Other publishing credits include romance, chick lit, and romantic suspense novels, a series of romance short stories, a children’s chapter book, and a nonfiction book on writing, inspired by her twelve years working as an associate at a literary agency.

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Purchase Links Amazon Kobo Barnes & Noble Apple Books 

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Crafty Cat - A Guest Post & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Lynley Cannon to Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can find Lynley on the pages of the The Crazy Cat Lady Cozy Mystery series by Mollie Hunt. Crafty Cat is the eleventh book in the series.

What can I say? Crafty Cat is the eleventh story my author has written about me. In each one, she chronicles some kerfuffle I’ve got myself into—kerfuffle meaning murder. It just doesn’t seem possible. Here I am, a quiet, sixty-something woman who lives alone in an old Victorian home in Portland, Oregon with nine cats. Yes, nine. I know it’s a lot, but they are all well-cared-for, happy, and healthy. Without them, I would surely get into even more trouble.

Trouble seems to be my catnip. Curious by nature, I can’t resist a puzzle. It sounds like more fun than it is, however. Murder is a serious business, and when it happens, it hurts everyone around it. I suppose that’s why I’m so willing to step in and help. I don’t want people to be sad or scared. I don’t want guilty parties to go free or possibly commit their desperate crimes again.

If I can aid in unraveling a mystery, I must do it. It’s my duty as a human being, and I’m good at it, despite the fact I’ve had no formal training. Even the head of the Portland Police Homicide Division appreciates my input now and then. I have a nose for crime, and like one of my cats, I’ve become reasonably proficient in sniffing it out.

Unfortunately my amateur sleuthing sometimes backfires, and then I’m the one in trouble. I just don’t see it coming, like when I joined a quilt guild that made quilts for cat charity fundraisers. I had no idea such a good project would lead to danger. Everyone seemed so nice. Even after the tragedy of a murder in the family, I couldn’t conceive of the quilters, their neighbors, or their friends as being involved. My kitty-sense didn’t kick in until it was too late, and I found myself on the receiving end of the murderer’s wrath. Funny thing was I’d never suspected them—a few others had got me wondering, but never them.

Will I continue working with the quilt guild? It’s a worthy cause, and anything that can help cat shelters raise their much-needed funds is good with me. But will it be too much of a reminder of how close I came to my own death? Maybe I’ll turn my attention to something else while I recover. I hear a friend is starting up a shelter for senior cats. I love old cats, and my skills would fit in perfectly. What could possibly go wrong?

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 Crafty Cat (Crazy Cat Lady Mystery) by Mollie Hunt

About Crafty Cat

Crafty Cat (Crazy Cat Lady Mystery)
Cozy Mystery 11th in the Series
Setting - Oregon
Publisher: ‎ Independently Published (October 29, 2024)
Paperback: ‎ 265 pages

Romance, death, and cat quilts. What does quilting have to do with murder? Lynley Cannon is about to find out.

Lynley Cannon has a new hobby—making cat-themed quilt donations for the ShadowCat Rescue auction. The small quilting guild is run by three generations of women and two cats, but when the elder of the family is murdered, Lynley’s job shifts from crafting to sleuthing.

Who would want to kill such a dear old thing? The police think they know, but they don’t have all the facts.

As secrets come out and a romance is uncovered, the quilting project begins to fall to pieces. Lynley jumps in to help the family navigate the justice system, but when a neighbor is found dead and another of the quilt shop’s owners missing, even Lynley is at a loss. It takes a couple of crafty cats to get to the bottom of this stranger-than-fiction crime.

About Mollie Hunt

Cat Writer Mollie Hunt is the award-winning author of two cozy series: the Crazy Cat Lady Mysteries featuring a sixty-something cat shelter volunteer who finds more trouble than a cat in catnip, and the Tenth Life Paranormal Mysteries involving a ghost cat. Her Cat Seasons Sci-Fantasy Tetralogy presents extraordinary cats saving the world. She recently released a COVID memoir which she calls, "a tale of a plague and politics, of depression and inspiration, and an ode to the very real and healing presence of cats." In her spare time, she pens a bit of cat poetry.

Mollie is a member of the Oregon Writers’ Colony, Sisters in Crime, the Cat Writers’ Association, Willamette Writers, and Northwest Independent Writers Association (NIWA). She lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and a varying number of cats. Like her cat lady character, she is a grateful shelter volunteer

You can find Mollie Hunt, Cat Writer on her blogsite: https://molliehuntcatwriter.com/  

Follow Mollie's Amazon Page: http://www.amazon.com/author/molliehunt  

Facebook Author Page: http://www.facebook.com/MollieHuntCatWriter/  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/molliehuntcatwriter/  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7768987.Mollie_Hunt  

Purchase Link Amazon 

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Mistletoe, Mutts and Murder - A Guest Post & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Samantha Davies to Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can find Samantha on the pages of the Samantha Davies Mystery series by S. A. Kazlo. Mistletoe, Mutts and Murder is the sixth book in the series and was released last week.

Hi, Samantha Davies here. My Southern Belle cousin, Candie Parker-Hogan and I live in a small town, Wings Falls, in upstate New York. We're more like sisters than cousins, both of us not having any siblings. Candie was raised by our Memaw and Grandpop Parker in Hainted Hollar, Tennessee after her parents were killed in a car accident. I spent my childhood summers with her running through the fields of our grandparents’ farm or hanging out in the barn’s hayloft, she playing with her Barbie dolls and me scribbling stories in my diary. Needless to say, she’s the fashionista, who never found a rhinestone she didn’t like. I tell her that her middle name is “bling”. I’m the storyteller who prefers yoga pants and tee-shirts.

Despite our differences, we both share a love for hooking. No not that kind of hooking but rug hooking. Every Monday morning, we gather with our fellow rug hookers, the Loopy Ladies, at the Ewe and Me Woolery. We hook, eat, gab and eat some more. It’s a fun group of ladies who range in age from their twenties to our oldest member, Gladys O’Malley, who if I had to guess was in her eighties, although she’d never tell. These ladies are more than just fellow hookers but are dear friends. They helped me about five years ago when I was going through a divorce from my husband of twenty-five years, George or as Candie calls him “an egg-sucking hound dog”. George and I co-own a funeral parlor together, the Do Drop Inn Funeral Parlor, which I financed for him when we were first married through an inheritance I received from an uncle. Apparently, he was doing the horizontal mambo with the secretary of business when I thought he was on late night body pickups. Silly me.

But maybe dumping George was the best thing I ever did because now I have a wonderful boyfriend, Hank Johnson. Not that I was looking for someone to take George’s place. Oh, no. I was quite happy snuggling on my sofa with my reddish-brown dachshund, Porkchop. In fact, he was a lot smarter concerning George than I was. He’d growl whenever George came near me. I should have taken that as a hint. But to get back to Hank, we didn’t meet on one of today’s popular dating apps and being in my mid-fifties, I feel is way past the age of hooking up with guys in bars. Nope, we met over a dead body and not one in the Do Drop, either. Nope, I found the owner of Wings Falls local pet shelter murdered when I stopped by to donate a bag of dog food that Porkchop had turned his nose up at. Hank happened to be one of the responding officers when I called the Wing Falls Police station. He was new to the force having transferred up from Albany to enjoy a quieter town. Unfortunately, my childhood nemesis, Sergeant Joe Peters, also arrived at the scene of the crime. He tried everything he could to pin the murder on me just because when we were in kindergarten together, I reported him to the teacher for peeing in the sand box. Really, who’d want to play in the sandbox after that. Joe has now taken to calling me a “Murder magnet” as I have developed the bad habit of stumbling across dead bodies. And much to Hank’s chagrin, I get involved in trying to solve these murders.

Hank loves me anyway even though I know I’ve caused him more than a few sleepless nights. Porkchop and he are now best buddies and that scores high on my checklist for a significant other.

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 Mistletoe, Mutts, and Murder (Samantha Davies Mysteries) by S.A. Kazlo

About Mistletoe, Mutts, and Murder 

Mistletoe, Mutts, and Murder (Samantha Davies Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery 6th in Series
Setting - Wings Falls, New York, a small town in upstate New York about 45 minutes north of Albany
Publisher: ‎ Gemma Halliday Publishing (December 3, 2024)

Christmas is coming and children’s book author, Samantha Davies, and her lovable dachshund, Porkchop, are caught up in the holiday festivities in beautiful upstate New York. Sam’s parents, Chuck and Barbara, who have been enjoying their retired life in sunny Florida, have flown into Wings Falls to spend the holidays with Sam and meet her new boyfriend, Detective Hank Johnson. Sam is also busy hosting this year’s Christmas party for the Loopy Ladies, Sam’s rug hooking group.

The Loopy Ladies know how to party and are enjoying an evening eating, drinking, and making merry... until Santa crashes the party. Unfortunately, this Santa is Sam’s next-door neighbor who her parents have had a long-running feud with. When not playing the local mall’s not-so-jolly old St. Nick, Leo Sayers is a newspaper reporter, and he announces to the group that he's written a damning article accusing Sam’s dad and his close friend, Herb Feinstein, of some very shady dealings in their past. To preserve peace on earth—and among the Loopy Ladies—Chuck and Herb escort Leo from the party.

Only, not long after being sent on his way, Santa is found dead—lying in the snow, run over by a plastic reindeer, with a string of Christmas lights around his neck! Are Sam’s father and Herb now on the naughty list? If Sam can’t prove them innocent of murdering Santa, she's afraid their stockings will contain handcuffs and a one-way ticket to prison this year!

About S.A. Kazlo

Syrl, a retired teacher, lives in upstate New York with her husband and two lively dachshunds. She writes the Samantha Davies Mystery series, featuring Samantha Davies and her loveable dachshund, Porkchop. When not writing she is busy hooking, rug hooking that is, and enjoying her family. Her newest book, number six in the series is, Mistletoe, Mutts and Murder.

Author Links:  

Website - https://www.sakazlo.com/  

Blog - https://www.sakazlo.com/blog  

Twitter-@sakazlo  

Instagram- sakazlo  

Facebook- sakazlo 

 Linkedin- sakazlo  

Purchase Links - Amazon - B&N - Smashwords - Kobo -

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Kilned at the Ceramic Shop - An Interview, Review, & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Donna Clancy to Cozy Up With Kathy today. Donna writes the Braddock Mystery series. KILNED AT THE CERAMIC SHOP is the first book in the series and was released last week.

Kathy: Bestselling mystery author Tammy Wright returns to her hometown in KILNED AT THE CERAMIC SHOP. Why made your protagonist an author?

DC: I made Tammy a mystery author because I believed it would give her a leg up in solving mysteries. Besides, I enjoy being an author and creating stories so what better occupation to give my main character.


Kathy: Tammy has returned to help her aunt run her ceramic shop during the busy tourist season. I teach ceramics to my patients at work. We don't have a wheel, but rather pour slip into molds. Do you make ceramics?

DC: Back pre-children, I ran the ceramic shop for The Otis Air Force Base. And then, later, when the base closed, I worked at the Brewster Ceramic Shop giving classes and coordinating shows for the students to sell their pieces. I haven’t done any ceramics in many years but still have many of the pieces I did back then and they decorate my house on the holidays.

 

Kathy: What first drew you to cozy mysteries?

DC: When I was eight years old, I read my first Nancy Drew book. I was hooked on the mystery without the gore. I also lived up in the sticks of Maine for nine years and liked the small-town vibe and the people who lived there. You can find so many different characters who have been there their whole lives. I also am an animal fanatic and like the fact that many cozies include cats and dogs.


Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?

DC: I do. When time permits, I self-release a new Christmas Romance each year. I also love to read and write thriller/suspense and also have written in the YA genre, but most of my books are in the cozy genre.

 

Kathy: Tell us about your series. 

DC: I have signed a seven-book deal with Level Best Books for The Braddock Mysteries series. Tammy, an author returns to her hometown in Braddock, Maine and finds one mystery after another to solve.

Summer Prescott Books Publishing publishes two other cozy series of mine, Trash to Treasure Mysteries and a new one, Paint and Sip Mysteries. Trash to Treasure sees Sage Fletcher, flipping furniture and other items in between finding herself involved in mysteries. Paint and Sip centers on two retired art teachers, Jannelle and Anita, who open a business that offers wine tasting while creating art pieces.

I also have two self-published cozy series. The Shipwreck Café Mysteries feature a handsome male protagonist, Jay Hallett, who has purchased a lighthouse and surrounding buildings to turn into a café. Throw in a lighthouse keeper’s ghost and it’s great mysteries on Anchor Point. The Jelly Shop Mysteries, feature Tabby, who inherits her gran’s jelly recipes and turns it into a business. She has a nose for trouble and her mother insists she is a magnet for dead bodies.

 

Kathy: Do you have a favorite character? If so, who and why?

DC: I do. Gladys Twittle will always be my favorite out of all the characters I have written. In the Jelly Shop Mysteries, she is the town busybody, the town gossip, and if trouble is around you can be sure Gladys is right in the middle of it. She dyes her hair to match the big, bright flowered dresses she will be wearing. She can’t stand Tabby and cause most of Tabby’s problems around town. She is the character you love to hate.

 

Kathy: Did you have a specific inspiration for your series?

DC: I don’t have one specific inspiration. I write what catches my attention at the time although I am partial to Maine and Cape Cod as settings.

 

Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?

DC: I told my mom way back when I was eight years old that someday I would be an author like Carolyn Keene. In 2011, I started to self-publish my works but always had that yearning to be traditionally published. I signed with a terrific agent, Cindy Bullard, at Birch Literary, and now my first traditionally published book, Kilned at the Ceramic Shop, has been released. I’m now sixty-five years old. Lesson here: don’t ever give up on your dreams.

 

Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?

DC: I think the first author would be Stephen King. I used to love his books but they have become gory and dark. I would like to ask him why he changed his style of writing. The second would be Misty Simon, She seems like such a fun person to be around and I’m sure she would liven up the dinner party. Next would be Edgar Allen Poe. I would like to pick his brain and see where the stories came from that he wrote. And finally, it would be a toss-up between Ami Brunni or Adam Berry. They both deal with spirits and the afterlife which fascinates me.

 

Kathy: What are you currently reading?

DC: I am currently reading LOST LIKE ME by Ivanka Fear. It is a new release, the second in her series, and it is excellent.

 

Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?

DC: I have many hobbies. My favorite pastime is painting but I also love various other crafts. I dabble in cooking and trying new recipes, but my daughter, Meghan, is a much better cook than I am. For about twenty years I was a wedding planner but gave that up as the brides and families became more demanding. I also love floral arranging as I worked at a florist for eight years and did a lot of their designing and many of my bride’s wedding flowers.

 

Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.

DC: I always have PopTarts, Campbells tomato soup, saltine crackers, and root beer. I have to have my daily bottle of A&W root beer while I am writing.

 

Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series?

DC: KILNED is the first of seven cozies signed by Level Best. I have twenty-two books laid out for all my different series and two new series that haven’t been started yet.

 

Kathy: What's your favorite thing about being an author?

DC: I love being able to work at home. My health isn’t what it used to be and I enjoy staying at home with my rescue Papillon, Zumiez, who is fourteen years old and no spring chicken either. It also make me extremely happy when people enjoy my stories. Many hours go into my writing and when it makes people smile and takes them away for the short time they are reading them, I can’t ask for more than that.

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Review

KILNED AT THE CERAMIC SHOP by Donna Clancy
The First Braddock Mystery 

Bestselling author Tammy Wright has returned to Braddock, Maine to help her Aunt Clara. It's tourist season and lifting the heavy slip and molds as well as keeping up with customers is getting to be a bit much. Her imagined boring summer at the ceramic shop becomes anything but when Tammy learns her aunt is being pressured to sell her store. After encouraging her aunt not to give in Tammy makes a grim discovery. Their delivery person has been killed and left in Idle Chat and when Clara still refuses to sell she disappears. Now Tammy will move heaven and earth to find her aunt and restore Braddock to the peaceful neighborly town it once was.

I really enjoyed getting to know the people in Braddock. Tammy is smart, self reliant, and doesn't back down from a fight. She's resilient and no matter the problems, and there are some major ones in the first Braddock Mystery, she comes at them head on. Aunt Clara, though missing for a good chunk of the book, is a strong presence, one who doesn't suffer fools gladly. Zeke is a perfect romantic interest, as everyone can see, and a great friend. There are many great people...as well as some horrible bullies and nasties.

The mystery was well plotted with intricate sub mysteries and shocking events set so that interest never flagged. I appreciated how people worked together, not only to solve the crimes, but to help one another as well. Plenty of funny moments are interspersed with serious scenes. I still chuckle at Mabel and her shotgun.

A compelling mystery, a touch of romance, and the love of family and friends make KILNED AT THE CERAMIC SHOP a wonderful start to a new series. I look forward to spending more time in Braddock!

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 Kilned at the Ceramic Shop: A Braddock Mystery by Donna Clancy

About Kilned at The Ceramic Shop

Kilned at the Ceramic Shop: A Braddock Mystery
Cozy Mystery 1st in Series
Setting - Maine
Publisher: ‎ Level Best Books (March 12, 2024)
Print length: ‎ 234 pages

Tammy Wright, a bestselling mystery author returns to her hometown to give her Aunt Clara a hand with running her ceramic shop during tourist season. She discovers that two vindictive realtors have been bullying her aunt and others into selling their properties to make room for new housing developments. Those who don’t comply pay the consequences.

Tammy stumbles upon a body, and when her aunt refuses to give in to either realtor she disappears without a trace. With the help of an old schoolmate turned policeman, the writer must step out from behind her computer screen and her fictional mysteries to confront real life crime. If she doesn’t, she may never see her aunt again.

About Donna Clancy

Donna Clancy lives on Cape Cod. She has three grown children and one rescue Papillion named Zumiez. She has a seven-book deal with Level Best Books for The Braddock Mysteries, writes The Trash to Treasure and Paint and Sip cozy series’ for Summer Prescott Books Publishing as well as self-publishing The Shipwreck Cafe and Jelly Shop Mysteries. She loves to write in various genres including suspense, thriller, romance, and YA.

Author Links: 

Website http://www.donnaclancybooks.com  

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dwaloclancy/  

BookBub https://www.bookbub.com/profile/donna-walo-clancy  

Purchase Link - Amazon  

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Currently Reading...

I just finished reading Kilned at the Ceramic Shop by Donna Clancy. This is the first book in the Braddock Mystery series and was released last week. 

Bestselling author Tammy Wright has returned to Braddock, Maine to help her Aunt Clara. It's tourist season and lifting the heavy slip and molds as well as keeping up with customers is getting to be a bit much. Her imagined boring summer becomes anything but when Tammy learns her aunt is being pressured to sell her store. After encouraging her aunt not to give in Tammy makes a grim discovery. Their delivery person has been killed and left in Idle Chat and when Clara still refuses to sell she disappears. Now Tammy will move heaven and earth to find her aunt and restore Braddock to the peaceful neighborly town it once was.

Knitmare on Beech Street - An Interview & Giveaway

I'm pleased to welcome Peggy Ehrhart to Cozy Up With Kathy today. Peggy writes the Knit and Nibble Mystery series. Knitmare on Beech Street is the tenth book in the series and was released last month.

Kathy: In Knitmare on Beech Street a reclusive widow's death sets gossip and ghostly speculation flowing. Do you believe in ghosts? Have you ever had a ghostly encounter?

PE: I don’t believe in ghosts, though I wouldn’t swear to that if I had to spend the night alone in a spooky house. I’ve never had a ghostly encounter, but I have friends whose good sense I respect and who are convinced that non-corporeal beings dwell among us. Conversations with these people led to the ideas that turned into Knitmare on Beech Street.

Kathy: Tassie Hunt who inherited the widow's old Victorian had a career debunking paranormal phenomena. Have you ever been on a ghost hunt or watched shows about ghostly investigations?

PE: No to both questions.

Kathy: What first drew you to cozy mysteries?

PE: I was drawn first to mysteries in general. The cozy mystery wasn’t yet a “thing,” but the form I enjoyed was the traditional mystery—the Agatha Christie style from which the cozy developed. When I was in grad school, one of my friends was an avid mystery fan and she introduced me to the genre. After a day spent reading Beowulf or Paradise Lost, it was really a treat to relax in the evening with an engaging story that could sometimes even keep me up beyond bedtime because I just had to find out who did it!

When I decided to try my hand at writing fiction, I thought it would be easier to find a publisher for a mystery than for more serious fiction because mysteries are so extremely popular. My first few attempts at writing mysteries—never published—were in the traditional mystery style, as were the two mysteries I published with Five Star Press, a small press that was willing to consider unagented manuscripts—in other words, submitted directly by the author. They were set in the world of a struggling blues band, so not exactly cozy.

I realized that if I wanted to attract an agent and sell my work to a larger publisher, I should cultivate a style more in line with what was popular—and cozies had obviously become very popular. I’ve always enjoyed cooking and crafts, which make up a large part of the cozy universe, and I’ve lived in a pleasant small town for half my life—so I was well acquainted with the typical cozy setting.

Kathy: Do you write in any other genres?

PE: I haven’t written anything but mysteries for many years, but I devoted much of my earlier writing life to nonfiction writing on topics relating to medieval literature, which was my specialty in grad school. I enjoyed those projects too, and that experience certainly gave me good writing habits—basically, just sit down and do it!

Kathy: Tell us about your series.

PE: In my Knit & Nibble mysteries Pamela Paterson, an attractive widow in her forties and founder of a knitting club in charming Arborville, NJ, uses her knowledge of yarns and fiber arts to solve murders that baffle the police.

Kathy: Do you have a favorite character? If so, who and why?

PE: My favorite character is Bettina Fraser, Pamela’s friend and co-sleuth. Bettina is a composite of friends I’ve loved over the years—warm, outgoing, and loaded with personality. She’s quite the contrast to the more reserved and cerebral Pamela.

Kathy: Did you have a specific inspiration for your series?

PE: I love the British mystery series like Midsomer Murders and, though it’s not exactly cozy, watching it gave me a lot of ideas for the Knit & Nibble series—the beautiful houses and gardens, the frequent scenes involving tea and goodies, the villages inhabited by eccentric people unaware of their eccentricities. Cozies are fun when they include humor, and I try for a very subtle sort of humor that pokes fun at the foibles of characters who are set in their ways.

The knitting club, nicknamed Knit and Nibble, is composed of six people—the same six people since almost the start of the series. At this point, we know them quite well and can predict who will be chatty, who will be grumpy, who will complain that people eat too much sugar, who will argue with whom and what they will argue about . . .

Kathy: What made you decide to publish your work?

PE: I was actually recruited to write the Knit & Nibble series, by an agent who sells a lot to Kensington and had been told by an editor there that Kensington would like to acquire a series set in the world of a knitting club. A writer friend of mine gave him my name, for which I will be forever grateful. I learned to knit as a teenager, so I definitely had the background to take on such a project.

Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?

PE: Jane Austen, George Eliot, Raymond Chandler, and Dorothy Sayers

Kathy: What are you currently reading?

PE: I usually read non-fiction when I’m actively writing because I don’t want to get another fiction writer’s voice in my brain. My sister gives me books related to fashion and fiber arts and crafts, with the idea that they can inspire topics for the articles my protagonist edits in her day job as associate editor of a craft magazine. I just finished The Pocket: A Hidden History of Women’s Lives, by Barbara Burman and Ariane Fennetaux. Next on the list is The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World, by Virginia Postrel.

Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?

PE: I’ve always loved to cook—all kinds of things. I have a big collection of cookbooks and I’m always trying new recipes. I knit and crochet and do needlework. Instead of going to the mall these days, I go to estate sales and rummage around through the often very nice things that people no longer need. I often find lovely yarn-relayed craft items that someone made by hand and I often buy them and repair them if they need tender loving care.

Each of my Knit & Nibble mysteries includes a recipe and a knitting project at the end. I have a lot of fun creating recipes and knitting projects for these “bonus features.” Each of the books has its own page on my website and pictures of the bonus feature food and knitted creations appear there. A separate tab, “Yarn Mania,” opens a blog where I record photos and descriptions of my estate-sale finds: https://peggyehrhart.com/category/yarn-mania/

I also play the guitar.


Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.

PE: Olive oil, good cheese, pasta of all sorts, tomatoes.

Kathy: Do you have plans for future books either in your current series or a new series? 

PE: I’m just now writing a Knit & Nibble novella to be included in Kensington’s 2025 St. Patrick’s Day-themed novella collection, Irish Soda Bread Murder. My novella will be called An Irish Recipe for Murder. When I finish that, I’ll start Knit & Nibble #12.
 

Kathy: What's your favorite thing about being an author?

PE: I like the fact that I can reach people beyond my immediate circle of family and friends with my ideas. Many—even, maybe, most—writers grow up as bookworms, quite shy and self-contained. They may be surrounded by people who aren’t interested in the things they’re interested in and don’t even understand why a person would be interested in those things.

Writing is like enclosing a message in bottle and tossing it on the waves hoping it reaches a receptive reader.

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 Knitmare on Beech Street (A Knit & Nibble Mystery) by Peggy Ehrhart

About Knitmare on Beech Street

Knitmare on Beech Street (A Knit & Nibble Mystery)
Cozy Mystery 10th in Series
Setting - Charming fictional town of Arborville, in northern New Jersey
Kensington Cozies (November 28, 2023)
Mass Market Paperback: ‎ 320 pages

Knit and Nibble member Pamela Paterson, and her best friend, Bettina, stumble on a body in a once grand Victorian house when they join a group welcoming new residents to Arborville—and must figure out if old secrets killed the new neighbor . . .

When Pamela, Bettina, and their friends show up at the Voorhees House to greet its new owner, they’re met with a most unwelcome sight: a dead body on the kitchen floor. Tassie Hunt just inherited the old Victorian, which had been occupied by a reclusive widow for many years and had a reputation for being haunted. But Tassie would have been unlikely to be spooked since her career involved debunking such paranormal phenomena.

Her demise sets off a new flurry of gossip and ghostly speculation in the New Jersey town, of course—and it’s tempting to think spirits were indeed involved considering there’s zero evidence so far of foul play. A nosy neighbor reports strange lights and sounds, and a man obsessed with the Victorian era starts photographing the place from the street. But it won’t take long before Pamela and Bettina are moving in on a killer . . .

Excerpt

Pamela led the way down the steps, down the narrow concrete path, and along the sidewalk, until they reached another concrete path. From this path, steps led up to another porch, smaller and with a plainer railing, onto which the back door opened. Saying “I’ll try again,” Marlene hefted the gift basket and headed up the steps. As she pressed the doorbell, the rest of the group joined her on the porch one by one. Marlene turned away after a few minutes and much enthusiastic pressing of the doorbell. “No answer,” she murmured. “And I was sure ANGWY was clear about the date and time.” She shrugged, edged past the others, and started down the steps. Bettina, however, stepped closer to the door and tipped her head to peer at the doorframe. “I’m not sure it’s closed all the way,” she said and gave the door a tentative push. The door swung open easily. After a shrug and a glance at the other women, Bettina raised a stylishly shod foot and stepped over the threshold. “Tassie?” Her voice rang out with a cheerful lilt. “Hello? It’s the ANGWY committee.” She disappeared inside, but a moment later she was back in the doorway. Her cheer had vanished, leaving her face a wan canvas that made her careful makeup appear garish. Ignoring her heart’s sudden lurch, Pamela took a few quick steps and joined her friend in the doorway. Bettina backed up against the door, anchoring it in a fully open position, and Pamela slipped past her into the kitchen. A woman lay sprawled on the ancient linoleum, a slender blonde woman wearing a light cotton robe printed with small flowers in shades of blue and lilac . . .

About Peggy Ehrhart

Peggy Ehrhart is a former English professor with a doctorate in Medieval Literature. Her Maxx Maxwell mysteries, Sweet Man Is Gone (2008) and Got No Friend Anyhow (2011), were published by Five Star/Gale/Cengage and feature a blues-singer sleuth.

Peggy is currently writing the Knit & Nibble mysteries for Kensington Books. Her amateur sleuth, Pamela Paterson, is the founder and mainstay of the Arborville, New Jersey, knitting club, nicknamed Knit and Nibble. Knitmare on Beech Street is book #10 in the series. Peggy herself is an avid crafter, dating from her childhood as a member of the 4-H Club in rural Southern California.

Peggy is a longtime member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime. She regularly attends mystery-writing conferences and participates in conference panels. She also gives talks on mystery fiction at libraries and other venues in New York, Connecticut, and New Jersey.

Author Links: 

Website: www.PeggyEhrhart.com  

Yarn Mania Blog on my website: https://peggyehrhart.com/category/yarn-mania/  

Goodreads Blog: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/534678.Peggy_Ehrhart/blog  

Purchase Links - Amazon - Barnes & Noble Bookshop.org Kobo 

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Joy to the Wool - A Guest Post, Review, & Giveaway

I'm pleased to share an article from the Rocky Mountain Happenings Gazette at Cozy Up With Kathy today. You can read more about Clear Creek in the Clear Creek Mystery series by Rebecca McKinnon. JOY TO THE WOOL is the fourth book in the series and will be released this week!

Experience Christmas in Clear Creek!
(an article featured in the Rocky Mountain Happenings Gazette)

The holidays are traditionally a time of kindness and charity, where young and old find ways to help their neighbors. But this year, the residents of Clear Creek are taking the “Spirit of the Season” to another level.

We’re all familiar with the town that has reinvented itself as a shopping destination in order to avoid extinction (aka forced ghost town status due to rising taxes when the nearby resort moved in). For the Christmas season, they’re temporarily reinventing themselves again. This time, they’re becoming a real-life Christmas Village.

While those of us at Rocky Mountain Happenings Gazette believe the holiday village vibe makes a trip to this community worth your time throughout December, the season will culminate in a Christmas Festival you won’t want to miss.

“We were happy as a tick on a fat dog to be selected to host such a wonderful charity event,” said Emmilene, the owner of Elevated Events and the woman behind the holiday transformation, when we spoke with her last week. “We’re going to make such a wonderful difference to nearby homeless shelters, women’s shelters, and food banks.”

According to Emmilene, the three-day festival will provide financial contributions to help those less fortunate, as well as offer much-needed cold-weather gear to those who find themselves in shelters this winter. “The Cozy Tree will be run by our local yarn shop, Black Sheep Yarns & Woolies. Hats and scarves will be available for the public to purchase, but instead of taking those cozies home with you, y’all will be able to put them directly into the donation box. It’s such a great, tangible way to help others.”

The festival will include performances from local choirs and dance troupes, as well as a special concert we couldn’t get details on because Emmilene’s determined to keep it a surprise.

Besides the performances, you’ll be able to check Christmas shopping off your list when you stop at the market booths Emmilene has lined up for the event. Add to those booths the local shops, and you’re sure to find something for everyone on your list.

We highly encourage our readers to attend the entire event to avoid missing out. If you want to stay right in town, get your reservations made, because there aren’t a lot of rooms available and they’re sure to go fast.

It’s our hope the event is such that the residents and business owners of Clear Creek will make this an annual event!

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Review

JOY TO THE WOOL by Rebecca McKinnon
The Fourth Clear Creek Mystery

Christmas is in the air with Clear Creek's Christmas Festival, an event raising funds for various charities. Jemma Wilkinson and her friends are an integral part with Jemma running the Cozy Tree where people can buy handmade hats and scarves to donate. Granny has bets going on when Jemma will find a dead body, but it's actually Granny who stumbles upon one. With Brandon wanting Jemma to stay out of the investigation, Matthew asking for her help, and Granny taking bets on who the murderer is, it's no wonder Jemma's stressed!

I really enjoyed being back in Clear Creek. Positivity oozes out as readers are immersed in the friendships found here. Not that there aren't problems, Jemma's relationship with her mother, shady characters invading the town, including a possible new boyfriend for Jemma, and definite problems between Jemma and Brandon bring some drama and tension to the story, in addition to the murder!

The murder itself is well crafted with a unique method and unknown motive. While Jemma tries to sit out this investigation, she can't completely get away from it, especially with Granny going gang busters trying to solve the murder. Granny's exuberance brings plenty of laughs. I'm still giggling about her adamance about dancing around the bonfire.

One overarching theme of this series is finding your place in the world. Finding home and building a family, a family of your own making, not necessarily one of blood. I really enjoy the camaraderie found here. These books give me a sense of belonging that is a wonderful feeling.

A warmhearted mystery full of laughs JOY TO THE WOOL is a delightful holiday read.

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  Joy to the Wool (Clear Creek Mysteries) by Rebecca McKinnon

About Joy to the Wool

Joy to the Wool (Clear Creek Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery 4th in Series
Independently Published (October 5, 2023)
Number of Pages: 254

All dressed up for the holidays, Clear Creek looks like it’s right out of a storybook. But the decorations aren’t just for fun. The tiny Rocky Mountain town is hosting a Christmas Festival sure to be used as a pattern for years.

While Jemma is busy with the Cozy Tree — a place visitors can buy hand-knitted hats and scarves to donate to people in need — Granny is busy taking bets on which day of the event Jemma will find a body. But to everyone’s surprise, this time Granny’s the one who makes the discovery!

Choosing to put her relationship with Brandon first, Jemma agrees to steer clear of the investigation. But Granny’s determination to solve the crime lands Jemma the impossible job of keeping the spunky old lady out of trouble, and breaking and entering is just the beginning of their adventure.

When the Cozy Tree is vandalized, it becomes obvious the pair is making someone nervous. Can Jemma and Granny knit up the investigation before Santa climbs in his sleigh?

About Rebecca McKinnon

Rebecca McKinnon enjoys playing with her imaginary friends and introducing them to others through her writing. She dreams of living in the middle of nowhere but has been unable to find an acceptable location that wouldn’t require crossing an ocean.

Website/Social Media Links:  

Website – https://rebeccamckinnon.com/  

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/RebeccaMcKinnonAuthor  

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/rebeccamckinnon_author/?hl=en  

GoodReads – https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4993788.Rebecca_McKinnon  

Purchase Link – Amazon 

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