Showing titles in Amateur Sleuths

Set against the enchanting background of post war Vienna, with its beautiful palaces and gardens, its disenchanted residents and scars of war, E.C.R. Lorac constructs a characteristic detective story, sure to puzzle and excite. This exceedingly rare mystery, first published in 1956, makes its triumphant return for the first time since its original appearance.

“Ask anyone on Atbara Avenue how well they know their neighbors, and they'll answer ‘well'. After all, they see each other across the vast distance afforded by close proximity, and that is probably for the best...”. For the best, because Atbara Avenue is a street where, all too often, murder feels like the solution.

Claire Wright likes to play other people. A struggling British actress, in New York without a green card, Claire needs work. She takes the only part she's offered: as a decoy for a firm of divorce lawyers, hired to entrap straying husbands, catching them on tape with their seductive propositions. The rules? Never hit on them directly. Make it clear you're available, but they have to proposition you, not the other way around. The firm is after evidence, not entrapment.

When dinner ladies and amateur sleuths Margery and Clementine Butcher-Baker embark on an evening walk after another busy half-term at Summerview Secondary School, they discover the body of missing maths teacher Mr Weaver.

A young woman goes to the country to reconnect with old relatives, and stumbles on a murder only Miss Silver can solve. An orphan of the Second World War, Candida Sayle has gotten so used to life with her guardian that she never considered that she might have a family somewhere. When her guardian dies, a letter appears from an unheard-of aunt, informing Candida that it is time for her to return to the Benevent family fold. The young woman ventures to the country, and finds a strange pair of spinsters who spend their days obsessing over family lore.

1930: Miss Clara Vale, chemistry major turned detective, is taking a night off from sleuthing to attend the launch party of a new exhibition at the Hancock Museum in Newcastle. But when the piece de resistance, a rare ornate sarcophagus, is finally opened and it turns out the mummy inside it is a fake it looks like there is no rest for Clara after all... Later that night, she is summoned back to the museum and asked to investigate a series of stolen Egyptian artefacts.

College English professor Alison Bergeron thought that dating a cute NYPD detective like Bobby Crawford would be exciting and involve a lot of riding around in cruisers and putting away sleazy crooks, but he has yet to invite her on any stakeouts.... Then when a friend asks her to help him find his nephew, she goes to Bobby for advice only to find out that he already knows about the case. He pulled the boy out of the Hudson River a few days earlier. The boy’s employer calls it an accident, but Alison and Bobby aren’t convinced.

Katherine Hamilton's goal in high school was to escape from her dead-end hometown of Asheboro, Maryland. Fifteen years later she's got a degree in hospitality management and a great job at a high-end boutique hotel in Baltimore. Until, that is, the hotel is acquired by a chain, and she's laid off. When Kate's high school best friend calls with a mysterious invitation to come talk with the town leaders of Asheboro, she agrees to make the trip, curious about where this new opportunity might lead.

In England's stately manor houses, murder is not generally a topic for polite conversation. Mallowan Hall, home to Agatha Christie and her husband, Max, is the exception. And housekeeper Phyllida Bright delights in discussing gory plot details with her friend and employer. The neighboring village of Listleigh has also become a hub of grisly goings-on, thanks to a Murder Fete organized to benefit a local orphanage. Members of The Detection Club will congregate for charitable events, including a writing contest for aspiring authors.

With the spirit of the holidays wafting through the Beacon Bakeshop, Lindsey thinks she has the recipe for the sweetest Christmas ever - winning the town-wide cookie bake-off. Low on staff and bombarded by visits from family, Lindsey can barely meet demands at work, let alone summon the confidence to face fierce competition.... Self-appointed Christmas know-it-all Felicity Stewart is determined to take the top spot in the bake-off, and she's not afraid to dump a little coal in everyone's stocking to do it.

October 1924. After their magical wedding, Kitty Worthington and her husband, Inspector Robert Crawford Sinclair, head to Paris for their honeymoon. Art museums, haute couture, French cuisine. Wondrous nights. It’s everything Kitty has always dreamed of and more. But then a body drops putting a damper on things. At least this time, it’s a matter for the French police. There’s no need for Kitty and Robert to get involved. Things change, however, when a dear friend becomes the chief suspect, and she begs Kitty for help. Unable to walk away, she and Robert agree to investigate.

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation starring John Moffatt as the great Belgian detective with Simon Williams and Philip Jackson. Alice Ascher, a poor, elderly shopkeeper, is murdered in Andover. Betty Barnard, a young waitress, is strangled with her own belt at Bexhill-on-Sea. Next comes Carmichael Clarke, collector of Chinese art, clubbed to death in Churston. Only in Doncaster does the pattern vary: the man found stabbed in the Regal Cinema is called George Earsfield.

Hired by companies to break into buildings and hack security systems, Jack and her husband Gabe are the best penetration specialists in the business. But after a routine assignment goes horribly wrong, Jack arrives home to find her husband dead. To add to her horror, the police are closing in on their only suspect – her. On the run and out of options, Jack must decide who she can trust as she circles closer to the truth.

Miss Hortense uses her skills to investigate the investments of the Pardner network - a special community of Black investors, determined to help their people succeed. But when an unidentified man is found dead in one of the Pardner's homes, a bible quote noted down beside his body, Miss Hortense's long buried past comes rushing back to greet her, bringing memories of the worst moment of her life, one which her community has never let her forget.

Welcome to Spellbound, where paranormal is the new normal. This charming, feel-good series has it all: A magical town with an enchanting secret. A feisty heroine with a heart of gold. A fallen angel with a redemption arc. A snarky owl. And, of course, cozy mysteries galore. Grab your latte with a shot of sparkle, settle into a comfy chair, and escape to Spellbound. This collection includes Lucky Charm, Better Than Hex, and Cast Away.

Olivia is riding high after her Sweet Four O'Clock summer tour. Michael is hard at work building their dream home and her sister, Sage, is expecting. Yet things take a dark turn when Olivia follows Mayor Maguire's barks and stumbles onto the body of Beats’s Malone.

Maureen's career as a sportswear buyer hits a snag just before Halloween, when the department store declares bankruptcy. Meanwhile, Finn's lost his way as a guide dog after flunking his test for being too friendly and easily distracted. Sadly, only one of them can earn unemployment, so Maureen's facing a winter of discontent in Boston - when she realizes she can't afford her apartment. Salvation comes when she receives a mysterious inheritance: an inn in Haven, Florida.

On the first day of Royal Ascot, the crowd rejoices in a string of winning favourites. Ned Talbot has worked all his life as a bookmaker - taking over the family business from his grandfather - so he knows not to expect any sympathy from the punters as they count their winnings, and he counts his losses. He’s seen the ups and downs before - but, as the big gambling conglomerates muscle in on small concerns like his, Ned wonders if it’s worth it any more.

Darkness comes to Sidmouth, when, unable to cope after a devastating tragedy, late-night radio talk show host Edward Temmis is let go from his beloved job. Cast adrift, his outlook is bleak – until he meets Stevie, whose grandmother, a devoted listener, died in a suspicious fire last year. Well, nobody hurts his listeners and helping Stevie might just give him the purpose he needs. When their investigation stalls, they enlist local estate agent Kim, with whom Edward had a doomed fling last year. Working together, they discover Stevie’s grandmother wasn’t the only one of his listeners targeted.

Claire Barclay is enthusiastic about her British Mystery Book Tour business. She enjoys taking her guests, usually from America, to the settings of mystery novels where bodies are long dead. Her neighbor's plea for help to deal with a recently murdered well-known author unsettles her. She leaves the body to the police and takes her guests to Cornwall, including a British tourist who far is too interested in the dead author.