D is for Deputy Donut, both the cat and the shop. E is for Emily and the exciting Brent Fyne. C is for coffee, crime, and that cop. K is for mistletoe—you know what I mean. (And did I mention the handsome Detective Brent Fyne?) * T is for tourists stranded in town. H is for houseguests, feeling quite down. E is for events and entertaining all ‘round. * D is for donuts, detectives, delight. O is for observing, overhearing, and “Oooohs!” N is for nosing around in the night. U is for understanding the most subtle clues. T is for treats. (That includes mistletoe.) S is for sleuthing, skiing, and snow. Exclusive Excerpt from DECK THE DONUTS Chapter 6 I turned on the bedside lamp. Dep stood with her nose against my closed bedroom door. Her tail twitched back and forth, and the fur along her spine stood up in a way that made my own hackles rise. It was one thirty in the morning. Who had closed the front door? Had Paige left, or had someone arrived? I always locked the door, but maybe seeing Dep on Paige’s lap after I came in from parking the car had…

Kade Logan stood on the bank watching the sheriff and his deputies haul the mud-covered vehicle out of the lake.  The crane groaned as the automobile tilted upward, the rear end lifting into the air, the front wheels dragging across the spongy earth.  Brackish lake water poured out through the open windows. For eight long years Kade had been haunted by the mystery of what had happened to the dark green Subaru that belonged to his dead wife.  Her body had been found in a shallow depression in the hills at the base of the mountains outside Denver, but until now, eight years later, her car had never been found. And her killer had never been caught. “You okay?”  Sam Bridger, Kade’s best friend, stood beside him, a tall blond man Kade had known for years. “She’s been dead eight years, Sam.  So yeah, I’m okay.”  But the rage he felt had never lessened.  It should have.  At the time of her death, their marriage was already on the rocks.  The second time Kade had caught Heather cheating, he had filed for divorce. “Maybe they’ll find something in the car that’ll give them a reason to reopen the case,” Sam…

Welcome to the 2021 Summer BBQ Recipe Roundup! We have a fabulous lineup of authors with new books, delicious recipes perfect for summer parties, and BOOK GIVEAWAYS. Follow along all week to see who is joining us. You’ll learn about new books and find your next great recipes. Plus, there are chances to win books, too!  To kick things off, historical romance author Minvera Spencer shares a sweet treat, perfect to nibble on while chatting with friends on a deck or patio. Her new book, OUTRAGEOUS, the second in the Rebels of the Ton series, is a high stakes battle of wits that pits two people against each other initially… until pesky attraction starts to come into play! *** “TWO-FILLING” PECAN BRITTLE My mom calls this pecan brittle “Two-Filling Pecan Brittle” because she broke not one, but TWO dental fillings one Christmas. But that didn’t make her stop eating it…. (Image from Food Network) Ingredients 1 1/2 cups toasted chopped pecans (the toasting is up to you and you can substitute other nuts if you don’t have pecans) 1 heaping tablespoon salt 1 cup water 1 1/4 cups light corn syrup (you could use dark but you’d get a different…

Jen: What inspired you to write INSTAMOM? Chantel: Years ago, I fell in love with a single dad. After not really knowing whether I wanted to have children or not, I was thrown into a situation where, if I decided to date this guy, I’d be putting myself on the path to becoming a stepmother. I wanted to explore this idea in a novel, and how my heroine would cope if she was proudly childfree by choice and led a very public life, yet fell in love with a single dad. I’m very interested in the role social media plays in our lives—this idea that strangers know about us, that there’s a version of ourselves that we curate and that we try to make consistent so that people will “like” us—but is that really always the whole picture of the real us? And if it’s not, how does having two personae—an online version and an IRL version—affect the way we live our lives? Let’s talk about Kit Kidding and her love/hate relationship with social media. Please describe the impact it has on her professional and personal life. Kit is well-known for her role as the author of Kid-Free Forever, a…

We are so excited to bring you the 2021 Valentine’s Day Recipe Roundup! We have a fun week of great authors, awesome books, and delicious recipes to share to get you ready for Valentine’s Day! Whether you’re celebrating Galentine’s Day with friends or making a special meal with your significant other, these recipes are yummy and fun.  Today, Marina Adair is here to tell us more about her new book, HOPELESS ROMANTIC, and a great recipe for chili. . . While I love a good summer barbeque, nothing beats a warm bowl of soup and fresh baked bread on a brisk winter night. With the days getting shorter and the night longer, we tend to stay indoors. A good way to beat the cold-day chill is a home cooked meal of comfort food. For three generations, my family’s favorite winter meal is a pot of my grandmothers chili and warm cornbread—and I can’t forget the honey butter. I may have been corn in California, but with my family hailing from Arkansas and a live in grandparents, my upbringing was more the Clampetts than the Cleavers. I grew up on chicken fried steak, scratch biscuits smothered in white gravy. And that…

Where did you come up with the idea for A BIG FAT GREEK MURDER? I was sitting in the chair at my hair salon watching in the mirror as my stylist wielded her long sharp scissors. I started thinking about scissors as a murder weapon, and since my main character Athena’s sister Selene is a hairstylist, it seemed like a great idea to use her in a plot. As I watched customers walk past my chair, I realized how easy it would be to snatch a pair of scissors off a tray at an unmanned station and stuff them into a purse. Because the other stylists are busy with their customers, talking, snipping, blow drying, etc., no one would even notice. Naturally, it would take advance planning. Timing would have to be right, so the perpetrator would have to know the stylist’s schedule. But as I plotted out the story, I realized that a determined murderer would be able to pull it off. Then it would be a matter of wiping the scissors clean and incriminating the stylist, leaving misleading evidence in places like a dumpster behind the salon. There’s more, of course, but you’ll have to read the book…

The Christmas holiday season has always been my favorite time of year. When my three girls were younger and still at home, we spent the month of December decorating outside and in, cutting out and frosting sugar cookies, designing and baking gingerbread houses-monuments-buildings from scratch, and sharing special Christmas Eve traditions together. One common thread throughout all those activities was the presence of music–carols playing in the background that enticed us to sing along as we enjoyed our activity. Even though my girls are adults now, I’m pleased to say that we still do the same. . . only, we try to cram it all into a few days or the week we have together when they visit. And yes, we definitely do our best to make the most of it. This year, with the pandemic, I’m not sure if we’ll all be together, but I can guarantee that our gingerbread building permits will meet the regulations and codes in our four different states, and come Christmas Eve, you’ll find us in a group Facetime or Zoom opening our pajamas and reading ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas aloud. Distance and differing time zones won’t stop us. In fact, one year,…

Everyone needs a little charm in their life. Whether it comes from grandma, the old man next door, or a best friend, it will never be turned away. It’s what makes the cozy genre welcome on any reading list. Today’s feature is full of delightful Southern charm wrapped in lovable characters, recipes and a few grisly crime scenes–the perfect go-to ingredients when a reader needs a break from the real world. And don’t worry, Kate Young just keeps on giving after the last page, because then it’ll be time to rush into the kitchen and whip up some of her fabulous goodies!  Kym: Welcome to the Cozy Corner, Kate! Kate: Thanks so much for having me. I’m thrilled to be here.  In May you released your second Marygene Brown Mystery, Southern Sass and a Crispy Corpse, which is set the adorable island community of Peach Cove Georgia. Is there a real Peach Cove that you’ve modeled your island after? Peach Cove is loosely based on and inspired by both Seaside, Florida, and Savannah, Georgia. I took the small community feel of Seaside and combined it with the old southern roots of Savannah.  I love that Marygene’s mother haunts her–don’t all parents leave…

We are THRILLED to feature a DOUBLE COVER REVEAL from USA Today bestselling author, Priscilla Oliveras! What a treat–especially because she’s also sharing an exclusive excerpt from the highly-anticipated second book in the Keys to Love series, ANCHORED HEARTS. Read on to see the gorgeous covers and to read more about her upcoming releases.  *** For me, one of the best moments of author life is when my publisher and I finalize a cover for one of my upcoming books. Even though I’ve spent countless hours pecking away at the keyboard striving to bring my characters to life, seeing that cover makes the book feel more real. A giddiness tickles my chest. A palpable excitement courses through me at the thought of sharing the image that captures the essence of the love story. Getting a chance to share a DOUBLE cover reveal for my novella HOLIDAY HOME RUN and ANCHORED HEARTS, book 2 in my Keys to Love series, thanks to Fresh Fiction is. . .  ¡Bueno, it’s fantastico! Definitely a first time I’ll always remember! HOLIDAY HOME RUN features Julia Fernandez, a cousin of my beloved Fernandez sisters in the MATCHED TO PERFECTION series. Julia’s an event planner, in…

It’s the final day of our Fall Recipe Potluck–we hope you have enjoyed it as much as we have, and you’ve learned about some great new books and collected all of these delicious recipes. Don’t forget! You can check back on the week’s posts for chances to win books by these awesome authors. Thanks for joining our potluck! We’ll be back with another recipe round-up soon. . . Day 1: SECOND CHANCE ON CYPRESS LAND by Reese Ryan Day 2: THE SECRET FRENCH RECIPES OF SOPHIE VALROUX by Samantha Verant Day 3: SIMMER DOWN by Sarah Smith Day 4: THE SECRET INGREDIENT by K.D. Fisher Day 5: AN AMISH COOKIE CLUB COURTSHIP by Sarah Price — The Sentimental Nostalgia of Amish Sweets! For most of us, September marks the end of summer. In general, life slows down from the chaotic schedule of shuffling children to camp, arranging family vacations, and coordinating neighborhood barbeques. Community pools close, local schools reopen (typically…although COVID has thrown us all for a loop), and the warm days give way to cooler nights. For the Amish, however, September brings a different change and faster pace of life into their daily routine. The advent of autumn brings…