Books


Deadly Row to Hoe
Author: Cricket McRae
Published: November 8, 2012 by Midnight Ink
Series Name: Home Crafting Mysteries
Category: contemporary cozy, culinary, pacific northwest
Main Character: Sophie Mae Ambrose, Barr Ambrose, Erin Bly, Meghan Bly

As a member of a community supported agriculture (CSA) farm, Sophie Mae wrangles weeds in exchange for tasty, organic treats. But she almost loses her appetite when a dead body is found in the compost heap. The murder victim is Darla Klick, an ornithologist. Between baby-making dates with her husband, the police detective, Sophie Mae decides to really get her hands dirty and discover who killed the young, sweet-natured “bird lady.”


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Brownies and Broomsticks
Author: Bailey Cates
Published: May 1, 2012 by Penguin/NAL
Series Name: Magical Bakery Mysteries
Category: paranormal, cozy, culinary, southern
Main Character: Katie Lightfoot, Lucy Eagel, Ben Eagel, the members of the spell book club

Katie Lightfoot's tired of loafing around as the assistant manager of an Ohio bakery. So when her aunt Lucy and uncle Ben open a bakery in Savannah's quaint downtown district and ask Katie to join them, she enthusiastically agrees.

While working at the Honeybee Bakery—named after Lucy's cat—Katie notices that her aunt is adding mysterious herbs to her recipes. Turns out these herbal enhancements aren't just tasty—Aunt Lucy is a witch and her recipes are actually spells!

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Wined and Died
Author: Cricket McRae
Published: July 8, 2011 by Midnight Ink
Series Name: Home Crafting Mysteries
Category: contemporary cozy, culinary
Main Character: Sophie Mae Ambrose, Barr Ambrose, Erin Bly

Something is brewing in Cadyville, and it's not only dandelion wine. Sophie Mae is intrigued by a recently discovered cassette recording in which a therapist fearfully contemplates her client's murderous threats. When the same therapist ends up dead, Sophie Mae is lured into another intoxicating investigation, one that explores the age-old art of mead and wine making.


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Something Borrowed, Something Bleu
Author: Cricket McRae
Published: July 1, 2010 by Midnight Ink
Series Name: Home Crafting Mysteries
Category: contemporary cozy, culinary
Main Character: Sophie Mae Reynolds, Barr Ambrose, Meghan Bly, Erin Bly

Love—and smelly cheese—is in the air. Sophie Mae accepted Barr's marriage proposal, but when her mother finds a cryptic suicide note her brother wrote two decades earlier, Sophie Mae makes a trip to her old hometown to help unravel the mystery.

As Sophie Mae pokes around in other people's business while learning the finer points of artisanal cheese making, a new murder is committed—and it's evident that aging cheese isn't the only thing in Spring Creek that doesn't pass the smell test.

 


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Spin a Wicked Web
Author: Cricket McRae
Published: March 1, 2009 by Midnight Ink
Series Name: Home Crafting Mysteries
Category: cozy, contemporary, mystery
Main Character: Sophie Mae Reynolds, Barr Ambrose, Meghan Bly, Erin Bly
Young and pretty, Ariel used her feminine charms and sexual magnetism to lure married man. Was the murder victim truly a gold digger in hot pants? Or just a troubled girl who met a bad end? With a tangled weave of suspects to wade through and Barr's ex turning up, it's all Sophie Mae can do to unravel this tightly knitted mystery -- without coming undone herself!
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Heaven Preserve Us
Author: Cricket McRae
Published: August 1, 2008 by Midnight Ink
Series Name: Homecrafting Mysteries
Category: Cozy, Craft
Main Character: Sophie Mae Reynolds, Meghan Bly, Barr Ambrose
A reputation as a small town busybody sleuth. A gum-cracking boss who keeps calling her “babe.” Now a suicidal phone stalker? Great.
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Lye in Wait
Author: Cricket McRae
Published: October 1, 2007 by Midnight Ink
Series Name: Sophie Mae Reynolds Homecrafting Mysteries
Category: Cozy, Crafts
Main Character: Sophie Mae Reynolds, Meghan Bly, Erin Bly, Barr Ambrose
Lye in Wait is a cozy mystery with a fresh face. Not all tea and crumpets, Sophie Mae Reynolds works hard, likes single-malt Scotch, and lives with her best friend, her best friend’s ten-year-old daughter, and a snarky old Corgi. She’s smart, prettier than she knows and possesses a wry sense of humor. She also barrels into situations without thinking and manages to embarrass herself with amazing regularity as she puzzles out why the neighborhood handyman drank a glass of lye and died on her workroom floor.
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