Special Collections
Agatha Award
Description: Named for Agatha Christie, the Agatha Awards are literary awards for mystery and crime writers who write in the cozy mystery subgenre. #award
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Maisie Dobbs
by Jacqueline WinspearMaisie entered domestic service in 1910 at the age of thirteen, to work as a maid at the Belgravia mansion of Lady Rowan Compton. When her remarkable intelligence and innate love of learning are discovered by her employer, Maisie becomes the pupil of Maurice Blanche, a learned friend of the Comptons who is often retained by Europe's elite, and the police, to conduct discreet investigations. Eventually, Maisie enters Girton College at Cambridge University, but the escalation of World War I intervenes to change her plans. She serves as a nurse at the front and falls in love with a handsome young doctor, only to lose him. In 1929, following an apprenticeship assisting Blanche iin his work, Maissie hangs out her shingle: M. DOBBS, TRADE AND PERSONAL INVESTIGATIONS. She soon becomes enmeshed in a mystery suurrounding The Retreat, a reclusive community of veterans wounded in body and spirit. At first, Maisie only suspects foul play, but she must act quickly when Lady Rowan's son decides to sign away his fortune and take refuge at The Retreat. A coincidence? Maisie has learned that coincidences can lead to the truth, and hurriedly investigates The Retreat. She uncovers a disturbing mystery at its core which in an astonishing dénouement, gives Maisie the courage to confront the ghost that has haunted her for over ten years.
Dating Dead Men
by Harley Jane KozakLos Angeles greeting-card artist Wollie Shelley is dating forty men in sixty days as research for a radio talk show host's upcoming book,How to Avoid Getting Dumped All the Time. Wollie is meeting plenty of eligible bachelors but not falling in love, not until she stumbles over a dead body en route to Rio Pescado--a state-run mental hospital--and is momentarily taken hostage by a charismatic "doctor" who is on the run from the Mob. Wollie fears that her beloved brother, a paranoid schizophrenic living ...
Better Off Wed
by Laura DurhamThe murder of a particularly difficult mother-of-the-bride has cast a pall on wedding planner Annabelle Archer's latest triumph -- and suspicion falls heavily on her sometime-business partner and friend Richard Gerard. Annabelle knows that even her trusted wedding emergency kit won't be able to salvage their careers if she and Richard can't find the real culprit. It's no easy task since the slain matron was perhaps the most hated socialite in D.C., but Annabelle navigates through the city's colorful wedding industry and powerful social scene on the deadly trail of a killer. Always the bridal consultant and never the bride, she's seen her fair share of bouquet tosses. But there's no telling what surprises a ruthless killer will throw her way if she gets too close.
The Heat of the Moon
by Sandra ParshallWinner of the 2007 Agatha Award for Best First NovelIf a door suddenly swings wide in your memory, what would you see?Young veterinarian Rachel Goddard's world begins to crumble when a client rushes into the animal hospital with a basset hound struck by a car during a thunderstorm. The dog owner's terrified tot, drenched with rain, loses sight of her mother in the flurry of activity and screams, "Mommy! I want Mommy!" Instantly Rachel is hurled back in time to a day in her own childhood when her baby sister Michelle uttered the same cry while thunder crashed and rain poured down on them. The unearthed memory feels like a fragment from a nightmare, and Rachel doesn't understand its meaning or the anguish it stirs up in her.When she seeks answers she learns nothing from Michelle or from Judith, their loving but manipulative mother. Judith is a psychologist who is only too happy to have her adult daughters still living in her elegant Tudor house outside Washington, DC. But their apparently serene home is a house of secrets where Judith's unspoken rules forbid questions about the family history or the daughters' long-dead father. As more baffling memories surface, Rachel begins to suspect that nothing about her family is what it seems. As her mother's attempts to control her accelerate, Rachel embarks on a quest that takes her deep into her own memory as well as halfway across the country. The heartbreaking truth she uncovers will shatter her world and force her to make an unthinkable choice.
Prime Time
by Hank Phillippi RyanIn the cutthroat world of television journalism, seasoned reporter Charlotte McNally knows that she'd better pull out all the stops or kiss her job goodbye. But it's her life that might be on the line when she learns that an innocent-looking e-mail offer resulted in murder, mayhem and a multimillion-dollar fraud ring.All too soon her investigation leads her straight to Josh Gelston, who is a little too helpful and a lot too handsome. Charlie might have a nose for news, but men are a whole other matter. Now she has to decide whether she can trust Josh...before she ends up as the next lead story.
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
by Alan BradleyA delightfully dark English mystery, featuring precocious young sleuth Flavia de Luce and her eccentric family. The summer of 1950 hasn't offered up anything out of the ordinary for eleven-year-old Flavia de Luce: bicycle explorations around the village, keeping tabs on her neighbours, relentless battles with her older sisters, Ophelia and Daphne, and brewing up poisonous concoctions while plotting revenge in their home's abandoned Victorian chemistry lab, which Flavia has claimed for her own.
But then a series of mysterious events gets Flavia's attention: A dead bird is found on the doormat, a postage stamp bizarrely pinned to its beak. A mysterious late-night visitor argues with her aloof father, Colonel de Luce, behind closed doors. And in the early morning Flavia finds a red-headed stranger lying in the cucumber patch and watches him take his dying breath.
For Flavia, the summer begins in earnest when murder comes to Buckshaw: "I wish I could say I was afraid, but I wasn't. Quite the contrary. This was by far the most interesting thing that had ever happened to me in my entire life." Did the stranger die of poisoning? There was a piece missing from Mrs. Mullet's custard pie, and none of the de Luces would have dared to eat the awful thing. Or could he have been killed by the family's loyal handyman, Dogger... or by the Colonel himself?
At that moment, Flavia commits herself to solving the crime -- even if it means keeping information from the village police, in order to protect her family. But then her father confesses to the crime, for the same reason, and it's up to Flavia to free him of suspicion. Only she has the ingenuity to follow the clues that reveal the victim's identity, and a conspiracy that reaches back into the de Luces' murky past.
A thoroughly entertaining romp of a novel, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie is inventive and quick-witted, with tongue-in-cheek humour that transcends the macabre seriousness of its subject.
Winner of the 2007 Crime Writers' Association Debut Dagger.
The Long Quiche Goodbye
by Avery AamesWelcome to the grand opening of Fromagerie Bessette. Or as it's more commonly known by the residents of small-town Providence, Ohio-the Cheese Shop. Proprietor Charlotte Bessette has prepared a delightful sampling of bold Cabot Clothbound Cheddar, delicious tortes of Stilton and Mascarpone, and a taste of Sauvignon Blanc-but someone else has decided to make a little crime of passion the piece de resistance. Right outside the shop Charlotte finds a body, the victim stabbed to death with one of her prized olive-wood handled knives.Watch a Video
Learning to Swim
by Sara J. HenryWinner of the Anthony Award for Best First Novel, the Agatha Award for Best First Novel, and the Mary Higgins Clark Award When she sees what looks like a child tumbling from a ferry into frigid Lake Champlain, Troy Chance dives in without thinking. When she gets the child to shore she discovers that his name is Paul, he speaks only French--and no one seems to be looking for him. Her determination to protect Paul pulls Troy from her quiet life in a small Adirondack town into an unfamiliar world of wealth and privilege in Canada and then in Vermont. Her attachment to him--and the danger she faces when she tries to unravel the mystery of his abandonment--force her to evaluate everything she thought true about herself. Sara J. Henry's riveting, award-winning debut will keep readers engrossed right up to its shattering conclusion.From the Hardcover edition.s self-indulgence--a world in which the murder of a child is not unthinkable. She'll need skill and courage to survive and protect her charge and herself. Sara J. Henry's powerful and compelling Learning to Swim will move and disturb readers right up to its shattering conclusion.From the Hardcover edition.
Death Al Dente
by Leslie BudewitzFIRST IN A NEW SERIES! The town of Jewel Bay, Montana--known as a Food Lovers' Village--is obsessed with homegrown and homemade Montana fare. So when Erin Murphy takes over her family's century-old general store, she turns it into a boutique market filled with local delicacies. But Erin's freshly booming business might go rotten when a former employee turns up dead... Murphy's Mercantile, known as the Merc, has been a staple in Jewel Bay for over a hundred years. To celebrate their recent makeover as a gourmet food market, Erin has organized a town festival, Festa di Pasta, featuring the culinary goods of Jewel Bay's finest--including her mother Fresca's delicious Italian specialties. But Erin's sweet success is soured when the shop's former manager, Claudette, is found dead behind the Merc on the Festa's opening night. With rival chef James Angelo stirring up rumors that Fresca's sauce recipes were stolen from Claudette, Erin's mother is under close scrutiny. Now Erin will have to hunt down some new suspects, or both her family and her store might wind up in hot water... INCLUDES FRESH, DELICIOUS RECIPES!
Well Read, Then Dead
by Terrie Farley MoranFirst in a new series! Nestled in the barrier islands of Florida's Gulf Coast, Fort Myers Beach is home to Mary "Sassy" Cabot and Bridget Mayfield--owners of the bookstore café, Read 'Em and Eat. But when they're not dishing about books or serving up scones, Sassy and Bridgy are keeping tabs on hard-boiled murder. Read 'Em and Eat is known for its delicious breakfast and lunch treats, along with quite a colorful clientele. If it's not Rowena Gustavson loudly debating the merits of the current book club selection, it's Miss Augusta Maddox lecturing tourists on rumors of sunken treasure among the islands. It's no wonder Sassy's favorite is Delia Batson, a regular at the Emily Dickinson table. Augusta's cousin and best friend Delia is painfully shy--which makes the news of her murder all the more shocking. No one is more distraught than Augusta, and Sassy wants to help any way she can. But Augusta doesn't have time for sympathy. She wants Delia's killer found--and she's not taking no for an answer. Now Sassy is on the case, and she'd better act fast before there's any more trouble in paradise. Includes a buttermilk pie recipe!
The Semester of Our Discontent
by Cynthia KuhnAgatha Award Winner: “An engaging heroine, a college setting that will have you aching to go back to school, and a puzzler of a mystery.” —Laura DiSilverio, national bestselling author of the Readaholics Book Club Mysteries English professor Lila Maclean is thrilled about her new job at prestigious Stonedale University—until she finds one of her colleagues dead. When she herself is suspected of involvement—by everyone from the chancellor to the detective working the case—she has no choice but to assign herself the role of amateur detective. More attacks on professors follow, and the only connection is a curious symbol at each of the crime scenes. Putting her scholarly skills to the test, Lila gathers evidence, but her search is complicated by an unexpected nemesis, a suspicious investigator, and an ominous secret society. Rather than earning an “A” for effort, she receives a threat featuring the mysterious emblem and must act quickly to avoid failing . . . and becoming the next victim. This Agatha Award winner for Best First Novel is “a pitch-perfect portrayal of academic life with a beguiling cast of anxious newbies, tweedy old troublemakers and scholars as sharp as they’re wise” (Catriona McPherson, author of the Dandy Gilver series). “Kuhn is phenomenal at conveying the tension-filled atmosphere that inundates higher institutions, where one’s fate rests entirely on a few out-of-touch, pompous faculty members.” —Kings River Life Magazine “A very intricate, cool story featuring the depth of an institution where everyone is dying to climb the ladder of success.” —Suspense Magazine
A Great Deliverance
by Elizabeth GeorgeTo this day, the low, thin wail of an infant can be heard in Keldale's lush green valleys. Three hundred years ago, as legend goes, the frightened Yorkshire villagers smothered a crying babe in Keldale Abbey, where they'd hidden to escape the ravages of Cromwell's raiders. Now into Keldale's pastoral web of old houses and older secrets comes Scotland Yard Inspector Thomas Lynley, the eighth earl of Asherton. Along with the redoubtable Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers, Lynley has been sent to solve a savage murder that has stunned the peaceful countryside. For fat, unlovely Roberta Teys has been found in her best dress, an axe in her lap, seated in the old stone barn beside her father's headless corpse. Her first and last words were "I did it. And I'm not sorry. " Yet as Lynley and Havers wind their way through Keldale's dark labyrinth of secret scandals and appalling crimes, they uncover a shattering series of revelations that will reverberate through this tranquil English valley--and in their own lives as well. From the Paperback edition.
One Night Gone
by Tara Laskowski“A subtly but relentlessly unsettling novel.” —TANA FRENCH, author of The Witch ElmIt was the perfect place to disappear...One sultry summer, Maureen Haddaway arrives in the wealthy town of Opal Beach to start her life anew—to achieve her destiny. There, she finds herself lured by the promise of friendship, love, starry skies, and wild parties. But Maureen’s new life just might be too good to be true, and before the summer is up, she vanishes.Decades later, when Allison Simpson is offered the opportunity to house-sit in Opal Beach during the off-season, it seems like the perfect chance to begin fresh after a messy divorce. But when she becomes drawn into the mysterious disappearance of a girl thirty years before, Allison realizes the gorgeous homes of Opal Beach hide dark secrets. And the truth of that long-ago summer is not even the most shocking part of all...“A heart-wrenching and suspenseful novel of betrayal and revenge. Stunning!”—Carol Goodman, award-winning author of The Night Visitors“Featuring a brilliantly executed dual timeline with two unforgettable narrators, One Night Gone is a timely and timeless mystery that will keep you obsessively reading well past your bedtime.”—Paul Tremblay, author of The Cabin at the End of the World
The Long Call
by Ann CleevesIn North Devon, Detective Matthew Venn stands outside the church as his father's funeral takes place. The day Matthew turned his back on the strict evangelical community in which he grew up, he lost his family too. Now he's back to take charge of his first major case in the Two Rivers region. A body has been found on the beach near to Matthew's new home: a man with the tattoo of an albatross on his neck, stabbed to death. His team’s investigation will take him straight back into the community he left behind, and the deadly secrets that lurk there.
Long Upon the Land
by Margaret MaronWINNER OF THE AGATHA AWARD FOR BEST NOVELMargaret Maron, New York Times bestselling author and Mystery Writers of America Grand Master, returns to Colleton County with an exciting new Deborah Knott mystery . . . On a quiet August morning, Judge Deborah Knott's father Kezzie makes a shocking discovery on a remote corner of his farm: the body of a man bludgeoned to death. Investigating this crime, Deborah's husband, Sheriff's Deputy Dwight Bryant, soon uncovers a long-simmering hostility between Kezzie and the slain man over a land dispute. The local newspaper implies that Deborah's family may have had something to do with the murder-and that Dwight is dragging his feet on the case.Meanwhile, Deborah is given a cigarette lighter that once belonged to her mother. The cryptic inscription inside rekindles Deborah's curiosity about her parents' past, and how they met. For years she has wondered how the daughter of a wealthy attorney could have married a widowed, semi-illiterate bootlegger, and this time she's determined to find the answer.But why are Deborah's brothers so reluctant to talk about the dead man? Is the murder linked to Kezzie's illegal whiskey business? And could his courtship of Deborah's mother have something to do with the bad blood between the two families? Despite Deborah's promise not to interfere in Dwight's work, she cannot stop herself from doing everything she can to help clear her brothers and her father from suspicion . . .
A Great Reckoning
by Louise Penny#1 New York Times bestselling author Louise Penny pulls back the layers to reveal a brilliant and emotionally powerful truth in her latest spellbinding novel.
When an intricate old map is found stuffed into the walls of the bistro in Three Pines, it at first seems no more than a curiosity. But the closer the villagers look, the stranger it becomes.
Given to Armand Gamache as a gift the first day of his new job, the map eventually leads him to shattering secrets. To an old friend and older adversary. It leads the former Chief of Homicide for the Sûreté du Québec to places even he is afraid to go. But must.
And there he finds four young cadets in the Sûreté academy, and a dead professor. And, with the body, a copy of the old, odd map.
Everywhere Gamache turns, he sees Amelia Choquet, one of the cadets. Tattooed and pierced. Guarded and angry. Amelia is more likely to be found on the other side of a police line-up. And yet she is in the academy. A protégée of the murdered professor.
The focus of the investigation soon turns to Gamache himself and his mysterious relationship with Amelia, and his possible involvement in the crime. The frantic search for answers takes the investigators back to Three Pines and a stained glass window with its own horrific secrets.
For both Amelia Choquet and Armand Gamache, the time has come for a great reckoning.
A New York Times Bestseller
Glass Houses
by Louise PennyWhen a mysterious figure appears in Three Pines one cold November day, Armand Gamache and the rest of the villagers are at first curious. Then wary. Through rain and sleet, the figure stands unmoving, staring ahead.
From the moment its shadow falls over the village, Gamache, now Chief Superintendent of the Sûreté du Québec, suspects the creature has deep roots and a dark purpose. Yet he does nothing. What can he do? Only watch and wait. And hope his mounting fears are not realized.
But when the figure vanishes overnight and a body is discovered, it falls to Gamache to discover if a debt has been paid or levied.Months later, on a steamy July day as the trial for the accused begins in Montréal, Chief Superintendent Gamache continues to struggle with actions he set in motion that bitter November, from which there is no going back. More than the accused is on trial.
Gamache’s own conscience is standing in judgment.
In Glass Houses, her latest utterly gripping book, number-one New York Times bestselling author Louise Penny shatters the conventions of the crime novel to explore what Gandhi called the court of conscience. A court that supersedes all others.
A New York Times Bestseller
Mystery of the Haunted Cave
by Penny WarnerThirteen-year-old Becca and her friends Sierra, CJ, and Jonnie are determined to win the gold medal for Troop 13 at the Gold Rush Jamboree. But they face stiff competition from the other troops--especially Troop 7, whose members love to pull pranks on them. When a mysterious clue hints at treasure buried in Camp Miwok's Haunted Caves, Becca and her friends are determined to get their hands on that, too--even if it means sneaking from camp, hanging out with bats, and being threatened by robbers....
The 7th Knot
by Kathleen KarrIt's summer vacation, 1896, and Miles and his brother must spend it with rich, irritable Uncle Eustace, who wants to purchase art for his mansion. Little do the boys know that their summer will take them on a high-flying chase across Italy and Germany, searching for an answer to the mysterious disappearance of their uncle's servant and six woodcuts by the famous Renaissance artist Albrecht Durer. Unwittingly they become entangled in an international ring of conspirators, and must save the world from a dark force masquerading as a benign secret society.
Chasing Vermeer
by Blue Balliett and Brett HelquistThis bewitching first novel is a puzzle, wrapped in a mystery, disguised as an adventure, and delivered as a work of art.
When a book of unexplainable occurences brings Petra and Calder together, strange things start to happen: Seemingly unrelated events connect; an eccentric old woman seeks their company; an invaluable Vermeer painting disappears. Before they know it, the two find themselves at the center of an international art scandal, where no one is spared from suspicion. As Petra and Calder are drawn clue by clue into a mysterious labyrinth, they must draw on their powers of intuition, their problem solving skills, and their knowledge of Vermeer. Can they decipher a crime that has stumped even the FBI?
Down the Rabbit Hole
by Peter AbrahamsWelcome to Echo Falls.Home of a thousand secrets,where Ingrid Levin-Hill, super sleuth, never knows what will happen next. Ingrid is in the wrong place at the wrong time. Or at least her shoes are. Getting them back means getting involved in a murder investigation rivaling those solved by her idol, Sherlock Holmes, and Ingrid has enough on her plate with club soccer, school, and the plum role of Alice in the Echo Falls production of Alice in Wonderland. But much as in Alice's adventures down the rabbit hole, things in Ingrid's small town keep getting curiouser and curiouser. Her favorite director has a serious accident onstage (but is it an accident?), and the police chief is on Ingrid's tail, grilling her about everything from bike-helmet law to the color of her cleats. Echo Falls has turned into a nightmare, and Ingrid is determined to wake up. Edgar Award-nominated novelist Peter Abrahams builds suspense as a smart young girl finds that her small town isn't nearly as safe as it seems.
The Crossroads
by Chris GrabensteinZACK, HIS DAD, and new stepmother have just moved back to his father’s hometown, not knowing that their new house has a dark history.
Fifty years ago, a crazed killer caused an accident at the nearby crossroads that took 40 innocent lives.
He died when his car hit a tree in a fiery crash, and his malevolent spirit has inhabited the tree ever since.
During a huge storm, lightning hits the tree, releasing the spirit, who decides his evil spree isn’t over . . . and Zack is directly in his sights.
Award-winning thriller author Chris Grabenstein fills his first book for younger readers with the same humorous and spine-tingling storytelling that has made him a fast favorite with adults.
The Hanging Hill
by Chris GrabensteinHow serious is stage fright? At the Hanging Hill Playhouse, it can kill you. After narrowly escaping a malevolent spirit inThe Crossroads,Zack and Judy are hoping to relax during the rehearsals for a show based on Judy’s bestselling children’s books. Little do they know that the director is planning to raise a horde of evil specters from the dead, and to accomplish this, he needs a human sacrifice . . . and Zack fits the bill perfectly. This second book featuring the intrepid Zack and his stepmother, Judy, is full of the same humorous and spine-tingling storytelling that has made Chris Grabenstein a fast favorite with young and old alike. From the Hardcover edition.
The Other Side of Dark
by Sarah SmithLaw Walker knew Katie Mullens before she was crazy. Before her mother died. Law knows Katie's crazy now, but she's always been talented. And she keeps filling sketch pads even though her drawings have gone a little crazy as well--dark, bloody. What Law doesn't know is that these drawings are real. Or were real. Katie draws what she sees--and Katie sees dead people. People who have died--recently, and not so recently--in accidents, from suicide, even a boy who was trapped in a house that burned down more than 100 years ago. And it's this boy who makes Law want to get to know Katie all over again. So what if his dad doesn't want him dating a white girl? So what if people think Katie is dangerous? The ghost boy is hiding a secret that Law needs to know--and it's much bigger, much more shocking than anyone ever expected.
The Black Heart Crypt
by Chris GrabensteinHalloween is nearing, the one day of the year when the ghostly plane is close enough to the human plane to allow mischief and mayhem. But the ghosts who have their eye on Zack aren't thinking mischief, they are thinking murder. In this fourth volume of Chris Grabenstein's popular Haunted Mysteries series, Zack must once again do battle with malevolent spirits. And with his usual pluck, and the assistance of three dotty aunts, he must save his town from a 200-year-old threat.Once again Chris Grabenstein proves his mastery of the frightening and funny tale. Young readers, especially reluctant ones, have found an inspiration to read in Grabenstein's quirky characters and deadly situations.From the Hardcover edition.