A Hush at Midnight Marlene M. Bell Publication date: October 1st 2024 Genres: Adult, Mystery Former Celebrity Chef Laura Harris used to be famous for her show-stopping pastries and mouth-watering desserts. Now, she’s attracting a different kind of attention. Laura’s been accused of murder. But how could this petite pastry chef brutally smother small-town matriarch Hattie Stenburg to death? And what could be her motive? Hattie was beloved in her little Texas community – a wise humanitarian who Laura considered a confidant and mentor. Perhaps it has something to do with a last-minute change to Hattie’s will – bestowing the Stenburg fortune and its history-steeped estate to Laura, instead of Hattie’s surviving relatives. Or maybe it has something to do with the sinister secrets Laura uncovers as she desperately tries to clear her name – secrets that could rock the foundations of this close-knit community. Only one thing seems clear: The real murderer remains one step ahead o...

Copper Waters Marlene M. Bell (Annalisse, #4) Publication date: December 5th 2022 Genres: Adult, Crime, Mystery A rural New Zealand vacation turns poisonous. Antiquities expert Annalisse Drury and tycoon Alec Zavos are at an impasse in their relationship when Alec refuses to clear up a paternity issue with an ex-lover. Frustrated with his avoidance when their future is at stake, Annalisse accepts an invitation from an acquaintance to fly to New Zealand—hoping to escape the recent turbulence in her life. But even Annalisse’s cottage idyll on the family sheep farm isn’t immune to intrigue. Alec sends a mutual friend and detective, Bill Drake, to follow her, and a local resident who accompanies them from the Christchurch airport dies mysteriously soon after. A second violent death finds Annalisse and Bill at odds with the official investigations. The local police want to close both cases as quickly as possible—without unearthing the town’s dirty secrets. As she and Bill pur...