Slay Belles

Slay Belles
Author: Nancy Martin
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 94
Release: 2012-07-03
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1101563559

A classic Blackbird Sisters novella, available digitally for the first time! Whoever coined the phrase “Shop till you drop” certainly never meant “Shop till you drop dead.” But premier personal shopper Popo seems to have done just that—except this shopper’s been murdered. After Popo’s body is found on a display bed in the luxurious Haymaker’s department store, Nora Blackbird is forced to put solving a murder before finishing her Christmas shopping. With sister Libby off on a spending spree and sister Emma checked into rehab, it’s up to Nora to see who had a personal vendetta against this personal shopper—and to determine if a certain designer handbag was worth killing for. Includes a preview of No Way to Kill a Lady, out August 2012!

Slay Belles

Slay Belles
Author: Marilyn Todd
Publisher: Wildside Press LLC
Total Pages: 17
Release: 2021-02-02
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1479456683

The North Pole wasn’t the most original name for a year-round Christmas shop, but you can’t say people didn’t know what they were in for. From the spray-on snowflakes round the window to the ho, ho motion-sensor Santa, it was floor-to-ceiling tinsel and glitter, complete with flashing fairy lights, gilded pine cones, and plastic holly. Nodding reindeer? Second aisle, on the left. Solar polar bear? Top shelf on the right. Snowman candles? Far corner, between the little wooden chalets and the sexy elf costumes, and yes, madam, we do stock glow-in-the-dark angels. Doesn’t everyone? And it was the perfect store to launder money...

Antiques Slay Belles

Antiques Slay Belles
Author: Barbara Allan
Publisher: Severn House Publishers Ltd
Total Pages: 200
Release: 2024-11-05
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1448309654

Former sheriff, talented thespian and delightfully eccentric true-crime author Vivian Borne hunts down a Christmas killer in the new Trash 'n' Treasures cozy mystery - "one of the funniest cozy series going" (Ellery Queen Magazine) It's five days before Christmas, and Vivian Borne - septuagenarian antiques dealer, true-crime writer and enthusiastic amateur sleuth - and her long-suffering daughter Brandy are preparing a presentation of holiday antiques at the local country club's annual Christmas luncheon. Distracted by their secret Santa gifts, the ladies of the club, to Vivian's dismay, are not giving her and her antique sleigh bells the attention they deserve. But when Norma Crumley, socialite and world-class gossip, falls face first into her plum pudding, it seems Santa has also delivered the sleuthing mother and daughter a present: a cracker of a case! Christmas in small-town Serenity is (usually) a magical time. Can Vivian and Brandy - not forgetting Shih Tzu sidekick Sushi - make a killing from their holiday antiques, catch a devious murderer, and wrap up the case in time to eat their festive microwave turkey dinners? This light-hearted, laugh-out-loud cozy mystery also features mother-daughter sleuths Brandy and Vivian's witty tips for buying and selling antiques, along with a selection of tasty recipes. Perfect for getting you into the holiday spirit - whatever the time of year!

A Scary Little Christmas

A Scary Little Christmas
Author: Matthew C. DuPée
Publisher: McFarland
Total Pages: 371
Release: 2022-06-07
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 147664540X

Controversial yet beloved among audiences, Christmas-themed horror movies emerged in the early 1970s and gained a notorious reputation with Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984), depicting Santa as an ax-wielding maniac. Some parents and conservative groups condemned the film, while others embraced the portrayal of Yuletide as a backdrop for fear and dread. Drawing on interviews with directors, producers, special effects artists, photographers and actors, this book celebrates the sordid, colorful history of the Christmas horror subgenre. Psycho Santa films such as Christmas Evil (1980) and 3615 code Pere Noel (1989) are examined, along with "Yule-Die" slashers like The Dorm that Dripped Blood (1982), Black Christmas (1974) and Silent Night, Bloody Night (1972). Commercial successes like Gremlins (1984) and Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010) are covered, as well as more recent releases such as Better Watch Out (2016), Red Christmas (2016) and Deathcember (2019). Rare photographs, promotional materials and an annotated filmography are provided.

400 Horror Adventure Films Reviewed

400 Horror Adventure Films Reviewed
Author: Steve Hutchison
Publisher: Tales of Terror
Total Pages: 805
Release: 2023-02-23
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 1778870988

Steve Hutchison reviews 400 horror adventure films and ranks them. Each article includes a picture of the main antagonist, a release year, a synopsis, a star rating, and a review.

Christmas Horror Watchlist

Christmas Horror Watchlist
Author: Steve Hutchison
Publisher: Tales of Terror
Total Pages: 125
Release: 2023-02-23
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 1778870406

Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but this list is so delightful. And since you’ve no place to go, here are 60 ranked reviews of Christmas-themed horror movies. Ho, ho, ho! This year, get ready for the horrorthon of a lifetime! Naughty or nice?

Have Your Cake and Kill Him Too

Have Your Cake and Kill Him Too
Author: Nancy Martin
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 273
Release: 2007-03-06
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1440624232

When the tycoon owner of a spectacularly tacky sports bar is killed, Nora Blackbird suspects a secretive politician, a shady former rock star doubling as a pastry chef, and a dangerous aristo-brat on the verge of stardom.

Horror Holidays (2022)

Horror Holidays (2022)
Author: Steve Hutchison
Publisher: Tales of Terror
Total Pages: 212
Release: 2023-04-27
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 177887231X

Film critic Steve Hutchison ranks, rates, and reviews 91 Christmas, 96 Halloween, 5 Easter, and 8 Valentine’s Day horror features on these pages. Celebrate the holidays in fear, every year!

Fraternity

Fraternity
Author: Andy Mientus
Publisher: Abrams
Total Pages: 364
Release: 2022-09-20
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 1647005310

A queer, dark academia YA story about a mysterious boarding school, a brotherhood that must stay in the shadows, and an ancient evil that could tear it all apart. In the fall of 1991, Zooey Orson transfers to the Blackfriars School for Boys hoping for a fresh start following a scandal at his last school. However, he quickly learns that he isn’t the only student keeping a secret. Before he knows it, he’s fallen in with a group of boys who all share the same secret, one which they can only express openly within the safety of the clandestine gatherings of the Vicious Circle––the covert club for gay students going back decades. But when the boys unwittingly happen upon the headmaster’s copy of an arcane occult text, they unleash an eldritch secret so terrible, it threatens to consume them all. A queer paranormal story set during the still-raging AIDS crisis, Fraternity examines a time not so long ago when a secret brotherhood lurked in the shadows. What would Zooey and his friends do to protect their found family?