Quickstep to Murder

Quickstep to Murder
Author: Ella Barrick
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 216
Release: 2011-09-06
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1101543930

What if your dance partner, business partner, and fiancé was stepping out with another woman? That's exactly what happens to Stacy Graysin, who shares ownership of a ballroom dance studio with the man who broke her heart, Rafe Acosta. But when Stacy discovers Rafe's dead body in the studio one dark night, the police suspect her of killing him. To clear her name and save her studio, Stacey teams up with Rafe's estranged cousin from Argentina, Tav, to find the real killer. And if Stacy doesn't watch her step, the killer may make this dance her last.

The Ballroom Murder

The Ballroom Murder
Author: Leigh Straw
Publisher: Fremantle Press
Total Pages: 192
Release: 2022-08-02
Genre: True Crime
ISBN: 1760990582

In August 1925, Audrey Jacob shot dead her former fiancÉ, Cyril Gidley, in full view of hundreds of guests at a charity ball in Perth's Government House. When she was arrested, she still held the gun in her hand. It was a open and shut case of wilful murder—that is until Jacob assigned prosecutor Arthur Haynes to her defence. His ability to play the press and the jury for sympathy would lead to a sensational result. Not only did Jacob escape the gallows, she was found not guilty of Gidley's murder. Straw, the author of a number of books about notable Australian female criminals, tells a story that is rich with first-hand newspaper accounts from the day.

In the Ballroom with the Candlestick

In the Ballroom with the Candlestick
Author: Diana Peterfreund
Publisher: Abrams
Total Pages: 318
Release: 2021-11-02
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 1683357183

The dramatic and deadly conclusion to the thrilling YA mystery series inspired by the classic board game CLUE—now in paperback! After a tragic accident at Blackbrook Academy kills one of their own, Orchid, Scarlett, Peacock, Mustard, and Plum are desperate to put the pieces back together and finish out the year. The Murder Crew may have earned their nickname, but the last of their secrets are still coming to light and threatening to destroy friendships, futures, and more. And when another suspicious death rocks the campus and Blackbrook's dark past crashes into its present, they have a choice: Band together or turn on each other. Because this year's prom? It's to die for.

A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City

A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City
Author: David Dominé
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 360
Release: 2021-10-05
Genre: True Crime
ISBN: 1643138642

This true crime saga—with an eccentric Southern backdrop—introduces the reader to the story of a murder in a crumbling Louisville mansion and the decades of secrets and corruption that live within the old house’s walls. On June 18, 2010, police discover a body buried in the wine cellar of a Victorian mansion in Old Louisville. James Carroll, shot and stabbed the year before, has lain for 7 months in a plastic storage bin—his temporary coffin. Homeowner Jeffrey Mundt and his boyfriend, Joseph Banis, point the finger at each other in what locals dub The Pink Triangle Murder. On the surface, this killing appears to be a crime of passion, a sordid love tryst gone wrong in a creepy old house. But as author David Dominé sits in on the trials, a deeper story emerges: the struggle between hope for a better future on the one hand and the privilege and power of the status quo on the other. As the court testimony devolves into he-said/he-said contradictions, David draws on the confidences of neighbors, drag queens, and other acquaintances within the city's vibrant LGBTQ community to piece together the details of the case. While uncovering the many past lives of the mansion itself, he enters a murky underworld of gossip, neighborhood scandal, and intrigue.

In the Hall with the Knife

In the Hall with the Knife
Author: Diana Peterfreund
Publisher: Abrams
Total Pages: 275
Release: 2019-10-08
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 1683356411

A murderer could be around every corner in this thrilling YA trilogy based on the board game CLUE! When a storm strikes at Blackbrook Academy, an elite prep school nestled in the woods of Maine, a motley crew of students—including Beth “Peacock” Picach, Orchid McKee, Vaughn Green, Sam “Mustard” Maestor, Finn Plum, and Scarlet Mistry—are left stranded on campus with their headmaster. Hours later, his body is found in the conservatory and it’s very clear his death was no accident. With this group of students who are all hiding something, nothing is as it seems, and everyone has a motive for murder. Fans of the CLUE board game and cult classic film will delight in Diana Peterfreund’s modern reimagining of the brand, its characters, and the dark, magnificent old mansion with secrets hidden within its walls.

Murder in Negative Space

Murder in Negative Space
Author: Neal Sanders
Publisher: CreateSpace
Total Pages: 236
Release: 2015-02-20
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9781508554974

An internationally acclaimed Russian floral designer is found murdered in a Boston hotel ballroom. Who killed her? And why?Valentina Zhukova is a glamorous, globetrotting floral designer; the “Queen of Negative Space” and “Vladimir Putin's favorite flower arranger”. But in the hours before the opening of the prestigious International Floral Design Alliance conference in Boston, someone stabbed her and then hung her body from a massive floral design.Six weeks after solving the murder of the Executive Director of the New England Botanical Society, Lieutenant Victoria Lee and young, computer-savvy Detective Jason Alvarez are again plunged into a world where flowers and horticulture can be grounds for homicide. They quickly learn that Zhukova was both more and less than the woman she seemed. The proud granddaughter of a World War II hero, she was also an ardent nationalist who toed the Kremlin line, and someone who relished inflicting on those around her. Who killed Zhukova? With an international cast of suspects, Lee and Alvarez – aided by suburban garden club president Liz Phillips – find few who knew her will mourn her death. Murder in Negative Space takes you into a world where 'amateur' designers are deadly serious about their work.

Mystery Night Murder

Mystery Night Murder
Author: Leslie Langtry
Publisher: Gemma Halliday Publishing
Total Pages: 132
Release: 2019-04-02
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1947110756

From USA Today bestselling author Leslie Langtry comes the next Merry Wrath mystery about one former CIA agent turned Girl Scout Troop leader who is playing the deadly game of her life! Mrs. Gable in the Conservatory with a noose? It was supposed to be a fun weekend of pretend murder. Girl Scout Troop leader Merry Wrath and four of her scouts play an important role at the Murder Mystery Night Fundraiser on a secluded island in the middle of Dead Otter Lake. The guests, major donors, have all arrived in period costume, are eager to play, and can’t wait for the "killer" to strike! Mr. Blunt in the Ballroom with a lead pipe? Unbeknownst to them, a very real murderer roams the mansion’s halls, and the first victim falls with the first round of cocktails. A violent storm leaves the guests stranded and cut off from the outside world, as our cast of characters, one by one, are dying off in a very real mystery in a very unusual house. Of course, people aren’t who they seem and red herrings abound, throwing a wrench into the investigation. Did the Butler do it? With a nod to a mystery classic, can Merry solve this case and catch a killer before there’s no one else left to play the game? Merry Wrath Mysteries: Merit Badge Murder – book #1 Mint Cookie Murder – book #2 Scout Camp Mystery – short story in the "Killer Beach Reads" collection Marshmallow S'More Murder – book #3 Movie Night Murder – book #4 Mud Run Murder – book #5 Fishing Badge Murder – short story in the "Pushing Up Daisies" collection Motto for Murder – book #6 Map Skills Murder – book #7 Mean Girl Murder – book #8 Marriage Vow Murder – book #9 Mystery Night Murder – book #10 Meerkats and Murder– book #11 What critics are saying about Leslie Langtry's books: "I laughed so hard I cried on multiple occasions while reading MARSHMALLOW S'MORE MURDER! Girl Scouts, the CIA, and the Yakuza... what could possibly go wrong?" ~ Fresh Fiction "Darkly funny and wildly over the top, this mystery answers the burning question, 'Do assassin skills and Girl Scout merit badges mix…" ~ RT BOOKreviews "Mixing a deadly sense of humor and plenty of sexy sizzle, Leslie Langtry creates a brilliantly original, laughter-rich mix of contemporary romance and suspense." ~ Chicago Tribune "Langtry gets the fun started from page one with a myriad of clever details." ~ Publisher's Weekly

Murder at Ochre Court

Murder at Ochre Court
Author: Alyssa Maxwell
Publisher: Kensington Books
Total Pages: 318
Release: 2018-07-31
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1496703375

For fans of HBO’s The Gilded Age, explore the dark side of the alluring world of America’s 19th century elite in this gripping series of riveting mysteries… In the summer of 1898, reporter Emma Cross investigates a shocking death among the bright lights of Newport's high society . . . After a disappointing year as a society columnist for the Herald, Emma has returned to the salty air, glittering ocean vistas, and grand stately mansions of Newport, Rhode Island, more determined than ever to report on hard news. But for now she’s covering the social event of the season at Ochre Court, a coming-out ball designed to showcase Cleo Cooper-Smith, who will be on display as Cleopatra in an elaborate tableau vivant. But as the deb ascends to her place of honor, the ballroom is plunged into darkness. When the lights come back on, Cleo sits still on her throne, electrocuted to death. Quickly establishing that the wiring was tampered with, Emma now has a murder to investigate. As Emma begins to discover this crime has unseen connections to a nefarious network, she puts her own life at risk to shine a light on the dark motives behind a merciless murder . . . “Plenty of red herrings and an intimate look at the world of the wealthy and famous make for a rich broth of a mystery.”—Kirkus Reviews

Murder in the Kitchen

Murder in the Kitchen
Author: Alice B. Toklas
Publisher: Penguin UK
Total Pages: 72
Release: 2011-04-07
Genre: Cooking
ISBN: 0141965908

In this memoir-turned-cookbook, Alice B. Toklas describes her life with partner Gertrude Stein and their famed Paris salon, which entertained the great avant-garde and literary figures of their day. With dry wit and characteristic understatement Toklas ponders the ethics of killing a carp in her kitchen before stuffing it with chestnuts; decorating a fish to amuse Picasso at lunch; and travelling across France during the First World War in an old delivery truck, gathering local recipes along the way. She includes a friend's playful recipe for 'Haschiche Fudge', which promises 'brilliant storms of laughter and ecstatic reveries', much like her book.

Halloween Murder

Halloween Murder
Author: Leslie Meier
Publisher: Kensington Books
Total Pages: 432
Release: 2018-08-28
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1496718356

Treat yourself to two novels from the New York Times-bestselling author: “I like Lucy Stone a lot, and so will readers.”—Carolyn Hart, New York Times-bestselling author of the Bailey Ruth Mysteries For Lucy Stone, Halloween in Tinker’s Cove, Maine, the treats aren’t just sweet and delicious. Sometimes they’re also deadly. Included in this volume are: Trick or Treat Murder While Lucy is whipping up orange-frosted cupcakes for her town’s annual Halloween festival, an arsonist is on the loose in Tinker’s Cove. When the crimes escalate into murder, a little digging in all the wrong places puts Lucy too close to a shocking discovery that could send all her best-laid plans up in smoke… Wicked Witch Murder Not everyone in Tinker’s Cove is enchanted with newcomer Diana Ravenscroft and her quaint little shop offering everything from jewelry to psychic readings. But the gruesome murder of Diana’s friend has Lucy uncovering a deadly web of secrets—and a spine-chilling brush with the things that go bump in the night… “A down-to-earth sleuth.”—Library Journal “Reading a new Leslie Meier mystery is like catching up with a dear old friend.”—Kate Carlisle, New York Times bestselling author