Showing results by author "Joanna Campbell Slan" in All Categories

The arrival of Kiki's baby is cause for celebration, but Kiki herself suffers from a severe case of post-partum blues. Her mood darkens further when she learns that her friend Bonnie's newborn infant has been stolen from a local hospital. Bonnie is too grief-stricken to help the authorities. Can Kiki pull herself together long enough to step in? Bonnie won't talk to anyone else.

The school nurse calls to say that Kiki's daughter has stumbled over the corpse of a dead teacher. But don't worry. Everything's all right. (Ha!). And Kiki might just believe that a badly shaken daughter is the worst of her worries . . . EXCEPT that pre-teen Anya might have actually seen the killer fleeing the scene of the crime. Now Kiki must track down a murderer before the creep "guarantees" Anya's silence forever. After taking a vow to have nothing to do with her crush, the hunky police detective, Kiki is all on her own.

In front of a meeting room full of customers and merchants, Kiki watches helplessly as a rival crafter takes one bite of a scone and goes into anaphylactic shock. Suddenly all eyes turn to Kiki Lowenstein, who was Dead Woman's archenemy. Just that fast, Kiki's moment of triumph turns into a disaster. Just when Kiki was settling into her new job, her first real career, she's become the poster child for dead customers. But Kiki's life isn't all doom and gloom. On the bright side, her mother-in-law has invited her to a gala event. A spa day is in order . . . and that doesn't go as planned either.

When a young caregiver is falsely accused of stealing from her elderly client, Cara Mia Delgatto refuses to stand by with her mouth shut. That famous Italian temper of Cara's is hotter than a bottle rocket. Instead of ignoring the girl's plight, Cara launches her own investigation, even though she has plenty to keep her busy at her store, The Treasure Chest, a shop specializing in upcycling, recycling, and repurposing with a coastal theme. If that wasn't enough, Cara's new beau has disappeared—vanished!—and she's forced to wonder how her taste in men could possibly be so bad?

This Christmas, shop owner Kiki Lowenstein has more than holiday crafts on her mind. As she juggles family responsibilities, her thriving business, and preparations for her famous Holiday Crafting Extravaganza, a series of mysterious burglaries plagues their quiet town of Webster Groves, a suburb of St. Louis. Kiki soon finds herself drawn into a sinister plot that goes far beyond stolen jewelry. With the help of her loyal Great Dane Gracie, her intuitive employee Nona, and a cast of colorful local characters, Kiki must unravel a web of deceit.

If you love Christmas whodunits, small-town sleuths, and canine partners who always sniff out the truth, this festive double-feature brings together two fan-favorite series: Steve & Rochester from the Golden Retriever Mysteries and Kiki & Gracie from the Kiki Lowenstein Mysteries.

Cara Mia Delgatto is doing historical research when she visits the House of Refuge, a way station for shipwrecked sailors, on Hutchinson's Island, Florida. But Cara gets a dose of historical reality when another visitor is stabbed—and she's called upon to administer first aid. The subsequent death of the victim weighs heavily on Cara. The police are stymied, but Cara is spunky and determined. Until she finds out whodunnit—and why—she's haunted by the senseless murder.

There are two sides to every divorce . . . yours and the jerk's. In this case, there's Clancy's side and then there's the JERK's side. Of course, Kiki sides with Clancy because they're BFFs (Best Friends Forever). As for the JERK, well, the poor guy can't make up his mind.

Cragan calls an emergency meeting of the Friday Night Mystery Club. Can their combined talents prove that Pru is innocent? And will they find an answer in time to save Cragan from the wrath of a vengeful shooter?

Good-hearted Kiki Lowenstein plans a Halloween charity crop at a historic haunted house. The crafting is going great until someone attacks Laurel, one of Kiki's employees. The attack puts a real damper on the festivities. Sure, there are tons of reasons to hate Laurel. She's beautiful, shapely, and intelligent. But she's also kind and gentle. Why would anybody want to see her dead? Hint: Maybe it's because of her second job?

As the mother of an active toddler and the wife of an often absent husband, Kiki Lowenstein already has both hands full. But when the Lowensteins move into their new house on the same day the construction crew leaves, Kiki must learn to juggle boxes, baby, and big expectations. Her determination to be a good neighbor hits a roadblock when she angers the Nordstroms, the couple who live next door. Then things come to an ugly climax when Sven Nordstrom dies under mysterious circumstances. Sadly, Kiki becomes a suspect.

An epidemic of teenage suicides leaves a rural community grieving—and the death toll keeps rising. Can Kiki go undercover as an art teacher at a local high school to help? To clear her calendar, Kiki must juggle multiple obligations and make a tough decision: Can she trust her in-laws (including her alcoholic mother-in-law) to take an out-of-state vacation with her kids? To make everything work, Kiki must move in with her OTHER mother-in-law and that's enough to make Kiki want to commit suicide. Once in place, Kiki suspects these are not just copycat deaths. There's another dynamic at work.

Strange happenings at Ferndean Manor threaten to spoil a Happy Christmas—Country squire Edward Rochester is determined to give his new bride, Jane Eyre, a Christmas to remember. Jane is equally committed to making this holiday special for Edward. But mysterious footsteps, disappearing food, and odd happenings cause both the Rochesters to worry.

Stuart, Florida—A priceless coral and gold artifact intended for a queen disappears from a locked hotel room. The item was on loan as part of a charity event—and Cara Mia Delgatto was one of the first people who entered the empty ballroom. Who else could have stolen it but her? The philanthropic community of South Florida is blaming Cara for the loss—and the charity event is promptly canceled.

An old enemy has put out a contract on Kiki. She's worth a lot more dead than alive, which isn't surprising given the state of Kiki's finances. This would be a good time to focus on work at the scrapbooking and craft store—except Kiki can't shake the memory of those sniper shots raining down. While creating a memorial album for the murdered heiress, Kiki discovers murky family politics that could be a motive for murder. With help from friends in high and low places, including hunky beau Chad Detweiler, Kiki finds herself facing a grave ultimatum.

Cara's life is spinning out of control. A double-wedding is canceled at the last minute. A baby comes early. Her son decides he hates college. But none of that is as upsetting as the death of a young acquaintance, a food service professional with her whole life ahead of her. The drive-by shooting has left the cops without a suspect. Maybe it was simply a random act of violence. But Cara's curiosity, and her innate sense of humanity, drive her to keep asking questions. Who killed the girl with the purple hair? And why?

Yorkshire, 1820. Happily married to a country squire and the mother of a young son, Jane Eyre Rochester enjoys an enviable life, one that as an orphan, she could have never dreamed would come true. But when a cryptic letter from her former student arrives—the writer begs for help—Jane will risk everything to save the life of an innocent child.

The wedding should have been perfect. Kiki Lowenstein certainly did her part to make everything just right for her mother-in-law Sheila's special day. But the discovery of a corpse can put a damper on any festivity. Why did somebody want to cut a retired plastic surgeon out of the big picture?

In this continuation of a new twist to the Sherlock Holmes’ canon, Holmes and Watson reluctantly search for a missing sailor…and stumble on a sinister plan to embarrass and de-throne Queen Victoria. The two friends must work together as never before, in an adventure that takes them under the seas on a wild and harrowing chase to unravel a deadly mystery.

Kiki is eight months pregnant and trying to cram as much ho-ho-ho into the holidays as possible. When a customer drops dead during an offsite event, this intrepid scrapbooking sleuth is left holding the bag. After her name is cleared, Kiki isn't one to sit around while her friends are threatened with false imprisonment. Instead, she vows to wrap up this case and tie it with a bow. Leave it to Kiki to determine who was nice, and who was very, very naughty, indeed. A nasty Christmas Grinch is targeting one of Kiki's friends—and that's just not kosher.