Christmas Candy Corpse

Christmas has come early to the beautiful Poconos resort that’s the setting for the American Baking Battle’s holiday special, where chef Courtney Archer is on hand to sample festive fare—and lift the lid off a killer . . . Six ambitious bakers are competing for glory and a grand prize, showcasing their most delicious candies, cookies, and desserts. Courtney detects some on-set grinchiness from her coworkers, especially judge Shannon Collins, but she’s hoping the sweet treats will restore everyone’s festive spirits. That Christmas wish swiftly fizzles when assistant director Kinzy Hummel is found strangled—with an apron from Shannon’s new product line . . . Shannon insists she’s innocent. Meanwhile, Kinzy had been under pressure from a disgruntled attorney to settle her late grandfather’s estate. But could that be a motive for murder? The show must go on even as Courtney sifts through competitors and crew for likely suspects. But unless she can quickly get to the truth, there’ll be another helping of homicide amid the pinwheel cookies and fruitcakes . . .

"Welcome to Candy Cane Hollow, where every day feels like Christmas! Holly Wood (yes, that's her real name) is driving home for Christmas and not feeling too happy about the empty house waiting for her. When her car skids into a snow bank, she's rescued by a sweet old lady who promises her name is Mrs Claus. Holly is taken to Candy Cane Hollow to recover, and finds herself in a genuine winter wonderland. As Christmas Day approaches, the grouchy medical receptionist appears to have been poisoned by a mince pie. And to Holly's surprise, Mrs Claus is the prime suspect. With Mrs Claus under suspicion, Holly vows to return the woman's generosity by clearing her name. Maybe it will impress Mrs Claus' dimpled dish of a son, too?"--Provided by publisher.

Out of the frying pan, into the fire . . . Courtney Archer is known for hosting the show Cooking with the Farmer’s Daughter . . . despite the fact that she’s actually a pediatrician’s daughter. Now she’s signed on for a role on The American Baking Battle. On this reality show, she can start developing a more authentic image for herself—and as a bonus, the usual backstabbing and manufactured drama isn’t part of the Baking Battle script. But genuine drama is heating up behind the scenes . . . During a film shoot in the scenic Pocono Mountains, Courtney has to juggle career commitments like pots on a six-burner stove. Adding to the stress is Mick, a contestant who finds out about her fake farm-girl story. Determined to succeed at her new gig, she whips up a cherry cobbler in a cast-iron fry pan one evening and leaves it out to cool. But the next morning, it’s Mick’s body that’s cooling—right next to Courtney’s pan, now classified as a murder weapon . . .

Cass Peake's web design company accepts a job to bolster the local college's efforts in attracting new students. With the winter break, she and her colleagues expect a very quiet campus. What they don't anticipate is the reunion of a strange secret society called The Black Triangle Club on the grounds… and a dead body. Then corpses start piling up like gifts under a Christmas tree. Coincidence or not? With the help of her ghostly friend Doris and other allies, Cass works frantically to uncover the real killer. But it might take a real holiday miracle to solve this Yuletide mystery.

It may be Christmas in Tupelo, but Callie Valentine Jones' not-quite-ex Jack is trussed up like a holiday turkey recovering from a shattered leg, cousin Lovie's looking for love in all the wrong stockings, and Elvis the basset hound is out for revenge on a sneaky Lhasa Apso. Everyone finally gets into the spirit when Uncle Charlie is pressed into service as Santa at a weekend charity event in the mall. But Yuletide cheer turns to Yuletide fear after a killer tries to zap Charlie back to the North Pole marked "Return to Sender." Determined to find out who's decking the mall with Christmas corpses, Elvis and the Valentines fill up their sleigh with suspects as they attempt to unmask a devil in disguise in time to turn their "Blue Christmas" all Christmas-y and white. "Settle in for a ridiculously funny holiday mystery." --Library Journal "Ditzy. . .Elvis fans in need of a deep-fried farce may find this finger-lickin' good." --Publishers Weekly "Callie Valentine-Jones is the spunkiest dog-loving hairdresser to sleuth in a long time." --RT Book Reviews

Snowy mountains, a picture-perfect Christmas village and- Wait! Who's that dead among the pine trees? Izzy Palmer must deal with a pack of snowbound suspects in this hilarious new standalone Christmas mystery.

’Tis the season for suspicion in thesethree Christmas crime-solving confections—with recipes! “Entertaining…a sweet holiday treat for mystery lovers.”—Publishers Weekly ’Tis the season for trimming the tree, caroling, baking cookies, and waiting for Santa to drop down the chimney. But in this festive collection of whodunits, murder is also paying a visit… Candy Cane Murder by New York Times-bestselling author Joanne Fluke When a trail of candy canes leads to a corpse outfitted in a Santa suit on a snowy bank, Hannah Swensen sets out to discover who killed Kris Kringle… The Dangers of Candy Canes by Laura Levine A wealthy suburbanite takes a lethal tumble off his roof while installing a giant candy cane. Now it’s up to Jaine Austen to sift through a long list of scheming neighbors with dirty secrets in their stockings to expose a murderer… Candy Canes Of Christmas Past by New York Times-bestselling author Leslie Meier Lucy Stone must learn the mystery of a glass candy cane found smashed to bits near a corpse—to unlock the doors of Christmas past and find a killer who got away with murder. Includes over 10 luscious holiday recipes! Scrumptious praise for Candy Cane Murder: “Like a box of holiday chocolates, this recipe-studded assortment gives all readers a crack at their favorites.”—Kirkus Reviews “Delicious…will have your mouth watering.”—Romantic Times

A giant, black bat takes candy from bullies on Halloween and gives it to good little boys and girls on Christmas in this anti-bullying tale for children of all ages.