Give Fudge A Chance

It’s time for cozy readers to return to the magic of Mackinac Island where sleuth extraordinaire Allie McMurphy solves another unsolved murder in Nancy Coco’s perennially popular Candy-Coated Mystery series. FORECAST: FAIR WIH A CHANCE OF MURDER . . . The Mackinac County fair is in full swing, and the air is rich with the scent of funnel cakes and the sound of carnival rides. Allie is focused on the fudge competition—another win would really put her hotel and fudge shop on the map. But she’s willing to take a little break and walk through the haunted house attraction with her friend Jenn. When they come across a body, though, it turns out not to be a prop. Soon Allie’s cop boyfriend is on the scene, and the sleuthing confectioner is hunting for clues. Danger strikes too close to home when the hotel becomes the scene of a suspicious fatal accident, and Allie suspects the two deaths are connected. The case is turning into a real rollercoaster. Allie will need to hold on tight . . . Praise for Nancy Coco and the Candy-Coated Mysteries “I will be counting down the days until the next mystery with Allie McMurphy.” —Cozy Mystery Book Reviews “Full of disguises, danger, and one determined amateur sleuth.” —Fresh Fiction “A sweet series for cozy mystery readers.”—Parkersburg News & Sentinel

Fans of the perennially popular Candy-Coated Mystery series featuring Allie McMurphy are treated to a holiday e-novella in which Allie’s frequent sleuthing partner Carol Tunisian gets mixed up in a holiday homicide. ’TIS THE SEASON FOR FUDGE—AND SLEUTHING Carol is looking forward to finishing plans for the Mackinac Island Senior Center Christmas Ball. But when she arrives at the center, she finds the door jimmied open and a dead man inside. The victim is a local senior who seems to have been sleeping in the center at night—but why? Although she promises Officer Rex Manning not to involve her book club in solving the mystery, Carol finds a way to fudge around that. Rallying her troop of silver-haired sleuths—and with some support from Ally in between her batches of Christmas fudge -- Carol sets out to discover which grinch tried to steal this Christmas. All she wants from Santa is to get this case wrapped up with a bow! Praise for Nancy Coco and the Candy-Coated Mysteries “I will be counting down the days until the next mystery with Allie McMurphy.” —Cozy Mystery Book Reviews “Full of disguises, danger, and one determined amateur sleuth.” —Fresh Fiction “A sweet series for cozy mystery readers.”—Parkersburg News & Sentinel Help support pet adoption—see details inside.

When her pregnant best friend’s doula is found with a smoking gun, fudge maker Allie McMurphy’s sleuthing becomes a labor of love . . . “A delightful cozy larded with appetizing fudge recipes.” —Kirkus Reviews DID THE DOULA DO IT? April is not only the start of “fudgie” season on picturesque Mackinac Island, it’s when Allie’s BFF Jenn Carpenter is due. Jenn wants to have her baby on the island, so she’s lined up a midwife and a doula. But she’s two weeks overdue—and if one more person tells her she looks ready to pop, she’s going to go bananas. If there was a list of what not to expect when you’re expecting, right at the top would be coming upon your doula holding a gun over the body of her fiance. Clearly in shock, Hannah Riversbend claims not to have shot him. Jenn asks Ally to prove the doula’s innocence before her special delivery arrives. The clock is ticking as Ally races to solve the murder in time for Jenn’s bun to come out of the oven. . .

A bundle of holiday novellas from Nancy Coco’s perennially popular Candy-Coated Mystery series set in Michigan’s Mackinac Island, where sleuth extraordinaire Allie McMurphy and her friends solve murders when she’s not whipping up fudgy delights. ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS FUDGE This Christmas, event planner Jenn Christensen has come back to Mackinac Island to race for charity in the Santa Fun Run, rekindle her love for CSI tech Shane Carpenter, and indulge in her BFF Allie McMurphy’s fabulous fudge. But there’s one event she didn’t plan—chasing down a killer . . . DECK THE HALLS WITH FUDGE In the cozy warmth of their new home, newlywed seniors Frances and Douglas Devaney savor the picture-postcard snowy scenery through their kitchen window. But when they spy a horse-drawn sleigh dashing through the snow bearing a frozen stiff, they’ll have to track down a killer themselves, since Allie McMurphy is busy filling holiday orders for peppermint candy fudge! HAVING A FUDGY CHRISTMAS TIME Carol Tunisian is looking forward to finishing plans for the Mackinac Island Senior Center Christmas Ball. But when she arrives at the center, she finds the door jimmied open and a dead man inside. Rallying her troop of silver-haired sleuths—with some support from Allie McMurphy in between her batches of Christmas fudge—Carol sets out to discover which grinch tried to steal this Christmas! Includes mouth-watering recipes—and a preview excerpt from the next Candy-Coated mystery, Fudge and Murder, coming in April 2025! Praise for Nancy Coco and the Candy-Coated Mysteries “Exciting, compelling . . . intriguing . . . one of my favorite places to visit, especially when Allie makes fudge!” —Open Book Society “A delightfully tasty murder mystery.” —Cozy Mystery Book Reviews “A sweet series for cozy mystery readers.” —Parkersburg News & Sentinel Includes mouth-watering recipes!

The loving friendship of a girl and her colt is severely tested as they endure the threat of being separated due to his coltish antics, that threaten not only his own safety, but that of others. Though this story was written for boys and girls age 8 to 12 this story is loved by children from 8 to 98 that enjoy a warm fuzzy story with many quick turns.

"You’re never too old for a great fairy tale." - 5-star reader's review. A funny and quirky fantasy fairy tale for adults complete with mystery, murder, romance! The mystical green planet of Rendaz is home to devout goddess worshiper and university professor, middle-aged Beautimus Potamus—who also happens to be a hippo plagued by hot flashes and poor self-esteem. Beautimus forms an alliance with Samuel S. Goodwings, a younger womanizing, atheist praying mantis. When these two are together, life morphs from the mundane into the fantastic. Our unlikely duo solves mysteries, bring a murderer to justice, and even help end a war while experiencing their own trials, triumphs, and tragedies. Often with humor, their situations and adventures parody Earth culture. During their exploits, the two interact with a host of characters, including a pair of New Age flamingos, an A.D.H.D. afflicted trout, an orangutan detective, and a 310-year-old blue crane High Priestess. All of these creatures are more “human” in surprising ways than the citizens of the blue planet, Earth, we discover was once a Rendazian Colony. Beautimus Potamus’ tongue-in-cheek story is a magical fable-stew made with the ingredients of satire, drama, social commentary, and comedy, with jests, puns and wordplay sprinkled throughout. For good measure, a generous pinch of romantic flavoring is thrown into the pot. Readers' reviews: "Truly a splendid and extraordinary story. It was refreshing to find something so original. Well written, vivid descriptions, great humor and delightful characters." "So often we limit our reading to books by Dan Brown, John Grisham, Nicholas Sparks or Michael Connelly and we [...] miss the gems by new writers that put their heart, soul and dreams on paper to let our imaginations go where theirs have. This is one of those gems." If you liked this book, you should check out Peggy's dystopian tale, Chaco as well! About the author Peggy A. Wheeler is a writer of fantastical fiction. Her debut novel, THE RAVEN'S DAUGHTER is published by Dragon Moon Press in Canada. Peggy studied English and Creative Writing at the U.C.L.A., where she was the only undergraduate chosen to study with Robert Pinsky, former Poet Laureate of the United States. Peggy has led adult poetry and fiction writing critique groups and workshops in both Colorado and California.

“This is a comprehensive volume capturing the Lardner style and offering a considerable insight into America’s favorite sportswriter… Ron Rapoport has done a superb job in his selection“—The New York Journal of Books “Frank Chance's Diamond is a time machine. . .Lardner's writing reveals its exuberance and innocence, and exposes its prejudices, all while highlighting the joys of the era's baseball.”— Epoch Times At one time Ring Lardner’s baseball articles reached millions of readers through more than one hundred newspapers throughout America. Admirers of his writing included F. Scott Fitzgerald, H.L. Mencken, Edmund Wilson, and Virginia Woolf. He was as familiar to Americans in the 1920s as Charles Lindbergh, Calvin Coolidge, Henry Ford, and Babe Ruth. His articles about the players he knew, his World Series coverage, his poems, parodies, and jokes were unlike any other baseball reporting ever written, both in his time and since. Even a hundred years later, Lardner’s baseball journalism makes for delightful, often wildly funny, reading and offers a glimpse of where his ground-breaking baseball fiction came from. This book contains Lardner’s columns about Christy Mathewson, Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Casey Stengel, and Three-Finger Mordecai Brown and some fabulous lesser-known characters like Frank Schulte, Heine Zimmerman, Jim Schekard, Johnny Kling, Rollie Zeider, and Peaches Graham, as well as examples of Lardner’s coverage of the World Series—including the notorious 1919 Black Sox Series. Ron Rapoport’s introduction puts Lardner in his time and place and explains how his writing about baseball developed over the years.