Well, November will be upon us soon, and with it we’ll get another batch of holiday themed mystery novels, all of them Christmas-themed this time. We’ll have five new Christmas themed novels, so let’s jump right into it! (Most of you know just how happy “my” holiday Cozy Mysteries make me! Love ’em!)
First, Lynn Cahoon will be releasing If the Shoe Kills , the third book in the Tourist Trap Mystery Series. Though Cahoon only released her first novel earlier this year, she’s already established her Tourist Trap series, starring Jill Gardner. As always, this novel will center around “Coffee, Books, and More,” Jill’s shop. When the unpleasant manager of the unpopular local internship programs turns up dead in his car, everyone seems willing to chalk it up as a suicide – except Jill of course, who will need to get to the (real!) bottom of this case!
Kathi Daley will be putting out Christmas Cozy, the 11th book in the Zoe Donovan Mystery Series. Zoe’s holiday season is about to take a somewhat grim turn as she goes to visit the Ashton Falls High School Christmas Tree Lot and stumbles across the body of a local teacher. Unfortunately, the lot is run by her best friend, Levi Denton, so she’ll have to work fast to solve this murder in time to insure truly happy holidays! As always, Kathi Daley’s work should include some interesting recipes, presumably Christmas-themed this time around. (Kathi Daley also writes the TJ Jensen Paradise Lake Mystery Series, starring high school teacher and coach, TJ Jensen, and also released the non-mystery Christmas-themed work Road to Christmas Past.)
J.A. Jance will be releasing a novella in her Ali Reynolds Mystery Series, titled A Last Goodbye. This novella will have a very interesting hook for long-time fans of the Ali Reynolds series, as Ali will be getting married to B. Simpson, her long-time fiance. When a stray miniature dachshund winds up in Ali’s care, it seems like the last thing in the world she needs >>> but as she has trouble returning the stray pet to its owner, she starts wondering if something has been done to her! Hopefully she’ll be able to wrap up the mystery before it interrupts her Christmas wedding! (Jance also writes several other highly popular series, most notably the Joanna Brady Mystery Series, starring an Arizona sheriff, as well as the J. P. Beaumont Mystery Series, starring a Seattle homicide detective.)
Jenn McKinlay‘s next book, On Borrowed Time, will be coming out as well. This will be the fifth book in the Library Lover’s Mystery Series, highlighting the continued adventures of Lindsey Norris, Connecticut-based library director. Christmas is going to be busy this year for Lindsey, as she has a bit of personal trouble to take care of >>> her brother, Jack, has gone missing, forcing her to put all of her other holiday plans out of mind as she tried to find out what has happened to him. (Jenn McKinlay writes a number of other very popular series, including the Cupcake Bakery Mystery Series and the Hat Shop Mystery Series, as well as the Decoupage Mystery Series under the name Lucy Lawrence and the Good Buy Girls Mystery Series as Josie Belle.)
Finally, renowned mystery novelist Anne Perry will be releasing the next in her long-running Christmas Mystery Series, A New York Christmas. As has become custom for Anne Perry’s annual holiday release, A New York Christmas will star a character familiar to her avid readers as a support character from her popular Thomas & Charlotte Pitt Mystery Series, this time Jemima Pitt, Thomas Pitt’s daughter, now 23 years old and visiting America for the marriage of her friend Delphinia. (Anne Perry writes many other series, including the William Monk Mystery Series.)
If you would like to see more Cozy Mystery Christmas-themed books, click on this link to take you to the Christmas Mystery page.
(If you are interested in all sorts of holiday mysteries, click on this link to take you to the Holiday Mystery Book page.)
Also, here are the entries I wrote about the Halloween and Christmas mystery books that will be released during this month – October:
Halloween Mystery Books being Released during October 2014
Christmas Mystery Books being Released during October 2014
Christmas Mystery Books being Released during October 2014 – Part 2
Edie says
Not only do I enjoy holiday stories, especially Christmas, but I’m a huge J.A. Jance fan. Looks like it’s going to be an enjoyable run-up to Christmas this year.
Sheila says
Thanks for the list. I don’t want to rush October …. but Christmas books coming out in November look hard to resist.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Sheila, I always think it’s interesting when October brings Christmas mysteries, and very rarely will you find a Halloween one in the mix.
Rose says
Stephanie Barron has a new book, Jane and the Twelve Days of Christmas, Being a Jane Austen Mystery. I believe it is due out Nov or Dec 2014. Just read the advance uncopyedited edition and I liked it. Happy Holidays!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Rose, thank you. I usually write about the Cozy Mystery releases a month in advance. I listed Stephanie Barron’s Jane and the Twelve Days of Christmas at the beginning of September, since it will be released this month. (It probably would make more sense if I actually listed them the month they are going to be published. It would be a lot less confusing!)
If you’d like to take a look at all of the Christmas mysteries that have October as their release date, here are the links:
Christmas Mystery Books being Released during October 2014!
Christmas Mystery Books being Released during October 2014! Part 2!
There are actually so many I split them into two entries!
Rose says
My boo boo! Oops!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Rose, if you just found the site, you’d have no way of knowing I posted that last month.
Now that I think of it, I probably should probably add last month’s link to my current entry so that people who hadn’t seen the entry from last month would know about the current mystery book releases.
Thanks, Rose, I’m glad you posted this. I’m going to go update my entry right now…
Jackie J. Griffey says
What a wealth of good news – thanks to you and our talented members.
Jackie
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Jackie, don’t these Christmas mysteries look good?