Mimosas, Mischief, and Murder

Moving four times in five years has honed Ellie's considerable skills. But moving with a newborn daughter and husband Mitch in tow, a record-breaking heat wave, and the realization that their dream neighborhood is known as Base Housing East is enough to make her turn to chocolate for comfort. Now half of their neighbors are with the 52nd Air Refueling Squadron. Forget privacy.

Forget peace of mind, too. Driving home from her first squadron barbecue, Ellie finds neighborhood environmental activist Cass Vincent dead on the side of the road. The police call it an accident--Cass, fatally allergic, was stung by wasps--but Ellie's not so sure. And when it looks like Mitch's best friend might be a suspect in the murder, Ellie starts snooping in earnest. What she finds shocks her--and when suspicious "accidents" start happening in her own backyard, Ellie realizes she's getting closer to the killer. . .maybe too close!

"Armed with her baby and her wits, new mom and military spouse Ellie Avery battles to unmask a wily killer in this exciting debut mystery." --Nancy J. Cohen, author of the Bad Hair Day mystery series

Fans of TVs Air Force Wives will appreciate Ellie, a smart crime solver who navigates the challenges of military life. --Publishers Weekly

Some cozies just hit on all cylinders, and Rosetts Ellie Avery titles are among the best. --Library Journal

Flows like a country creek after an all-day rain. --Shine

Ellie Avery balances motherhood, marriage, and her own business--Everything in Its Place--with cheerful efficiency. A maestro of organization, she sees her life as an easy checklist that does not include the untimely death of Penny Follette.

Unlike the police, Ellie isn't convinced Penny's death was suicide. But it's an uphill battle getting the officials to take her seriously. Then another spouse is strangled, and someone tries to poison an outspoken female Air Force pilot. Poking about in closets and peeking through drawers, Ellie hopes to find the common thread tying the crimes together. With her husband Mitch about to be deployed in the "sandbox" (that's the Mideast for us civvies), she wants some quality time with her significant other. As the schedule tightens and the mystery heightens, Ellie's out to prove that home is not for killers!

*Filled with Ellie Avery's Great Organizing Tips*

"Plenty of action and lots of suspects and clues...this is a mystery with a 'mommy lit' flavor. A fun read." --Armchair Interviews

"Thoroughly entertaining. The author's smooth, succinct writing style enables the plot to flow effortlessly until its captivating conclusion." --Romantic Times (four stars)

With swollen feet and swelling belly, pregnant Ellie bravely joins the nation's tourists in seeing the sights in Washington D.C. Husband Mitch has to attend military training, but as Ellie visits monuments and museums, she has other Air Force wives for company, including her best friend Abby. She also plans to catch-up with Mitch's scatter-brained sister Summer, who is finishing college while working as a nanny for a Washington media star, and do a personal favor for her favorite cousin.

Factor in some serious shopping, and this sounds like a fun trip. But before she can take care of her cousin's request, the man she is supposed to meet breaks their date . . . because someone tried to kill him on his way to see her.

Is it a random mugging? Ellie almost buys that explanation. Then a fatal incident at the Metro station, Summer's furtive behavior, and too many people telling lies, as well as keeping secrets, convince Ellie that something is rotten in the nation's capital. Should she do the safe thing and pack her bags? Not likely when Ellie Avery is just the right woman to clean up the most mysterious cases of murder.

Christmastime in England--a time for passionate secrets, delicious whispers, and wicked-sweet gifts by the fire. From a spirited lady who sets out to save her rakish best friend from an unsuitable engagement, to a bold spy who gets the unexpected chance to win the woman he's always loved, to a vicar's daughter who pretends to be a saucy wench, these holiday tales will make you curl up in front of the fire for a memorable season of mischief and mistletoe. . .

"No one writes historical romance better." --Cathy Maxwell on Mary Jo Putney

"Breaks just about every rule in the book and makes us beg for more." --Romantic Times on Jo Beverley

"No mystery is a match for the likeable, efficient Elllie, who unravels this multilayered plot with skill and class."--Romantic Times Book Reviews (four stars)

"Keeps readers moving down some surprising paths--and on the edge of their chairs--until the very end." --Cozy Library

If you enjoy Elizabeth Peter’s Vicky Bliss series or Romancing the Stone, Elusive has the same mix of mystery, international travel, and light romance. 

Zoe Hunter loves living on the edge. Free-spirited and spontaneous, she’s built a life stringing together various freelance gigs that keep her bank account barely in the black.

But when her ex, Jack, goes missing along with several million dollars from his business and the FBI zeros in on her as a person of interest, Zoe’s life goes from delightfully unpredictable to downright frightening.

Plunged into a world of fake identities, deception, and murder, she’s afraid to trust anyone. Zoe impulsively skips town in a search for answers that takes her from Las Vegas to Italy, but instead of tracking down answers, she only uncovers more questions.

Who was Jack? Is he dead or did he fake his disappearance? And, what was he mixed up in—art theft, the mafia, espionage, or all three?

SERIES NOTES: On the Run Series
Book #1:  Elusive
Book #2:  Secretive
Book #3:  Deceptive (coming summer 2013)
 

Single mom Hayley Powell is barely keeping her leaking roof over her head when her boss at the Island Times gives her a new assignment--taking over the paper's food column. Hayley's not sure she has the chops--she's an office manager, not a writer, even if her friends clamor for her mouth-watering potluck dishes. But the extra income is tempting, and Hayley's chatty first column is suddenly on everyone's menu--with one exception.

When rival food writer Karen Appelbaum is found face-down dead in a bowl of Hayley's creamy clam chowder, all signs point to Hayley. To clear her name, she'll have to enlist some help, including her BFFs, a perpetually pregnant lobster woman, and a glamorous real estate agent. As she whips up a list of suspects, Hayley discovers a juicy secret about the victim--and finds herself in a dangerous mix with a cold-blooded killer.

Includes seven delectable recipes from Hayley's kitchen!

"What a delicious debut mystery!" Laura Levine

"A delicious read that I ate up in one sitting." Isis Crawford

More Mouth-Watering Praise For Lee Hollis And Hayley Powell!

"Sleuth Hayley Powell slides down as easily as one of her Lemon Drop Martinis (recipe included) and readers will be calling for a second round from author Lee Hollis." --Leslie Meier, author of Chocolate Covered Murder

Zoe Hunter thought all the questions surrounding her ex’s mysterious past had been answered. She couldn’t have been more wrong.

Free-spirited Zoe lives an unconventional life. She tried the nine-to-five office routine, but it was like the death of a thousand cuts—paper cuts, that is. But still, she couldn’t take it and vowed to make a living outside a cubicle. Now she’s a “Jill of All Trades,” taking on freelance copy-editing, property management, and even dog walking gigs. Sure, it’s a little insecure, but Zoe isn’t exactly what you’d call cautious.

Normally, she loves surprises and the unknown, except when it comes in the form of a mysterious package, visits from the FBI, and thugs showing up on her jogging route. Zoe isn’t sure who she’s more afraid of, the FBI or the thugs, so she makes a snap decision and skips town to follow the clues in the package, which takes her to London, where she suspects she’ll find her ex, Jack.

The authorities think he’s dead, but Zoe doesn’t agree. Can she find her elusive ex? And what about her new tenet with the shy smile and sexy stubble? Why does he keep popping up in her life? Zoe will have to use her rather eccentric skill set to answer those questions, all the while dodging someone who wants to make this trip abroad her last.

Eleanor knows Gregg would never have lethally bashed his own brother in the head with a pizza-rolling pin. Sure, Wade was greedily claiming far more than his fair share of their family inheritance. And Gregg did catch his ex-girlfriend Katy smooching on the couch with Wade. It's no wonder that Timber Ridge's police chief--and Eleanor's ex-sweetheart--has his sights set on finding and arresting poor Gregg.

But as Eleanor and her saucy sister Maddy dig a little deeper into the mystery, they find Wade's enemies begin to outnumber the slices on a large pie. This is one mystery that's made to order, and if Eleanor and Maddy don't find out who killed Wade, Gregg's delivery days are over. But while finding the killer is one thing, escaping alive to dish the goods to the police is quite another.