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AMATEUR SLEUTH/CATS/ COZY/CULINARY/HOLIDAY/ HUMOR/ROMANTIC/
WHODUNIT MYSTERY
CANDY CANE MURDER
by Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine, Leslie Meier
CANDY CANE MURDER by Joanne Fluke - Bakery owner Hannah Swensen feels a little too stuffed in her elf costume but it's too late to count calories.  Lake Eden's annual Christmas gala is upon her and eager children are waiting.  Wayne Bernstrom, owner of Bergstrom's department store, happily ho-ho-hos his way through the festivities in his Santa suit.  But when a trail of candy canes leads to his corpse in a snow bank, Hannah must find Kris Kringle's killer.  Includes 8 dessert recipes.

THE DANGERS OF CANDY CANES by Laura Levine. When a wealthy suburbanite takes a tumble off his roof while installing a giant candy cane, the roofing contractor being held responsible for murder asks freelance writer Jaine Austen to investigate.

CANDY CANES OF CHRISTMAS PAST by Leslie Meier.  Twenty years ago Lucy Stone arrived at Tinker's Cove, Maine, and discovered her knack for solving mysteries when she met Miss Tilley, the town librarian, whose mother took a fatal fall down the stairs one Christmas Eve.
Read A Review:

Three of my most favorite authors under one jacket, what more can one ask for? Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine and Leslie Meier not only wrote some fun mysteries for our enjoyment this holiday season but included yummy recipes as well.

Candy Cane Murder (Hannah Swenson) – Joanne Fluke: The town’s wealthiest, but stingiest, man playing Santa is found by Hannah and her sisters bludgeoned to death after his appearance at Lake Eden Inn’s annual Christmas party. Although Mike Kingston, a detective and one of Hannah’s boyfriends, urges her strongly not to get involved, Hannah is determined to track down the murderer. Hannah finds herself with an endless list of suspects and getting to close for comfort. With the assistance of her sisters and Norman, saved by only her wit and quick thinking, Hannah manages to find the murderer and enjoy Christmas with her family and friends.

The Danger of Candy Canes (Jane Austin)– Laura Levine: With all the excitement that Christmas brings, even adults become children decorating with all the holiday glitz and glitter. It’s a glorious time except on Hysteria Lane where decorating is a serious business. When one of its wealthy residences falls off the roof while decorating, a roofing contractor finds himself in a lawsuit for negligence. Positive of his work, he contacts Jane Austin for her investigative experience. What she finds is a neighborhood full of devious people with dirty secrets including one that nearly cost her life.

Candy Canes of Christmas Past (Lucy Stone) – Leslie Meier: First year in Tinker Cove found pregnant Lucy Stone tending to an energetic toddler and living in a home that could have easily been put on a condemned list. Needing a diversion, while her husband was happily making all the repairs, it didn’t take long before Lucy found herself thrown into a 50 year old possible murder investigation for Miss Tilly, the town’s librarian. When her mother met with a fatal accident, Miss Tilly feared her father’s possible involvement. So with a list of suspects (many of them long gone) and only a broken glass candy cane as a clue, Lucy set out to find the truth, giving some kind of resolvement for her new found friend.

If you love cozies, especially holiday ones, you will truly enjoy this book and if you love the authors as much as I do, I guarantee you will not be disappointed with this Christmas anthology. Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine and Lucy Stone brought nothing less than what we have come to expect from them in addition gifting us with 15 new recipes.

Skye Lindborg