by Philip Eliot | Dec 9, 2025 | Cozy Mystery |
Homemade baubles, reindeer-shaped cookies and snowy walks across the rolling moors… but Lady Swift’s festive plans are ruined when a body turns up!Winter 1924. When Lady Eleanor Swift unexpectedly finds herself a guest of the reclusive Duke of Auldwyke, she’s determined to enjoy Christmas with all the trimmings at his sprawling manor house. And that includes kisses under the mistletoe and cozying up by the fire with her fiancé, dashing detective Hugh Seldon.Instead, the season of goodwill turns frosty as she finds the Duke’s studious secretary, Mr Porritt, dead in the storeroom. Clasped in his chilly hand is a golden pendant in the shape of a rose. The Dukedenies ever having seen the necklace before. But Eleanor can see the lies in his eyes… Did it belong to his mysteriously absent wife?Hugh and Eleanor must ditch relaxing with hot cocoa in favour of interviewing the Duke’s holiday guests. Every suspect has a secret they’d kill to keep: the socialite with the false name, the Sir with a questionable inheritance and the husband hiding a crack in his marriage.As the blizzard outside rages, Auldwyke Hall becomes cut off. Trapped by the snow, Eleanor and Hugh must skate around the increasingly secretive Duke to unwrap the identity of the killer. But does the answer to the secretary’s murder lie with a ghost of Christmas past? And when an attempt is made on the Duke’s life too, they realise the killer is closer than they think…A gripping and twisty Golden Age murder mystery set in a country house on the Yorkshire moors, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Lee Strauss!What readers are saying about A Midwinter Murder:‘ABSOLUTELY AMAZING… MY FAVOURITE BOOK… I lost count of the amount of times I laughed out loud… absolutely perfect… I absolutely devoured this brilliant read in one sitting as I just could not put it down and gave up on lying to myself saying just one more chapter as that never happened!!’ bookwormwhitlock86,?????‘Oh my goodness… I’m practically bursting to tell you I absolutely loved this book!… Seriously, the twists and turns had me on the edge of my seat!’ The Sassy Bookworm, ?????‘EVERYTHING I was looking for!! … Perfect… Kept me guessing.’ belles_book_nook,?????‘The twists and turns kept me on my toes… Perfect… Utterly delightful… An absolute must-read!’ Goodreads reviewer, ?????Readers love Verity Bright: ‘Unputdownable… Had me hooked immediately… Filled with suspense… Will have you laughing until you’re crying… A page-turning and unputdownable success!’ Bookworm 86, ?????‘I am hooked! This is the best book that I have read this year… An extremely witty, fast-paced mystery… I love the heroine, intrepid adventuress… A most enjoyable read!’ Reviews by Carol in Tallahassee ??????????‘OMG! What an incredible read!… When I devour a book this quickly it only means one thing: I was so enraptured that I couldn’t put it down!’ Celebrating Authors ??????????‘I was literally on the edge of my seat until the last page trying to figure out the mystery. It’s an adorable, captivating book.’ Washington Life Magazine‘I absolutely LOVED this!… Had me hooked… and I kept flipping through the pages because I could not put it down!’ bookishbri_, ?????‘What a wild ride it is!… Gripping… This book is what would happen if Downton Abbey and Agatha Christie had a baby. Fun, fast-paced read with lots of charm!’ The Literary Wife
by Philip Eliot | Dec 9, 2025 | Cozy Mystery |
Abigail Summers, dressmaker in life, brilliant sleuth in death, is at Mayor Crimble’s Christmas disco when local politician, Edward Beaumont is murdered under the mistletoe.With the help of psychic medium, Hayley, and her police constable husband, they realise a mysterious wreath has all the clues they need.Another case emerges after an anonymous letter is sent to the police warning of a centuries-old curse, and Lady Florence Ethelridge asks for Hayley’s help. The curse predicts that there will be three deaths at Hawthorne Manor before the clock strikes twelve on New Year’s Eve.Hayley and the spiritual sleuths have to find the killer before the firework display goes off with more than a bang. But can they solve the case in time?The eighth book in Ann Parker’s Abigail Summers Cozy Mysteries, THE DEADLY CHRISTMAS WREATH weaves together suspense, humour and a touch of the paranormal.
by Philip Eliot | Dec 9, 2025 | Romantic Comedy |
One missing woman, two hopeful hearts, and a trail of sticky notes no one can decipher.When seventy-five-year-old retired botany professor Betty Wilding vanishes—again—her family assumes she’s wandered into another greenhouse or accidentally joined a silent retreat. But Betty isn’t lost. She’s chasing down a long-lost love, a decades-old betrayal, and the truth behind the letters that never reached her.Meanwhile, Daniel Wren, gentle hardware-store philosopher and wearer of tweed in inappropriate seasons, is trying to find Betty, armed with nothing but old memories, unsent letters, and a romantic’s refusal to give up—even when everyone else thinks it’s too late.But nothing is simple in the small town of Willowend, especially with:One fiercely loyal sister with a planner and a temper,A meddling society woman with suspiciously fresh lipstick and a plan of her own,And a pair of middle-aged kids who may just be falling in love while tracking down their runaway parents.Mildly Forgetful, Madly in Love is a charming, heartfelt romantic dramedy for fans of The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. It’s about second chances, the beautiful mess of memory, and what happens when love refuses to be forgotten—even if you sometimes forget where you put your keys.If you like your love stories witty, wistful, and just a little wild, this is the one to add to your cart right now.Because love might grow old—but it never grows up.Updated and re-edited version.
by Philip Eliot | Dec 9, 2025 | Teen & Young Adult |
Their prom night ended in a jail cell with forty of their closest friends. But that’s hardly the worst thing that happened to them…When the principal announces prom is canceled this year, senior Riley Hart is determined to save it. Armed with little more than her own enthusiasm, she ends up working closely with Owen Locklear, who is more than completely off-limits. Because he’s the boyfriend of her ex-BFF, Catherine Reed. Still, Owen knows Riley better than almost anyone, and his charming ideas for turning the prom upside-down and backward win Riley over.Catherine is willing to join Owen and Riley on the prom committee, but only because her legacy as prom queen is at stake. She’s already suffocating under the weight of her parents’ expectations for after senior year, and compared to that, ensuring prom happens should be easy. At least until everything starts to go wrong.First they lose their deposit. Then they book a band full of octogenarians. And lose their venue… Twice.Riley will have an unforgettable teenage experience, damn it, if it’s the last thing she does…
by Philip Eliot | Dec 9, 2025 | General Nonfiction |
A suburban housewife’s picture-perfect life is shattered in this riveting true crime book from the author of Evil Next Door. When Nancy Cooper moved from Canada to Cary, North Carolina, with her new husband Brad, their future was bright. Living in one of the most picturesque towns in the United States, the couple mingled with neighbors, attended parties, and raised two daughters. Then, on July 14, 2008, the façade came crashing down when Nancy’s strangled body was found in a storm pond. Nancy’s husband claimed she had gone for a jog and never came back. But as the police investigation deepened, a complex web of affairs and lies involving multiple residents of Cary’s idyllic neighborhoods was uncovered, and Brad was brought to trial for the murder of his wife. At the heart of it stood the Coopers’ soured marriage, Nancy’s threat to leave with the children, and her own cold-blooded murder. It would take a mountain of damning evidence before justice was served.
