USA Today bestselling author Connie Shelton introduces her most delightful cozy mystery series yet—with a little romance, a little magic and a whole lot of chocolate! In this third book in the Samantha Sweet cozy mystery series, it's Christmas and a quirky Romanian chocolatier shows up at Sweet's Sweets, offering to create a special line of hand-dipped chocolates for Samantha's customers. He says he will work for no pay, just to prove himself. But when she learns that he has connections to the wooden box which seems to give Sam her mystical powers, she discovers that certain evil people may do just about anything to take it away from her. With the same combination of mystery, romance and that touch of the paranormal for which the series has become known, Sweet Holidays carries the reader into the special and magical world of northern New Mexico at the holiday season. Readers are raving about these lighthearted, relaxing, well-written books—Samantha may not be young, beautiful or have the perfect body, but she is intelligent, independent, and hard working, the kind of person you feel you already know. * * * Praise for USA Today bestseller Connie Shelton's previous mysteries: "Connie Shelton gets better with every book she writes." -- Midwest Book Review "Shelton again has done a superb job in bringing New Mexico to life." -- Albuquerque Journal "Connie Shelton has another winner." --The Book Report USA Today bestselling author Connie Shelton is the author of three ongoing mystery series. In the Samantha Sweet cozy mystery books, Connie draws upon her own love of baking (and eating) pastries to bring a sweet element to the business of solving crimes for her new female sleuth. Her original series features female accountant and part-time sleuth, Charlie Parker and her loyal sidekick dog, in a series that is now eighteen books strong. And her Heist Ladies series features a group of women friends who steal stuff … from the bad guys! Connie and her husband live in northern New Mexico with their two dogs. Visit her website at connieshelton.com Search words: mystery, mystery series, series books, holiday stories, Christmas mystery stories, bakery, culinary mystery, paranormal mystery, paranormal romance, romantic suspense, romance

CRIMINALLY COCOA As if being in New York City for Easter isn’t exciting enough, Charlotte Weaver is helping her cousin, Bailey, on the set of her first cable TV show, Bailey’s Amish Sweets. Charlotte notices odd events intended to make Bailey look bad . . . and realizes her cousin has a dangerously jealous rival. Can she find out who—before someone’s sour grapes turn fatally bitter? BOTCHED BUTTERSCOTCH Mother’s Day is a sweet and busy time at the candy shop Bailey King runs with her Amish grandmother. This year, Bailey’s parents are visiting, and for Mother’s Day Tea at the local church, Bailey’s whipping up her mom’s favorite: butterscotch fudge. All’s going well, until a sticky-fingered thief makes off with the money raised for a local women’s support group. Can Bailey find the culprit before events boil over into disaster? CANDY CANE CRIME Thanks to her new cable TV show, Bailey’s shop has more orders than she can handle this Christmas. Fortunately, her beloved Cousin Charlotte is organizing the Candy Cane Exchange, pairing sweet notes with a peppermint treat. Charlotte is delighted to discover she may have a secret admirer…until she sees something underhanded going on beneath the merrymaking. Can she stop a local Grinch before the holiday, and her fledgling romance, are ruined? Recipes Included! Praise for Amanda Flower and her Amish cozies “As it turns out, Amanda Flower may have just written the first Amish rom com.” —USA Today “Flower has hit it out of the ballpark . . . and continues to amaze with her knowledge of the Amish way of life.” —RT Book Reviews “At turns playful and engaging . . . a satisfyingly complex cozy.” —Library Journal

The Jewish year is blessed with many holidays, and each one has its special food. From Rosh Hashanah to Shavuot, from the Seder meal to the Sabbath meal, food celebrates the season and commemorates the miraculous. With lyrical prose and rich, vivid paintings, renowned artist Mark Podwal takes an inspired look at the age-old bond between the sacred and the sumptuous in this glorious gift book for any holiday in the Jewish year.

Simple treats turn dangerously tricky on the set of an Amish cooking show in this mystery by the Agatha Award-winning author of Assaulted Caramel. For Easter this year, Charlotte Weaver is leaving Amish country with her cousin Bailey on her first trip to New York City. She’s thrilled to see the skyscrapers and Times Square, and even more excited to help Bailey on the set of her new cable TV show, Bailey’s Amish Sweets. For the first episode, Bailey is making her famous hand-woven chocolate Easter baskets. But what ought to be a seamless shoot keeps hitting snags, and Charlotte begins to wonder if someone is out to make her sweet cousin look bad. With Bailey feeling nervous about being on camera, Charlotte decides to keep her suspicion of sabotage to herself. But she knows that Bailey has a dangerously jealous rival hiding among her fans at the Gourmet Television network. As the mishaps get increasingly dangerous, Charlotte will have to sift out the saboteur before her trip to the Big Apple turns fatally bitter. Recipe Included!

Finally, a cookie book that’s sweet and sassy! Sweet Talk Cookies has gloriously out-of-the-ordinary cookie designs. If you’re sick of the same-old cookies, if you can’t possibly decorate another bland tree or stocking, look no further. Hayley Callaway, founder of Hayley Cakes and Cookies (@thehayleycakes), has just what you need—whether that’s a taco truck and message cookie that says “Feed me and tell me I’m pretty” or a T-rex hanging Christmas lights. When it comes to designs, this is a book filled with cookies that have character, for year-round fun. Chapters span the seasons, including both holiday-related motifs and designs that simply celebrate something like summer fun (helllooo snow cones!). If you’re looking to really make these cookies your own, you’ll love the creative lettering workshop. Once you master the art of writing with icing, you can customize to your heart’s content! Inside, you’ll find all this and more: A complete cookie class: Outlining all the key materials and techniques needed in the rest of the book. Recipes: Hayley’s signature cookie and icing recipes. Writing workshop: The key to making the cookies your own! Holiday cookies: Cookies to pop the bubbly and celebrate the New Year, fa-boo-lous Halloween cookies, ideas for your Valentine, and even a couple birthday party cookies. Animal cookies: A whole farm of mini-animals as well as bears, a rainbow turtle, even unicorns! Christmas cookies: Just try and pick your favorite from the what’s crackin’ nutcracker, Rudolph the sprinkle-nose reindeer, and a cookie that is decorated like a tray of Christmas cookies. Summer cookies: Have some fun in the sun with mermaids, fancy seashells, watermelon, tie-dye shirts, and more. And even more cool designs: Cowboy boots, eggs and bacon, carved woodgrain, a watercolor cactus...the sky’s the limit! If you are the type of person who demands cookies not only taste good, but be in good taste, this is your cookie book soul mate!

From the authors of the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day series comes a holiday and celebration cookbook that uses the same groundbreaking quick and easy baking method. Zoë François and Jeff Hertzberg shocked the baking world when they proved that homemade yeast dough could be stored in the refrigerator to use whenever you need it. Now, they’ve done it again with Holiday and Celebration Bread in Five Minutes a Day, a cookbook with savory, sweet, healthy, and decadent recipes for every occasion. Every culture has its great bread traditions for holidays and celebrations—traditional Christmas loaves from Ukraine, Greece, Germany, Italy and Scandinavia; celebration breads from France and Israel; Easter breads from the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Austria to name a few. The book is chock-full of fragrant, yeasted treats made for celebrations and special occasions. All the old standbys are here, plus delicious examples from around the world. All were too time-consuming and painstaking to make at home—until now. In 100 clear and concise recipes that build on the successful formula of their bestselling series, Holiday and Celebration Bread will adapt their ingenious approach for high-moisture stored dough to a collection of breads from the four corners of the globe. This beautiful cookbook has color photos of every bread and includes step-by-step collages. With Zoë and Jeff’s help, you’ll be creating breads that rival those of the finest bakeries in the world—with just five minutes a day of active preparation time.

From No.1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery comes a witty and heartfelt story of two friends who unexpectedly find the person — and the place in which — they belong this Christmas. With twinkling humour and heartfelt Christmas spirit, two friends find love in a town called Wishing Tree… Until Camryn Neff can return to her ‘real’ life in Chicago, she’s in Wishing Tree to care for her twin sisters. She’s not looking for forever love, not here. But handsome hotelier Jake Crane is a temptation she can’t resist, so she suggests they pair up for the season. No golden rings, no broken hearts. At his side, she sees her hometown through Christmas-colored eyes. The cheer is cheerier, the joy more joyful. She thought she had put her future on hold…but maybe her real life was here all along, waiting for her to come home. New in town, River Best is charmed by Wishing Tree’s homespun traditions and warmhearted people. When she’s crowned Snow Queen, she’s honored but wary. Dylan Tucker, her king, seems like the stuff of sugarplum dreams, but she can’t shake the feeling that he’s hiding something big. As they perform their ‘royal’ duties — tasting cookies, lighting trees — Dylan’s good humour and melty kisses draw her to the brink of love. But she can’t let herself fall until she uncovers his secret, even if her lack of faith means losing him forever.