Read the latest interview with Agatha Award-winning author Leslie Budewitz on her new short-story collection, Carried to the Grave and Other Stories!

Elaine Davis of Writers Who Kill recently interviewed Leslie on her new story collection. Read the interview here!

And here’s more on Carried to the Grave and Other Stories . . .

In her Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries, Agatha Award-winning author Leslie Budewitz introduces us to Jewel Bay, a tight-knit Montana community that thrives on tourism and farm-to-table fare. Featuring Erin Murphy, beloved proprietor of the Merc—a century-old general store converted into a local foods market—each book brings us closer to the folks who call Jewel Bay home, and the cunning culprits in their midst.

In this delicious new collection of five short stories and one novella, she takes us further into the heart of Jewel Bay—from the playhouse to the Merc, from funerals to food festivals—with equal parts humor, suspense, and compassion, and no shortage of murder to spice up the menu . . .

In Carried to the Grave, a long-hidden family secret refuses to be put to rest.

Jewel Bay’s community food festival serves up the perfect opportunity for a devious killer with an appetite for murder in Pot Luck.

In The Christmas Stranger, a small gesture by a mysterious man turns out to change lives . . . and much more.

A romantic getaway to a secluded beach town in Mexico provides a deadly remedy for a couple’s trouble at home in A Death in Yelapa.

As the local playhouse opens for the season, it’s curtains for a stage manager with a secret in Put on a Dying Face.

And in An Unholy Death, when Kate and Paddy Murphy open Murphy’s Mercantile in 1910, they know making a go of it in rough-and-tumble Montana will be hard work, but for a local preacher, it’s murder.

Praise for the Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries:

“A lighthearted and amusing story with the added bonus of several yummy recipes.” —Mystery Scene

Treble at the Jam Fest has all the necessary elements to satisfy cozy mystery lovers: likeable, believable characters, a fast-moving plot, and a logical ending. Great fun!” —Suspense Magazine

“A pleasing read with a thoughtful heroine, a plethora of red herrings, and some foodie tips.” —Kirkus Reviews

“A delicious mystery as richly constructed as the layers of a buttery pastry. Wine, enchiladas, and song make for a gourmet treat in the coziest town in Montana!” —Krista Davis, New York Times bestselling author of the Domestic Diva Mysteries

“Leslie is a fellow foodie who loves a good mystery and it shows in this delightful tale!” —Cleo Coyle, New York Times bestselling author of the Coffeehouse Mysteries

“Music, food, scenery, and a cast of appealing characters weave together in perfect harmony in Leslie Budewitz’s Treble at the Jam Fest.” —Sheila Connolly, New York Times bestselling author of the Orchard Mysteries and the County Cork Mysteries

“Small-town charm and big-time chills. Jewel Bay, Montana, is a food lover’s paradise.” —Laura Childs, New York Times bestselling author

No Darkness as like Death, a new book in the Mysteries of Old San Francisco series, is available now!

In a new Mystery of Old San Francisco, when a controversial politician is found dead of natural causes, Celia and Nick must prove that his death came about in a most unnatural way . . .

Few in San Francisco were troubled by the news that Ambrose Shaw had been found dead at a local health institute—the prominent banker had recently turned to politics and was reviled by many for his incendiary views. But when Celia Davies learns that his death is considered suspicious by the police and that a damning piece of evidence points to a patient of hers as the culprit, she feels compelled to prove the woman’s innocence.

Teaming up with Detective Nick Greaves, Celia soon discovers there’s no shortage of suspects, including the victim’s many political enemies, his disaffected stepson, who may have been too eager to receive his inheritance, and even the dead man’s fellow patients at the institute, whose founder promises miracle water cures but has been covering up numerous burglaries of his well-to-do clients.

As Celia and Nick struggle with their feelings for each other as well as the many murky aspects of the case, they’ll have to navigate an endless trail of false clues and dead ends to reach the cruel truth behind a perplexing murder . . .

Praise for the Mysteries of Old San Francisco:

“Skillfully brings 1867 San Francisco to life . . . intriguing!” —Anna Lee Huber, bestselling author of the Lady Darby Mysteries

“Entertaining . . . readers who like independent heroines should welcome this historical series.” —Publishers Weekly on No Comfort for the Lost

“Herriman crafts a finely detailed series debut with a sympathetic protagonist and impeccable, colorful depictions of 1860s San Francisco . . . This atmospheric mystery is just the ticket for anyone who misses Dianne Day’s Fremont Jones series as well as readers of Rhys Bowen’s Molly Murphy historicals.” —Library Journal Starred Review of No Comfort for the Lost

“With historical precision and wickedly clever plotting, Nancy Herriman once again weaves a mystery that will have you changing your guess right up until the final reveal . . . I loved it!” —Alyssa Maxwell, author of the Gilded Newport Mysteries

About the Author: Nancy Herriman left an engineering career to take up the pen and has never looked back. She is the author of the Mysteries of Old San Francisco, the Bess Ellyott Mysteries, and several stand-alone novels. A winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award, when she’s not writing, she enjoys singing, gabbing about writing, and eating dark chocolate. After two decades in Arizona, she now lives in her home state of Ohio with her family.

No Quiet among the Shadows, a new Mystery of Old San Francisco, is available now!

In a new Mystery of Old San Francisco, Celia and Nick must look for answers among the dead to stop a killer among the living . . .

“Skillfully brings 1867 San Francisco to life . . . intriguing!” —Anna Lee Huber, bestselling author of the Lady Darby Mysteries

With the city’s Fourth of July celebrations in full swing, Celia Davies has stolen a moment away from her nursing duties to take in the festive spectacle, but is stunned when she spots the one person she thought she’d never see again—her supposedly dead husband, Patrick. Moments later, the investigator who had confirmed Patrick’s death is killed when he suspiciously falls from a high window, and Celia begins to fear that the roguish man she married has returned to haunt her life once again.

Joining forces with Detective Nick Greaves to get to the bottom of the mystery, Celia is soon drawn into a murky séance group, where the voices of the dead suggest that everyone involved in the case is engaged in some sort of fraud or deception. Determined to discover which of them might be a murderer, Celia and Nick will find themselves following a trail of clues that leads them down dark alleys into a shadowy tangle of spiritualism, altered identities, traumatic pasts, and secrets worth killing for . . .

"Judge Thee Not" Edith Maxwell

Judge Thee Not, a brand-new Quaker Midwife Mystery from Edith Maxwell, is available now!

“Elegant and well-crafted, rich in period detail, Edith Maxwell’s latest foray is a stunner!” —Susanna Calkins, author of the award-winning Lucy Campion Mysteries and the Speakeasy Mysteries

Quaker midwife Rose Carroll must fight bias and blind assumptions to clear the name of a friend when a murderer strikes in nineteenth-century Massachusetts . . .

No stranger to judgmental attitudes in her small town of Amesbury, Quaker midwife Rose Carroll is nonetheless stunned when society matron Mayme Settle publicly snubs her good friend Bertie for her nontraditional lifestyle. When Mrs. Settle is later found murdered—and a supposed witness insists Bertie was spotted near the scene of the crime—the police have no choice but to set their sights on the slighted woman as their main suspect.

Rose is certain her friend is innocent of the heinous deed, and when Rose isn’t busy tending to her duties as midwife, she enlists the help of a blind pregnant client—who’s endured her own share of prejudice—to help her sift through the clues. As the two uncover a slew of suspects tied to financial intrigues, illicit love, and an age-old grudge over perceived wrongs, Rose knows she’ll have to bring all her formidable intelligence to bear on solving the crime. Because circumstantial evidence can loom large in small minds, and she fears her friend will soon become the victim of a grave injustice . . .

Praise for the Quaker Midwife Mysteries:

“Through Quaker Rose Carroll’s resourceful sleuthing—and her midwifery—we are immediately immersed in the fascinating peculiarities, tensions and secrets of small-town life in late-19th-century Amesbury.” —Susanna Calkins, author of the award-winning Lucy Campion Mysteries and the Speakeasy Mysteries

“Edith Maxwell’s latest Quaker midwife mystery teems with authentic period detail that fascinates as it transports the reader back to a not-so-simple time. A complex, subtle, and finely told tale, Judge Thee Not’s sensitive portraits and vivid descriptions, along with Rose Carroll’s humanity, intelligence, and—yes—snooping, make this a sparkling addition to a wonderful series. A sublimely delightful read.” —James W. Ziskin, author of the award-winning Ellie Stone Mysteries

“The historical setting is redolent and delicious, the townspeople engaging, and the plot a proper puzzle, but it’s Rose Carroll—midwife, Quaker, sleuth—who captivates in this irresistible series . . .” —Catriona McPherson, Agatha-, Anthony- and Macavity-winning author of the Dandy Gilver series

“Not only is it a well-plotted, intelligent mystery, it also shines light on how women were treated—and, in many cases, mistreated—by people they trusted for help in desperate situations. Highly recommended.” —Suspense Magazine

“Clever and stimulating novel . . . masterfully weaves a complex mystery.” —Open Book Society

“Riveting historical mystery . . . [a] fascinating look at nineteenth-century American faith, culture, and small-town life.” —William Martin, New York Times bestselling author of Cape Cod and The Lincoln Letter

About the Author:

Agatha- and Macavity-nominated author Edith Maxwell writes the Amesbury-based Quaker Midwife historical mysteries, the Local Foods Mysteries, and award-winning short crime fiction. As Maddie Day she writes the Country Store Mysteries and the Cozy Capers Book Group Mysteries. A long-time Quaker and former doula, Maxwell lives north of Boston with her beau, two elderly cats, and an impressive array of garden statuary. She blogs at WickedAuthors.com and KillerCharacters.com. Read about all her personalities and her work at edithmaxwell.com.