Tricia Miles loves mysteries. She loves reading them, she loves selling them, and she loves solving them.
In “Chapter & Hearse” (352 pages, Berkley Prime Crime, $7.99), Lorna Barrett’s fourth entry in her series about the Stoneham, N.H., bookseller — known to tourists as Booktown for its many bookstores — Tricia gets to pursue all her loves.
When a gas explosion vaporizes the owner of History Repeats Itself, Tricia wonders why her sister’s boyfriend, real estate king Bob Kelly, is so tightlipped — especially when he was at the scene and could have been killed, too.
But other suspects soon surface — including the victim’s elderly mother — and Tricia finds herself in peril before bringing the killer to justice.
A pleasant diversion for mystery fans and bibliophiles, “Chapter & Hearse” is another trophy for Barrett’s case. And Miss Marple, Tricia’s aptly named cat, is as enjoyable as ever.

Middle-aged widower Charlie Harris still grieves for his wife, and his children have left the nest, but he has made a life for himself in his hometown of Athena, Miss. He’s a librarian at the local college, takes in student boarders and is blessed with the companionship of his Maine coon cat, Diesel, who enjoys going for walks in a harness.
But his quiet life is interrupted when classmate Godfrey Priest, a best-selling novelist, returns to visit Athena and is promptly murdered in “Murder Past Due” (304 pages, Berkley Prime Crime, $7.99), a series debut by Miranda James.
Suspects abound — including Justin Wardlaw, one of Charlie’s current boarders. When police detective Kanesha Berry, the daughter of Charlie’s housekeeper, Azalea Berry, is assigned to the case, Azalea hints that her daughter could use Charlie’s unofficial help.
Graced with Southern charm — and an underlying theme of the racism that still exists — “Murder Past Due” is a pleasant and captivating read that will have readers hankering for more of Charlie and Diesel’s adventures.

Actress-turned-law-student Rita Farmer has always been protective of her older sister, Gina. And in “On Location” (384 pages, Minotaur Books, $25.99), the third book in Elizabeth Sims’ series, Rita has good reason.
Brothers Kenner and Lance de Sauvenard are heirs to a timber fortune. Lance is dating Gina, and the connection has persuaded Rita and her friend Daniel to help with a movie Kenner is making.
When Gina and Lance head from Los Angeles to Washington state to scout locations, Rita makes Gina promise to call every day. When several days go by with no word, Rita, Daniel and Rita’s 6-year-old son, Petey, head north to look for them.
Meanwhile, de Sauvenard matriarch has hired Rita’s boyfriend, private investigator George Rowe, to look into possible financial skullduggery in the company. And when everything converges, more than one life is in peril.
Unlike its predecessors — “The Actress” and “The Extra” were mysteries with a dash of thriller — “On Location” is primarily thriller — with a twist — combined with adventure. It confirms Sims’ skill and demonstrates her versatility in heart-pounding, page-turning style.

When politics and crime intersect — and the junction is the equivalent of the meeting of two urban interstates — death lurks nearby.
And it springs into action in “Treachery in the Yard” (146 pages, Minotaur Books, $22.99), the first in a projected series by Adimchinma Ibe featuring Nigerian cop Tamunoemi Peterside.
As Ibe’s debut novel opens, a bomb has exploded in Port Harcourt at the home of Pius Okpara, who is seeking the gubernatorial nomination in a soon-to-be-held primary. Okpara escapes with minor injuries, but others in his household are not so lucky. Could a political rival want to win at any cost? Or is their another motive for wishing Okpara dead?
As Peterside’s investigation ramps up, murder follows murder.
Peterside — cynical, sarcastic and focused on solving crimes — puts it like this: “I don’t like murder investigations when the bodies pile up. You have to spend a lot of time climbing over the bodies to get to the truth.”
Climb he does, in this brutal and bold debut. Ibe writes in the honored hard-boiled tradition, Peterside is an interesting character, and the picture of the good guys battling Nigerian corruption is arresting.

Murder can cheese you off — and provide you with a bounty of entertainment.
That’s what Avery Aames does in her debut mystery, “The Long Quiche Goodbye” (309 pages, Berkley Prime Crime, $7.99), in which cheese-shop proprietor Charlotte Bessette finds herself in a rind, er, make that bind.
Set in the fictional small town of Providence in northeastern Ohio’s Amish country, Aames’ novel centers on the stabbing death of Ed Woodhouse, Providence’s biggest real estate holder and a man universally disliked. Charlotte’s grandmother is found near his body, her bloodstained hands holding a knife from the cheese shop.
Grandmère and Woodhouse had just been arguing, and Woodhouse’s shrill wife, Kristine, is trying to unseat Grandmère as mayor. But Charlotte is determined to find the real killer, keep the shop going and find out more about hunky — and mysterious — Jordan Pace, a supplier or artisanal cheeses.
With a killer plot, a bevy of suspects — and recipes thrown in for good measure — this accomplished debut nourishes the mind and whets the appetite.

What happens in Vegas might kill you.
Eileen Davidson, a daytime-television star best-known for her roles on “The Young and the Restless” and “Days of Our Lives,” is writing soap-themed novels. Her third, “Diva Las Vegas” (293 pages, Obsidian, $6.99), finds series heroine Alexis Peterson, the star of “The Bare and the Brazen” caught up again in a murder investigation.
This time out, Alexis is invited to the annual Halloween party at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles, where she finds acquaintance Shana Stern, a former Playmate, dead in the haunted house. When the trail leads to Las Vegas, Alexis and her boyfriend, police detective Frank Jakes, head to Nevada. Alexis has triple duty: aiding the investigation, appearing at a soap-fans celebration and trying not to get killed.
Davidson knows soaps and informs her mysteries with that knowledge. Like its predecessors, “Diva Las Vegas” is witty and wicked — and a perfect choice for the beach.

In the Bible, the king of Babylon sees the handwriting on the wall, a portent of doom.
In “Last Writes” (290 pages, Signet, $6.99), Sheila Lowe’s fourth mystery featuring forensic graphologist Claudia Rose, there’s handwriting, a religious sect and a potentially doomed little girl.
Claudia’s friend Kelly Brennan has just been reunited with her half sister, Erin Powers, after many years. Erin tells Kelly that her husband, Rod, has fled the Temple of the Brighter Light compound in the hills of Southern California with their toddler daughter, Kylie, and hands Claudia a note Rod has written.
Claudia senses trouble and manages to obtain an invitation from TBL’s elderly leader, Harold Stedman, who suspects treachery in the organization and wants Claudia to examine several samples of handwriting to see if any of them point to deception.
What follows is a wild ride for the reader, with the ever-appealing Claudia and her boyfriend, police detective Joel Jovanic, on the hunt. Lowe, as always, peppers her plot with as many twists as the hilly highways of Southern California in this compelling entry in a fascinating series.

Last year, a prominent newspaper in the Northeast praised Christine Barber’s debut novel, “The Replacement Child,” as a fine regional mystery.
True, but confining. Barber’s book certainly had regional interest — it’s set in Santa Fe, N.M. — but it transcends place as a compelling whodunit.
Barber’s back with “The Bone Fire” (308 pages, Minotaur Books, $24.99), again featuring police detective Gilbert Montoya and newspaper editor and rescue-squad volunteer Lucy Newroe. This time, though, the spotlight is more on Gil than on Lucy.
Santa Fe’s annual festival features the burning of a tall puppet named Zozobra, aka Old Man Gloom. When volunteers rake through the ashes the next morning, they find the skull of a child, and thoughts quickly turn to the disappearance of toddler Brianna Rodriguez more than a year ago.
As Gil and his feisty new partner, Joe Phillips, investigate the case — and as Lucy turns up some pertinent information — they begin to realize that Brianna’s family surpasses dysfunctional into a realm of its own.
Well-written with a wealth of plot twists and fascinating characters (and, yes, an abundance of intriguing New Mexico lore), “The Bone Fire” continues the excellence Barber displayed in her debut and proves that she’s not a one-hit wonder.

One’s a spinster and homebody. The other’s a widow and world traveler. But both Agatha Christie’s Miss Jane Marple and Carola Dunn’s Eleanor Trewynn are elderly residents of an English village, and neither takes kindly to crime.
Eleanor makes her second appearance in Dunn’s “A Colourful Death” (337 pages, Minotaur Books, $24.99). The author of 18 mysteries featuring the intrepid socialite Daisy Dalrymple, Dunn branched out with her first Eleanor Trewynn novel, “Manna From Hades” — a sparkling first that made mystery fans hungry for more.
As “A Colourful Death” begins, Nick Gresham, Eleanor’s artist neighbor in Port Mabyn, Cornwall, returns from a trip to London to find several of his paintings slashed. He’s sure the culprit is Geoffrie Monmouth (real name Geoffrey Clark), a painter who lives in a nearby artists’ colony.
When Geoffrie is found stabbed to death, Nick is an immediate suspect. Eleanor can’t believe he’s guilty and sets out to investigate. She soon finds that the artists’ colony is rife with suspects and motives.
Dunn, a Briton who now lives in Oregon, plays fair with clues in this amusing, Christie-like whodunit. Her characters are appealing — particularly Eleanor and her West Highland terrier, Teazle — and her evocation of English village life is spot on. “A Colourful Death” is an accomplished portrait of English life — and English death.

Talk about a double whammy.
For Stella Hardesty, the trouble starts when Sheriff Goat Harris’ ex-wife, Brandy, shows up just as Stella and Goat are having dinner at his place in what may be their first date. Then a tornado destroys a snack stand at the demolition-derby track, exposing a woman’s skeleton.
What’s Stella, a 50something widow who protects battered women with a bit of vigilante justice, to do?
In “A Bad Day for Pretty” (304 pages, Minotaur Books, $24.99), Sophie Littlefield’s second novel featuring Stella, plenty.
When the cops arrest Neb Donovan on a murder charge — Neb poured the concrete where the skeleton is found — Stella can’t believe he’s guilty and sets out to help Neb. And when part of the trail leads to Brandy, Stella intensifies her pursuit of the real killer.
Raunchy, bloody, funny and touching (yes, touching), “A Bad Day for Pretty” is a worthy successor to “A Bad Day for Sorry” and cements Littlefield’s bona fides as a fine storyteller and writer. Stella’s a joy to watch in action, and readers will want her to continue her abuser-bashing, investigative ways.

Who we are is inextricably linked to our heritage, but for adoptees, the link can be tenuous.
In British writer Robert Barnard’s 40th suspense novel, “A Stranger in the Family” (250 pages, Scribner, $24), Scotsman Christopher “Kit” Philipson is in his early 20s when he learns from his dying mother that she and her late husband adopted him and then points him to the direction of his birth parents.
But Kit’s status is far more complex than that of many adoptees;  he was abducted at age 3 while he, two older siblings and his birth parents were on vacation in Sicily.  As he investigates the mystery, he is drawn to the fact that his adoptive father, who was Jewish, was evacuated to England from Germany in 1939, just before the start of World War II. Sensing that there’s more to his story, Kit uncovers perilous secrets. 
The prolific Barnard is as witty, stylish, sensitive and clever as always, and “A Stranger in the Family” is an entertaining and moving study in the dangers and blessings of self-knowledge.

Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes at the historic mansions that are open for tours?
Julie Hyzy, the author of the White House chef mysteries, provides a tantalizing look in “Grace Under Pressure” (310 pages, Berkley Prime Crime, $7.99), the first in a projected series.
Grace Wheaton has returned to her hometown somewhere in the Southeast and has begun work as assistant curator at Marshfield Manor, whose owner, the reclusive Bennett Marshfield, relies heavily on his old friend Abe Vargas, the house’s curator.
But when Abe is shot to death, Grace must fill in — and prove herself capable of taking the position permanently. With an intelligent curiosity, she looks into Abe’s murder and finds that Marshfield Manor is home to a number of secrets.
Grace is an amiable heroine, and Hyzy fills “Grace Under Pressure” with historic color that enhances her winning plot.

Good cops, bad cops and a truly evil cop.  That’s the mix that Connie Dial serves up in “The Broken Blue Line” (256 pages, The Permanent Press, $28), her second novel featuring internal-affairs investigator Mike Turner of the Los Angeles Police Department.
This time out, Turner and his colleagues are looking into the case of Ian Conner, a young cop who may be faking a disability and using his free time to rob, steal and kill.  But the case grows far more complex, as two other cops’ involvement comes to light and Turner begins to fall for Conner’s likable mother.
One of the joys of Dial’s work is her ability to intertwine her plot with stories of Turner’s public and private lives — and how they interact.
Dial, who retired after 27 years with the LAPD as commanding officer of the Hollywood Division, knows police work and how to convey it, in all its gritty truth, in her fiction.  Brash and bold, “The Broken Blue Line” combines police procedural with character study for a riveting read.

A teenage girl vanishes in eastern England, and her family flies apart like a poorly built plane in midair. 
Her twin brother is found dead in a hospital’s waste furnace, 18 years to the day later.
And more horrors await in “Death Watch” (464 pages, Minotaur Books, $25.99), the second entry in Jim Kelly’s series featuring British cops Peter Shaw and George Valentine.
Shaw is the son of Valentine’s former partner.  When a small boy was found murdered, the elder Shaw and Valentine thought they knew the killer, but a technicality based on possible police misconduct resulted in the suspect being freed.  The case still haunts Valentine and the younger Shaw, who are now partnered in the hospital-incinerator investigation.
Kelly, the author of five books in a previous series, is the son of a Scotland yard detective.  His plots are dark and dirty, his prose arresting, his characters plausible and sympathetic.  “Death Watch” is not for the faint of heart, but connoisseurs of excellence will find it in Kelly’s work.

The words “Jersey Shore” instantly conjure up the music of Bruce Springsteen and the raunchy reality show on MTV.  In Chris Knopf’s first stand-alone novel, “Elysiana” (304 pages, The Permanent, $28), the tones are darker and far more dangerous.
It’s the summer of 1969, a time when eras and cultures collided — the first summer of Richard Nixon’s presidency, the consequent rise of the silent majority and perhaps the peak of the counterculture movement. 
The inhabitants of Elysiana, a small island off the New Jersey coast,  include a Midwestern girl who ends up far from Chicago after a long stretch of being stoned, a lifeguard who once spent four years in a coma after a car crash, a martinet of a beach-patrol captain and a politician who sees Nixon as the country’s savior and isn’t above some Nixonian tactics. Mix them in with a runaway housewife, a big-league criminal, a small-time dope dealer and thief and a little girl who loves to wander, and you have not only a cast of well-drawn characters but also the seeds of disaster.
Knopf, the author of four crime novels centering on Sam Acquillo and one in a spin-off series featuring Jackie Swaitkowski, charts different territory in “Elysiana.” There’s crime galore, but not within the structure of the genre.  And although Knopf’s fans might prefer a quick return to his two series, they should give this departure a fair chance.
With the knowledge of someone who lived through the time — and remembers it —  Knopf creates a lyrical evocation of the past that gradually grows into a perfect storm of a thriller. 

Plenty of suspects, a plethora of possible motives — and four women who won’t let justice go undone.
“Moon Spinners” (320 pages, Obsidian, $23.95), the third entry in Sally Goldenbaum’s series featuring the Seaside Knitters club of fictional Sea Harbor, Mass., starts with a crash-bang, when beautiful, gracious and wealthy Sophia Santos drives her husband’s red Ferrari over a cliff. When the knitters — Nell, Izzy, Cass and Birdie — learn that the brakes had been tampered with, and when Sophia’s flaky sister-in-law is arrested, they resolve to solve the case.
Could the killer have been motivated by adultery, greed, business rivalry or anger? All are possible, but the knitters and their pals look beyond the obvious to catch the culprit.
Goldenbaum’s amateur sleuths are appealing, her plots are intricate and plausible, and the local color of Sea Harbor (a town quite similar to the real-life Rockport, Mass.) is interesting without being overwhelming. And you don’t have to know a thing about knitting to enjoy this pleasing yarn.

Widely and rightly known as the queen of suspense, Mary Higgins Clark — the author of 29 suspense novels and three collections of short stories — shows little sign of slowing down, even in her 80s.
Her latest novel, “The Shadow of Your Smile” (319 pages, Simon & Schuster, $25.99) shows her, if not at her peak, still capable of plotting that carries the reader along on a spinning ride.
When told she has only a few weeks to live, Olivia Morrow must face a momentous decision:  Her late cousin Catherine, a nun is being considered for sainthood, bore a child out of wedlock in her teens.  The boy’s father was Alex Gannon, the founder of a medical-equipment business. The child went on to marry and have a daughter, Monica Farrell, now a doctor in her early 30s.
Should Monica be told that she stands to inherit part of the Gannon estate?  Or should Catherine’s secret be kept?  Sadly for Olivia, she decides to tell Monica but is murdered by someone determined that the truth shall not out. And Monica and those close to her find themselves in danger.
Although not precisely a whodunit, “The Shadow of Your Smile” is classic Clark — with a surprising twist at the end.  Her fans will gobble this treat up.

The lure of the past can be a strong pull, and it’s what makes the antiques business a profitable one.
But the industry is neither dainty nor bloodless, as Jane K. Cleland proves in “Silent Auction” (304 pages, Minotaur Books, $24.99), the fifth entry in her series featuring New Hampshire antiques maven Josie Prescott.
Not long into the story, Josie finds the body of her neighbor’s nephew, Frankie Winterelli, a former ne’er-do-well who has turned his life around and is working for Guy and Maddie Whitestone as caretaker for their lavish home.
Josie’s appalled by the murder and determined to help the town’s new police chief find the killer. As the two investigate, they find a web of theft and possible fraud, as a scrimshaw whale’s tooth goes missing from the Whitestones’ house and doubt is cast on its authenticity as a priceless, 19th-century artifact.
Cleland, who formerly owned a rare book and antiques store in the Granite State, makes each of her novels pleasurable education as well as a puzzling mystery. If you’re not already knowledgeable on the subject, you’ll find yourself so after Cleland’s descriptions of scrimshaw and their history. “Silent Auction” just might leave you in silent awe at Cleland’s ability to meld history with homicide.

Corpses aplenty are a treasured part of Halloween, but a real one?
That’s what Geraldine Porter and her granddaughter, Maddie, discover during a tour of Gerry’s hometown, the fictional Lincoln Point, Calif., in “Monster in Miniature” (294 pages, Berkley Prime Crime, $7.99), the fourth entry in Margaret Grace’s series featuring Gerry, a retired English teacher and a crafter of miniatures.
  But the tragedy hits close to home for Gerry when the victim is identified as a city inspector whose investigation into bribery and corruption may have links to Gerry’s late husband, Ken, an architect.
Determined to find the killer and clear her beloved husband’s name, Gerry sorts the mess out with the help of her cop nephew and her granddaughter. Grace laces the plot with numerous suspects, and Gerry’s appeal grows with each mystery.

No one wants to take a hellish road trip, but reading about one can be educational and entertaining. And that’s what Ariana Franklin offers up in A Murderous Procession (339 pages, Putnam, $25.95), the fourth entry in her series featuring Adelia Aguilar.
It’s 1176, and Adelia, a mistress of the art of death (doctor and pathologist) has been summoned by England’s King Henry II to accompany his 10-year-old daughter, Joanna, to Sicily for her wedding to William, the Sicilian king. Adelia grew up in Sicily and trained at its medical school, but Henry is taking no chances that she won’t return: He’s sending her daughter, Allie, to be looked after by his queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, who is under house arrest for joining two of her sons in trying to overthrow Henry.
Miffed, Adelia sets out with her companions on an arduous trip. But one of the many people on the journey is a disguised Scarry, an outlaw whose partner Adelia killed in self-defense, and who’s out for revenge. When some in the entourage start dying, Adelia is concerned — but not about herself, for she thinks Scarry is dead.
After horrific travails, delays and setbacks, the party reaches Sicily, where Scarry will make another attempt to dispatch the now-aware Adelia and gain his vengeance.
Franklin’s research is exhaustive — but never exhausting for the reader — and adds a wealth of historical color to a good yarn. And her cliffhanger ending will have readers yearning for the next installment in the adventures of the fascinating Adelia, an early feminist, a loving mother, a skilled doctor and an ardent lover.

Political treachery combines with archaeological skullduggery to dramatic effect in “A Darker God” (416 pages, Bantam, $15), the third entry in Barbara Cleverly’s series featuring Laetitia “Letty” Talbot.
As the novel opens, it’s 1928 in Athens, and Professor Andrew Merriman — an old friend of Letty’s father — is producing an amateur version of Aeschylus’ “Agamemnon.” But life imitates art — horrifically — when Merriman’s body is found in the improvised bathtub where, in the play, Queen Clytemnestra, with premeditated glee, fatally stabs King Agamemnon.
When another murder follows, and Letty’s life is put in danger, various plot threads come together, including the Greek royal family and the search for the burial site of Alexander the Great. At Letty’s side during the investigation is her lover, former World War I chaplain William Gunning, and a Scotland Yard detective, Percy Montecute.
Cleverly weaves this rich tapestry seamlessly into a pleasant tutorial on Greek history combined with an authentic whodunit. Expertly paced, ingeniously conceived and elegantly written, “A Darker God” adds luster to Cleverly’s reputation and treats the reader to another adventurous outing with the intrepid Letty.