In this juicy cozy mystery series debut, the popular Sunbeam Café in Harvest, Ohio, has expanded into catering, and for 20-something owner Darcy Woodin, life is sweet—until an extra-large order brings an unsavory side of murder . . .
Harvest’s very first annual Johnny Appleseed Days festival is right around the corner, and locals are looking forward to the yummy seasonal treats that will accompany the celebration. In anticipation, Darcy has received an order for 100 apple pies from overzealous community organizer, Margot Rawlings. It’s an overwhelming number, but thanks to the help of her grandmother and her friends, it looks like Darcy will make the deadline. She has just one concern . . .
Margot has hired a Johnny Appleseed impersonator to headline the event, but when they meet, Darcy senses something “off” about him. For one thing, he never drops character. For another, no one seems to know his true identity. Her worries are tragically confirmed when she discovers his dead body on the Harvest Square. It’s a bitter end that gets even more mysterious when the real impersonator shows up alive and well a day later . . .
Soon enough, Darcy is persuaded to sleuth out why the first “Johnny Appleseed” was killed. With only one eye-witness—the apple of her eye, her newly adopted stray tabby, Michelangelo, she’ll need to dig up every seed of information to unearth the whole truth . . .
November 24, 2026
Pick your mystery...
Set amid the lavish environs of Gilded Age-era Washington, this dazzling historical mystery series debut features the capital’s most influential women as they band together with a common goal—solving the suspicious murder of the First Lady’s young maid . . .
1894, Washington: This is not the kind of homecoming Nellie Grant hoped for. The only daughter of former President Ulysses S. Grant, Nellie has left England after being granted a divorce from her abusive husband. She plans to hide away with her three children at the home of her mother, Julia Dent Grant. However, Julia, the unofficial queen mother of Washington’s elite, has other ideas—and convinces Nellie to attend a White House dinner in honor of the current president, Grover Cleveland.
The lavish event turns somber when First Lady Frances Cleveland discovers that her prized Tiffany brooch is missing. Young maid Kitty Thorn is accused of theft and dismissed on the spot. The next morning, Kitty is found drowned, her death ruled a suicide.
Frances calls upon Nellie and Julia to implore them for help. She doesn’t believe Kitty stole the brooch—or committed suicide. She believes Kitty was framed and murdered. For while the authorities deem the victim a woman of no consequence, despite her lowly status, Kitty saw and knew a great deal. She was a keeper of secrets—and in the capital, every secret has a price.
Nellie especially feels a tie to Kitty, who years ago did her a kindness that she hopes to repay by finding her killer. But the risks will be great, for this crime has ramifications for all the First Ladies . . .
Amanda is self publishing the Cat Rescue Mysteries so that all of profits are going to her cat rescue efforts. In the last four years, Amanda and her husband David have saved over 20 cats through adoption and TNR! You can also support their cat rescue efforts by shopping at Amanda's Etsy Shop.
Available on Kindle, Nook, and paperback.
Violet, Amanda and David's newest rescue
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March 30, 2027