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Blanchard, Alice. The Witching Tree: A Natalie Lockhart Novel. Minotaur: St. Martin’s. (Natalie Lockhart, Bk. 3). Dec. 2021. 304p. ISBN 9781250783042. $27.99. MYSTERY/POLICE PROCEDURAL

In remote Burning Lake, long known for both its witches and its dangerous accusations thereof, the honored citizen who runs the town’s oldest coven has been murdered, and Det. Natalie Lockhart gets the case. She wishes she hadn’t—she’s still unsettled by two notorious murder cases that involved her family—but it’s clear that some evil presence now pervades the town. Next in a series launched with A Trace of Evil, a Barnes & Noble Best Mystery and New York Times Notable Book; with a 35,000-copy first printing.

Coyle, Cleo. Honey Roasted. Berkley. (Coffeehouse Mystery, Bk. 19). Dec. 2021. 368p. ISBN 9780593197561. $27. MYSTERY/COZY

Anticipating her honeymoon, coffeehouse manager Clare Cosi dreams up her new Honey-Cinnamon Latte, brewed with a nectar derived from the rooftop hives of “Queen” Bea Hastings and extravagantly in demand by chefs hungry for the best. When Bea’s unconscious body is found at the foot of her high rise, Clare quickly dismisses police suspicions of accident or attempted suicide and begins investigating the sharpened-knives world of haute cuisine. Next in the New York Times best-selling series.

Doherty, Paul. Dark Queen Watching. Severn House. Dec. 2021. 224p. ISBN 9781780291383. $28.99. MYSTERY/HISTORICAL

First seen in 2018’s Dark Queen Rising, Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and mother to the future Henry VII, has just been widowed and is left without protectors. When a surprise visitor to her London townhouse is found murdered in a locked room, presaging a series of troubling events, Margaret starts wondering whether her household hides an enemy. From the OBE-winning historical mystery author.

Faye, Lyndsay. Observations by Gaslight: Stories from the World of Sherlock Holmes. Mysterious: Norton. Dec. 2021. NAp. ISBN 9781613162613. $25.95. MYSTERY/SHORT STORIES

Edgar finalist Faye, who launched her career with Dust and Shadow: An Account of the Ripper Killings by Dr. John H. Watson and continued her Sherlocking tendencies with the popular short story collection The Whole Art of Detection, here offers more short fiction about the great consulting detective. Here’s Irene Adler, helping Sherlock with a case involving a room of stopped grandfather clocks, and the story of how Sherlock came to be friends (of sorts) with Inspector Lestrade.

Fowler, Christopher. London Bridge Is Falling Down: A Peculiar Crimes Unit Mystery. Bantam. (Peculiar Crimes Unit, Bk. 18). Dec. 2021. 272p. ISBN 9780593356210. $28.99. MYSTERY

Here’s another peculiar crime for detectives Arthur Bryant and John May, whose escapades have won their creator the CWA’s Dagger in the Library Award. Ninety-one-year-old Alice Hoffman has died a lonely death in her top-floor flat, evidently a victim of social-services negligence. But our detectives know that Alice was a government security expert who once worked with their unit, and soon they learn that she was helping a diplomat escape the country. In fact, she belonged to a group of women doing below-the-radar serves for the government, and the entire group may be in danger.

Jay, Gerald. The Hanged Man’s Tale: An Inspector Mazarelle Mystery. Nan A. Talese: Doubleday. Dec. 2021. 352p. ISBN 9780385537544. $25.95. MYSTERY

Who doesn’t love a mystery set in the City of Light? This follow-up to the pseudonymous Jay’s well-received The Paris Directive, Paul Mazarelle returns to investigate the hanging of PI Alain Berthaud in the tunnel a Paris canal runs through. Unfortunately, that brings him in contact with Claire Girard, a tabloid journalist whose sleazy stories have often involved tapping cops for inside information.

McCallin, Luke. From a Dark Horizon: A Gregor Reinhardt Novel. Berkley. (Gregor Reinhardt Novel, Bk. 4). Dec. 2021. 528p. ISBN 9780425282922. $28. Downloadable. MYSTERY/HISTORICAL

Set during and directly after World War II, McCallin’s previous mysteries starring stubborn German intelligence officer Gregor Reinhardt (e.g., The Divided City) got good attention. After five years, he’s relaunching the series with a prequel that takes Gregor back to his World War I days as a lieutenant. A bomb has ripped through a meeting of high-up military officers, and one of Gregor’s troopers—dead himself—is blamed, with Gregor held as co-conspirator unless he can prove that the man was innocent.

Morris, Wanda. All Her Little Secrets. Morrow Paperbacks. Nov. 2021. 384p. ISBN 9780063082465. pap. $16.99. MYSTERY

An Ivy-educated Black lawyer in Atlanta, Ellice Littlejohn has just stumbled upon the dead body of her wealthy white boss, with whom she had been having an affair. Secrets in her own past, including a younger brother with criminal associations, compel her to turn away instead of calling the police. Then she discovers suspect dealings inside her own company. Corporate attorney Morris offers a debut mystery strong enough to be named the publisher’s Lead Read for the season. With a 150,000-copy first printing.

Pickett, Rex. The Archivist. Blackstone. Nov. 2021. NAp. ISBN 9781538519646. $29.99. MYSTERY

Archivist Nadia Fontaine is found drowned, and Emily Snow is called in by Regents University to finish the job Nadia started: organizing the papers of Pulitzer Prize-winning, Nobel-bruited Raymond West, whose heiress wife is preparing to donate a substantial sum to the university’s library. When Emily discovers sexually charged emails between Nadia and Raymond, she takes a closer look at her predecessor’s death. From the author of Sideways, basis of the Academy Award–winning movie.

Saunders, Kate. The Mystery of the Sorrowful Maiden. Bloomsbury. Dec. 2021. 336p. ISBN 9781408866924. $26. MYSTERY

An internationally best-selling adult and Costa Award–winning children’s author, Saunders has done well with her 1850s-set series starring private detective Laetitia Rodd (e.g., Laetitia Rodd and the Case of the Wandering Scholar). Here, Laetitia is approached by a retired actor friend wanting to help the man who rescued him from a terrible fire that took down a theater; his benefactor plans to leave his wife, who will need to secure an adequate settlement. The case is complicated when a burnt body is discovered in the shell of the theater. With a 30,000-copy first printing.

Shelton, Paige. Dark Night: A Mystery. Minotaur: St. Martin’s. (Alaska Wild, Bk. 3). Dec. 2021. ISBN 9781250796271. $26.99. MYSTERY

Since the LJ-starred Thin Ice, Beth Rivers—better known to her fans as thriller author Elizabeth Fairchild—has been hiding out in a remote Alaska town from a kidnapper she escaped. In this third packed adventure, Beth’s mother arrives in town, which is pretty scary because if she can find Beth, what about the kidnapper? Meanwhile, a battered woman also arrives in town, with her abusive husband found dead the next morning, and another thriller writer has been kidnapped in the Lower 48. Is this a nasty trend? With a 30,000-copy first printing.

Spotswood, Stephen. Murder Under Her Skin: A Pentecost and Parker Mystery. Doubleday. (Pentecost & Parker Mystery, Bk. 2). Dec. 2021. 368p. ISBN 9780385547123. $27. lrg. prnt. Downloadable. MYSTERY/HISTORICAL

In his strong debut, 1940s New York–set Fortune Favors the Dead, journalist/playwright Spotswood introduced us to PI Lillian Pentecost and her assistant, Willowjean “Will” Parker. Here, they investigate when the Amazing Tattooed Woman of Hart and Halloway’s Travelling Circus is stabbed in the back. The circus was Will’s home for many years, the victim a friend, and main suspect Valentin Kalishenko the pro who taught Will how to throw a knife. As the case unfolds, they find themselves in a sleepy Southern town full of grudges.

Staub, Wendy Corsi. Prose and Cons. Severn House. Dec. 2021. 224p. ISBN 9780727850164. $28.99. MYSTERY/COZY

Widowed Bella Jordan must contend with young son Max, a possible new relationship, and two feisty cats, all while running a guesthouse. It becomes even more complicated when she gets a bad feeling about one of the guests, the relative of a friend, and acts on her suspicions. Staub claims an RWA Rita Award and three Mary Higgins Clark finalist nods among her honors.

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