Cozy Mysteries

Holly Donnelly, an adjunct English professor, and her younger sister, Ivy Donnelly, a recently widowed, retired nurse are reluctantly drawn into the investigation of an elderly neighbor’s murder when Juan Alvarez, Holly’s trusted gardener, is accused of the crime. Holly fears police detective, Nick Manelli, assumes Juan is guilty and won’t conduct a proper investigation, while Ivy feels the “hunky” Manelli is not only a good cop, but also a possible romantic match for her sister. Can the clues the sisters unearth from neighborhood gossip about the victim’s family, a politically connected neighbor and a powerful real estate developer help save an innocent man, or will the gardening duo dig up more than they bargain for?

In Frost on the Bloom, the second in the Holly & Ivy mystery series, one of Holly’s former students, Becky Powell, asks the look-alike sisters for help when they all spend Christmas at Skyview Manor, and Becky becomes the prime suspect in the attempted murder of her manipulative grandmother, Lyla Powell. 

Looking forward to a relaxing stay in the Catskills after her break-up with Nick Manelli, Holly Donnelly and her sister Ivy have their plans thwarted when, once again, they become involved in a murder investigation. The day they arrive at Kate Farmer’s house in rustic Reddington Manor, they discover the body of Kate’s next-door neighbor, Chuck Dwyer, in a pool of blood on his kitchen floor. In a rush to judgement, the local sheriff sets his sights on 17-year old Tommy Cranston, but Kate insists Tommy is innocent. Can the sister sleuths prove that a shifty neighbor, the victim’s widow and local drug dealers all have better motives for the murder? And can Ivy and Kate unravel another mystery -- the cause of Holly and Nick’s break-up and the chances of their getting back together?

The Manelli family vineyard in Tuscany seems the perfect spot for Holly and Nick’s honeymoon, until the suspicious death of a long-lost cousin who’s come to stake a claim on the vineyard. Plans for a marriage celebration are thrown into disarray as Holly, Nick and their extended family are drawn into the investigation. Was it an accident or was it murder? Will they solve the mystery, or is the honeymoon over?

When Holly and Ivy receive an invitation to their Aunt Margaret Lowe’s memorial service and the reading of her will, they’re surprised to see their estranged sister Fern’s name on the invitation list. Excited to re-unite with Fern, Ivy insists they attend. Holly has mixed feelings about the impending reunion. Complicating matters, a unique provision in their aunt’s will requires the inheritors to participate in a treasure hunt to receive their inheritance. Sounds like fun, until they discover a dead body in the library of the Lowe mansion. The Donnelly sisters’ sleuthing skills are put to the test when they must solve the treasure hunt riddles and catch a cold-blooded killer.

A science fair project vandalized, a warehouse explosion and two dead bodies.

In this sixth book in the Holly & Ivy cozy mystery series, Holly Donnelly gets invited to speak about home-composting at Pineland Park Community College’s Eco-Fair.  The last thing she and her sister Ivy expect is to become involved in, not one, but two murder investigations.