A Dash of Deceit

A festive cosy mystery for Christmas crime readers

Set against the sparkling backdrop of a festive Christmas market, A Dash of Deceit is a cosy Christmas mystery filled with snow, baking, friendship, and a touch of danger. Eve Holdsworth is ready to enjoy her first Christmas in her new home, helping her friends Hayley and Letty run the Green Dragon stall with their seasonal bakes and sweet treats. But the holiday cheer is shattered when a woman collapses after eating a piece of gingerbread at the market.

When suspicion falls on the Green Dragon and the pub kitchen is forced to close, Eve and Hayley find themselves drawn into another investigation. With rumours spreading, bookings cancelled, and Christmas celebrations under threat, they must uncover who poisoned the gingerbread and why. As they dig deeper, they discover jealousy, rivalry, and hidden motives simmering beneath the surface of their seemingly peaceful community.

A Dash of Deceit is a warm and engaging cosy crime novel that blends festive charm with small-town intrigue. Perfect for readers who love Christmas mysteries, amateur sleuths, village secrets, and comforting seasonal settings, it offers a satisfying whodunnit without losing the heart and humour of the holiday season.

With its wintry atmosphere, Christmas market setting, and cast of familiar characters, A Dash of Deceit is ideal for fans of cosy mystery books featuring food, friendship, and clever amateur detectives. This holiday mystery delivers seasonal charm, light suspense, and a puzzle at its centre, making it a perfect read for anyone who enjoys festive fiction with a criminal twist.

Excerpt from the book

Eve Holdsworth stumbled into the Green Dragon, a well-preserved Victorian building opposite the cobble-stoned village square. Only a last-minute grab of the bar rail prevented her from hitting the ground.

“Sorry,” mumbled the sharp-faced, brassy-haired woman who’d caused the mishap when she squeezed past Eve. Without further ado, she pushed on and towards the back of the pub, where the regulars held sway over the best tables, close to the dart board and with a perfect view over the rest of the room.

“That’s alright,” Eve said through gritted teeth. “Don’t mind me.”

“She can’t hear you,” Eve’s friend Hayley, co-owner and manager of the establishment, told her.

“If she could hear me, I’d have said something very different, believe me. Talk about rude.” Eve shrugged the incident off.

Considering that she hadn’t met her more than mature assailant before, despite having lived in the small town of Badger’s End for all of nine months and even solved a cold murder case shortly after her arrival which had brought her more attention than she wanted, she probably would not have the displeasure again.

“Wait a moment.” Hayley stopped pulling pints and stomped towards the regulars’ tables.

The brassy-haired woman had found another victim.

Only Bella, a cheerful sixtyish widow and the best hairdresser Eve had come across both in her dad’s native USA and here in England, was still sitting down. But the usually unflappable Bella glared daggers at her opponent who stood there, with her hands on her hips and her voice raised to a shriek.

Eve moved closer.

There was one free seat left at the next table where the Pink Panthers, a local bowling club Eve had joined together with Hayley, had fled, after callously deserting their star bowler Bella. She plonked down before anyone else could beat her to it.

“You’re making a fool of yourself, Patty,” Bella said.

“Oh, I am, am I?” Patty slapped down a flyer which announced the grand opening of “Harmony” hair and beauty salon a few miles away.

She fluffed her thin, shoulder-length locks which could have done with some of Bella’s love and attention. “I’ll have you know that Sandy will be happy to give me extensions. She says my face is crying out for soft, long locks. But you wouldn’t have that. Couldn’t stand me being prettier than you. All because you want Ronny all for yourself.” A drop of spittle shot out of her mouth.

Eve shared a horrified glance with Hayley.

“Everything okay, ladies?” Hayley’s smile had an edge that had stopped dozens of bar floor feuds before. Even the most belligerent customer tended to back down when Hayley Trowbridge used that tone of voice.

New customers saw a pretty woman in her early thirties who made everyone feel at ease. Eve saw a master strategist who could spot and stop trouble from half a mile away, or at least across the room.

“I wouldn’t touch your precious Ronald with a bargepole,” Bella said. “It wasn’t my fault he pestered me for a dance at our last outing. And it’s my duty as a stylist to say no to anything your hair can’t take. You have those extensions and you’ll be left with more bald spots than that mangy fur coat of yours.”