Book Title: BEST IN MURDER (A Mac Faraday Mystery #15) by Lauren Carr
Category: Adult Fiction (18 +)
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: Acorn Book Services
Release date: Oct 13, 2026
Content Rating: PG-13 (Lauren Carr's books are murder mysteries, so there are murders involved. Occasionally, a murder will happen on stage. There is sexual content, but always behind closed doors. Some mild swearing (a hell or a damn few and far between). No F-bombs!
"Pedigreed dogs, rich owners, cutthroat competition, enormous egos, several murders, a stolen diamond dog collar, a missing Irish Wolfhound show dog, a disgruntled cop, and a criminally inclined biker with a vicious poodle all come together in this tale. As each new element dropped in my lap, I was pulled in further until it was impossible to put the book down. I consumed it."- Marilyn R. Wilson, Book Reviewer and Author
Book Description:
One Collar. Two Dead. Total Chaos.
When a priceless platinum-and-diamond collar vanishes at the Mid-Atlantic Classic Kennel Club Invitational—Best in Show at the Spencer Inn, it looks like the ultimate high-society theft. But when two women connected to the glittering event are murdered in quick succession, the case explodes into something far more deadly.
Mac Faraday and his troublemaking German Shepherd, Gnarly, dive headfirst into the glamorous, cutthroat world of championship dog shows. Amidst perfectly groomed champions worth small fortunes, ruthless competitors, and million-dollar egos, the trail leads to a missing Irish Wolfhound whose value goes well beyond his blue-blood pedigree.
As tensions rise between Spencer PD and the county sheriff’s office, Mac’s team races to untangle a web of greed, betrayal, and long-buried secrets—all while the elegant resort descends into delightful canine chaos. With show dogs of every shape and size turning the Spencer Inn into their personal playground, Gnarly does what he does best: stir up trouble and sniff out the truth.
Fast-paced, laugh-out-loud funny, and packed with four-legged mischief, Best in Murder proves that in the high-stakes world of Best in Show, the biggest prizes come with the deadliest risks.
One Locked Cottage. One Framed Dog. Two Four-Legged Detectives on the Case.
When beloved local Frieda Selleck is found mauled to death in her locked cottage, all evidence points to her gentle, arthritic Goldendoodle service dog, Michelangelo. But Mac Faraday refuses to believe the obvious. With help from his irrepressible German Shepherd, Gnarly, Mac must prove the loyal service dog was framed for murder.
Just days before the glamorous Mid-Atlantic Classic Kennel Club Invitational descends on the Spencer Inn, Frieda—a sharp-eyed woman with a reputation for “psychic” visions—had handed Mac a sealed envelope containing clues to her own killer. Now, with doors locked from the inside, no signs of forced entry, and a hidden wall safe emptied of cash and gold, Mac and Gnarly race against time to uncover the truth.
Joined by an unlikely four-legged partner in Michelangelo, the canine detective squad follows a trail of family secrets, phony smiles, suspicious alibis, and a desperate climb down a steep wooded hillside. As the pieces fall into place, Mac discovers that even the shiniest “golden child” can hide a dark heart.
A fast-paced, twist-filled cozy mystery packed with humor, heart, and plenty of doggy mischief. Perfect for fans of the Mac Faraday series!
“Who Framed Michelangelo?” is an exclusive prequel short story set at the Spencer Inn the week before the events of Best in Murder (Mac Faraday Mystery #15, coming October 13, 2026).
Meet the Author:
Lauren Carr is the author of over thirty acclaimed mystery novels, with more than half a million copies sold worldwide. Her fast-paced series—the Mac Faraday Mysteries, Chris Matheson Cold Case Mysteries, and more—blend twists, suspense, humor, and unforgettable characters (including clever German shepherds!).
It's Murder, My Son organically hit #1 in Mystery on Amazon, and her books consistently rank in the Top 20 Police Procedurals in the US and international markets.
A popular speaker and publishing consultant, Lauren lives on a mountain in Harpers Ferry, WV, with her husband and three spoiled rotten German shepherds.
Assigned topic: the review that launched Best in Murder.
Every so often a review lands in my inbox and I can hear the reader tapping the page.
After Shadow of Murder came out, one of those notes said, in so many words: lovely book, Lauren, but where was Gnarly? I wanted more of the dog.
Fair. Completely fair. Gnarly has been stealing scenes since It’s Murder, My Son. He has run for mayor. He has been accused of crimes he did and did not commit. He has an opinion about everyone who walks through Spencer Manor, and he is usually right. If a reader finishes a Mac Faraday mystery and feels shortchanged on German shepherd, I have not done my job.
So I asked the only question that mattered: how do you get more Gnarly without turning the book into a picture calendar with a murder stapled to the back?
A dog show.
Not a cute little park-day agility class. Best in Show. The Mid-Atlantic Classic Kennel Club Invitational, held at the Spencer Inn, which is already the most overqualified hotel in western Maryland. Champions worth small fortunes. Handlers who have not slept. Owners who talk about bloodlines the way other people talk about stock portfolios. A platinum-and-diamond collar that should never have left the safe. And one missing Irish Wolfhound whose value has nothing to do with his haircut.
Drop Gnarly into that, and you do not have to invent mischief. Mischief arrives on a leather lead and demands a grooming appointment.
I will confess something that will not surprise anyone who lives with shepherds: I did not have to stretch to write the four-legged chaos. I live on a mountain in Harpers Ferry with a pack that believes the house is a shared custody arrangement. They do not care that I have a deadline. They care that someone opened a bag of something interesting in the kitchen. Gnarly is fiction. The attitude is research.
What I did have to invent—and this is the fun part—was the collision. Mac Faraday still thinks like a homicide detective, even when he is standing next to a judge’s table and a standard poodle with a better stylist than I will ever have. David is trying to keep order in a county that has developed an unfortunate habit of collecting bodies. The Inn is full of people who smile for the cameras and lie in the hallway. And Gnarly, who has never once read a kennel-club rulebook, treats the whole event as his personal playground.
That is the premise of Best in Murder in one sentence: give the dog the room he asked for, then lock the doors.
I know some readers worry that a dog-show mystery will go soft. I write murder mysteries. Someone dies. More than one someone, if I am being honest, which I try to be except when I am plotting. The rhinestones do not cancel the crime scene. They just make it louder.
If you are new to Mac Faraday, you do not need fourteen books of homework. You need a retired detective, a resort town that cannot stay quiet, and a German shepherd who has never met a situation he could not make worse and then solve. If you have been with us since the beginning, you already know Gnarly does not share the spotlight. He rents it out and keeps the deposit.
The reader who asked for more Gnarly may regret the request when the Spencer Inn starts sounding like a kennel at feeding time. I do not. I took the note. I booked the show. And I let the dog off the lead.
Best in Murder is out October 13. Pack a lint roller.
My Review:
Lauren Carr has become my go to for when I am looking for an entertaining mystery. Her A Mac Faraday Mystery series has been one of my top favorite series. It was an honor to have the opportunity to read the newest and fifteenth installment called, Best in Murder. I have come to the conclusion that my favorite Lauren Carr is always the most current one I have read. It is so hard to choose! I loved catching up with Gnarly and Mac Faraday once again. This duo always has a way making me giggle throughout their stories. This time around they are having to solve a mystery at a kennel club dog show. I was often wondering of who done it. Once I think I knew what had happened, a twist is thrown in and I was left guessing again. I thought it was a great book to read and a perfect way to spend a cold, rainy day. Loved it.
I am going to give Best in Murder a very well deserved five plus stars. I highly recommend it for readers who love to read fun filled mysteries, especially those that involved our beloved canine friends. I really am hoping there will be more to come from A Mac Faraday Mystery series for several more years. Mac has become like family for me. I can not wait to see what else Lauren Carr has in store for this clan in the future.
I received a paperback copy of Lauren Carr's Best in Murder from the publisher, but was not required to write a positive review. This review is one hundred percent my own honest opinion.
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Book Details:
Book Title: BOY WITH WINGS by Mark Mustian Category: Adult Fiction (18+), 324 pages Genre: historical fiction/magical realism/literary fiction Publisher: Koehler Books Release date: March 2025 Content Rating: PG-13: There is adult content, use of the f word and (in limited context) the n word
Book Title: The Midnight of Eights by Justin Newland Category: Adult Fiction (18 +), 288 pages Genre: Historical Fiction and Magical Realism Publisher: The Book Guild Release date: September 2025 only to master his mystical powers – the mark of the salamander, that mysterious spirit of fire – and reunite with his beloved Eleanor. After delivering a message to Francis Walsingham, he’s recruited into the service of the Queen’s spymaster, where his astral abilities help him to predict and thwart future plots against the realm. But in 1588, the Spanish Armada threatened England’s shores. So, how could the fledgling navy of a small, misty isle on the edge of mainland Europe repulse the greatest fleet in the world? Was the Queen right when she claimed it was divine intervention, saying, ‘He blew with His winds, and they were scattered!’? Or was it an entirely different intervention – the extraordinary conjunction of coincidences that Nelan’s astral powers brought to bear on that fateful Midnight of Eights?
This guest post is about the threats, challenges and motivations of the main character of my novel, The Midnight of Eights.
Historians know the names of some of the crew of Sir Francis Drake’s vessel, The Golden Hind. One of them was a Flemish immigrant by the name of Nelan. I gave him the surname Micheals and made him the protagonist of The Midnight of Eights.
The novel is the second book in a two-part historical adventure series set in Elizabethan England. Although written as a stand-alone, Book 2 also continues the storyline of Book 1 (The Mark of the Salamander) and begins when Nelan returns from the circumnavigation in Sir Francis Drake’s Golden Hind.
I evoked some of the complexities and uncertainties of the Tudor world to which he returns, which is fraught with dangers from both inside and outside the realm. Catholic Spain waits in the wings to invade England, a Protestant nation, sending spies to infiltrate the mansion, stately homes and the English courts, and to join up with the many disaffected Catholics who actively plot against Elizabeth, who according to the Pope, is a heretic and a pretender. Nelan wants the one thing his parents could never provide for him; love, stability and
The threats to the Queen’s person pile up – Edmund Campion, Francis Throckmorton, and then, Anthony Babington, who conspires with the dangerous Mary, Queen of Scots, the Queen’s cousin, a Catholic, and a distant heir to the throne.
When Nelan helps to uncover the Babington plot to unseat Elizaeth, Mary is implicated and is executed at Fotheringhay Castle in 1587, prompting King Philip of Spain to prepare the Armada for the invasion of the Land of Angels, England.
During this difficult time leading up to the invasion in 1588, Nelan uses all his powers to divine the intentions of the Spanish, and thwart their plans. He must also reunite with his old sea commander, Admiral Sir Francis Drake and go back to sea once more, fighting in the most crucial naval battle that decides the country’s fate. Yet as the clouds of war loom over the English Channel, even more shocking dangers lie closer to home: the treachery and paranoia of the Elizabethan court threatens to put Nelan’s life at great risk – unless he can find a desperate way to escape before disaster strikes. At a time of conflict at home and abroad, Nelan is faces the ultimate test of loyalty; between his new country or his beloved.
These then are some of the threats, challenges and motivations that galvanise the boy, and make the man, Nelan Michaels, in The Midnight of Eights.
Justin Newland
Photo #1: Sir Francis Walsingham, courtesy of Wikipedia
Photo #2: Mary, Queen of Scots, depicted in mourning, courtesy of Wikipedia
Book Title: SUNNY GALE: A NOVEL by Jamie Lisa Forbes Category: Adult Fiction 18+, 268 pages Genre: Historical Fiction, Literary Novel Publisher: Pronghorn Press Release date: May, 2024 Formats Available for Review: print-softback (USA only) and ebook (PDF, NetGalley download) Tour dates: Oct 21 to Nov 8, 2024 Content Rating: PG-13 +M:There is no profane language. There are some sexual scenes, non explicit. There is one instance of sexual abuse that is more recollected than described. My specific reason for giving this rating was two scenes where animals are harmed intentionally.
"Forbes is an experienced author, and her latest novel is beautifully, even poetically written...A moving, memorable, and fully realized rodeo saga." Kirkus Reviews, starred.
"Those who have an interest in historical fiction...will find this book enlightening. It's an eye-opening read and an evocative mixture of fact and fiction." Michaela Gordoni for Portland Book Review.
"Forbes showcases her remarkable storytelling skills, promising readers an unforgettable experience." Suzie Housley for Midwest Book Review
Book Description:
It's 1895 and fourteen year old Hannah Brandt is struggling with the hard life on a new Nebraska homestead. When her imagination is captured by a wild filly she becomes obsessed with horses, which opens the door to her destiny. Just four years later she enters the first Cheyenne Frontier Day rodeo where she wins the relay race and her fate is sealed. She gives herself a new name, Sunny Gale, and pursues a rodeo career, much to the disgust of her young husband and her very proper mother. Sunny defies convention with every move as the drive to compete takes over her life, leaving everything else behind, including husbands and children. It is a rough life she has chosen, but she craves the glory of the spotlight and refuses to bow to the expectations for a woman in her time.
Award winning author Jamie Lisa Forbes has once again brought us complex characters in a story based on real women and the early days when rodeo was wide open for them to become stars. It is a story of the social mores of the times and of a woman determined to defy them no matter how high the personal cost or where that choice might take her.
Jamie Lisa Forbes was raised on a ranch in the Little Laramie Valley near Laramie, Wyoming. She attended the University of Colorado where she obtained degrees in English and philosophy. After fourteen months living in Israel, she returned to her family’s ranch where she lived for another fifteen years.
In 1994, she moved to Greensboro, North Carolina. In 2001, she graduated from the University of North Carolina School of Law and began her North Carolina law practice.
Forbes’ first novel, Unbroken, won the WILLA Literary Award for Contemporary Fiction in 2011. Her collection of short stories, The Widow Smalls and Other Stories, won the High Plains Book Awards for a short story collection in 2015.
Forbes’ novel of rural North Carolina in the segregation era, entitled Eden, was published in 2020. Her historical novel about women bronc riders in the early days of rodeo, entitled Sunny Gale, was published in May 2024 by Pronghorn Press.
Ms. Forbes continues to live—and write—in North Carolina.
In 1963, Laramie Valley View School was built on a hillside overlooking our valley. The school consolidated several one-room schoolhouses, including my own, which had been within walking distance of my house. Now, my mother had to drive us to school.
On our trips, we noticed a red Volkswagen bug flying past us going so fast it was airborne over the potholes. The driver waved at us.
My mother never waved back. Having grown up in Manhattan and graduated from college at age 20, my mother felt no affinity for ranching families who had never been anywhere and had no education. She could never imagine herself as one of them, although, of course, we were being educated with their children. The practice of acknowledging your “neighbor” with a wave was just another local custom my mother disdained.
Eventually we realized the driver was traveling to his meadows to round up cattle for feeding. This we learned, when one day we saw him pull through a gate and open the car door. To our shock, ten dogs flew out of the car and hit the ground at a dead run. The man himself was over six feet tall. We were in awe at the entire spectacle.
One day, the red Volkswagen pulled over and stopped. My mother stopped and rolled down her window, “Can I help you?”
The man got out of his car. He wasn’t just tall. Everything about him was big. Broad shoulders. Massive jaw. Huge grin.
“Hi, Letty!” he boomed. He made it sound like they’d been good friends for years. As far as knowing her name, everyone in our valley knew everyone else, regardless of whether they spoke with one another or not.
“And you are?” She knew exactly who he was.
“Well, Frank. Frank Coykendall. I run the Miller ranch over here. How ya been doing?”
My mother was struggling to main her iciness in the onslaught of warmth exuded by this man. She looked away up the road. “I’m taking the children to school.”
“Well, so you are. That’s my house and Edna’s right next to it.” Frank turned to us. “How do you two like the new school?”
My brother and I did not dare speak.
“How about all of you come over for cookies after school?”
“They have homework. And Jamie is allergic to nuts.”
“You’ll never guess what Edna was baking this morning.”
Frank and my mother eyed each other. In spite of herself, she was starting to smile because his expression did not falter at her denial. His blue eyes, his grin filled the whole window.
“Cookies without nuts in them.”
“They can stay for five minutes,” said my mother.
“That’s just long enough for a cup of coffee for you too, Letty.”
We stayed more than five minutes. My mother had more than one cup of coffee. We went to their house many times and I would be visiting still if only the world hadn’t kept whirling so fast, spinning us all apart.
My Review:
I have had the pleasure of reading previous novels from Jamie Lisa Forbes and was honored to have the opportunity to read her newest release, Sunny Gale. It was fun going back in time and reading about the rodeo days of the time. I admired Hannah (Sunny Gale) right from the beginning with her bravery to do away with convention and being who she wants to be. I love how she was determined to be true to herself and not what is expected to her. The author's use of vivid details to bring the rodeo to life, made me feel as though I was right there seeing and hearing it all for myself. There were a few scenes that made me tear up while others made me want to laugh out loud. I thought this was an outstanding story of courage and history. I could not put it down until it was completely read in one sitting.
Sunny Gale will be getting a very well deserved five plus stars from me. I highly recommend it for fans of historical fiction, as well as, literary novels. I would love to read more upcoming releases to come from author, Jamie Lisa Forbes. I thought her talents really shined through in this book and believe it should not be missed.
I received a paperback copy of Jamie Lisa Forbes' Sunny Gale from the publisher, but was not required to write a positive review. This review is one hundred percent my own honest opinion.
Book Title:A Carrows Murder (The Carrows Family Chronicles, Book 10) by Annabelle Lewis Category: Adult Fiction 18+, 286 pages Genre: Mystery/Crime/Romance/Humor Publisher: PePe Press Release Date: June 2024 Content Rating: PG13 +M: My book has cursing. The f-bomb. Sexual flirting but closed-door action.
A Note from Annabelle Lewis:
Welcome to the latest installment of The Carrows Family Chronicles. Don't let the words Book 10 scare you! Dive into the adventure without the need for exhaustive backstory, as each page unfolds with its own excitement, color, and twists. While my characters’ pasts enrich their present journeys, rest assured that you can fully immerse yourself in this standalone tale. Prepare to be swept away by the twists, turns, fashion, humor and discoveries awaiting you within these pages.
Book Description:
A Crafty Plan. A Healing Sojourn. A Deadly Twister.
Royal Dutton, close friend and stylist for Charles and Angelica Carrows, has a broken heart and he’s falling to bits. Disturbed by Royal’s escalating depression and dangerous choices, the London-based Carrows family decide to distract Royal with a vacation to an English castle on the dazzling eastern shores of Yorkshire, Britain.
Well-intentioned, they plan a murder mystery using the villagers near the castle as characters who will each play a role in convincing the unsuspecting Royal that there is a murder to be solved for a real-life person.
It should have been fun.
But there are unforeseen consequences. The small town of Boswell Crag and its eccentric villagers will never be the same.
Meet the Author: Annabelle Lewis—a pseudonym—is a Minneapolis-based, multi-genre writer, dog lover, incredible mom, and champion of the screwed over. In addition to her touching, yet oddly scathing blog posted on her website, she’s published two exciting fictional series.
The Carrows Family Chronicles are humorous and vengeful caper novels. If you’re interested in a light romp about a family of well-dressed billionaires serving yummy revenge to a string of unsuspecting bad guys who have it coming, look no further.
The second series—The Boston Clairvoyants—is also a set of good versus evil stories. These psychic mystery/thrillers have been edited so they could be read as stand-alones, but as Glinda the Good Witch says – “It’s always best to start at the beginning.” The books have a supernatural hierarchy, a wee bit of romance and mythology, and a solid sense of humor. Lovers of dogs and Dean Koontz fans will adore these books.
Annabelle typically sends out two newsletters a month—so she promises not to annoy her subscribers too much. They typically contain feverish reviews on the latest stuff she is watching or reading, links to book giveaways, contests to win a signed paperback, and book browsing for other author’s work.
Oh, and a warning. Annabelle loves to curse. And there is cursing in her books and her blogs . . . because she’s gotta keep it real.
Can you give us some anecdotal information about the setting for your book and how you built your world for A Carrows Murder?
This was such a fun book to write! My idea was to take a murder mystery game and blow it up into something on a grander stage – an expensive job that the unstoppable Carrows family could pull off with style, setting a tone for sophistication and intrigue.
A Carrows Murder primarily takes place in the atmospheric setting of an English castle. Boom. The fun began for me right there. Let the research on castles begin! The town of Boswell Crag is fictitious too, but I based it on the real city of Robin Hood’s Bay in Yorkshire and placed the castle on moors looking down upon the village.
I then put on my casting agent’s hat for eccentric players. I ended up with a huge corkboard with the name of each villager describing their real-life story under which went different colored Post-its for their fictitious storyline assigned to them for their role in the murder mystery. It was a lot to keep track of, but I love it when everything clicks into place.
Since the book takes place in England, I hired a beta reader who actually lived in Britain to read it. I was lucky I found her. Not only did she love the book, but she felt my research into the feel of an English village was pretty darn good. She had a few suggestions though. Like the recipe I chose for sticky toffee pudding. And the fact that pumpkin pie wasn’t all that common. We went with apple. I had also mentioned in the book that Yorkshire was ‘near Scotland’ – and that didn’t work as it was equally close to Wales and Southern England. Geographical accuracy and culinary nuances aside, worldbuilding is a delightful part of writing a story. Research, feedback, and attention to detail enrich the storytelling experience, ensuring readers are transported into a meticulously crafted fictional universe. Enjoy!
My Review:
I have had the pleasure of reading books from Annabelle Lewis. However, I have not been introduced to her The Carrows Family Chronicles series until I received a copy of the tenth installment, A Carrows Murder. Even though it is part of a series and I have not had the chance to reading the previous books, I found this one could easily be read as a stand alone.
A Carrows Murder is by far my new favorite I have read by Annabelle Lewis. The mystery of the story was so full of twists and turns that my had was often left spinning. I never knew what could possible happen next. So many surprises I could have never predicted from scene to scene. I found the novel to be full of intrigue, adventure, action, and suspense. It was an honor to take this journey with the characters. I found it to be an overall fascinating and delightful book to read for me.
A Carrows Murder will be getting a very well deserved five plus stars from me. I highly recommend it for readers who enjoy immersing themselves in an entertaining murder mystery. I would love love love to read the other books from The Carrows Family Chronicles series and seeing what Annabelle Lewis had up her sleeve for those stories.
I received a paperback copy of Annabelle Lewis' A Carrows Murder from the publisher, but was not required to write a positive review is one hundred percent my own honest opinion.
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