Back by popular demand! We are proud to present a second helping of crime, mayhem, and murder set during the celebration and licentiousness of Carnival.

​For a savory sample of New Orleans lore, take a sip of “A Prayer to Momus” by DJ Tyrer or “Carnival Carnage” by John Kiste. For a dish of redemption and revenge, returning author and Louisiana native Nathan Pettigrew serves up “The Steel Pelican.” Is a mystery with a literary flavor more to your taste? Try “The Brass Menagerie” by DG Critchley. If you prefer a racier seasoning, there’s “Unholy Beads” and “Gussy Saint and the Case of the Three-Boobed Woman.” For the deepest bowl of intrigue, we end with “Keep Your Head Up,” a thriller by Tom Andes.

Mardi Gras Mysteries is now available in paperback and Kindle at Amazon. It's also free on Kindle Unlimited. Start your Carnival with this appetizer!

Mystery with a Splash of Bourbon from the Derby Rotten Scoundrels is an anthology that celebrates Kentucky's finest spirit: Bourbon. Ranging from historical adventure to gritty realism, the eighteen crime stories included in this anthology are all fermented in the history and culture of Kentucky bourbon, distilled through the imaginations of our authors. Interwoven with the stories are articles covering the history of bourbon, from Prohibition, moonshining, and medicinal alcohol, to profiles of distilleries and the booming Whiskey Row district in downtown Louisville.

Who Are the Derby Rotten Scoundrels?
The Scoundrels are an eclectic group of writers (and readers) who get together to share their writing. The group was formed in 1992, starting as primarily a reading club. Over time, they became more focused on writers, especially new writers, and how to help them hone their skills and get published. The founders of Mystery and Horror, LLC were among those writers. 

Reserve your copy for a tasty bite of WWII noir with plenty of action! A young detective, searching for a missing girl, stumbles into a hornet's nest of homefront German sympathizers. Release date is 4/20/2020. 

If you are a reviewer and are interested in reviewing this book, contact us directly for an e-ARC or to request a print ARC. 

​Cincinnati, 1942. The secret to being a grifter is changing up the con so the rubes don’t realize they’re being taken. Kissy Lisbon’s spent years honing her skills as a con-woman, but as the war in Europe drags on, things get tough in the Queen City. Her new scheme: hiring herself out as a private eye. Her first client has a missing daughter, the missing daughter has a German boyfriend, and the German boyfriend has friends in all the wrong places. Following a lead sends Kissy careening headlong into a whirlwind of stolen money, American Nazis, and bleeding corpses. When an old flame from Kissy’s past shows up wearing a shiny new detective’s badge, she’s less than thrilled, but together they scour the city for answers. As the bodies start to pile up around her, Kissy is in a race to save the missing girl, her country, and her very life.

B. David Spicer graduated from Ohio University, earning a BA in English. His first name is Brian, but he thinks B. David sounds more artsy and pretentious. He’s had short stories in more than a dozen anthologies, including Cosy Crime from Flame Tree Press, Out of Phase and Wicked Deeds: Witches, Warlocks, Demons & Other Evil Doers from Sirens Call Publications, Strangely Funny II and III and VI from Mystery and Horror, LLC, and Pernicious Invaders and From the Corner of Your Eye from Great Old Ones Publishing. Big Shots and Bullet Holes is his first novel. He lives in Ohio and owns more books than ought to be legal.

We're giving away three print copies of Concealed in Ash for Halloween! Enter now.

Gwen Mayo's second novel, Concealed in Ash, is now available on Kindle. The print version will soon be available.

Former Pinkerton Agent Nessa Donnelly has nearly forgotten life before trading in her skirts for her brother's suit. As “Ness Donnelly”, she’s become Kentucky's most prominent detective, but her success is built upon a foundation of lies. Now she must help Doc Haydon, the county medical examiner, identify a murder victim discovered in the ashes of Lexington's Phoenix Hotel. The victim is Fergus O’Brien, Mary Katherine McGuire’s uncle. Nessa first met Mary Katherine on a blind date, and their relationship bloomed. Beulah, her beloved housekeeper and ally, warns Nessa that she is creating expectations, but Nessa waves her off.

Unfortunately, evidence from the hotel room puts Mary Katherine at the scene on the night of the fire. The more Nessa learns, the stronger the case against Mary Katherine grows. Worst of all, though, Doc Haydon has taken an interest in Mary Katherine himself – which bothers Nessa far more than she thinks it should.

When a colored boy is charged with murdering O’Brien, a white man, Nessa’s first reaction is relief. Professor Percival Pettijohn, a quirky inventor, pleads with Nessa to save Jake, his young assistant, from the gallows. The lad had good reason to kill O'Brien, but Pettijohn is certain he was framed. Nessa is reluctant to help until she discovers that Pettijohn's assistant is Beulah’s grandson.

Haydon, Donnelly, and Pettijohn put their lives on the line as a mob attempts to lynch the youngster. Stopping the mob once is not enough; O'Brien was involved with the Red Strings, a vigilante group with Northern sympathies. They show up in force, along with their mortal enemies, the Ku Klux Klan. Finding the real killer is the only hope Jake has, but this means Nessa must place herself between the Klan and the Red Strings.