Christmas Cocoa Murder

Hot cocoa, that favorite holiday beverage, links the three long stories in this welcome Christmas-themed anthology . In the title tale, an Irish Santa is found floating in a carnival dunk tank of hot chocolate in Kilbane, County Cork. O’Connor’s feisty series heroine, newly minted police officer Siobhán O’Sullivan, joins the effort to solve Santa’s murder. In “Christmas Coco and a Corpse,” set in South Lick, Ind., Day’s series heroine, Robbie Jordan, becomes the prime suspects when an all-around bad guy is found dead with his shirt covered in her special blend of Mexican cocoa. An escape room provides the setting for “Death by Hot Cocoa.” When Krissy Hancock, the lead of Erickson’s Bookstore Café mysteries, and seven strangers escape from the first challenge, they’re happy to find mugs of steaming cocoa, until they see their host dead on the floor next to a spilled mug of the still steaming brew. The three selections each offer relatable characters and an unexpected killer. This volume is the perfect companion for a cold winter’s night. [em]Agents: Evan Marshall, Evan Marshall Agency (O’Connor); John Talbot, Talbot Fortune Agency (Day); Joshua Bilmes, Jabberwocky Literary (Erickson). (Oct.) [/em]