Books like 'Checkered Thief'
Readers who enjoyed Checkered Thief by Tonya Kappes also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary romance mystery female-mc suspense cozy animals
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Concealed Cargo: Children for Sale by Jodi Burnett
Rated: 4.58 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWhen Special Agent Clay Jennings and his K9 partner, Ranger, take to the streets of Denver to fight human trafficking, he is shocked by the inordinate number of stolen innocents who’ve been forced into the sex trade. With each new face, his resolve to help these children escape their personal horror grows stronger... -
No Escape by Julie Moffett
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsGeek girl Lexi Carmichael thought meeting the in-laws would be easy as long as they met on neutral ground and she was fully prepared with a spreadsheet full of etiquette dos and don’ts. But unfortunately for Lexi, things don’t always turn out as she planned.Meeting the in-laws is a daunting task even for those who are outgoing and socially capable... -
Poison and Prejudice by Chelsea Field
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen Izzy agreed to become an undercover poison taster, she didn’t anticipate that it might involve driving around the streets of Los Angeles with a corpse in the trunk. Because the police asked her to. She also didn’t think finding a body together could be considered a bonding experience until she met Connor’s family... -
The Wedding Plan by Kathi Daley
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIf you love small towns, endearing relationships, food, animals, and a touch of murder, you will love this mystery series set in the small town of White Eagle Montana. In book 10 in the series, Tess and Tony plan a secret wedding ceremony, Nona plans a visit, and Tess and Mike plan a face to face meeting with their father. Of course you know what they say about the best laid plans... -
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COMEBACK GIRL: part 1 of 6 by Stephanie Bond
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAn Amazon exclusive!From the international bestselling author of STOP THE WEDDING! (now a Hallmark Channel movie) and the BODY MOVERS mystery series comes a new story of comedy, suspense, and romance.Home is where the hurt is. In COMEBACK GIRL, a young novelist estranged from her family is forced to return to her small hometown for a family emergency, and deal with the ghosts of her past... -
COMEBACK GIRL: part 5 of 6 by Stephanie Bond
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAn Amazon exclusive!From the international bestselling author of STOP THE WEDDING! (now a Hallmark Channel movie) and the BODY MOVERS mystery series comes a new story of comedy, suspense, and romance. Home is where the hurt is. In COMEBACK GIRL, a young novelist estranged from her family is forced to return to her small hometown for a family emergency, and deal with the ghosts of her past... -
Corpse in the Carnations by Dale Mayer
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsRiches to rags. … Chaos calms. … Crime quiets. … But does it really? After getting involved in two murder cases in the short time she’s lived in picturesque Kelowna, divorcee and gardener Doreen Montgomery has developed a reputation almost as notorious as her Nan’s... -
Duty and the Beast by Chelsea Field
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIsobel Avery's first six months as an undercover poison taster haven't exactly been easy. But this week will be worse. Two people with nothing in common are found dead. Apparently poisoned by an artificial intelligence security system. Now Izzy needs to find out whether robots are taking over the world or if there's a geeky murderer on the loose... -
Finding Felicity by P. Creeden
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsCan the sweetness of rekindled love temper the bitter tang of murder? Despite a difficult childhood, Felicity Stilton never gave up on her dreams. Now, as an adult, she and her Golden Retriever, JJ, help special needs children pave the way for their own futures. Everything is perfect, until she gets the one call she never expected to receive... -
Another Man's Treasure by S.W. Hubbard
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsOn a snowy Christmas Eve, a beautiful young mother goes out to buy a few last minute gifts and never returns…. ….thirty years later, her daughter picks up her trail. As the owner of an estate sale business, Audrey Nealon knows a lot about art, antiques, and the unlikely places old people hide their treasures... -
Justice by Jodi Burnett
Rated: 4.64 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA US Marshal K9 ThrillerUS Deputy Marshal Caitlyn Reed, and her K9 partner, Renegade, are tasked with guarding a federal judge in an obscure court in north-western Wyoming. What should be a boring assignment soon explodes into an all-out catastrophe when a killer makes several attempts on the judge’s life... -
A Humbug Holiday by London Lovett
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsIt's holiday time in Firefly Junction but not everything is sweet sugarplums and glittery tinsel.Sunni Taylor has been too busy to get into the holiday spirit, even with her mom coming to town for a visit. Her festive spirit gets a spark when Detective Brady Jackson asks her to attend the town's production of A Christmas Carol... -
No Such Thing as a Lost Cause by Shelly Fredman
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWhen rookie cop, Dave Wolinski is shot during a routine traffic stop, Brandy (who's along for the ride) finds herself face to face with the shooter; drug-crazed, pit bull fighting, gang member, Mario Lewis. Brandy shoots Lewis in self defense and becomes the target of gang retaliation... -
The Hitwoman and the Poisoned Apple by J.B. Lynn
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsHow do you solve a murder when the victim is still alive? Maggie Lee’s murder mentor (and almost lover) Patrick Mulligan wants her to find out who poisoned him before it’s too late. Keeping the man she loves alive would be hard enough if all she had to worry about was not getting caught, but nothing’s ever that simple... -
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Micah's Promise by Annabella Stone
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsMicah Kennedy has lived with PTSD for years. He is an expert at hiding his struggles behind the quick wit and snark that is very much a part of his makeup. His need to keep a promise to a dying comrade feeds his nightmares and invades his dreams—until that promise brings him military K-9 Delta. Hawk McKinnon has spent most of his life kicking trouble’s ass in every hotspot around the globe... -
Dubiosity by Christy Barritt
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsSavannah Harris vowed to leave behind her old life as an intrepid investigative reporter. But when a friend raises suspicions about two migrant workers who’ve gone missing from the sleepy coastal town Savannah calls home, her curiosity spikes... -
Through the Storm by Diane Greenwood Muir
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsOnce things start falling apart around Polly Giller, chaos takes over and all she can do is hold on for the ride. Sylvie Donovan has finished school and things are supposed to be rainbows and unicorns. Not in Bellingwood. Her oldest son, Jason, has just started high school and isn't handling the transition well... -
Marshal by Jodi Burnett
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe U.S. Marshals service seeks a K9 Unit for their elite strike team tasked with hunting down America's most wanted criminals. Caitlyn Reed and her K9 partner, Renegade, are called up to the varsity to face this harrowing challenge. Has she bitten off more than she can handle?Moose Creek Sheriff Colt Branson finds himself in the foray as a part of the U.S... -
Poison is the New Black: by Chelsea Field
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen Mr. Black becomes the top suspect in a murder investigation, Isobel Avery is roped into helping Etta, her Glock, and her greyhound clear his name. Except her boyfriend Connor is warning her to stay out of it, the new client she’s protecting from poison threats requires her full attention, and oh yeah, Izzy thinks Mr. Black might be guilty… He did once try to beat her to a pulp after all... -
Two Down, Bun to Go by H.Y. Hanna
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA sinister phone call in the middle of the night throws tearoom owner, Gemma Rose, straight into the heart of a new murder mystery—this time with her friend, Seth, arrested as the key suspect! The grisly killing in the cloisters of an old Oxford college points to a bitter feud within the University—but Gemma finds unexpected clues popping up in her tiny Cotswolds village... -
Take Down by Fern Michaels
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsChristmastime is here, and justice is the gift that keeps on giving for the Sisterhood and their menfolk in the third part of an exhilarating series by #1 New York Times bestselling author Fern Michaels. Victory is sweet, but for the Sisterhood and their allies, it’s also short-lived... -
Too Many Crooks Spoil the Plot by Sarah Osborne
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsPediatrician Mabel Aphrodite Brown adores kids. So when a childhood friend asks Ditie to babysit her kids for a few days, she jumps at the chance. She never imagined she’d be solving a murder too . . . Despite growing up together, Ditie hasn’t seen Ellie Winston in two years, and she didn’t even know Ellie was living in Atlanta... -
Mistletoe Malarkey: A Shayla Murphy Mystery by Stella Bixby
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThey've been dating more than a year. They practically live together. Now, Shayla's meeting his family for Christmas.In Ireland. Seamus is a park ranger, shares an apartment with three other guys, and drives a beat up pickup truck... -
A Scandalous Husband by Bev Pettersen
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsPRISON CHANGES EVERYTHING. It’s been two rough years since Dani Tattrie has seen her husband. She didn’t plan on running their California ranch by herself, but she’s scraped by. Now though, a string of bad luck has left her reeling and ready to sell. Training horses is still her dream job but she’s never recovered from her husband’s bewildering incarceration... -
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A Tangle in the Vines by Anna Celeste Burke
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe curtain may fall on the Calla Lily Players' first season unless Lily and Austin can find a killer on the loose in California's wine country. Torrential rains threaten to put a damper on The Calla Lily Players’ first outdoor theater production. When the ground suddenly shifts, buried secrets revealed amid the tangled vines put the spotlight on murder... -
Til Death by Annette Dashofy
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen one of Chief Pete Adams’ first murder convictions is overturned, he and County Detective Wayne Baronick are assigned to reinvestigate the case. As new theories about the murder surface, Pete begins to question not only the original suspect’s guilt, but his own investigative skills from the days when he first took over the Vance Township Police Department... -
The House of Lies by Debra Burroughs
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFrom New York Times bestselling author Debra Burroughs... P.I. Emily Parker and sexy police detective Colin Andrews are back, along with their close circle of friends. The House of Lies is Book 7 and you are in for another exciting and dangerous murder mystery with a thrilling dose of romance. Emily is fighting to clear the prime murder suspect while Colin is working to put him in jail... -
Living Fast by Adrienne Giordano
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsGreen Beret Reid Steele needs a new career ASAP. After a knee injury permanently sidelines him from his dream job, Reid heads home to the mountains of Steele Ridge to regroup, but small-town life isn’t cutting it for a man accustomed to action. When sexy boutique owner Brynne Whitfield captures his attention, Reid thinks he’s found the perfect distraction from boredom... -
Dead Even by Patti Larsen
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsRetired Guild Artemis Inquisitor Georgia Drake has left the paranormal world behind after the death of her partner in the line of duty. Along with her job investigating crime and murder. With her Hades Guardian mastiff, Benjamin, and raven pair for company, she moves her entire life across the continent to escape not only the loss but her oppressive and powerful family... -
Adverse Possession by Jenna Bennett
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSavannah Martin’s real estate career has been an uphill battle. As far as Savannah is concerned, her personal zenith was getting Aislynn Turner and Kylie Mitchell into their dream home, a Victorian cottage in the hip and happening historic district of East Nashville, last January.That was six months ago, and now the dream has turned sour... -
Maverick by Jodi Burnett
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsMaverick will release sooner than the posted date! Stay tuned.Small Town Thriller!While on a run in the mountains, K9 Renegade finds a red high-heeled shoe. He and his handler, Deputy Caitlyn Reed, locate its twin — on the foot of a dead woman floating face down in Moose Lake... -
Once Burned by Margaret Watson
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsNO ENEMIES, NO RIVALS,NO MESSY BEAK-UPS…SO WHO’S TRYING TO KILL HER?Julia’s made a great life for herself— she’s now the chef-owner of Madeline’s, the restaurant she’s always dreamed of, and it’s one of the best in Seattle. But suddenly she finds her great life falling apart—on every front... -
Countdown by Fern Michaels
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIn the second episode of a spectacular new series from New York Times bestselling author Fern Michaels, the men in the Sisterhood's lives join forces to protect the underdog and see justice served. . . It takes a special kind of man to love and be loved by one of the Sisterhood. The women's escapades have brought them worldwide fame and created a bond among their menfolk too... -
Jackrabbit Junction Jitters by Ann Charles
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe dusty pit-stop of Jackrabbit Junction, Arizona is rampant with jitters, and not just the pre-marital kind. Claire is back, blowing in with a monsoon storm on her heels and raining trouble throughout the cactus-filled valley. A burglar is on the loose and she wastes no time forming suspicions, but her usual suspects are temporarily off the hook when a treasure hunt sidetracks her... -
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Cub Creek by Grace Greene
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIn the heart of Virginia, where the forests shelter secrets and the creeks run strong and deep ~ Libbie Havens doesn’t need anyone. She’s fine on her own. When she chances upon the secluded house on Cub Creek she purchases it. She’ll show her cousin Liz, and other doubters, that she can rise above her past and live happily and successfully on her own terms... -
Fatal Frost by Karen MacInerney
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsLucy Resnick’s nerves are as tight as a tea cozy. Her new goats, Hot Lips and Gidget, keep making a break for the town square, her truck is dying, and her boyfriend’s gorgeous ex-wife is in town for the holidays. Worse, someone’s digging holes on her land…and uprooting her peach orchard and dewberry patch in the process... -
Mystic Falls by Vickie McKeehan
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsEmotionally reeling after the death of her grandmother, Gemma Channing is settling into Coyote Wells, the hometown where she grew up, after a ten-year absence. While trying to come to terms with the loss of her Gram, disturbing things begin to happen. Women are disappearing... -
Freshly Ground Murder by Tonya Kappes
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe holidays have arrived, and nothing is going to steal the joy of Roxanne Bloom’s first Christmas in Honey Springs.The town’s annual Christmas in the Park is underway and includes a Christmas Pawrade that’ll help the furry residents at Pet Palace get a home for Christmas... -
Brewed Awakening by Cleo Coyle
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFrom Cleo Coyle, the New York Times bestselling author of Shot in the Dark and Dead Cold Brew, comes a delicious new entry in the "fun and gripping" (Huffington Post) Coffeehouse Mysteries.When coffeehouse manager Clare Cosi awakens on a bench in Washington Square Park, she has no idea she's been missing for days, or that her friends and family have been frantic with worry... -
Chicken Scratch by Becki Willis
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsNamed 2016 Best Mystery Series by Texas Association of Authors. When Madison Reynolds finds herself widowed and penniless before forty, she does the only thing she knows to do – she packs up her teenage twins and moves back home with her eighty-year-old grandmother... -
Beowolf by Fiona Quinn
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThey weren’t looking for love. But fate—and a dog named Beowolf—had other plans…Retired military pilot Thaddeus (Nutsbe) Crushed deserves peace and quiet. If his work in tactical operations for Iniquus’s Panther Force hadn’t earned him that right, the fact that he lost his legs in the service of his country should’ve... -
Backstretch Baby by Bev Pettersen
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsShe can accept his past...but can he? Private investigator Rick Talbot shuns polite society, preferring to keep horrific memories at bay by hunting the most hardened of criminals. Tracking down stolen bridles at a California racetrack is a mind-numbing assignment that’s way beneath his pay grade... -
Death, Taxes, and a Satin Garter by Diane Kelly
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFOR RICHER OR POORER, IN BUSINESS AND IN STEALTH. Can IRS Special Agent Tara Holloway break up a clever ring of tax cheats who love money, dishonor the IRS, and disobey the laws of justice? When Tara agreed to be her best friend’s maid of honor, she knew it would be a ton of work. But planning a bachelorette party is a piece of (wedding) cake compared to her latest mission for the IRS... -
Veiled Threats by Kate Allenton
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAmber Cantrell has had her fair share of good times along with the bad. Watching her best friend find happily ever after has left her feeling the void in her own life. With a change of career, she's ready to find the right man to make the rest of her dreams come true. Self-proclaimed permanent bachelor and security specialist, Aiden Monroe has a way with women... -
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No Gravestone Left Unturned by Gena Showalter, Jill Monroe
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsShe suspects everyone of everything. Now, everyone suspects her.For cemetery owner and world’s best fur-mom Jane Ladling, death is her business, romance is her misfortune and suspicion is her passion. When she discovers a fresh body on her porch, she calls Special Agent Conrad Ryan, her smoke-show of a boyfriend. Who isn’t actually her boyfriend. Whatever... -
Game of Gravestones by Gena Showalter, Jill Monroe
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsShe suspects everyone of everything. Except her oldest friend. Who's found next to a body. Holding the murder weapon.For the first time, things are just right for cemetery owner Jane Ladling. Her cat only kind of hates her sort of boyfriend, Special Agent Conrad Ryan, and she isn't flat broke... -
The Inn at Misty Lake by Margaret Standafer
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSusan Taylor needs a fresh start. Tired of Chicago and especially of her job at a posh hotel, she figures she’s found the perfect solution to her problems in Misty Lake. Converting an abandoned farmhouse into a bed and breakfast means she will finally have the chance to be the one calling the shots. Riley McCabe has his doubts about the project Susan proposes... -
Unbound Hope by Joy Ohagwu
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsExperienced flight attendant Erica Heart wanted nothing more to do with US Marshal Jim Denison. Her gratitude to him for his key role in rescuing her sister's fiancée, Michael, stopped at the gate of their final goodbye. But when she urgently required the services of a US Marshal aboard a flight to accompany her team of newly-recruited flight attendants, she hesitantly turned to Jim for help... -
Misty Lake in Focus by Margaret Standafer
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFor Cassie Papadakis, a lonely childhood inevitably led to a lonely life. Trusting no one, she threw herself into her work and avoided relationships at all costs. Until she met Frank McCabe and everything changed. Two weeks with him taught her what happiness was. But then, in an instant, her world was shattered. Frank never understood why Cassie disappeared so suddenly from his life... -
Uneasy Prey by Annette Dashofy
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsOn the way to the emergency room, an elderly woman regains consciousness long enough to inform paramedic Zoe Chambers that her fall down the basement steps was no accident. Before she can say more, she succumbs to her injuries, launching Zoe and Police Chief Pete Adams into the investigation of a burglary ring targeting the area’s vulnerable senior citizens...
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