Crimes Without Murder 

If you like a good mystery but get tired of all the killing, check out some of these books that offer crimes without murder. I'm up for reading a few and looking for some good suggestions.

Click here for a list of Mysteries Without Murder.


Cranberry Bluff by Deborah Garner

When Molly Elliott is accused and then cleared of bank robbery in Tallahassee, Fl, she hopes to resume her normal life, but when she starts getting threatening notes saying they know she has the money and they want it back, she fears for her life. When her aunt dies and leaves her a bed and breakfast in Cranberry Cove in Northern California, she decides to start a new life on the other side of the country. Little does she suspect when a cast of quirky characters show up at the B&B that her past is stalking her, and her new life may be in serious jeopardy.The quirky bunch include a honeymoon couple who don't really seem to like each other; Mr. Miller, a silent unfriendly obsessive compulsive salesman; over the top shopping junky, Sadie Kramer; and the handsome, charming, sexy Bryce Winslow who makes Molly's heart thump. Everyone seems to be plotting something, and Molly could be their target. This is a well written romp with comedic relief to a serious situation. I highly recommend it. Lots of fun. A mystery without a murder. ~Review by Sandy Penny, sweetmysterybooks.blogspot.com. I received a free review copy. 


Three Silver Doves (A Paige Mackenzie Mystery) by Deborah Garner

When Paige head to Tres Palomas, NM for a combination magazine story and well-deserved vacation, she is enchanted by the local jewelry maker who also runs the spa/hotel. However, when she notices another tourist who just arrived wearing the same jewelry design, although she's never been to Tres Palomas before, Paige has to find out what's going on. She was told that the jewelry was only sold at the spa and in town locally. Her spidey sense is tingling, and she can't ever just ignore it even if she needs to rest. The story offers a southwest flair with Native American traditions. It's very interesting to me because I lived in NM, and I know exactly what this is based on just by her descriptions. It took me back to New Mexico and let me soak in the hot springs and enjoy the local cuisine as I did when I lived there. It's an all too common problem these days with artisans and artists being ripped off and exploited without their knowledge. Headstrong and determined, she pushes forward into what turns into a very dangerous situation. She's a lot of fun to read, and there is non-stop action. If you like Southwest culture, you'll love reading this novel. I did. Will definitely read more of the series. ~Review by Sandy Penny, sweetmysterybooks.blogspot.com

The Complete Raffles Collection by E. W. Hornung

This Halcyon Classics ebook collection contains the complete Raffles series by E.W. Hornung in four books: THE AMATEUR CRACKSMAN, RAFFLES: FURTHER ADVENTURES OF THE AMATEUR CRACKSMAN, A THIEF IN THE NIGHT, and MR. JUSTICE RAFFLES. He is sometimes known as the anti-hero to Sherlock Holmes.

Raffles is a gentleman thief who supports himself by carrying out ingenious robberies through safecracking, lock-picking, masterful disguises, and unbelievable escapades. Well-dressed and well-spoken, Raffles is accompanied by his sidekick "Bunny" Manders; the two gentlemen cut a swathe of theft and adventure through the fashionable areas of London. Ernest William Hornung (1866-1921) was an English author and brother-in-law to Arthur Conan Doyle. An accomplished writer, Hornung is most famous for writing the Raffles series of novels about a gentleman thief in late Victorian London. This unexpurgated edition contains the complete text with errors and omissions corrected.








Number One Ladies Detective Agency (Series Set 1-8)
by Alexander McCall Smith
 


This series has gotten wide acclaim and several awards. Set includes: The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency, Tears of the Girraffe, Morality for Beautiful Girls, The Kalahari Typing School for Men, The Full Cupboard of Life, In the Company of Cheerful Ladies, The Good Husband of Zebra Drive, Blue Shoes and Happiness. The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency received two Booker Judges’ Special Recommendations and was voted one of the International Books of the Year and the Millennium by the Times Literary Supplement.

THE NO. 1 LADIES’ DETECTIVE AGENCY - Book 1

Fans around the world adore the best-selling No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series and its proprietor, Precious Ramotswe, Botswana’s premier lady detective. In this charming series, Mma  Ramotswe—with help from her loyal associate, Grace Makutsi—navigates her cases and her personal life with wisdom, good humor, and the occasional cup of tea.

This first novel in Alexander McCall Smith’s widely acclaimed The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series tells the story of the delightfully cunning and enormously engaging Precious Ramotswe, who is drawn to her profession to “help people with problems in their lives.” Immediately upon setting up shop in a small storefront in Gaborone, she is hired to track down a missing husband, uncover a con man, and follow a wayward daughter. But the case that tugs at her heart, and lands her in danger, is a missing eleven-year-old boy, who may have been snatched by witchdoctors.

Book 2, Tears of the Giraffe: Precious Ramotswe is the eminently sensible and cunning proprietor of the only ladies’ detective agency in Botswana. In Tears of the Giraffe she tracks a wayward wife, uncovers an unscrupulous maid, and searches for an American man who disappeared into the plains many years ago. In the midst of resolving uncertainties, pondering her impending marriage to a good, kind man, Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni, and the promotion of her talented secretary (a graduate of the Botswana Secretarial College, with a mark of 97 per cent), she also finds her family suddenly and unexpectedly increased by two.~Note by Sandy Penny, SweetMysteryBooks.com, although I have not read this yet, it has been recommended by members of the popular LinkedIn Crime Fiction Group.



The Dortmunder Series by Donald E. Westlake 

7 Books Series includes: The Hot Rock (Book 1)Fresh out of prison, Dortmunder plans a heist that could mean war. John Dortmunder leaves jail with ten dollars, a train ticket, and nothing to make money on but his good name. Thankfully, his reputation goes far. No one plans a caper better than Dortmunder. His friend Kelp picks him up in a stolen Cadillac and drives him away from Sing-Sing, telling a story of a $500,000 emerald that they just have to steal. Dortmunder doesn’t hesitate to agree. The emerald is the crown jewel of a former British colony, lately granted independence and split into two nations: one for the Talabwo people, one for the Akinzi. The Akinzi have the stone, the Talabwo want it back, and their UN representative offers a fine payday to the men who can get it. It’s not a simple heist, but after a few years in stir, Dortmunder could use the challenge. ~Info from Amazon