Showing results by author "Ellery Adams" in All Categories

This bundle includes the first three books in the Secret, Book, and Scone Society series. In the first book of the series, Nora Pennington forms the Secret, Book, and Scone Society. As they untangle a web of corruption, they discover their own courage, purpose, and a sisterhood that will carry them through every challenge—proving it’s never too late to turn the page and start over.

When an elderly Miracle Springs resident, Lucille Wynter, arranges for Nora to deliver an order of books to her creepy, crumbling Southern Gothic mansion, Nora doesn't expect to be invited in. An agoraphobic, Lucille doesn't leave Wynter House. Nor does she invite anyone inside. But when Lucille doesn't come to the door to collect her books, Nora begins to worry. Forcing her way into Lucille's dilapidated home, Nora is shocked to find rooms packed to the ceiling with decaying books and a lifeless Lucille at the foot of her stairs.

Molly Appleby is a young writer for Collector's Weekly, and when the attractive reporter isn't covering auctions and antique shows all over the South, she's trying to get her new relationship with a coworker off the ground. When her latest assignment takes her to North Carolina pottery country to cover an exclusive kiln opening, she's certain that the show promises surprising offerings and rare finds. What she doesn't expect to find is a dead body.

Miracle Springs is a place of healing. Strangers flock there hoping that the natural hot springs, five-star cuisine, and renowned spa can cure their ills. And, if none of that works, they often find their way to Miracle Books, where, over a fresh-baked scone from the Gingerbread House bakery, they exchange their stories with owner Nora Pennington in return for a carefully chosen book. That's Nora's special talent: prescribing the perfect novel to ease a person's deepest pain and lighten their heaviest burden.

Molly Appleby's career as a reporter for Collector's Weekly is finally taking off, as is her relationship with coworker Matt Harrison. But the more time she spends covering Southern antiques and collectibles, the more times she finds herself face-to-face with a new mystery. And when she's sent to Nashville to cover the famous Heart of Dixie auction, where all the major players in the world of collectibles gather, her hopes of steering clear of foul play are quickly dashed when a renowned and well-respected dealer is found murdered.

When a scathing review by a prominent food critic threatens to ruin the career of local celebrity chef Anton Parsley, he turns to Cooper and her Bible study group for help. Cooper's boyfriend was once mentored by the beloved chef, and Cooper will do anything she can to support his struggling restaurant. But before she can figure out how to restore the chef's good reputation, the food critic is found murdered in his restaurant. Suddenly, Cooper and the gang must go from propping up the chef to tracking down a killer.

Molly Appleby loves her job at Collector's Weekly covering auctions and estate sales all over the South. When her latest assignment takes her to Richmond, Virginia, to interview the staff of the hit TV show Hidden Treasures, she's expecting a quick, fun trip. But when one of the show's appraisers is found murdered, Molly realizes that once again she'll have to put on her detective's cap until the culprit is captured.

James Henry, a kind-hearted professor of English literature, is forced to move back home to Quincy's Gap, a tiny town in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley, to care for his aging father. Shortly after moving into a house that hasn't changed since his childhood, the overweight, divorced, book-loving cheese puff addict accepts a position as head librarian and joins a supper club for dieters who call themselves the "Flab Five". Avoiding carbs is almost impossible in this deep-fried, all-you-can-eat Southern town.

Deputy Andrews pulls Nora into the sci-fi section and asks her to help him plan a wedding proposal. His bride-to-be, Hester, loves Little Women, and Nora sets to work arranging a special screening at the town's new movie theater. But right before the deputy pops the question, Nora makes an unsettling discovery—someone has mutilated all her store's copies of The Scarlet Letter, slicing angrily into the pages wherever Hester Prynne's name is mentioned.

The Hope Street Community Theater is staging It's a Wonderful Life as a fundraiser, and Cooper and the Bible study group are all taking part. They've also managed to land the help of a famous Broadway director, and he travels to Richmond along with his star actress and staff. But the director's entourage epitomize the worst of theater personalities, with petty grievances and jealousies stirring up more drama off the stage than on. And when the assistant director is found murdered in her hotel suite, the list of possible suspects is longer than a red carpet.

There's big trouble in Quincy's Gap when the "Diva of Dough" arrives to bake the wedding cake for Milla and Jackson's Christmas Eve wedding. The Diva, a celebrity television chef and cookbook author, is Milla's younger sister. And while her cakes are delectably sweet and incredibly beautiful, the Diva makes enemies wherever she goes. When one of the Diva's enemies decides to take her out, and Deputy Lucy Hanover finds the famous chef's body covered in cake batter, the Supper Club members find themselves up to their necks in suspects.

Desperate for a solution to their endless struggles with weight loss, the supper club members decide to sign on with Wellness Village, a new-age health center promising life-changing improvements through hypnotherapy. It's a mesmerizing experience, to say the least, but when the village's fresh food festival is disrupted by an angry mob of protesters and a local councilman is found dead, librarian James Henry and his friends trade in their newfound sense of calm for a tense hunt for a cold-blooded killer.

James Henry and the Flab Five are invited to serve as judges at Hog Fest, a celebrated barbecue festival in the Virginia mountains. But when one of the "pit masters" is found dead and a member of the supper club is accused of the murder, James and his friends have to lick the sauce off their fingers and get to work catching a killer. Amid a fairground filled with colorful people and tempting food, The Flab Five are sure to fall off the diet wagon. But James Henry has more to worry about than his expanding waistline.

Jane and her fiance, Edwin, are headed to the North Carolina coast for a much-needed vacation. Their harborside loft has floor-to-ceiling bookcases and breathtaking views, but Jane's hopes of exploring the town with her man are stymied when Edwin steps on a stingray. Things take an even less romantic turn when Jane stumbles across a dead body . . . Instead of taking leisurely beach strolls, Jane is suddenly on a literary chase through time, unearthing a dark secret in her family tree that threatens all she holds dear back in Storyton.

In the world of antiques and collectibles, it helps to have a sharp eye for quality, a good ear for gossip, and a nose for murder. When the female antiques dealer she was meant to interview turns up dead, Collector's Weekly reporter Molly Appleby can't help but wonder why anyone would kill a woman so new to the area. Before she can spend much time pondering means or motive, Molly discovers that the father she never knew is keen on a reconciliation. And while it seems unlikely that his sudden interest and the death of the dealer are connected, Molly soon learns otherwise.

Nora Pennington, the owner of Miracle Books, believes that a well-chosen novel can bring healing and hope. But she and the rest of the members of the Secret, Book, and Scone Society know that, sometimes, practical help is needed, too. Such is the case with the reed-thin girl hiding in the fiction section of Nora's store, wearing a hospital ID and a patchwork of faded bruises. She calls herself Abilene, and, although Nora and her friends offer work, shelter, and a supportive ear, their guest isn't ready to divulge her secrets.

James Henry, a lovable librarian, has gotten used to being back home in Quincy's Gap, a tiny town in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley. He has a job he adores, a group of close friends and fellow dieters who call themselves the "Flab Five", and is actually thinking about starting an exercise regimen. Six months after starting a low-carb diet, however, James and the Flab Five have fallen off the diet wagon. A new ice cream shop has opened in town, but so has the Witness to Fitness weight loss center, run by the zealous Veronica Levitt.

Cooper Lee is at a crossroads. Her boyfriend of five years just left her for another woman, she's living in an apartment above her parents' garage, and her job as a copier repairperson is feeling a little, well, repetitious. Hoping for a fresh start and a new outlook on life, she joins the Bible study group at Hope Street Church. The last thing she expects while studying the Bible is a lesson in murder.

Despite his trimmer waistline, his girlfriend Lucy's affections for him seem to have inexplicably cooled. So when Lindy suggests the supper club members join a Mexican cooking class, James leaps at the chance to try something new. The Flab Five's classmates include Shenandoah Star Ledger editor Murphy Alistair and twin sisters with supermodel physiques. When one of the sisters is murdered during a school field trip to Luray Caverns, the amateur sleuths set out to catch the killer.

Miracle Springs is a place of healing. Strangers flock there hoping the natural hot springs, five-star cuisine, and renowned spa can cure their ills. And, if none of that works, they often find their way to Miracle Books, where, over a fresh-baked scone from the Gingerbread House bakery, they exchange their stories with owner Nora Pennington in return for a carefully chosen book. That's Nora's special talent. But when a visiting businessman reaches out to Nora for guidance, he's found dead on the train tracks before he can keep their appointment.