by Lance Zarimba

Spring is blooming with a garden of wonderful new books.

Mary Jane Maffini's The Dead Don't Get Out Much finds Camilla MacPhee trying to track down a friend who has mysteriously vanished. Mary Jane is the guest of honor for this year's Bloody Words conference in Toronto in June. She has won the Arthur Ellis award twice for short crime fiction and her novels have been short-listed for the Arthur also. Her humor with Fiona Silk, a failed romance writer, and Camilla and her family's trials and tribulations make her the Canadian Janet Evanovich.

ayhem in the Midlands is just around the corner, and Omaha will soon host another year of great writers and mysteries. Laura Lippman is the well deserving guest of honor and she edited the new book Baltimore Noir. Tim Cockey, Sujata Massey, Marcia Talley and Robert Ward add to the atmosphere of this city rich in history. Denise Hamilton will be the toastmistress of Mayhem and her latest book, Prisoner of Memory finds Eve Diamond in her fifth adventure. The son of a Russian émigré is found murdered and Eve must search her family's past for clues to find the killer. Savage Garden is out in paperback as Eve's boyfriend is accused of murder.

Lisa Scottoline's new stand alone Dirty Blonde is about a new judge who has a secret life, which comes shockingly to light when the defendant in a high-profile lawsuit is murdered, and killer comes after her. Scottoline writes the best legal thrillers on the shelves.

John Morgan Wilson's Rhapsody in Blue finds Benjamin Justice and Alexandra Templeton taking a trip. They are off to a movie set at a hotel where two murders have taken place 25 years apart on the Ides of March and that day is quickly approaching again. This is Wilson's seventh Justice book. His series have won the Edgar and Lambda Literary Awards.

Mary Kay Andrews (Kathy Hogan Trocheck) returns with BeBe Loudermilk in Savannah Breeze the sequel to Savannah Blues . Savannah loses almost everything she possesses to a gorgeous con man named Reddy, all that's left is Breeze Inn, a 1950's motor court on Tybee Island. With a lot of elbow grease, a caretaker that looks like Harrison Ford, and a devious plan to retrieve her fortune and put Reddy in jail, BeBe might just find her way back to the top. Kathy's Callahan Garrity House Mouse mystery series is a fun romp through people's houses, but with an emotional tug on the heart at the surprise endings, especially in On A Midnight Clear and Irish Eyes. These endings hit with a punch that leaves you feeling for the characters like no other author can do.

Shirley Damsgaard's second outing is Charmed to Death . Her first book, Witch Way to Murder has enchanted the cozy world and more are on the way. A reluctant psychic and her grandmother, a benevolent witch, work together to help those in town and each other solve crimes. Shirley is a wonderful writer and great person, please try and catch her on her book tour and say Hi.

ynn Hamilton and Lara McClintoch are off to the Orkney Islands off the coast of Scotland. She is pulled into a century old Viking saga when one of her clients is accused of murder. The Orkney Scroll is the tenth novel is this archeology mystery series.

Nancy Pickard returns with The Virgin of Small Plains . Strange miracles visit those who faithfully tend the grave of a girl murdered 17 years ago, and when a man who fled the night of the murder returns to town, questions arise. Nancy's Jenny Cane series and Marie Lightfoot series about a true crime writer have won multiple awards and have sold millions of copies. It's great to see her back on the shelves with a new book this year.

Naomi Hirahara's Snakeskin Shamisen sees the return of Japanese-American gardener Mas Arai as he investigates the murder of a friend killed right after winning a half-million dollars from a slot machine and uncovers a worked of secrets.

Wyoming game warden, Joe Pickett returns in C J Box sixth book In Plain Sight . The disappearance of a local matriarch finds Joe as the target of revenge by a man who blames him for the death of his brother.

John Dunning's The Bookman's Last Fling finds Cliff Janeway in the world of horse racing in Idaho. Rare books and the murder of a book collector find Janeway on the trail of clues and priceless books.

Tamar Myers thirteenth book in the Den of Antiquity series is The Cane Mutiny . The poisonous sweet world of Southern society finds murder amongst the antiques. Her Pennsylvania Dutch series has fourteen lucky episodes of Magdalena Yoder's life, Grape Expectations is just out in hardcover.

The cover of Josh Lanyon's third Adrien English mystery, The Hell You Say , sums it all up in one neatly wrapped package: Demons, death threats, and Christmas shopping. It's gonna be one Hell of a Holiday. And this is one hell of a book. Josh's writing continues to get better and better with each novel. Witty remarks and tight writing makes this a holiday treasure that can be enjoyed anytime of the year.

A Face Without A Heart by Rick R. Reed has a new take on the Oscar Wilde's classic The Picture of Dorian Gray . This modern day version adds a new dimension on a fable. After finishing this entertaining read, I had to order Rick's first two books, Penance and Obsessed.

Douglas Clegg's new book The Attraction finds a group of teenagers running for their lives as they come across an attraction that says not to feed. Tourist Traps may never be the same, when murder and mayhem follow.

Now remember, with this list of great reads; don't forget to enjoy the sun and the beautiful weather outside. So take them with you before the bugs and the summer's heat and humidity make the pages wrinkle. Hope to see you at the mystery conferences throughout the year and check out a few of these wonderful authors and their engaging series. All bases are covered on this list, something for everyone.