Susan Wittig Albert

Miss Beatrix Potter finds the abandoned Baby Flora?and a scarab ring?on her doorstep. An investigation reveals that the ring was pawned and reclaimed by a resident of the vacant and supposedly haunted Hawthorn House. Now Beatrix and her animal friends are left pondering these utterly puzzling happenings.

China Bayles's demanding schedule is further complicated by her half-brother's and her husband's attempt to solve the mystery of her father's suspicious accidental death, an investigation during which she stumbles on a murdered body in the seemingly tranquil community of Pecan Springs. Reprint.

When an anonymous source makes shocking allegations of improper behavior on the part of local high school football coach Tim Duffy, China Bayles is called in to conduct a discreet investigation into the charges, but her probe uncovers more than she had ever expected about a case involving betrayal, forbidden desire, and the mystery surrounding a young woman's death. Reprint.

When Beatrix Potter returns to her new hometown of Sawrey after some time away, she finds the village threatened by a mysterious outsider who plans to destroy the pristine shoreline of Lake Windermere by constructing a number of villas. Reprint.

A companion volume to the best-selling China Bayles mystery novels featuring the herbalist sleuth presents a collection of facts, recipes, trivia, remedies, lore, and gardening tips for every day of the year, accompanied by essays by the author, clues from China's mysteries, and more. Original. 30,000 first printing.

For former attorney-turned-herbalist China Bayles, her already busy life is further complicated when her teenage son stumbles upon the skeletal remains of the victim of a not-so-accidental death during a dig in a cave and a local community gathering is interrupted by murder. Reprint.

The author of Peter Rabbit and other tales, Beatrix Potter is still, after a century, beloved by children and adults worldwide. In this first Cottage Tale, Albert introduces Beatrix, an animal lover and Good Samaritan with a knack for solving mysteries. With help from her entourage of talking animal friends, Beatrix sets out to win over the human hearts of Sawrey, where she's just bought an old farm--and plans to stay.

China Bayles is in a pickle. The daughter of her best friend, Ruby, has turned up on her doorstep, pregnant and in need of a place to live. And her otherwise sensible husband has announced that he's bored with teaching and ready for a career change." "Say "hello" to P.I. Mike McQuaid and Associates. There aren't actually any "associates" - unless you count Ruby and China, of course. But the title does have a nice, official ring to it. His first client is Phoebe the Pickle Queen, owner of the biggest little pickle business in Texas. According to Phoebe, her plant manager is embezzling, and she wants McQuaid to follow the money." Meanwhile, Pecan Springs is hosting the annual Picklefest - and this year, China and Ruby are on the planning committee, along with Phoebe. But just days before the festival starts, the Pickle Queen disappears. Some say she sold her business and split; others think the answer may lie with her missing boyfriend. It's up to McQuaid and China to search for the Pickle Queen - and for clues in a case that promises to leave a very sour taste.

China Bayles heads to the tiny town of Indigo, Texas, to teach a Colors to Dye For workshop. But she quickly discovers that Indigo is a town with more than its share of dark secrets.

Now readers can join China Bayles in ten puzzling cases--and get a taste of her world. This delightful collection features loads of wonderful herbal tidbits on everything from rosemary to feverfew to catnip; recipes for such to-die-for dishes as a Deadly Chocolate Valentine, Ruby's Applesauce Mint Bread, China's Five-Spice Chicken and Veggie Stir-Fry, and McQuaid's Tex Mex-and a host of creative ideas for garden and home. It's a one-of-a-kind collection featuring a one-of-a-kind sleuth--who's worth spending some "quality thyme" with

Lawyer-turned-herbalist China Bayles returns to the Deep South, where her family's legacy of silence is at last broken--and the past finally, unforgettably, speaks the truth... A frantic phone call from her mother brings China back to her family's Mississippi plantation--a place she'd forsaken long ago. But the late-spring air is thick with fear--and from the moment of her arrival, China knows that something has gone desperately wrong at Jordan's Crossing. An ancient property deed has surfaced--and the man who uncovered it has mysteriously vanished. And as the fates and fortunes of two very different families collide in frightening, unpredictable ways, China must face disturbing new questions about her family's past--and her own future...

In this "intelligently plotted and deliciously descriptive tale" (Publishers Weekly), national bestselling author Susan Wittig Albert tells the story of a woman's search for justice--and of her struggle to reconcile the demands of her business with the desires of her heart... Former big-city lawyer China Bayles worked hard to make her Texas herb shop, Thyme and Seasons, a success. Now business is booming at her charming new tea room, Thyme for Tea--but China is too distracted to revel in her latest entrepreneurial triumph. When she's not trying to spend more time with her new husband and stepson, she's worrying about her best friend, Ruby, who just hasn't been herself lately. To further complicate matters, China has to round up a supply of mistletoe, the season's most popular herb. It seems an easy enough task--until her chief supplier turns up dead...

Texas herbalist China Bayles must put her upcoming nuptials on the back burner when a murder investigation entangles her friends and neighbors.

Ex-lawyer turned herbalist and amateur sleuth China Bayles attends a chili cookoff where a womanizing judge dies of an allergic reaction to peanuts. And since everyone knows peanuts don't belong in a bowl of Texas chili, China knows something suspicious is afoot...

The newest in the nationally bestselling series--a "fast-paced and absorbing" tale (Midwest Book Review). Ex-lawyer and herb-shop proprietor China Bayles is investigating the mystery of retired Texas Ranger shot dead with his wife's gun...and at the same time trying to sort out some mysteries about her own relationship after she overhears a suspicious phone conversation...

Ex-lawyer turned herbalist China Bayles must solve a hair-raising murder in this mystery from New York Times bestselling author Susan Wittig Albert. When a prominent animal researcher is found hanged in the midst of angry protests against his experiments, suspicion falls on biology professor Dottie Riddle. Known as the Cat Lady of Pecan Springs, Dottie's sympathy for strays--and the victim's distaste for them--gives the police reason to think she may be capable of murder. But China doesn't think so. She hires a lawyer for Dottie and starts looking around for clues. But she soon discovers that digging up old evil is a dirty and dangerous business...

Herb shop owner China Bayles is shocked when Halloween hijinks take a gruesome turn... In a small Texas town, what starts as a little festive Halloween fun ends in a brutal murder. And lawyer-turned-herbalist China Bayles is even more shocked when her friend Ruby, a New Age expert in tarot and astrology, becomes the prime suspect after a minister accuses her of witchcraft. Now it's up to China to unmask the real killer...

Nominated for both an Agatha and an Anthony Award, Susan Wittig Albert's novels featuring ex-lawyer and herb-shop proprietor China Bayles have won acclaim for their rich characterization and witty, suspenseful stories of crime and passion in small-town Texas. Now, when China's friend Jo dies of an apparent suicide, China looks behind the quaint fa ade of Pecan Springs and takes a suspicious look at everyone. And though she finds lots of friendly faces, China is sure that one of them hides the heart of a killer.