Praise for Murder’s No Votive Confidence
“A charming mystery with believable, likeable characters. Check it out.”
—Suspense Magazine
“With this great cast and setting, Murder’s No Votive
Confidence was a very enjoyable take on the country house mystery.”
—Criminal Element
“This is a perfect summer cozy with a lush setting and a fun heroine.”
—Parkersburg News & Sentinel
“Don’t be surprised after reading Brecher’s mystery that you find yourself shopping for candles or perhaps planning a weekend on Nantucket.”
—Woman Around Town
“A cozy with candles, conspiring couples, and a cat—what could be a better combination? Christin Brecher’s debut mystery has all those and more.”
—Kaitlyn Dunnett, author of Clause & Effect
“A scentsational new series! Christin Brecher’s charming debut, Murder’s No Votive Confidence, glows with a seaside location, a candle shop, and a kitty that will melt your heart. Interesting characters and a twisting plot will keep you intrigued to the very end.”
—Krista Davis, author of The Diva Sweetens the Pie
“A charmingly fun whodunnit with plenty of twists and turns and delightfully quirky characters.
Murder’s No Votive Confidence had me hooked from the first pages.”
—Kirsten Weiss, author of Bleeding Tarts
“The first book in the Nantucket Candle Maker Mystery series by Christin Brecher burns bright with a delightful protagonist, realistic characters, and an intriguing plot—a breath of fresh Nantucket air!”
—Barbara Allan, author of Antiques Ravin’
Also by Christin Brecher
Murder’s No Votive Confidence
Murder Makes Scents
15 Minutes of Flame
A Nantucket Caudle Miker Mystery
Christin Brecher
KENSINGTON BOOKS
All copyrighted material within is Attributor Protected.
Table of Contents
Praise Also by Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Acknowledgments
KENSINGTON BOOKS are published by
Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018
Copyright © 2020 by Christin Brecher
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.
To the extent that the image or images on the cover of this book depict a person or persons, such person or persons are merely models, and are not intended to portray any character or characters featured in the book.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.
If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the Publisher and neither the Author nor the Publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”
Kensington and the K logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.
ISBN: 978-1-4967-2143-3
ISBN-13: 978-1-4967-2144-0 (ebook)
ISBN-10: 1-4967-2144-6 (ebook)
To Bandit and his best friend, Steve
Chapter 1
Saturday morning, I was lounging in my backyard and enjoying a little sun. My chaise for such luxury was a fold-out chair, the kind with plastic straps across a metal frame where one or two bands always seem to be missing in crucial places. Even though my rear end sank a little lower to the ground than I’d prefer, I was deeply engaged with the clouds rolling above me on this late October day. Thick, fluffy, bright white, and moving fast along an otherwise clear blue sky. As one remarkably beautiful apparition whisked by me, I remembered a game I used to play as a kid. My friends and I would study a cloud, and then we’d compare the images we saw. Mickey Mouse, a choo-choo train, a duck. It was amazing how often we saw different pictures in the same floating cloud.
You’d think I’d have learned from our game that there are a thousand ways to see the world, but it took me until I was almost thirty years old to really grasp the concept. Less than six months ago, I was grappling with the fact that my small candle business, the Wick & Flame, would not make it through another year on Nantucket Island. My dream of making candles and selling them in a store I owned, in my hometown, with the good fortune of being with family and friends, could have vanished like the flicker of a flame when it’s snuffed