A raging storm, a trapped lodge, and a critic who won’t live to see morning.
When barista Hattie Calder looks for new beginnings back home, a bad luck rockslide traps her into taking shelter at a roadside lodge cafe. She never expected being stuck in a roomful of stranded strangers with frayed tempers. With the road washed out and the generator flickering, Hattie tries to stay invisible… until a scruffy orange tabby adopts her on sight, dragging her straight into everyone’s problems.
As the storm worsens, tension builds. A jittery tourist couple whispers about a ruined vacation. A retired schoolmarm watches everyone like she’s still taking attendance. And the infamous travel critic Russell Briggs insults his way around the room, scribbling damning notes that put more than one guest on edge.
When Russell collapses mid-complaint, Hattie becomes an accidental suspect to a crime disguised as misfortune. Two guests had reason to wish him gone—one humiliated by his reviews, the other desperate to hide a secret the critic threatened to expose.
Now, cut off from help and surrounded by suspects, Hattie must uncover the truth before the killer strikes again—because the storm isn’t just trapping them in… it’s trapping the killer with them.
This book can be read as a standalone novella.
Genre: Cozy Mystery
When barista Hattie Calder looks for new beginnings back home, a bad luck rockslide traps her into taking shelter at a roadside lodge cafe. She never expected being stuck in a roomful of stranded strangers with frayed tempers. With the road washed out and the generator flickering, Hattie tries to stay invisible… until a scruffy orange tabby adopts her on sight, dragging her straight into everyone’s problems.
As the storm worsens, tension builds. A jittery tourist couple whispers about a ruined vacation. A retired schoolmarm watches everyone like she’s still taking attendance. And the infamous travel critic Russell Briggs insults his way around the room, scribbling damning notes that put more than one guest on edge.
When Russell collapses mid-complaint, Hattie becomes an accidental suspect to a crime disguised as misfortune. Two guests had reason to wish him gone—one humiliated by his reviews, the other desperate to hide a secret the critic threatened to expose.
Now, cut off from help and surrounded by suspects, Hattie must uncover the truth before the killer strikes again—because the storm isn’t just trapping them in… it’s trapping the killer with them.
This book can be read as a standalone novella.
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Used availability for Andi Cane's Murder at the Lodge Cafe