Death on Thin Ice
(2026)(The fifth book in the Fur on the Ice Mystery series)
A novel by Hailey Hartley
Emma Bradford runs the Ridgemont Community Ice Arena with calm efficiency and a gift for keeping the peace, whether she's mediating between feuding hockey parents or managing tournament logistics. Her golden retriever Copper is her constant companion at the rink, famous for his gentle nature and his uncanny ability to locate any dropped snack within seconds. When the arena hosts its annual charity hockey tournament to benefit local youth programs, Emma expects the usual organized chaos of competing teams and enthusiastic volunteers. What she doesn't expect is for Copper to lead her to the body of prominent businessman Richard Landry in the equipment storage room, poisoned by contaminated treats from the fundraiser bake sale.
The police quickly focus on obvious suspects—the volunteer who baked the poisoned goods, a business rival with a public grudge, and a former employee nursing bitter resentment. But Copper's exceptional nose leads Emma to evidence the investigators overlook, and her intimate knowledge of the arena's rhythms reveals inconsistencies in people's stories. As Emma navigates grieving volunteers, defensive staff members, and a detective who's increasingly willing to trust a golden retriever's instincts, she uncovers a web of corruption that reaches far beyond one murder. Richard had been systematically bribing and manipulating members of her arena community for years, trapping desperate people in impossible situations. The killer emerges not as a monster, but as someone pushed past their breaking point by relentless psychological and financial pressure.
In the high-stakes world of community sports and small-town politics, trust can be as fragile as ice. Emma must use all her diplomatic skills and rely on Copper's food-motivated nose to separate victims from villains, because in Ridgemont, even the most dedicated volunteers might be hiding dangerous desperation beneath their helpful exteriors. When the final evidence surfaces, Emma will discover that solving a murder is only the beginning—rebuilding a community's broken trust requires transparency, accountability, and the courage to confront uncomfortable truths about people you thought you knew.
Genre: Cozy Mystery
The police quickly focus on obvious suspects—the volunteer who baked the poisoned goods, a business rival with a public grudge, and a former employee nursing bitter resentment. But Copper's exceptional nose leads Emma to evidence the investigators overlook, and her intimate knowledge of the arena's rhythms reveals inconsistencies in people's stories. As Emma navigates grieving volunteers, defensive staff members, and a detective who's increasingly willing to trust a golden retriever's instincts, she uncovers a web of corruption that reaches far beyond one murder. Richard had been systematically bribing and manipulating members of her arena community for years, trapping desperate people in impossible situations. The killer emerges not as a monster, but as someone pushed past their breaking point by relentless psychological and financial pressure.
In the high-stakes world of community sports and small-town politics, trust can be as fragile as ice. Emma must use all her diplomatic skills and rely on Copper's food-motivated nose to separate victims from villains, because in Ridgemont, even the most dedicated volunteers might be hiding dangerous desperation beneath their helpful exteriors. When the final evidence surfaces, Emma will discover that solving a murder is only the beginning—rebuilding a community's broken trust requires transparency, accountability, and the courage to confront uncomfortable truths about people you thought you knew.
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Used availability for Hailey Hartley's Death on Thin Ice