18 books like Night Hawk Casino Series

As someone whose early career was spent in a family business, Arson and Americanos took me on a delightful trip down memory lane.

It was just like old home week as I cheered the familiar banter and playful bickering between third-generation spunky barista Hazel, her mom, and grandma.

Give me a whodunit like this one, starring an endearing cast and a loyal protagonist with heart and courage who is willing to step up and put everything on the line when it counts the most, and I’ll show you an unputdownable story you’ll be sad to see end.  

Two sisters check into a hotel in their Arizona hometown to celebrate one another’s birthdays.

Their celebratory getaway is abruptly interrupted when one of the sisters discovers the corpse of a nasty hotel guest. Both sisters are hopeless snoops who can’t mind their own beeswax. So, naturally, they stick their noses everywhere they don’t belong to sniff out the killer, much to the consternation of the homicide detective in charge of the case.

Give me a madcap cast that takes readers on a raucous, wild rollercoaster ride at a breakneck pace in a fun romp with a plot that has more twists and turns than a pretzel, plenty of motives and red herrings like this one any day of the week. 

As a long-time resident of Palm Springs, California, I’ve rubbed elbows with my share of entertainers; some beloved, others so obnoxiously full of themselves that I wondered how they managed not to get knocked off.

In A Murder in Palm Springs, antique appraiser Marty Morgan and her pal Carl are tasked to evaluate American Idol Jimmy Joseph's memorabilia collection. When Jimmy ends up dead, it's obvious not everyone was a fan. There’s no shortage of suspects, and Patron, Marty’s sister’s white boxer with paranormal abilities, can identify the culprit, but nobody’s asking his opinion.

Give me a whodunit with a whisper of woo-woo, and I’m a happy camper. Harman’s physical descriptions of Palm Springs are so spot on, you’ll be slathering on the suntan lotion and heading for the pool. 

Newly minted homicide detective Patricia is a flawed but believable protagonist who puts everything on the line when it counts the most.

Patricia won me over right from the beginning in this tightly written nail-biter that pulled at my heartstrings and never let go. I was moved by the compelling plot threads woven together by love, loss, courage, weakness, strength, the devastation of betrayal and trust, and a tragedy, the result of a misguided sense of responsibility.

Give me a parable of good versus evil that defines the best and worst in us, like A Matter of Motive, and I’ll stay up all night on the edge of my seat because I could never fall asleep until I found out what happened next.

This is a breathless ocean adventure to Mexico, chock-full of international intrigue, a deadly hurricane, and a lovesick whale courting Civil Engineer Hetta Coffey’s yacht.

I laughed out loud at the hilarious antics of zany but lovable characters. Give me a madcap escapade featuring a macho rent-a-Captain with Lucy and Ethel as the crew, on a cruise where whatever could go wrong would go wrong.

I loved the snappy, spicier-than-hot salsa dialogue and snarky banter between sassy Hetta and Jan, her BFF. Add a plot that runs at a breakneck pace, and I bought myself a ticket for a rollercoaster-worthy wild ride that was more fun than whacking a piñata.  

Kate Tessler’s father and his retirement community coffee group come to her with a problem: their friend Larry's much younger wife claims her husband has dementia.

The group is convinced that Larry’s wife and her two adult, deadbeat kids are out to steal Larry’s money. But before they can authenticate the truth, their efforts are complicated when Larry is accused of committing a murder. Now they must prove Larry is both mentally competent and not a killer.

I love this saucy whodunit that came with the reminder that the term senior citizen doesn’t mean soft in the head. I cheered this fast-paced, witty cozy starring a gang of savvy seniors with humor, heart, and tenacity. Something Deadly on Desert Drive is perfect for fans of laugh-out-loud amateur detective stories who need no reminder that age is only a number.

Nothing much happens in Maggody, Arkansas, so Arly Hanks figures her job as the first female police chief will be a yawn. Life is so boring that the locals resorted to gobbling up every rumor of creatures from outer space invading their burg.

Give me an irreverent protagonist, dialogue dripping with sarcasm, and a zany plot that spits in the eye of society’s absurdity. I love the way life-long Arkansan Hess gleefully makes mincemeat of the hypocrisy of the caste hierarchy often found in small southern towns by reducing them to a parody of themselves.

I’m a happy camper when a Queen of Cozies like Hess pushes a mystery to the brink of merry madness—and then pushes it even farther.

I absolutely adore the hilarity of physical comedy. So, I was immediately drawn to the slapstick antics of calamitous Trenton, NJ, bounty hunter Stephanie Plum.

In Hot Six, a homicidal maniac has selected Stephanie as his next victim. Nothing tickles my funny bone more than a hapless heroine who stumbles and bumbles her way into and out of messes. I love that Stephanie never has to look for trouble…it always finds her.

I laughed out loud when Stephanie’s eccentric grandmother set up housekeeping in her granddaughter’s apartment at the same time that Stephanie adopted a dog with an eating disorder. I love the story’s frantic pace and the surreal spots Stephanie gets herself into. 

I lived in Palm Springs for a long time. My husband and I loved to go to Los Angeles, where we would roam the neighborhoods.

My favorite book about Los Angeles is Shopgirl a thin novel written by Steve Martin, yes that Steve Martin, the actor. I love his writing; it is so spare he doesn’t waste a word. What happens when new-to-the-city aspiring artist Miabelle begins to date the wealthy older Ray Porter.

This book isn’t about how to marry a millionaire but an honest look that captures the loneliness mixed with exhilaration that a young woman faces when she moves to a place where she doesn’t know anyone. I carry this book with me every place I move because I want to keep the real Los Angeles close to me.

I was driving across country to move to Miami. When we stopped in Austin, I picked up a copy of Back to Blood by Tom Wolfe.

I was thrilled to find a novel about the city I was moving to. A thick book meticulously researched I settled back and immersed myself into a brilliant novel about multicultural Miami. The Cuban police officer, a Creole professor, Russian criminals, artists from Miami Art Basel, retired New York Yentas, and many more call Miami home.

It was a great primer for my move. That first year I went to Art Basel, visited Little Havana for pastries, and celebrated my birthday at a Russian nightclub all because of Back to Blood.