Kip O'Connor MM Cozy Mysteries

Kip O'Connor lives a simple life in the little seaside town of Pearl Bay. Unless it's tourist season, things tend to be pretty peaceful. There is, however, one never ending source of irritation in the form of Police Chief Merrick Dawson. Merrick is Kip's older brother's BFF, and nothing seems to bring Merrick more joy than nagging Kip about silly things. You'd think a Police Chief would have more important things to do than lecture Kip on parking tickets and picking up pet waste, but somehow Merrick always finds the time. Kip decides to take an art class at the local community college, and he's annoyed to find Merrick has also enrolled in the course. The instructor takes a shine to Kip, and soon they become friends outside of class. Merrick warns Kip of the dangers of blurring those lines and befriending his teacher, but Kip is flattered by the attention. When his art teacher is found stabbed through the forehead with a palette knife, Kip is determined to figure out who killed his new friend. Merrick naturally thinks Kip getting involved in the investigation is a horrible idea, but when has Kip ever listened to that irksome, pig-headed Merrick Dawson?

Dates can simply be murder. After barely surviving a terrifying stalker, Kip is reexamining his life choices. There's nothing like almost dying to make you take stock of things. One bright spot is that the ever maddening Merrick Dawson has stopped following him around picking on him. Merrick has begun dating Peter Harris, who by all accounts is a wonderful guy. Peter is nice. He's handsome. He's downright annoyingly perfect. When Kip is asked out on a romantic sunset cruise by one of Pearl Cove's most eligible bachelors, he decides he has nothing to lose. Unless he wants to spend the rest of his days alone, he needs to be proactive about finding love. But when Kip shows up for the cruise, instead of champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries, he finds his date dead.

Wait just a minute. A whole month has passed and no one has been murdered in Pearl Cove? Things are settling down in Pearl Cove as Kip and Merrick fumble their way through a new relationship. There's no denying the two men have deep feelings for each other, but trust issues can play havoc when people don't communicate well. When Kip's office manager, Helen, has her home burgled, but nothing is stolen, the Pearl Cove PD have little interest in solving the case. Kip, Charlene, and Helen decide a little amateur sleuthing couldn't hurt anything. Not surprisingly, Police Chief Dawson doesn't agree. He whole heartedly disapproves of his boyfriend's plan to nab the trespasser. But if the police won't do anything, Kip isn't about to turn his back on his friend. In fact, it's rather fun to play detective… until the thief tries to murder them.