Armstrong, David. Written Out. Severn House. Oct. 2009. 224p. ISBN 978-0-7278-6779-7. $28.95.

Is a novelist's disappearance an evil plot or an innocent affair? Detectives Frank Kavanagh and Jane Salt return after A Kind of Acquaintance to take the case.

Beaton, M.C. There Goes the Bride. Minotaur: St. Martin's. Oct. 2009. 304p. ISBN 978-0-312-38700-6. $24.99.

Agatha Raisin is involved as suspect and sleuth after the at-the-alter shooting of her ex-husband's new bride-to-be. After 19 books, the character has plenty of fans.

Belzer, Richard. I Am Not a Psychic! S. & S. Oct. 2009. 256p. ISBN 978-1-4165-7089-9. $24.

In Law & Order actor Belzer's follow-up to I Am Not a Cop!, his self-named protagonist goes to Las Vegas and considers conspiracy theories about the death of a young actress.

Childs, Laura. Tragic Magic: A Scrapbooking Mystery. Berkley Prime Crime. Oct. 2009. 320p. ISBN 978-0-425-22989-7. $24.95.

Just in time for Halloween, best-selling author Childs, who also writes the "Tea Shop Mysteries," swings a flaming body through the window of Carmela and Melody's haunted house in their seventh adventure.

Crombie, Deborah. Necessary as Blood. Morrow. Oct. 2009. 384p. ISBN 978-0-06-128753-4. $24.99.

In tandem since 1993, Scotland Yard detectives Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James now insinuate themselves into the search for a missing woman whose young daughter may be in real danger. Crombie lives in Texas.

Cummings, Barbara. A Killing in Retrospect: A Sister Agnes Mystery. Five Star: Gale Cengage. Oct. 2009. 238p. ISBN 978-1-59414-784-5. $25.95.

Cummings, whose books range from romance to YA fiction to mystery, returns after A Killing on Church Grounds with gumshoe nun Sister Mary Agnes, who finally gets to shoot a gun and stops a gang war.

Ferris, Monica. Blackwork: A Needlecraft Mystery. Berkley Prime Crime. Oct. 2009. 288p. ISBN 978-0-425-22990-3. $24.95.

In another Halloween-set, craft-themed cozy (see above), Betsy Devonshire probes the death of a man who accused the local pub owner of witchcraft. The 12th in the USA Today best-selling series.

Fletcher, Jessica & Donald Bain. Murder, She Wrote: A Fatal Feast. Obsidian Mysteries: NAL. Oct. 2009. 288p. ISBN 978-0-451-22796-6. $22.95.

After a Thanksgiving feast, Jessica and Inspector George Sutherland find a body stabbed with a carving knife in this 32nd in the popular series.

Greenwood, Kerry. Trick or Treat. Poisoned Pen. Oct. 2009. 250p. ISBN 978-1-59058-532-0. $24.95.

In her fourth culinary adventure, Corinna Chapman faces an absent boyfriend, a competing bakery, and an outbreak of madness. The Australian author is known for her long-running Phryne Fisher series.

Hamilton, Barbara. The Ninth Daughter: An Abigail Adams Mystery. Berkley Prime Crime. Oct. 2009. 368p. ISBN 978-0-425-23077-0. pap. $14.

Hamilton, the pseudonym for Barbara Hambly, the Los Angeles-based author of the Benjamin January mysteries, re-creates 1773 Massachusetts in a new historical series. Abigail Adams must uncover a conspiracy to clear her husband of suspicion of murder.

Hunt, James Patrick. Maitland's Reply. Five Star: Gale Cengage. Oct. 2009. 246p. ISBN 978-1-59414-789-0. $25.95.

Bounty hunter Evan Maitland gets involved with a Chinese Triad in Chicago in this third in the well-received series. Hunt, who lives in Tulsa, is also the author of the George Hastings mysteries.

Jardine, Quintin. Inhuman Remains. Headline, dist. by Trafalgar Square. Oct. 2009. 384p. ISBN 978-0-7553-4021-7. $24.95.

After killing off popular Scottish detective Oz Blackstone, Jardine launches a spin-off starring Oz's ex-wife, Primavera. The author lives in Scotland and Spain.

McManus, Patrick F. The Double-Jack Murders: A Sheriff Bo Tully Mystery. S. & S. Oct. 2009. 288p. ISBN 978-1-4391-3135-0. $24.

Nature writer and humorist McManus, who lives in Spokane, takes his third venture with Tully, who's being hunted by an escaped murderer he put away and working a cold missing-persons case. Four-city tour.

Manfredo, Lou. Rizzo's War. Minotaur: St. Martin's. Oct. 2009. 288p. ISBN 978-0-312-53805-7. $24.99.

A hardened Brooklyn detective and his mentee track the runaway daughter of a councilman in this debut from a criminal justice system veteran. Minotaur First Edition selection; library marketing campaign.

May, Peter. Chinese Whispers. Poisoned Pen. Oct. 2009. 250p. ISBN 978-1-59058-608-2. $24.95.

In their sixth outing, Li Yan, head of Beijing's serious crime squad, and pathologist Margaret Campbell are in the media spotlight as they tackle a serial killer case. May, who sets his books in modern China, lives in France. With a U.S. tour.

Mayor, Archer. The Price of Malice. Minotaur: St. Martin's. Oct. 2009. 320p. ISBN 978-0-312-38192-9. $24.99.

Joe Gunther juggles mysteries at work (the murder of a suspected child predator) and home (the disappearance of his girlfriend's dad and brother) in his 20th appearance. The Vermont-based author works for the state's chief medical examiner. Library marketing campaign.

Myers, Amy. Murder Takes the Stage. Severn House. Oct. 2009. 224p. ISBN 978-0-7278-6789-6. $27.95.

Father-daughter team Peter and Georgia Marsh pursue a ghost—who allegedly committed suicide after killing his wife in the 1950s—in the sixth series entry from the British author.

Neville, Stuart. The Ghosts of Belfast. Soho Crime. Oct. 2009. 336p. ISBN 978-1-56947-600-0. $24.

A former hired gun for the IRA tries to avenge his past after getting out of jail in this Ireland-set series debut. National tour.

Penny, Louise. The Brutal Telling. Minotaur: St. Martin's. Oct. 2009. 384p. ISBN 978-0-312-37703-8. $24.99.

In this fifth in the multi-award-winning series, Armand Gamache digs deep into the past of bistro owner Olivier. Canadian author Penny's previous book was a New York Times best seller. Library marketing campaign.

Robinson, Peter. The Price of Love and Other Stories. Morrow. Oct. 2009. 304p. ISBN 978-0-06-180948-4. $24.99.

Robinson, award-winning author of the Inspector Banks titles, offers two Banks novellas (never published in the United States) and ten uncollected short stories.