Hazard of the Hills is set in Edworthy Park. Created in 1962, Edworthy Park has been around for a while. There are picnic shelters and BBQ pits, plenty of washrooms, playgrounds, and trails. The trails are very popular for mountain bikers as well as walkers. The paved pathways join up with the Bow River Pathway and run all the way downtown to Princes Island Park and farther east all the way to Valleyview Park. It is hoped that one day a path will run from Edworthy to Haskayne Park, Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park, and through to Cochrane. ...

Skimming over the Lake is set in Elliston Park. Elliston Park is home to Elliston Lake, the second largest body of water in Calgary. There are a couple of walking loops around the lake, an off-leash dog area, playgrounds, including an accessible or inclusive playground, picnic tables, a rose garden, and a sundial. Calgary's Globalfest Fireworks competition is held in Elliston Park each year. ...

Immersed in the View is set in Valleyview Park. While Valleyview is the tinniest of the parks so far, it packs a punch, with a pond, a playground, a children's splash park, beach volleyball courts, baseball diamond, and soccer field, along with a few park benches and picnic tables. There was also a fire pit there for a few months earlier in the year, though it has disappeared again. ...

Dark Water under the Bridge is set in Ralph Klein Park. The Ralph Klein Park is much smaller than the previous two parks in the series, but this little place packs a punch with manmade wetland features, public art installations, a community orchard of apple and pear trees, a unique playground with a zip line, a small platform where children can dip for tadpoles and minnows, and an education center. ...

Long Climb to the Top is set in Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park. In 2006, the children of Alberta rancher Neil Harvie sold 3,246 acres of land to the Government of Alberta to conserve the land, fulfilling the vision of their father. At that time, I was working as a legal assistant with Andy Crooks, the family’s lawyer, and had an insider’s view as plans for the park rolled out. I was involved in and present at the park opening in 2011 ...

Out with the Sunset is set in Fish Creek Provincial Park. Fish Creek Provincial Park was established in the Fish Creek valley in southern Calgary in 1975 and is the second largest urban park in Canada, featuring over 100 km of trails for walking, running, and biking. ...

For a limited time, you can get the ebook containing the first four books in the Zachary Goldman series are on sale for just $0.99. ...

Looking for back-to-school YA books? Discover powerful young adult novels by P.D. Workman that explore resilience, survival, foster care, and real-life teen struggles ...

This Tender Land is not part of the Cork O'Connor series. It is an epic travel-across-the-country-during-the-depression story, with four orphans escaping a residential school and trying to get themselves somewhere safe. I see a few reviewers complaining that it is a children's story, but it certainly is not. It isn't a mystery like the Cork O'Connor series. Teens and other YA readers who enjoyed Hatchet, The Journey of Natty Gann, of Huck Finn might enjoy it, but it is not for the very young. ...

It is release day for Without Foresight, book #12 in the Reg Rawlins, Psychic Investigator series. You can read Without Foresight as a stand alone paranormal mystery novel or read it with the series for even more enjoyment. And right now, you can download book #1, What the Cat Knew for free, or the collection of books 1-3 for just $2.99. ...

Erin Price is a baker, not a sleuth. It’s really not her fault that mysteries keep landing in her lap while she’s trying to run Auntie Clem’s Bakery and make a living from baking gluten-free and specialty goods. Sink your teeth into these sweet mysteries! ...

Dead in Dublin is the first book in The Dublin Driver Mysteries, which surprised me when I looked it up today. There is lots of backstory summarized in Dead in Dublin, and I assumed that there were probably three or more books before it in the series. So this book may leave you a little hungry for more details of "what happened before," but it is a fine standalone mystery and I'm sure the author will reveal more about Megan Malone's origin story throughout the next two books in the series. I will definitely pick up the others as they become available through my library app. ...

(Book #6) This case might just leave Margie feeling nostalgic about the water deaths she has been investigating lately. A woman is found at the bottom of a 70-meter drop. It is pretty clear from the beginning that she was killed in the fall. But you can never be sure until the medical examiner’s report comes back ...

(Book #5) It’s Parade Day, and Margie would have thought that any trouble would have centered around drinking and motor vehicles. Or being trampled by horses. Or clowns. But the latest homicide investigation is nowhere near the parade route, but on the outskirts of town. And the culprit appears to be a tiny boat ...

(Book #4) Detective “Parks” Pat is back. Now an established and accepted member of the homicide squad, she unexpectedly brings a new case to the table when she stumbles across a body as Canada Day dawns. While it was initially assumed to be an accidental drowning, the autopsy results say otherwise ...

This week I am just coming to the end of Iris Johansen's Body of Lies, the fourth book in the Eve Duncan series. I don't know whether I've read any of the other books in the series before, but it is easy to follow the characters and the action without having read the rest. There is plenty of backstory and explanation to allow you to follow the basic history of the characters. ...

Celebrate National S’more Day with a variety of s’mores—each one perfectly paired with a cozy mystery novel to enjoy by the fire (or your favorite reading nook)! ...

If you haven't yet picked up your copy of Magic Ain't a Game, book #11 in the Reg Rawlins, Psychic Investigator series, now would be the perfect time. Get the ebook in a free download from your favourite online bookseller today. You can read Magic Ain't a Game as a stand alone paranormal mystery, or as part of the Reg Rawlins, Psychic Investigator series. ...

I picked up this week's read, The Night Sister, from the mystery shelf without realizing that it is classified as "ghost suspense," so I was a little surprised with the direction that it went in, but that didn't detract from the book. I still found it quite interesting and engaging. If you are the type who loves to share creepy ghost stories around the campfire, this might just be the book for you. ...