Kathy Lynn Emerson

Newlywed Liss wants to turn an abandoned house into a haunted mansion as a fundraiser. Minor mishaps and objects that mysteriously vanish and reappear seem harmless at first, but not after a prop skeleton is replaced by a dead body. PW: "cozy fans are in for a Halloween treat." Set in Maine.

SOMEDAY, a young adult romantic suspense novel available as an e-book and trade paperback format. It's 1992 and sixteen-year-old Kristy is at a turning point in her life. When the boy she has a crush on brushes her off she embarks on a journey of self-discovery.

The Lowdown on a Class Action Lawsuit vs. AI Kaitlyn Dunnett/Kathy Lynn Emerson here. On October 2, I received an email from the literary agency that  handles my Kaitlyn Dunnett and Kate Emerson titles. The subject was the proposed $1.5 billi…

I'm blogging at Maine Crime Writers today about the latest development in the lawsuit over stealing thousands of writers' books to train AI.
mainecrimewriters.com/2025/10/17/t...

Today's #BacklistTuesday book is AT THE KING'S PLEASURE, based on the story of Lady Anne Stafford, sister of the Duke of Buckingham and wife of Lord Hastings. Originally published in trade paperback, it is also available as an e-book and in an audiobook edition.

In #6 in the mystery series, FACE DOWN BEFORE REBEL HOOVES, England needs Lady Appleton's help to stop the Northern Rebellion of 1569. Trade paperback and e-book editions have been newly edited by the author. This novel can also be found in the e-book omnibus, THE FACE DOWN COLLECTION TWO.

“Deadly Edits” #3 w/a Kaitlyn Dunnett. A body is found during the demolition of one of the Catskills’ last great resort hotels, located on the outskirts of Lenape Hollow, hometown of Mikki Lincoln, retired teacher turned book doctor. Mikki quarreled with the victim only hours before . . . not good.

For #ThrowbackThursday, it seems like a good time for a puppy picture. This is Notacat, c. 1976.

Moosetookalook, Maine has been hit with a crime wave—arson, missing persons, vandalism, and finally murder! The timing could not be worse. The Highland Games are coming to town and since Liss MacCrimmon owns Moosetookalook Scottish Emporium, both her business and her reputation are on the line.

For #BacklistTuesday, here is the reissue of my 1991 children's book, THE MYSTERY OF THE MISSING BAGPIPES. It's set in Maine in the 1980s, so today's readers will have to think of it as "historical." Available in e-book and trade paperback formats.

FACE DOWN UNDER THE WYCH ELM (#5 in the series). Lady Appleton feels an obligation to help an old acquaintance accused of witchcraft, but doing so risks facing the same charge herself. In newly edited POD and e-book editions and included in THE FACE DOWN COLLECTION THREE. Starred review in Kirkus.

For #ThrowbackThursday, here's the manual typewriter on which I wrote (with carbon paper for a copy) my earliest published books (1984 and 1985) and quite a few very bad, unpublished tomes between 1976 and 1985.

KILT DEAD is the first book in the Liss MacCrimmon mystery series set in Moosetookalook, Maine. Recovering from a career-ending knee injury, Scottish dancer Liss is minding the store for her aunt when a nosy neighbor is murdered in the back room of Moosetookalook Scottish Emporium .

THE MYSTERY OF HILLIARD'S CASTLE was my first published novel (for ages 8-12). Kerry Odell is not enthusiastic about moving to rural Maine and their house there has all the makings of a haunted 'castle,' including odd noises in the night. Set in 1982. Available in e-book and paperback.

FACE DOWN BENEATH THE ELEANOR CROSS, #4 in my Face Down series, features Susanna, Lady Appleton, sixteenth-century gentlewoman and herbalist, as the sleuth. To find her husband's killer and free herself from suspicion, she has to track down all his ex-mistresses. Set in 1565.

SCOTCHED, Liss MacCrimmon Mystery #5, takes place at Moosetookalook, Maine's first annual Maine-ly Cozy Con. I had a wonderful time writing this book and a few real Maine writers have walk-on roles. I appear as the author whose name Liss can never remember.

Happy International Cat Day!

THE KING'S DAMSEL is a novel I wrote as Kate Emerson. Set at the court of Henry VIII, the inspiration was a letter in which the Spanish ambassador reported that the king's interest in an unnamed "damsel" had provoked a quarrel with Anne Boleyn. Still available in e-book and audio formats.

SCONE COLD DEAD (Liss MacCrimmon Mysteries #2) When Strathspey, the Scottish dance troupe Liss once belonged to, performs near Moosetookalook, Maine, their manager is murdered. The prime suspects stay in Liss's house and with her friends while police investigate . . . and one of them is the killer.

At Long Last! Kaitlyn Dunnett/Kathy Lynn Emerson here, pleased to report that, FINALLY!, Treacherous Visions is not only finished, it is available to buy in e-book ($5.99) and trade paperback ($15.99). The paper…

Finally finished and launched the complete rewrite of one of my earliest titles. It's available at all online bookstores. Brick and mortar bookstores and libraries can order it for you.
mainecrimewriters.com/2025/07/18/a...

All Kathy Lynn Emerson's reissued titles are on sale all month at Smashwords. To see the list, click here: www.smashwords.com/profile/view...

In X MARKS THE SCOT, #11 in the Liss MacCrimmon mysteries, Liss buys a copy of a famous painting of a bagpiper at an auction and discovers a map hidden in the backing. Her search for the spot marked by the X takes her to the Maritimes and back to Maine . . . and right into another murder.

Cover Copy—Can You Help? Kaitlyn Dunnett/Kathy Lynn Emerson here, today asking for some feedback from those who read the Maine Crime Writers’ blog. I’ve written twice before about the 1993 historical romance I&…

I'm working on cover art and cover copy. Want to help?

mainecrimewriters.com/2025/07/01/c...

#TheLastWizardsBall

Coming out July 22nd✨

FACE DOWN UPON AN HERBAL is #2 in my series with an Elizabethan gentlewoman as sleuth. When a Scots lord is found dead atop a copy of the "cautionary herbal" she wrote two years earlier, she investigates. Available in trade paperback and in e-book as part of THE FACE DOWN COLLECTION ONE.

The East Coast has shown up, 2.4 million and counting, with massive turnouts in small towns across the country. Shoutout to the Carolinas, Georgia, and Ohio for showing up strong!

June 12, 2025 At a press conference for Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem in Los Angeles today, Noem’s security assaulted Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), dragged him into the hallway, forced him to the floor,...

June 12, 2025
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The federal government is taking over the California National Guard and deploying 2,000 soldiers in Los Angeles — not because there is a shortage of law enforcement, but because they want a spectacle.

Don't give them one.

Never use violence. Speak out peacefully.

Things you can do if you can't protest (Sunday or next weekend):

Call your reps (easy at 5calls.org)
Offer childcare for a protesting friend
Be the safe phone contact for a protesting friend
Write an op-ed for your local paper
Get & distribute info (like lawyer phone numbers) to those who need it

Let’s look at the facts:
DHS claimed there were “about 1,000 rioters,” but Reuters couldn’t independently verify that number. Meanwhile, flash-bangs used against peaceful protesters ignited one of the fires captured in widely shared photos.

Reports and video show flash-bangs thrown into piles of debris just before a car caught fire, strongly suggesting it was law enforcement, not protesters, who sparked it. More details are coming. Don’t let them control the narrative. Thank you to everyone sharing footage, always record everything.