The Series
Welcome to Shady Hollow! It’s a small town populated by friendly animal folks, from birds to bears. The calm is marred only by the occasional murder. Luckily, foxy reporter Vera Vixen is ready to investigate each time, along with her good friend (and local bookshop owner) skeptical raven Lenore Lee.
Twists and turns are just part of the ride in the cozy world of Shady Hollow. So grab a cup of coffee from Joe’s Mug, put up your paws, and dive into the series that readers are calling “gently bizarre” and “cute, quirky, fluffy fun, with a touch of lurking darkness.”
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Shady Hollow: A Murder Mystery
Deep in the forest is a place where woodland creatures live together in harmony. Moose and mice, owls and bears, and many more call the charming village of Shady Hollow home. All is well, until a toad is found floating facedown in the millpond. It’s something these folks haven’t seen before: a murder.
Foxy reporter Vera Vixen is new in town. She has a nose for news and catches the scent of a story, one that leads her to dark places. As she stirs up the still waters, the fox exposes more than one mystery, and the folks in Shady Hollow learn that some of their neighbors are shifty, while others are downright dangerous.
Vera finds more to this shady town than she ever suspected. Someone in the Hollow will do anything to keep her from solving the murder. It will take all of Vera’s cunning and quickness to come out alive.
Cold Clay: A Shady Hollow Mystery
Deep in the forest is a place where woodland creatures live together in harmony. Moose and mice, owls and bears, and many more call Shady Hollow home.
When autumn comes to the village, thoughts turn to harvest time and the glorious feasts ahead. But in a far corner of Cold Clay Orchards, a rabbit reaps a more grisly crop: the bones of a moose.
Soon enough, the owner of Joe’s Mug is dragged out of his coffeeshop to the police station to answer questions about the long-ago night his wife disappeared. Joe always said she walked out, but now it looks more like murder.
Foxy reporter Vera Vixen can’t believe gentle Joe is a killer. She sets out to find the truth before Shady Hollow loses its favorite coffee-slinger. To get to the bottom of the matter, she has to dig into the past, and into the many secrets her neighbors would rather leave buried forever…
Mirror Lake: A Shady Hollow Mystery
Shady Hollow is a cozy small town filled with woodland creatures who live and work together. The local fall election is coming up and the campaigning is unusually fierce, since Deputy Orville Braun is running against been-in-office-forever Chief Meade. In the midst of this unexpected tension, a murder is announced, but there’s a twist: the victim is still alive!
The accuser, Dorothy Springfield, is an admittedly eccentric resident who claims her loving husband Edward is dead…even though he’s standing right next to her at the announcement. What can it mean? Edward has no answers, and most of the neighbors would rather ignore the awkward situation. They think Dorothy is delusional. Foxy reporter Vera Vixen has some questions, though.
In a quiet neighborhood along the shore of Mirror Lake, Vera discovers a few facts don’t fit, starting with a misplaced lamp and an unknown face in an old photograph. As she follows the clues, she must step carefully, because the election for police chief means everyone has an opinion about crime rates in town, and the law might prefer to sweep some messy matters under the rug…
Twilight Falls: A Shady Hollow Mystery
It’s spring in Shady Hollow, and romance is in the air. Even reporter Vera Vixen is caught up in the season as her relationship with new police chief Orville Braun blossoms. But true love is not always smooth sailing, as two of the hollow’s young residents come to find. Jonah Atwater and Stasia von Beaverpelt find themselves battling their families in order to be together. And when Jonah’s father, Shelby, goes over the top of Twilight Falls, all signs point to Stasia being the murderer.
The evidence against Stasia appears overwhelming, and Orville arrests her. It looks like the case is closed, but Vera isn’t so sure. There are almost too many clues indicating Stasia is the killer, leading her to suspect someone is setting Stasia up. Besides, what about the mysterious ghostly creature skulking around town at night? Maybe he or she was involved? As Vera investigates further, her sleuthing puts her in direct opposition to Orville, and soon she’s stirred up a hornet’s nest of trouble.
Summers End: A Shady Hollow Mystery
It’s late August in Shady Hollow, and the heat has intrepid reporter Vera Vixen eager to get away. She agrees to chaperone the annual field trip to Summers End, an ancient tomb built by an early woodland culture, along with her good friend Lenore Lee to come with her.
But when the two enter the tomb, they find bones that are distinctly more…modern. Digging a little deeper, Vera and Lenore discover that the deceased was involved in a recent excavation at the site, and very unpopular with their colleagues. Now the fox and raven have to delve into the dark world of academia and archaeology to determine which creature thought they were clever enough to get away with the perfect murder.
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Evergreen Chase
A Shady Hollow Holiday Short Story
It’s the winter solstice in Shady Hollow, that magical time of year when creatures of all shapes and sizes come together to honor the season and eat as much pie as possible. Reporter Vera Vixen is eager to experience her first holiday in town and is especially looking forward to the unveiling of the solstice tree. But then disaster strikes. The year’s tree—the tallest in the forest—has disappeared without a trace. Can Vera, her best friend, Lenore, and Deputy Orville Braun find the tree and save the season? Or will this year’s solstice be especially dark?
Phantom Pond
A Shady Hollow Holiday Short Story
In the woodlands around Shady Hollow, there’s a legend about a mysterious creature known as Creeping Juniper. According to local lore, she’s a sort of witch who dwells deep in the woods, casting spells on the shore of Phantom Pond. It’s a harmless old tale, until a prank goes wrong. When a young creature goes missing, all the clues point to Creeping Juniper. But to solve the mystery and rescue an innocent victim, Vera Vixen and her friends need to find a place that doesn’t appear on any maps. Can they discover the location of Phantom Pond before it’s too late?
The Author
Juneau Black is the pen name of authors Jocelyn Cole and Sharon Nagel. They share a love of excellent bookshops, fine cheeses, and a good murder (in fictional form only). Though they are two separate people, if you ask either of them a question about their childhood, you are likely to get the same answer. This is a little unnerving for any number of reasons.
Stories all start somewhere! We owe huge thanks to the city of Milwaukee’s fantastic book scene, from our former employer Boswell Book Company to the journalists who work hard to cover local news and events in the way they deserve.