Dreidels and Dead Ends,
the Newest Bad Hair Day Mystery
Nancy J. Cohen’s latest Bad Hair Day Mystery, Dreidels and Dead Ends, is just released. Marla must balance solving a mystery with her business, family and pregnancy while she also prepares for both Hanukkah and then Christmas. To celebrate this new holiday cozy mystery, the author has a GIVEAWAY of a signed copy of her previous one, Star Tangled Murder, just in time for Independence day! Make sure you enter the Giveaway at the end of the post.
About Dreidels and Dead Ends
Dreidels and Dead Endsby Nancy J. Cohen
Series: Bad Hair Day Mysteries
Published by Orange Grove Press on June 23, 2026
Pages: 246
Genres: Cozy Mystery, Fiction / Holidays, Holiday Cozy Mystery, Mystery
Add to Goodreads
A daring holiday heist at the local history museum sends hairstylist Marla Vail on her most tangled case yet.
When salon owner Marla Vail agrees to speak at the local history museum’s gala opening for a new exhibit, she expects applause—not a catastrophe. But shortly after she takes the stage, a thief steals the featured diamond-studded hairbrush, leaving behind an empty display case and a badly injured security guard.
Marla’s friend, museum curator Becky Forest, begs for her help in recovering the prized heirloom before the mayor uses this scandal as an excuse to cut their funding. To make matters worse, the antique hairbrush comes with a curse, and suddenly bad luck is spreading through town faster than a botched dye job. As Hanukkah festivities begin, Marla would rather be lighting candles than chasing clues, but with Becky’s job at stake, she takes on the case.
Her trail leads to a knot of suspects including the hairbrush’s owner, his greedy cousin, shifty museum staff, and a reclusive collector of mystical antiquities. Instead of enjoying menorah lights and latkes, Marla discovers murder, lies, and larceny. She’ll need sharp wits and a holiday miracle to save the museum and to keep the truth from being brushed aside.
Cozy Mystery
19th in Series
Setting – Florida
Publisher : Orange Grove Press
Publication date : June 23, 2026
Print length : 246 pages
Paperback
ISBN-10 : 1952886392
ISBN-13 : 978-1952886393
Kindle
ISBN-13 : 978-1952886409
ASIN : B0GWQMWF7Y
Storybook Lady
Review
Dreidels and Dead Ends
by Nancy J. Cohen
Holidays, Hairbrushes, and Hexes- oh my!
Marla must balance solving a mystery with her business, family and pregnancy while she also prepares for both Hanukkah and then Christmas. I wouldn’t normally dive into a long series, but when I saw the title I couldn’t resist. This cute mystery can easily be read as a stand alone, but I enjoyed it so much that I was hooked and will be adding the backlist to my TBR.
Marla is a salon owner who has a talent for solving crimes. The amateur sleuth teams up with Dalton, her recently retired police detective husband to help solve the mystery when a cursed hairbrush is stolen from he local museum. Nancy Cohen sprinkles the story with an abundance of clues, suspects and plot twists. The mystery story is balanced with domestic scenes centering on toddler troubles, pregnancy, and preparing for the holidays. Since the sleuths are an interfaith couple, getting ready for the holidays is even more work. Jewish readers will enjoy having a Hanukkah holiday cozy to read, but other readers will enjoy the story too. All the Hanukkah hoopla is secular and Marla has to come up with Christmas gifts too, so readers of any faith will enjoy the story. Anyone, like me, with an interfaith family will especially enjoy that aspect of the story.
I loved the quick pace, colorful characters and fun mystery. This was my first time reading a book by the author, but it won’t be my last.
About the Author
About Nancy J. Cohen
Nancy J. Cohen writes the Bad Hair Day Mysteries featuring South Florida hairstylist Marla Vail. Titles in this series have been named Best Cozy Mystery by Suspense Magazine, won the Readers’ Favorite Book Awards and the RONE Award, placed first in the Chanticleer International Book Awards and third in the Arizona Literary Awards. Her nonfiction titles, Writing the Cozy Mystery and A Bad Hair Day Cookbook, have won the FAPA President’s Book Award, the Royal Palm Literary Award, and IAN Book of the Year. When not busy writing, Nancy enjoys reading, fine dining, cruising, and visiting Disney World.
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Bad Hair Days Mystery
Giveaway
There is a King Sumo tour-wide GIVEAWAY of a signed paperback edition of the previous book, Star Tangled Murder, (The Bad Hair Day Mysteries, #18).
Thank you for hosting me on your site!
You’re welcome. I loved the book.