The Missing Moonstone: A Bumble Bay Cozy Mystery Series

by Savannah Rainn

A Body Unearthed. A Town Shaken. A Killer on the Loose.

When a body is unearthed at an archaeological dig, Bumble Bay’s quiet charm shatters. The victim—Patrick Pickle, long-lost twin of beloved professor Peter Pickle—was tied to a decades-old scandal and a missing the Moonstone of Maple Cove.

Three figures soon step into the spotlight of suspicion. Samuel Caldwell, a slippery private collector with a taste for rare relics. Dr. Leonard Thatcher, the ambitious head of the dig site with secrets buried as deep as the bones. And Regan Wright, a desperate reporter willing to twist truth into headlines.

As Dena Gamble follows cryptic clues, old journals, and local legends, she unravels more than family secrets—she uncovers motives steeped in greed, envy, and betrayal. But when the killer strikes again, Dena realizes the truth isn’t just about the past.

Someone in Bumble Bay is willing to kill to keep history buried.

Dena and Peter Pickle may be next.

203 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 12, 2025

Reviews

[Christian Schultheiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a twist, what fascinating characters, and while I’ve enjoyed the last few entries in this bumble bag series, this one blew the others out of the water. Obviously this is still an indie author, but everything felt so succinct and the surprises were built on the previous books so well, I can really see this authors improvement as she goes. My only real gripe was I felt like the moonstone was a bit too on the nose being actually moon shaped and I wish there was a little bit more lore on its history and “curse”, but I was throughly entertained through the entire read and I really hope for more entires in the series like this one. 4.25/5

[Anne Newman · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting book. A fabulous moonstone found at an archaeological dig site (20 years before this book) went missing. Then, 20 years later one of the archaeologists is found dead at the site of a local dig, in Bumble Bay. Dena, the sleuth, is a great friend of the murdered man’s twin brother & is determined to help solve the case.

[GinaB. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Missing Moonstone is a nice cozy mystery. This is the first book I’ve read by this author, but it won’t be the last since I really enjoyed reading what Dena Gamble & Felix the sassy cat were up to. I liked the twists & turns and didn’t guess who did killed Professor Pickles twin brother until I read it. I received this book from Book Sprout & am leaving an honest review.

[Carla · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this story.  It drew me in right away and kept me turning the pages to see how things turned out.  I really liked the characters and cared about what happened to them. I received an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dena has to help her friend Professor Pickle when his brother is found murdered on a dig site in town. The story is great, I love the characters and this one was definitely a page turner as there's plenty to keep you gripped. Loved it