Join us for the 3rd year of the exciting Ashland Mystery Fest! From innovative author panels, a mystery to solve around town and author meet and greets to a sleuth dinner with the authors and murder mystery dinners, join us for a fully immersive celebration.
Schedule:
9:30 AM - 10:30 AM: Plot Twist Showdown Panel
A battle of the plot twists, where authors Ellen Byron, Lee Hollis, Gigi Pandian and Korina Moss pitch their wildest plot twists, and you choose which twist is the most surprising and believable.
Included in Event Registration Package
Location: Historic Ashland Armory, 208 Oak St.
Get Tickets: Official Registration Package Tickets
10:00 AM - 11:30 AM: Haunted Ashland Walking Tour
Join your guide Peter Finkle, creator of dozens of Ashland walking tours, and founder of the premier website about Ashland: WalkAshland.com as you learn about haunted Ashland houses, hotels and restaurants, plus ghost encounters at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. New stories added since last year's tour. These are not just old stories from books. Most are first-hand experiences learned from the people who encountered the spirits. Many historic photos are included.
Location: Around Town
Get Tickets: Ticketing through Walk Ashland
11:00 AM: Meet and Greet with Angela Sanders
Meet Angela and sample a recipe inspired by her “Witch Way” mystery series.
Location: Paddington Station, 125 E Main St.
Get Tickets: Free - first come first serve
11:00 AM - 12:30 PM: Mystery Cooking Class One
In this interactive cooking demo, Mia Manansala will whip up a mouthwatering dish straight from the pages of her mysteries. She’ll share the inspiration behind her recipes and how food fuels her fiction. Stick around for a taste of the final creation. Come hungry for food, stories, and a behind-the-scenes look at blending culinary craft with cozy crime.
Location: Historic Ashland Armory, 208 Oak St.
Get Tickets: Official Registration Package Tickets
11:00 PM - 12:00 PM: Solve it panel
A live, audience-participation mystery game where authors Emmeline Duncan, Ellie Alexander, Tamara Berry and Tina Connolly set the stage with a quirky crime scenario, while you work together to solve the crime.
Included in Event Registration Package
Location: Historic Ashland Armory, 208 Oak St.
Get Tickets: Official Registration Package Tickets
12:00 PM - 2:00 PM: Lovejoy’s Tea Session Three
Join your favorite authors Lee Hollis and Hannah Dennison for a relaxing Country House tea service while they share selected readings from their works.
Location: Lovejoy's Tea Room, 96 N. Main St. Ste 201
Get Tickets: Ticketing through Lovejoy's
1:00 PM - 4:00 PM: Murder for Two
Everyone is a suspect in this hilarious musical murder mystery with a twist; one actor investigates, the other plays all of the suspects, and they BOTH play the piano! One fateful night, shots ring out at the surprise birthday party of Great American Novelist Arthur Whitney and the writer is killed… fatally. With the nearest detective an hour away, Officer Marcus Moscowicz jumps at the chance to prove his sleuthing skills-But whodunit?
Location: Oregon Cabaret Theatre, 241 Hargadine Street
Get Tickets: Ticketing through Cabaret
1:15 PM - 2:15 PM: Season of the Witch Panel
It's the season of the witch. Come cast a spell with these witchy mystery authors Gretchen Rue, Angela Sanders and Esme Addison as they spill their secrets on how to craft page-turning plots and perhaps a spell or two at the hauntingly beautiful Peerless Hotel.
Location: Peerless Hotel, 243 4th St
Get Tickets: Free - first come first serve
1:30PM: Meet and Greet with Ellen Byron
Meet Ellen and sample a recipe from her vintage cookbook mystery series.
Location: Paddington Station, 125 E Main St.
Get Tickets: Free - first come first serve
1:30PM - 2:30PM: Writing Across the Ages Panel geared toward adults
"Writing Through the Ages" panel dives into crafting mysteries for every age group. Join authors Tina Connolly, Mia Manansala and Jennie Englund as they discuss the unique challenges and joys of writing young mysteries, from YA to middle grade, and everything in between.
Location: Ashland Public Library, 410 Siskiyou Blvd
Get Tickets: Free - first come first serve
2:00PM - 3:30PM: Mystery Cooking Class Two
In this interactive cooking demo, Ellie Alexander will whip up a mouthwatering dish straight from the pages of her mysteries. She’ll share the inspiration behind her recipes and how food fuels her fiction. Stick around for a taste of the final creation. Come hungry for food, stories, and a behind-the-scenes look at blending culinary craft with cozy crime.
Location: Ashland Food Co-op Classroom, 237 N. 1st Street
Get Tickets: Sold Out
3:00 PM - 4:30 PM: Haunted Ashland Walking Tour
Join your guide Peter Finkle, creator of dozens of Ashland walking tours, and founder of the premier website about Ashland: WalkAshland.com as you learn about haunted Ashland houses, hotels and restaurants, plus ghost encounters at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. New stories added since last year's tour. These are not just old stories from books. Most are first-hand experiences learned from the people who encountered the spirits. Many historic photos are included.
Location: Around Town
Get Tickets: Ticketing through Walk Ashland
3:00PM - 4:00PM: Behind the Scenes Publishing Panel
Ever wondered what happens behind the pages of your favorite book? Join our panel of authors and industry insiders as they pull back the curtain on the publishing process, sharing secrets, challenges, and the unexpected twists that come with bringing a mystery from manuscript to market. Join authors Esme Addison, Eryn Scott, Gigi Pandian and Gretchen Rue to find out!
Included in Event Registration Package
Location: The Historic Ashland Armory, 208 Oak St.
Get Tickets: Official Registration Package Tickets
3:30 PM: Dark Hollow and Debuts Event
Join us for an afternoon of wine tasting with our friends at Dark Hollow Farms, snacks from the Paddington Test Kitchen and Meet & Greet with this year's debut authors! 3 of the previous debut author's will be having a reunion gathering as well!
Location: Paddington Jewel Box/Inspired by Oregon, 142 E. Main St.
Get Tickets: Free - first come first serve
3:30PM - 5:00PM: Group Author Crafternoon
A fan favorite, bring your own craft and enjoy time with your favorite authors Ellen Byron, Emmeline Duncan, Angela Sanders, Hannah Dennison, Lee Hollis and Korina Moss while enjoying some fun company.
Location: Ashland Public Library, 410 Siskiyou Blvd
Get Tickets: Free - first come first serve
6:00PM - 9:00PM: Murder Mystery Dinner Alchemy
Be in the center of the action as a mystery unfolds around you at the Winchester Inn.
Location: Alchemy, 35 S. Second Street
7:00 PM: Louise Penny’s STILL LIFE Radio Play
STILL LIFE, the first novel in Louise Penny’s best-selling Inspector Gamache series, has been adapted into a radio play, which will be staged by the Southern Oregon University School of Arts and Humanities. Proceeds benefit Southern Oregon PBS.
Location: Meese Auditorium, SOU Art Building, Ashland, 1280 Siskiyou Blvd.
Get Tickets: Call (541) 779-0808 to reserve free tickets. Donations are encouraged. Click here to donate to SO PBS
7:00PM - 9:00PM: Sleuth Dinner Ashland Springs Hotel
Put on your trench coats, don your deerstalkers, or channel your inner amateur sleuth-this is one mystery dinner you won’t want to miss. Join us for an unforgettable evening at the historic Ashland Springs Hotel. Come dressed as your favorite detective for a three-course meal. Each table will be hosted by a mystery author ready to dish on clues, red herrings, and the craft of crime fiction. The evening culminates in a special group reading of an original whodunit written collaboratively by our featured authors and you!
Location: Ashland Springs Hotel, 212 E. Main Street
Get Tickets: Ticketing through Ashland Springs Hotel
8:00 PM: Oregon Shakespeare Festival
Celebrate OSF's 90th season with their performances of Importance of Being Ernest, As you Like It, Quixote Nuevo, Shane and Julius Caesar and more!
Location: OSF, 15 S. Pioneer St.
Get Tickets: Ticketing through OSF
8:00PM - 11:00PM: Murder for Two
Everyone is a suspect in this hilarious musical murder mystery with a twist; one actor investigates, the other plays all of the suspects, and they BOTH play the piano! One fateful night, shots ring out at the surprise birthday party of Great American Novelist Arthur Whitney and the writer is killed… fatally. With the nearest detective an hour away, Officer Marcus Moscowicz jumps at the chance to prove his sleuthing skills-But whodunit?
Location: Oregon Cabaret Theatre, 241 Hargadine Street
Get Tickets: Ticketing through Cabaret
