A Stewed Observation (A Dinner Club Murder Mysteries)
Cozy Mystery
4th in Series
The Wild Rose Press, Inc (August 6, 2018)
Print Length: 214 pages

Synopsis

The Gourmet Dinner Club travels to Ireland to enjoy Irish cuisine while staying at a medieval, ivy-covered castle. Jane Marsh hopes Dale Capricorn will ask her to marry him at this romantic dream destination. But her plans are put on hold when the elderly castle owner becomes violent, a club member restrains him, and he collapses and dies.

The police believe the mysterious death is murder and begin to suspect one of the club’s members. Dale leaves for home on a business emergency, and as the lone single gal in the club full of couples, Jane is thrown into the company of Griffin O’Doherty, the handsome Irishman who stands to inherit the castle.

Jane must prove her friend’s innocence by solving the crime. Which of the sweet-tempered Irish could be a callous killer?

The Wild Rose Press

Guest Post

The long, long weekend

Hubby and I’ve been camping in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado for over thirty years and decided for several reasons—such as comfort and sturdier shelter—to move up from a tent to a camper. We’re now the proud owners of a hard-sided, pop-up A-frame camper that looks like this:

Now, isn’t that the cutest thing you ever saw? It has the most adorable, doll-sized table with bench seats, a double bed, a mini-fridge, and an itty-bitty stovetop. Now we can make a hot pot of coffee in the cool mornings by reaching across the stove and turning on the burner before even getting out of our comfy, warm sleeping bags.

When we first spotted the camper parked in the sales lot next to twenty-foot trailers, looking so tiny in comparison, I thought that we would be able to pull it easily with our SUV, but that was not the case. Living in Colorado, driving at 10,000 feet altitude and above, the hit on our gas mileage and the toll on our engine required the purchase of a truck. The camper doesn’t look so tiny anymore, does it? Notice how it is not only parked in front of our house, but the neighbor’s too.

We were starting to feel like Lucy and Desi Arnez in the movie, The Long, Long Trailer, because after the newlyweds purchased a trailer, they had to buy a new vehicle to pull it, just like we did.

And, just like Lucy and Desi, we had to go up some pretty steep mountain passes to get to where we wanted to go. And, what a destination. We are truly blessed to live in such a beauty spot as Colorado.

Unlike Lucy, who had a place for all her wedding gifts, we were at a loss as to where to store our food, pots and pans, and clothes. In the storage under the bench seats? That’s where the water heater and the wheel chocks fit. In the space under the bed? No, that’s where the furnace and grill are stored. On the floor in front of the stove? That was the only place left. So, the bins and cooler were assigned to the truck bed. (Good thing we bought the truck.)

We took the camper out for its maiden voyage over a long weekend. Once at the state park, we had difficulty hooking up the water and electricity, it rained and the wind blew, and we were unable to make a campfire due to a fire ban because of the dry grasses and high winds.

Stuck, I mean, protected in our camper from the elements throughout that long weekend, my hubby had a hard time settling in. When he yanked off his shirt, his shirt tail caught and spilled my glass of wine on the table, and when he reclined in the bed his foot kicked over my glass of water sitting on the microwave. After I complained, he said, “Don’t put your drinks right next to my feet.” I asked him if my coffee cup in the sink would be safe from his elbow.

Maybe getting that long, long trailer, with the closets and storage cabinets big enough for all of Lucy’s wedding presents and souvenir rocks, is the ticket after all. Otherwise, we’re looking at many more long, long weekends.

In the third book of the dinner club mystery series, Jane Marsh organizes a camping trip in the Rocky Mountains with lavish menus and provisions. If you’d like an adventuresome read, you will enjoy this culinary cozy series.

About the Author

Karen C. Whalen is the author of a culinary cozy series, the “dinner club murder mysteries.” The first four in the series are: Everything Bundt the Truth, Not According to Flan, No Grater Evil, and A Stewed Observation. The first book in the series tied for First Place in the Suspense Novel category of the 2017 IDA Contest sponsored by Oklahoma Romance Writers of America. Her books are similar to those written by cozy authors Jessica Beck and Joanne Fluke. She worked for many years as a paralegal at a law firm in Denver, Colorado and has been a columnist and regular contributor to The National Paralegal Reporter magazine. She believes that it’s never too late to try something new. She loves to host dinner clubs, entertain friends, ride bicycles, hike in the mountains, and read cozy murder mysteries.

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