Synopsis

Letitia ‘Tish’ Tarragon has just moved to Hobson Glen and opened a new restaurant and catering business, Cookin’ the Books Cafe. So when her new landlord, Schulyer Thompson, recommends her to Binnie Broderick, the executive director of the local library, Tish is delighted. Binnie needs a last-minute caterer to create a literary inspired three-course dinner for the library’s annual fundraiser, one of the highlights of Hobson Glen’s social season.

But there’s a problem: Binnie Broderick is a notoriously difficult woman to please. And when she chokes to death from arsenic poisoning after dousing her main course in hot sauce, Tish suddenly finds herself fighting to save her business – and her reputation. It seems that very few of Hobson Glen’s residents escaped Binnie’s disapproval. But who would want her dead, and why?

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Excerpt

‘But everyone loves the way the “blood” gushes out when you bite into them,’ Julian Jefferson Davis argued. Tall, trim, and sporting an immaculately coiffed and gelled head of chestnut hair, he leaned against the display cases that separated the public part of the shop from the kitchen and pleaded his case.

‘I know they do, Jules. And I truly enjoy the squeals when people bite into them, but it takes some time and effort to pipe the center of each Tell-Tale Heart cupcake with raspberry preserves. Right now I can’t afford to hire staff, so I need to use my time wisely.’ Letitia ‘Tish’ Tarragon, dressed in slim, dark-wash cropped jeans, a black short-sleeve T-shirt, and a pair of leopard-print canvas sneakers, balanced herself on the top step of her vintage red kitchen step-ladder and went about mounting the last of eight whitewashed shelves upon the sage-colored walls of her new restaurant and catering business, Cookin’ the Books Café.‘

Honey, I live right down the road. I can help you. Mary Jo is just the next town over. I’m sure she’d help too.’

‘Hmm, maybe for Halloween? That’ll give me two months to settle in.

’‘Halloween would be perfect. The whole business district shuts down and parents bring their little ones for trick or treating. You’d make a killing! Er, no pun intended.

’‘I got it,’ Tish laughed.

‘You truly couldn’t pick a better spot for your business. It’s kismet.’

Located on a quaint main road halfway between Richmond and Fredericksburg and with access to the interstate, the early twentieth-century white clapboard building once served as the first general store for the town of Hobson Glen, Virginia. In time, the general store closed and the building was repurposed as a delicatessen, then a butcher’s shop and, in its most recent incarnation, a specialty bake store. Indeed, a sign reading Cynthia’s Baked Goods of Distinction still hung over the front porch.

‘From your mouth to God’s ears,’ Tish answered hopefully.

‘No need for prayers. Once people get a taste of your food, they’ll be lined up outside the door. What you got planned for opening day?’

‘A Hogwarts-inspired back-to-school menu: Dobby’s pasties, cheese broomsticks, Butterbeer cakes, Sorting Hat pita bread and hummus, and miniature steak-and-kidney pies. I’ll also have my usual range of salads and sandwiches.’

‘Sounds delicious. Kids and parents should love it.’ Jules fanned himself. ‘Just one little word of advice? Air conditioning. Switch it on. The only thing keeping me from fainting on the spot is the cool relief I feel by having my butt planted up against these refrigerated cases.’

Review

I have always loved cozies especially when paired with food/cooking and books and this new series wraps all those up into one tidy package.

This new series finds us in Hobson Glen with protagonist Tish and her two college friends, Jules and Mary Jo.  They are the three musketeers and find themselves embroiled in discovering who killed the unlikable Binnie Broderick.  There is no shortage of possible suspects and because Binnie was killed at a dinner that Tish was catering, she is on the hunt to make sure she or her business is not implicated in the murder.  In their quest for the truth,  there are many secrets revealed about various town citizens and Tish even finds a potential love interest.

I really enjoyed the characters, the town, the mystery, and the food!  I loved the names of the dishes that Tish comes up with for her cafe and while I’m not 100% sure on some of those sandwiches, the creativity is unique and worth exploring.  I wish there was a cafe like that in my town.

The mystery was cleverly disguised and I have to admit I didn’t figure it out until near the end.  Now that is my kind of book.

I think this is going to be a fantastic series and can’t wait for the next book to come out.  We give this 5 paws up and suggest picking it up next time you are looking for a new cozy series.

About the Author

Author of the critically acclaimed Marjorie McClelland Mysteries and the Stella and Nick VT Mystery Series, Amy Patricia Meade is a native of Long Island, NY where she cut her teeth on classic films and books featuring Nancy Drew and Encyclopedia Brown.

After stints as an Operations Manager for a document imaging company and a freelance technical writer, Amy left the bright lights of New York City and headed north to pursue her creative writing career amidst the idyllic beauty of Vermont’s Green Mountains.

Now residing in Bristol, England Amy spends her time writing mysteries with a humorous or historical bent. When not writing – which is rare these days – Amy enjoys traveling, testing out new recipes, classic films, and exploring her new home.

Amy is a member of Sisters in Crime and The Crime Writers Association.

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