Risky Biscuits (A Sugar & Spice Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Setting – Iowa
Lyrical Underground (July 9, 2019)
Paperback: 190 pages

Synopsis

Former magazine editor “Sugar” Calloway’s life has taken a delicious twist since she launched a community cookbook publishing business with blue-ribbon baker Dixie Spicer. Now these amateur sleuths must solve a small-town murder—without getting burned . .

Sugar and Spice Cookbooks’ newest project is a fundraiser organized by the St. Ignatius Crack of Dawn Breakfast Club, famous for their all-you-can-eat biscuits and gravy events. But when a group member is found dead, Sugar and Spice’s priorities change from raising dough to figuring out who put murder on the menu.

The return of former badboy Nick Marchant has stirred the town’s gossips too. Add a few grudges and some old-fashioned greed over a land deal into the mix, and it’s a recipe for mayhem. And when someone serves up a second helping of murder, Sugar and Spice need to sift the guilty from the blameless, or their next breakfast may be their last . . .

* Includes delicious recipes! *

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Guest Post

Crazy About Cozies!

I came to the cozy world on a winding path. I read, no make that ‘devoured’ Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden books as a child. I couldn’t wait for the next one! If asked, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you exactly what I liked about those two series. I wasn’t analyzing. To me, they were simply good stories.

Later when I got serious about writing a novel, I took some classes, joined a writing group, and began putting words on the page. It was at that point, I re-discovered my love of mysteries and began reading them again. Voraciously. I picked ones that appealed to me – the setting, characters, the premise of the story.  I hadn’t figured out that most of the books I chose were cozy mysteries.

The first full mystery that I wrote won first-place in the Daphne Du Maier Award of Excellence contest sponsored by the Kiss of Death chapter of RWA. It won, but it did not sell. It garnered many MANY nice rejection letters. But that’s another story. I hadn’t figured out that what I was writing was a cozy mystery.

Setting that book aside, I worked with a friend on a series that did go on to sell. The Pampered Pets mystery series (Desperate Housedogs, Yip/Tuck, Fifty Shades of Greyhound, Downton Tabby to name a few) went on to ten books. By this time, I had realized that what I loved to read and wanted to write was actually called a “cozy mystery.”

So, what do I love about these books?

• A bright and likable main character/amateur sleuth. Like Nancy and Trixie, they are relatable crime-solvers.
• The interesting occupations of the characters. Usually a job, but sometimes a hobby, which gives me a chance to learn a bit about something new.
• Great settings. The settings where the stories take place are places I might like to live – or at least visit.
• A supporting cast of characters that I can get to know and care about. Sometimes quirky, always unique, the people make the story for me.
• Then there’s also the absence of graphic violence and language. Yes, there’s a murder, but I simply don’t want all the details.
• Finally, the mystery itself is always a great puzzle and I enjoy trying to put the clues together alongside the amateur sleuth.

You can imagine then, that as I wrote Game of Scones (Book 1) and the just released Risky Biscuits (Book 2), that I did my best to make sure that all the Sugar & Spice mysteries contained all those six ingredients. While there’s certainly not a formula to a cozy mystery, there are certain things that we as cozy readers want.

In a cozy, the people in the story, their unique talents, their friends, family, and co-workers and the location, all mix together to bake up a great story.  For a short while, we live a world that allows us to escape. And by the last page, justice is served, and everything is put right.

In my mind, that’s why cozies rock!

About the Author

Mary Lee Ashford is a lifelong bibliophile, and avid reader, and supporter of public libraries. In addition to writing the Sugar & Spice mystery series for Kensington Books, she also writes as half of the writing team of Sparkle Abbey, author of the national bestselling Pampered Pets mystery series from Bell Bridge Books.

Prior to publishing Mary Lee won first place in the Daphne du Maurier contest, sponsored by the Kiss of Death chapter of RWA, and was a finalist in Murder in the Grove’s mystery contest, as well as Killer Nashville’s Claymore Dagger contest.

She is the founding president of Sisters in Crime – Iowa and a current board member of the Mystery Writers of America Midwest chapter, as well as a member of Novelists, Inc., Romance Writers of America, Kiss of Death the RWA Mystery Suspense chapter, Sisters in Crime, and the SinC internet group Guppies.

Mary Lee has a passionate interest in creativity and teaches a university level course in Creative Management to MPA candidates, as well as presenting workshops and blogging about creativity. She loves encouraging other writers and is a frequent presenter on a variety of topics at workshops, conferences, and writers’ groups.

In her day job, Mary Lee is a Deputy Chief Information Officer. She currently resides in the Midwest with her husband, Tim, and Sparkle, the rescue cat namesake of the Sparkle Abbey pseudonym. Her delights are reading and enjoying her family and especially her six grandchildren.

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