Battered: A Whipped and Sipped Mystery
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Illinois
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Anamcara Press LLC
Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 10, 2025
Print length ‏ : ‎ 284 pages
Paperback

Synopsis

Alene Baron has built more than a café—she’s built a community. At Whipped & Sipped, customers linger over Ruthie’s decadent-but-healthy desserts, children flock to Saturday story hour, and knitting groups craft blankets for refugee families. Alene prides herself on knowing her patrons so well she can often place “a wholegrain blueberry muffin on the counter before the customer themselves knew” they wanted it.

But when her neighbor and close friend is murdered, Alene’s cozy world begins to unravel. Suddenly, everyone she knows could be a suspect, and she starts noticing the smallest inconsistencies, furtive glances, and unexplained comings and goings around the café. With each clue and misstep, Alene pieces together a tangled web of secrets, realizing that danger may be closer than she ever imagined—and that her own family could be in the killer’s sights.

With her sharp eye for detail, wry sense of humor, and fierce devotion to her children, Alene steps into the role of amateur sleuth. But in a community where tempers flare over hot chocolate, grudges linger for years, and secrets hide beneath friendly smiles, finding the killer may prove harder than whipping up the perfect soufflé.

Battered, the first in G.P. Gottlieb’s Whipped and Sipped Mystery Series, is a delectable blend of mouthwatering recipes, quirky neighborhood drama, and page-turning suspense. Perfect for fans of culinary cozies, it’s a tale where friendship, food, and murder are always on the menu.

Amazon * Bookshop.Org * Barnes & Noble * Apple * Kobo * Smashwords

Smothered: A Whipped and Sipped Mystery
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Setting – Illinois
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Anamcara Press LLC
Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 30, 2026
Print length ‏ : ‎ 272 pages
Paperback

Synopsis

Murder is on the menu—served warm with muffins and lattes.

In the second Whipped and Sipped Mystery, café owner Alene Baron isn’t exactly grieving when the neighboring business owner is found dead in his office. Stanley Huff was shady, sloppy, and smug about his dubious food supplements—and his watery smoothies didn’t help. He also never cleaned up his trash in their shared alley. Stanley had plenty of enemies. Unfortunately, one of them may be Alene’s own employee—who has now vanished.

The real surprise isn’t who wanted him dead—it’s how many people did. Drawn into the investigation, caterer and reluctant sleuth Alene uncovers a snarl of family drama involving a missing will, bitter heirs, and long-buried financial secrets. Every lead contradicts the last, red herrings pile up, and resentments simmer just beneath the surface.

As the mystery deepens, Alene juggles more than suspects. Between running her café, caring for her family, and protecting her staff, she finds herself relying on sharp instincts, quiet observation, and a steady supply of inventive vegan dishes. Food and detection go hand in hand, adding warmth, humor, and heart to every turn of the case.
With its cozy charm and relatable heroine, Smothered is more than a clever whodunit. It explores family ties, the corrosive pull of greed, and the small truths people reveal under pressure. Rich in character, culinary flair, and emotional insight, this mystery delivers satisfying twists—and leaves a lasting aftertaste.

Amazon * Bookshop * B&N * Kobo * Smashwords * Apple

Charred: A Whipped and Sipped Mystery
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Setting – Illinois
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Anamcara Press LLC
Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 30, 2026
Print length ‏ : ‎ 250 pages

Synopsis

At the Whipped and Sipped Café, Alene Baron knows how to handle a kitchen fire—but this blaze may burn far beyond her control.

When a suspicious fire draws Alene, her loyal friend Kacey, and Kacey’s boyfriend Kofi to a charred property in search of salvaged wood, they expect nothing more than a little trespassing and a lot of soot. Instead, whispers of arson swirl through their tight-knit community—and before long, a body turns up amid the ashes.

Kofi fears the police will come knocking. Kacey fears someone saw them. And Alene is caught in the middle, torn between protecting the people she loves and telling the truth to her partner, homicide detective Frank. Shaw Because in this town, secrets don’t stay buried. They smolder.

Amazon * Bookshop * B&N * Kobo * Smashwords * Apple

Guest Post

How My Dad Inspired a Character

The last time I saw my father, Alex, was in 2021 during the pandemic, when only hospice nurses were allowed inside. My parents lived on the third floor, so we only got to see Dad if our mom was able to wheel his chair to the window. That day, I stood outside the building, waving up at their balcony. He was too weak to wave, but I think he smiled. I’ve held onto that memory.

That year, I was working on Smothered, the second book in my culinary mystery series. I was writing about Cal Baron, the genial father of Alene, who owns the fictional Whipped & Sipped Café in Chicago. Although no one could match Alex’s thick skin and booming presence, I noticed pieces of my dad in Cal. He’s a voice of reason and a loving but sometimes maddening presence, kind of like my dad, who also enjoyed repeating sayings and was happiest when surrounded by family.

Alex loved mentoring and giving advice, whether it was requested or not. “Here’s what you do,” he’d say in his Chicago west-side accent. I used to sigh and gird myself for a lecture about negotiating contracts or saving for retirement. Now, I wish I’d occasionally listened more carefully.

My dad was born in 1928, just before The Great Depression, and was part of the “Silent” generation. I’m a Baby Boomer, raised by parents who understood sacrifice and hardship. Boomers like Cal and me know that our parents, many of them immigrants, were bewildered by the cultural changes that came about in the 1960s and 70s.

Alex was conscripted into the army in 1946, too late for World War II, too early for Korea. He served at the old army base in Fort Sheridan, Illinois, and took the train home nearly every weekend. Cal was drafted and sent to Vietnam in 1972. He saw combat, lost comrades, and returned home to a country that didn’t welcome him. He built a business, as did my father, but lost his wife early and didn’t get to live the joyful retirement my dad experienced.

One day, I might give a character a back story inspired by my dad’s life that includes failed entrepreneurial ventures, crooked partners, and a sudden heart attack that changes everything. I’ll also give him my dad’s optimism in the face of disappointment and loss. I’m not sure that character will have a picture of Nixon in his office or call his children, “you liberals,” but maybe he will, like Alex, travel widely, mentor recently paroled convicts about how to succeed, and occasionally head to Texas to milk rattlesnakes for their venom.

We don’t get many second chances in life, but in my writing, I give Cal’s daughter the patience I always lacked to listen to her father. Cal will never tell his daughters and granddaughters to, “bag a dummy,” as my father did (It meant we should find a husband). It was an exasperating phrase, and I had to learn to laugh at it.

Cal, like many Boomers (though not all), learned to be sensitive to other cultures and conscientious about treating others with dignity. When readers say they like Cal’s sayings (usually Benjamin Franklin quotes) and how he supports his kids and grandchildren, it reminds me of my dad. I gave Cal a similarly big heart, pride in his family, and the strong desire to wrap his arms around them all.

I just wish my dad had been able to meet my grandbabies. He’d have enveloped them with hugs and kisses, and endlessly repeated the joke he used to say when my children misbehaved:

“What are grandchildren for?” Brief pause. “Revenge!”

About the Author

G. P. Gottlieb has been a musician, teacher, and administrator, but she’s happiest writing recipe-laced murder mysteries and inventing mostly vegetarian recipes that are nothing like what she learned in courses at Chicago’s French Pastry School. Gottlieb is active in Sisters in Crime (Chicago and Colorado) and has interviewed over 275 authors as a host for New Books in Literature, a podcast channel on the New Books Network. She writes stories and essays that are published in a variety of journals and blogs, is a mother and grandmother, and lives with her husband in a Chicago high-rise that is strikingly similar to the building portrayed in the Whipped and Sipped Mystery series.

Website * BlueSky * Facebook * Instagram

Medium * Substack * X/Twitter