BURNED TO A CRISP

Book 3 in the Cookies & Chance Mysteries

by Catherine Bruns

Pre-order now

Available October 11!

Just when things appear to be going well for baker and sometime sleuth, Sally Muccio, life turns up the heat again. 

It’s summertime, and the living is easy for the Muccio clan. Sal’s wedding to her beloved fiancé is rapidly approaching, Mom’s won a beauty contest, and sister Gianna is now a licensed public defender. But when the bakery Sal’s worked so hard for goes up in smoke—along with her dreams!—she’s not sure how much more she can stand. Even worse, the man found dead in the bakery’s back room is none other than Gianna’s latest client, Bernardo Napoli. The dough really hits the fan for Sal and Josie when they’re forced to temporarily relocate their bakery to the crazy Muccio home. Trouble is quickly stirred up as the best friend team must now contend with Sal’s father and his new mortuary business “undertakings,” a middle aged mother parading around customers in bikinis, and an Italian family hell bent on revenge. For Sal, several questions demand answers. Where has Gianna disappeared to? What role did she play in Bernardo’s death? What secret is Sal’s fiancé hiding from her? Sal is determined to find answers...before she gets burned once again! 

**Recipes Included!** 

MY REVIEW

This tasty installment of the Cookies & Chance Mysteries had my stomach growing, and my inner sleuth working overtime!

Having read the first two books in this delightful series, I had no doubt I would enjoy BURNED TO A CRISP. Well, I liked it about as much as Sal’s costumers like her cookies. If you’ve read this series, you’ll know that means a liked it a lot! Haven’t read the series? You’ll see what I mean when you do. And you do need to read the Cookies & Chance Mysteries!

One thing is for certain, author Catherine Bruns knows how to write a story that draws emotions out of her readers. She burned down her lead character’s business! I was broken hearted for Sally when she came upon the scene of her bakery up in flames. Sally was devastated, and so was I! Then a man’s body is found in the backroom of the bakery, and Sally’s sister is missing. All in the first few chapters!

Everything I found enjoyable about the author’s writing in the first two books, and more, was present in BURNED TO A CRISP. Ms. Bruns has raised the bar in her story telling, and baked up a tale that is the best of the batch so far.

Don’t forget to check out the yummy cookie recipes in the back of the book!

About Catherine

Catherine is the USA Today best selling author of the Cookies & Chance mysteries. She is a member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime. The first book in her new Carrie Jorgenson series, Death of the Big Kahuna, releases in January 2017.

BOOK ONE

Sally Muccio’s had her crosses to bear: a cheating ex-boyfriend, crazy Italian parents, and an unfaithful husband, just to name a few. After her divorce, she returns to her hometown to start a novelty cookie shop whose specialties include original fortune cookies, served with a sprinkle of foreshadowing. But there’s no warning when her ex-husband’s mistress drops dead on Sal's porch, and police confirm it’s a homicide. Determined to stop her life from becoming a recipe for disaster, Sal takes matters into her own hands. With two very different men vying for her affection, dead bodies piling up, and a reputation hanging by an apron string, Sal finds herself in a race against time to save both her business and life—before the last cookie crumbles. 

BOOK TWO

Baker turned reluctant amateur sleuth, Sally Muccio’s, finally found the happiness that’s eluded her for years. She’s in love with a great guy, her bakery is thriving, and now she and her best friend Josie Sullivan are gearing up to appear on the popular reality baking show, Cookie Crusades. But a visit from Sal’s greedy ex-husband Colin, who's looking to cash in on the bakery’s dough, changes everything. Within a few hours Sal’s world—like the shop’s original fortune cookies—is broken apart when Colin turns up dead, and her boyfriend’s arrested for the crime. Now Sal’s mixing it up with vengeful ex-inlaws, a suspicious new employee, slippery baking competitors, and a greasy mobster who’ll stop at nothing to collect on Colin’s unpaid debt. Can Sal prove her man is innocent in time? Or is she about to get baked herself? 
**Recipes Included!** 

Pre-order now

Available October 11!

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