Wednesday, June 30, 2021


Check out these great July 4th cozies!


While on vacation in South Carolina, Tj Jensen receives a call that her father has been left in a coma after a devastating car crash.

But once back home in Paradise Lake, Tj learns the accident that killed family friend Judge Harper and left her father clinging to life wasn’t an accident at all—someone cut their brake lines.

To make matters worse, her friend and police contact, Deputy Roy Fisher, is working with a new partner who has no intention of letting Tj anywhere near the case.

Facing an investigation more explosive than the annual fireworks show, Tj enlists the help of her best friends to unravel the mystery, all the while navigating a new romance and the thought her father may never wake up.


Party planner Liv McKay has outdone herself this time. She’s put together an unforgettable Fourth of July celebration for the town of Dixie, Tennessee—including breathtaking fireworks and an exciting Miss Dixie Beauty Pageant. Maybe a little too exciting.

As the party is winding down, Liv’s sense of triumph fizzles when the body of town councilman Bubba Rowland is discovered on the festival grounds. And now the prime suspect in his murder is Liv’s mother’s fiancΓ©, Earl, who had a flare-up recently with Bubba. To clear Earl’s name, Liv and her best friend Di burst into action to smoke out the real killer before another life is extinguished . . .


In the third Celebration Bay mystery, Old Glory is flying high for the Fourth of July holiday—until someone raises a red flag…

With Independence Day fast approaching, Liv Montgomery is swamped coordinating one of the town’s biggest festivals. In addition to the traditional July fourth events, the town stages a spooky Revolutionary War reenactment that can’t be missed. Every year, the ghost of local war hero Henry Gallantine—played by his eccentric descendant of the same name—appears at the top of the family mansion, kicking off the night’s revelries.

But Henry’s annual cameo goes awry after the ghost signals SOS instead of his traditional cue. When Liv rushes to the rescue, she finds Henry missing and a real dead body instead of a fake haunt. Now she will have to hunt down both a murderer and a missing person quickly before unwanted political fireworks ignite and someone else winds up as local history...


Stirring up trouble…

Vintage kitchenware and cookbook collector Jaymie Leighton has been estranged from her high school best friend Kathy Cooper since they were teenagers, but she never knew what turned Kathy against her. After fireworks at a Fourth of July picnic, Jaymie discovers the body of her former friend in the park. On the ground nearby is Jaymie’s own Depression-era glass bowl, broken in two.

With her fingerprints all over the bowl and a troubled history with the victim, Jaymie suddenly finds herself at the top of the list of suspects. Did the killer intend to frame her for the murder? If so, she is ready to mix it up, because solving crimes is vintage Jaymie Leighton…

    

I'd love to know if you have read any either of these. 
Please leave a comment.

Have a great day!

Tuesday, June 29, 2021

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TAMMIE! 


In honor of my sister Tammie's birthday, check out this funny cozy with a birthday theme!


From USA Today bestselling author Catherine Bruns comes another deliciously deadly culinary mystery...

Spring has officially arrived, and while the weather outside may still be frightful, Sally Muccio is feeling especially delightful as she prepares a homemade family dinner in honor of her husband’s birthday. Sal’s determined to make it an unforgettable night for Mike and even includes homemade fortune cookies like the ones her bakery serves, with messages personalized for each guest.

The evening is memorable, but not as Sal had hoped, when Mike and a family friend find themselves in the middle of an armed robbery...and only one will make it out alive. It’s just the beginning of more grief for Sal, who soon discovers the robbery is related to a scheme that spells financial ruin for her family. Add in her morbid father’s book signing at the bakery complete with coffin shaped cookies, a sister who won’t stop eating them, and an accidental gig at a local strip club, and Sal once again finds herself in deep dough. Only this time, there may not be a way out...


*Recipes Included!*

Monday, June 28, 2021



Check out these great July 4th cozies!


The dog days of summer have just begun, and Melanie Travis is looking forward to savoring each lazy afternoon. And where better to enjoy herself than at her Aunt Peg's Fourth of July barbecue? It sounds ideal, until an uninvited guest proves that even the laziest dog day of the year can suddenly turn vicious.

Melanie knew someone should have kept Barry Turk on a short leash. The star poodle handler and ladykiller had a habit of chicanery that bred contempt in the dog show circuit, particularly among its female members. But when Barry is shot dead in his own driveway, even Melanie is stunned at how unsporting the competition can get. Soon Melanie is investigating a litter of suspects which includes Barry's ruthless young assistant, her hot-tempered boyfriend, A Blue Ribbon judge with a grudge, and even Barry's last lover, Alicia. Now, as Melanie digs for clues deep under Connecticut's well-groomed surface, she finds herself sniffing around in the killer's own backyard, and counts herself lucky to have the animal instincts to keep herself alive.


For the Fourth of July, Lee McKinney and her aunt debut their latest confections-chocolate frogs-at TenHuis Chocolade. The first customer to buy a croaker is the town crank. But when he later disappears and police suspect foul play, it's a chocolate clue that leads Lee to the killer.

I'd love to know if you have read any either of these. 
Please leave a comment.

Have a great day!

Sunday, June 27, 2021


How are you all today?
Me? I'm going on vacation!
Not my normal catch-up type, but a real one!
The 29th is my sister Tammie's birthday.


My other sister Darlene has also taken the week off.
So, we're going to do one of our very favorite things. 
Day trips!


Pennsylvania, Maryland, who knows, maybe New Jersey. Living in Delaware, we're close to all, so the possibilities are endless. 


The Tammie Birthday Extravelganza 
(see what I did there?)
runs from Today June 27 - July 4!


I will try to take as many photos as I can so 
I can share with you all of our stops.


While I'm gone, each day I'll have scheduled 4th of July cozies for you to check out. Let's start with today!


Every Fourth of July, the town of Cabot Cove hosts an elaborate celebration and no one is more enthusiastic than the towns newest resident, corporate mogul Joseph Lennon. He's desperate to give the town an unwanted 21st century makeover, including financing a fireworks extravaganza to rival New York City's. But when Lennon's lifeless body is found floating in the water outside his office, Jessica Fletcher has no choice but to investigate her fellow Cabot Cove citizens to find out if one of them is capable of murder...


Time to get some things done here at home 
to prepare for the week.

Take care everyone! 
Please post comments. I'll check and approve them every chance I get.


Have a fabulous week!

Saturday, June 26, 2021

 BOOK TOUR 


I'm excited to be a stop on the blog tour for
FRAMED AND FROSTED
Book 3 in the Cupcake Catering Mysteries
by Kim Davis


Framed and Frosted, the third book in the Cupcake Catering Mystery series, finds cupcake caterer, Emory Martinez, working at a Laguna Beach society Fourth of July soiree, with her sister and their new employee, Sal. With a host who seems intent on accosting both catering employees and guests alike, things go from bad to worse when he accuses Sal of murdering his long-dead son.

As the crescendo of exploding fireworks overhead becomes the backdrop for cupcakes and champagne, a deadly murder occurs. Can Sal and Emory explain why the cupcake the host ate, after shoving a trayful of buttercream-frosted cupcakes onto Sal, resulted in his death? Or will the guests and detective alike believe that Sal is a murderer? Emory and her octogenarian employer, Tillie, whip into action to find out who framed Sal after he was frosted by the victim.


Includes recipes!

πŸ“šπŸ“–πŸ“šπŸ“–πŸ“š

!!!GIVEAWAY!!!

1 lucky reader will win a

Print copy of FRAMED AND FROSTED
and a
 $25.00 Amazon Gift Card!

For titles, see the Rafflecopter giveaway below


(See Rafflecopter form below)

USA only

Enter using the Rafflecopter form at the end of this post.

Winner will be chosen after June 30 at the end of the tour


This giveaway is through Great Escape Book Tours

After years of reading and reviewing hundreds of books (my estimate) for her blog, author Kim Davis has flawlessly entered the world writing with her own books. Her first book was a very well received thriller. And now, happily for me, she is penning the Cupcake Catering Mysteries. A series in which she has created a cast of characters, that she continues to flesh out, and a setting that really draws the reader in.

Davis’ third installment in this series, FRAMED AND FROSTED,     showcases the author’s writing at its finest. I was so engrossed in this story and trying to solve the mystery, it had started getting dark outside and I found myself squinting to continue reading. Seriously, I couldn’t be bothered to turn a light on because I was so invested in figuring out what was going on, and following along with more twists and turns than buttercream swirls on a cupcake!

FRAMED AND FROSTED is the summer treat you deserve. Go on! Indulge in it. You’ll be so happy that you did!

About Kim Davis

Kim Davis lives in Southern California with her husband. When she's not spending time with her granddaughters she can be found either writing stories or working on her blog, Cinnamon, Sugar, and a Little Bit of Murder or in the kitchen baking up yummy treats. She has published the suspense novel, A GAME OF DECEIT, and cozy mystery, SPRINKLES OF SUSPICION and CAKE POPPED OFF. She also has had several children’s articles published in Cricket, Nature Friend, Skipping Stones, and the Seed of Truth magazines. Kim Davis is a member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.

Author Links 

 Purchase Links
 Amazon 




TOUR PARTICIPANTS
June 21 – Novels Alive – GUEST POST
June 21 – I Read What You Write – SPOTLIGHT
June 21 – I'm All About Books – SPOTLIGHT
June 22 – Mysteries with Character – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
June 22 – Christy's Cozy Corners – REVIEW
June 22 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT
June 23 – StoreyBook Reviews – REVIEW
June 23 – Hearts & Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT
June 24 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 24 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
June 24 – Eskimo Princess Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 25 – Celticlady's Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 25 – Reading, Writing & Stitch-Metic – SPOTLIGHT
June 25 – Sapphyria's Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 26 – MJB Reviewers – REVIEW
June 26 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – REVIEW
June 27 – Brooke Blogs – CHARACTER GUEST POST
June 27 – Diane Reviews Books – SPOTLIGHT
June 28 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW
June 28 – Carstairs Considers – REVIEW
June 29 – Laura's Interests – REVIEW
June 29 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW
June 30 - Literary Gold – SPOTLIGHT
June 30 - Cassidy's Bookshelves – SPOTLIGHT


As always, please leave a comment and 
let me know what you think!

Follow my blog by submitting your email in 
upper right hand corner of this page (on the side bar).

Reading from your phone? Scroll to the bottom of your page and click "View web version". Then follow the above directions.

Friday, June 25, 2021

 

Today I'm joining 
Berkley Mystery
 in celebrating the release of  
MURPHY'S SLAW
Book 3 in the Alaskan Diner Mysteries
by Elizabeth Logan
(Camille Minichino)


When a local prize-winning farmer is murdered at the state fair, Charlie Cook gets called in to help investigate, but she’s shocked to learn the victim is a friend in this latest installment in the Alaskan Diner Mysteries.

Charlie Cooke loves many things, like the Bear Claw Diner, the heated steering wheel of her car, and her orange tabby cat Eggs Benedict. Something she has never loved is the state fair. So when her best friend Annie Jensen begs her for a fair day, she’s reluctant.  But Annie isn’t the only one who wants her to spend a day among farm animals and deep fried food. A vendor has been murdered, and Trooper Graham needs his favorite part-time sleuth to dig up the truth, and Charlie is happy to oblige.

The case grows personal when Charlie learns the victim is Kelly Carson, whom she and Annie were friends with in high school. If Charlie wants to find justice for Kelly, she and Annie will have to work together to weed out the killer.

Elizabeth Logan/Camille Minichino -- June 2021

When stories are set around a diner, recipes are a given. The Alaskan Diner Mysteries, featuring the Bear Claw Diner, are no exception.

The Bear Claw sits on a road that’s as busy as it ever gets in Alaska, on the Parks Highway, between Anchorage and Denali National Park. While its owner, Charlie Cooke, is often busy investigating homicides, her staff takes off on adventures in the kitchen, whipping up off-menu items from appetizers to desserts.

In “Murphy’s Slaw,” the third book in the series by Elizabeth Logan, Chef Victor (coincidentally) lands on one of my favorite desserts: Boston Cream Pie, the official Massachusetts State Dessert.

The not-quite-a-pie but more-than-a-cake treat originated at a famous Boston hotel nearly two hundred years ago. A native of Boston, I like to spout trivia about it now and then. I often put words in Victor’s mouth, like the fact that the world’s largest BCP was displayed at Faneuil Hall Marketplace in 2005: 16 feet in diameter, including 1,300 pounds of cake, 800 pounds of filling, and 500 pounds of chocolate frosting.

That could keep me happy for approximately the rest of my life!

“It weighed more than a ton,” Victor tells us, doing the math.

Here’s the recipe for a more normal size BCP.

This is a three-part dessert, but well worth the time and effort.


BOSTON CREAM PIE

photo property of Camilla Minichino

Cake Layers

INGREDIENTS

2 eggs

2 cup cake flour

1 cup sugar

2 ½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 cup milk

2 tsp vanilla extract


Cream Filling

INGREDIENTS

1 ½ cup milk

2 tsp cornstarch

¼ cup sugar

Pinch salt

1 egg

1 T vanilla extract


Chocolate Frosting

INGREDIENTS

¼ cup water

2 T sugar

½ cup semisweet chocolate chips


DIRECTIONS

Cake Layers Directions

 Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 9" round cake pans or line bottoms with waxed paper.

For the cake layers: Separate eggs; place whites in a small bowl and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine cake flour, 3/4 cup of the sugar, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a small bowl with an electric mixer, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Very gradually beat in the remaining 1/4 cup sugar; beat until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

Add egg yolks, oil and 1/2 cup milk to flour mixture. With electric mixer, beat until smooth, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Add remaining 1/2 cup milk and vanilla. Beat just until combined. Fold beaten egg whites into batter. Divide batter into prepared pans.

Bake cake 20 to 25 minutes or until centers spring back when gently pressed. Cool in pans on wire rack for 5 minutes. Loosen cakes around edges and turn out onto racks. Cool completely.


Cream Filling Directions

In a 1-quart saucepan, heat 1 cup milk to boiling. In cup or small bowl, combine remaining 1/2 cup milk, cornstarch, sugar, pinch salt, egg and vanilla until blended.

When milk comes to boiling, gradually stir in cornstarch mixture with wire whisk. Return to boiling, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer 1 minute or until thickened to pudding consistency. Set aside to cool to room temperature.


Chocolate Frosting Directions

In 1-quart saucepan, heat water and sugar to boiling.

Add chocolate chips. Stir until glaze is smooth.

Remove from heat. Cool 5 to 10 minutes or until slightly thickened.


Assemble

To assemble, place one cake layer, upside down, on a serving plate.

Spread with cream filling.

Top with remaining cake layer, right side up.

Spoon glaze over top; spread to edges of cake.

Refrigerate until frosting appears set.

This recipe serves 8, generously. Enjoy!


Elizabeth Logan is the pseudonym for a longtime mystery writer who has published series with Berkley and Minotaur. She grew up about a mile from Revere Beach, Massachusetts, the setting for her Periodic Table Mysteries. Like her amateur sleuth, Gloria Lamerino, she has a Ph.D. in physics and has had a long career in research and teaching. She also writes the Miniature Mysteries as Margaret Grace, the Professor Sophie Knowles Mysteries as Ada Madison, and the Postmistress Mysteries as Jean Flowers.


As always, please leave a comment and 
let me know what you think!

Follow my blog by submitting your email in 
upper right hand corner of this page (on the side bar).

Reading from your phone? Scroll to the bottom of your page and click "View web version". Then follow the above directions.

Thursday, June 24, 2021

 BOOK TOUR 


I'm so excited to be a stop on the blog tour for
A GLIMMER OF A CLUE
Book 2 in the Fairy Garden Mysteries
by Daryl Wood Gerber


Courtney Kelly has a shop full of delights, a cat named Pixie, a green thumb—and a magical touch when it comes to garden design. But in Carmel-by-the-Sea, things aren’t all sweetness and fairy lights . . .
 
When Courtney’s friend Wanda gets into a ponytail-pulling wrestling match in public with a nasty local art critic, Courtney stops the fight with the help of a garden hose. But Lana Lamar has a talent for escalating things and creating tension, which she succeeds in doing by threatening a lawsuit, getting into yet another scuffle—in the midst of an elegant fundraiser, no less—and lobbing insults around like pickleballs.  
 
Next thing Courtney knows, Lana is on the floor, stabbed with a decorative letter opener from one of Courtney's fairy gardens, and Wanda is standing by asking “What have I done?” But the answer may not be as obvious as it seems, since Wanda is prone to sleepwalking and appears to be in a daze. Could she have risen from her nap and committed murder while unconscious? Or is the guilty party someone else Lana’s ticked off, like her long-suffering husband? To find out, Courtney will have to dig up some dirt.

πŸ“šπŸ“–πŸ“šπŸ“–πŸ“š

!!!GIVEAWAY!!!

1 lucky reader will win a
Choice of First in any of Daryl's series (Print or Digital)
Plus a $25.00 Bookstore Gift Card  

USA only

Enter using the Rafflecopter form at the end of this post.

Winner will be chosen after June 29 at the end of the tour


This giveaway is through Great Escape Book Tours


Every time I read a book by author Daryl Wood Gerber, I’m reminded why she is a favorite writer of mine. This second book in her Fairy Garden Mysteries is a wonderful example of why.

Reading, A GLIMMER OF A CLUE in one setting wasn’t my plan for the day. However, a couple of chapters in, I knew I wouldn’t put it down until the last page. It was a well plotted mystery, within a magical tale.

There were suspects and motives galore. A true puzzler, there were so many ways this story could have gone! My thoughts and guesses were running the spectrum of possibilities to the point of being dizzying. Indeed, A GLIMMER OF A CLUE was so meticulously plotted, Sherlock Holmes himself would have been scratching his head.

If you’re looking for a book to spend a summer day with, you can’t go wrong with A GLIMMER OF A CLUE.

About Daryl Wood Gerber

Agatha Award-winning author Daryl Wood Gerber writes the nationally bestselling Cookbook Nook Mysteries, the Fairy Garden Mysteries, and the French Bistro Mysteries. As Avery Aames, she pens the popular Cheese Shop Mysteries. In addition, Daryl writes the Aspen Adams novels of suspense as well as stand-alone suspense. Daryl loves to cook, fairy garden, and read, and she has a frisky Goldendoodle who keeps her in line!

Author Links 

Purchase Links 
Amazon    Barnes and Noble    Kobo    Bookshop    Indiebound    




TOUR PARTICIPANTS 

June 22 – I'm All About Books – SPOTLIGHT
June 22 – Novels Alive – GUEST POST
June 22 – Diane Reviews Books – REVIEW
June 22 – Literary Gold – SPOTLIGHT
June 23 – Angel's Guilty Pleasures – SPOTLIGHT
June 23 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
June 23 – This Is My Truth Now – REVIEW
June 23 – Sapphyria's Book Reviews – REVIEW
June 24 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
June 24 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – REVIEW
June 24 – The Book's the Thing – REVIEW
June 24 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT
June 25 – Books to the Ceiling – GUEST POST
June 25 – Celticlady's Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 25 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW
June 26 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 26 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
June 26 – Laura's Interests – REVIEW
June 27 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 27 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews - REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW
June 27 – I Read What You Write – SPOTLIGHT
June 28 – Hearts & Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT
June 28 – Christy's Cozy Corners – REVIEW
June 29 – The Avid Reader – REVIEW
June 29 – Mysteries with Character – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
June 29 – Melina's Book Blog – REVIEW


As always, please leave a comment and 
let me know what you think!

Follow my blog by submitting your email in 
upper right hand corner of this page (on the side bar).

Reading from your phone? Scroll to the bottom of your page and click "View web version". Then follow the above directions.