Tuesday, May 5, 2020


Take a look at some of the titles available today!


Full-time baker and sometime sleuth Sally Muccio finally has everything she’s always wanted—a beautiful baby, loving husband, and a thriving business. Now that she’s a mother, Sal has vowed she’ll stay out of future murder investigations. But when her eccentric father’s friend, mortician Eddie Phibbins, is found dead in one of his own caskets, Sal's father begs her to help find the killer.

With their famous coffins cookies in hand, Sal and her best friend Josie “undertake” the process of questioning mourners and employees at the funeral home, hoping for a lead to Eddie’s killer. Between a recently fired hearse driver, resentful family members and a wacky, love-struck makeup artist there’s no shortage of suspects. Once again, Sal’s snooping has attracted the attention of a killer, and her good intentions may have only succeeded in digging herself an early grave…

*Recipes Included!*


A young chef might bite off more than she can chew when she returns to her Alaskan hometown to take over her parents' diner in this charming first installment in a new cozy mystery series set in an Alaskan tourist town.

When Chef Charlie Cooke is offered the chance to leave San Francisco and return home to Elkview, Alaska, to take over her mother's diner, she doesn't even consider saying no. After all--her love life has recently become a Love Life Crumble, and a chance to reconnect with her roots may be just what she needs.

Determined to bring fresh life and flavors to the Bear Claw Diner, Charlie starts planning changes to the menu, which has grown stale over the years. But her plans are fried when her head cook Oliver turns up dead after a bitter and public fight over Charlie's ideas--leaving Charlie as the only suspect in the case.

With her career, freedom, and life all on thin ice, Charlie must find out who the real killer is, before it's too late.


Liz Holt is bewitched, bothered, and bewildered when a wicked killer objects to a wiccan wedding . . .   
 
Island life can get pretty weird. Wiccan weddings, psychic brides, mermaid parades, eccentric parrots . . . Novelist Liz Holt has gotten used to it since moving back to the barrier island of Melbourne Beach, Florida, and once again working in her family's hotel and emporium, the Indialantic by the Sea. But one thing she'll never get used to is murder.
 
Groom-to-be and leader of the Sunshine Wiccan Society, white warlock Julian Rhodes is poisoned at his rehearsal dinner on the hotel's sightseeing cruiser. His psychic bride, Dorian Starwood, never saw it coming. An old friend of Liz's great-aunt Amelia, the celebrity psychic engages Liz to find out who intended to kill her intended. With her Macaw, Barnacle Bob, squawking "Pop Goes the Weasel" at Dorian's pet ferret, and the streets teeming with mermaids in tails, Liz has got to wade through the weirdness and cast a wide net for the killer—before she's the next one to sleep with the fishes . . .

 
Recipes included!


Miss Julia has decided to turn over a new leaf -- it's time to stop meddling in other peoples' lives. But her hands are full before long! Mildred is sent into a tizzy when a grandchild she's never met shows up on her doorstop. With her husband fighting a mysterious illness, she's all on her own. Meanwhile, Etta Mae is worried about losing her job now that the retirement care center is closing. Luckily Miss Julia has experience dealing with children dropped on doorsteps, and sweeps in to lend a hand. But there's something just a bit strange about the child, and Miss Julia can't quite put her finger on what it is.
As always, hijinks ensue as Ann B. Ross delivers this delightful and entertaining installment in her bestselling Miss Julia series.

AUDIO

There’s something 100 percent off about Maggie and her fiancĂ© Sam’s new dream home in the historic section of St. Stanley. The lights flicker, the doors blow shut, and their cat, Marshall Dillon, hisses at empty space. And there’s something in the basement that’s definitely not a bargain....
After Maggie discovers a skeleton in the root cellar, she’s convinced her house is haunted by a murdered man’s ghost. With the help of her Good Buy Girls, Maggie works to tag a killer. 
But she’ll need to be careful as she digs into the history of her new digs. Someone is willing to keep the truth buried at all costs.




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let me know what you think!

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Monday, May 4, 2020


Check out these giveaways at GoodReads!
(Use the link below each book for a chance to enter)

Pretty is as Pretty Dies (A Myrtle Clover Cozy Mystery Book 1)


Witch Hunt


Still Knife Painting


Jane Darrowfield, Professional Busybody


Nacho Average Murder (Country Store Mysteries #7)


Murder in a Scottish Shire


A Sprinkling of Murder (A Fairy Garden Mystery #1)


Lineage Most Lethal (Ancestry Detective #2)


The books I've listed are just some of the titles you can win!
There are not only more mysteries (of all types) but books in just about any genre you can think of.
What are you waiting for? Go enter!!!

NOTE: The giveaways on GoodReads are for both Print and eBooks copies. Make sure to enter only for the ones you want.

GOOD LUCK!

PS . . . While you're there, I'd love for you to friend me and check out my reviews! If you enjoy them, please make sure to Like them. Thanks!



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.

Sunday, May 3, 2020


IT CANNOLI BE MURDER
Book 2 in the Italian Chef Mysteries 
by Catherine Bruns


It's time to serve some just desserts...
Six months after her husband's death, Tessa Esposito is hoping to drum up reservations for her restaurant's grand opening. And since a signing with bestselling author, Preston Rigotta, is sure to draw a crowd, Tessa agrees to cater her cousin's bookstore event―whipping up some of her famous Italian desserts. But the event soon takes a sour turn when Preston's publicist, an old high school rival, arrives and begins to whisk up their old grudges.
That night, a fight breaks out in front of the crowd, and it becomes clear there's bad blood in Harvest Park. And when the publicist is found dead on the bookstore floor the next morning, a stray cannolo at her side, Tessa knows who will be framed as the prime suspect.
To clear both her cousin's and her own name, Tessa must investigate the murder. But Preston's publicist has many secrets to hide, and in the end, the truth is bittersweet...


Just like spaghetti is always better the next day, this second installment in the Italian Chef Mysteries is even better than the first!

Author Catherine Bruns knows how to write a tale that keeps you turning the pages. Seriously, I couldn’t put down, IT CANNOLI BE MURDER. I did the whole, I’ll just read one more page because I have things I need to get done, thing more times than I can count. Let’s just say, those other things didn’t get done.

This is easily is one of my favorite books of the year. It’s a first rate murder mystery that had me stumped until the reveal. Honestly, each time I thought I was on the right track, author Bruns threw in another twist that showed me how off course I was. I was beginning to think there was no way the author herself could figure out who-dun-it. Of course, she did so brilliantly.

Along with the mystery, this story has wonderful characters that I was happy to spend time with again, and that I’m looking forward to revisiting in the next book. Last but not least, the food references had me salivating. I could smell the tomato sauce simmering. It made me so hungry, I made pasta for dinner when I was finished!   

If you’re looking for a fast, fun, wonderfully written mystery, add IT CANNOLI BE MURDER to your must read list!


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

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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.

Saturday, May 2, 2020


Do you have missing books in some of your favorite cozy mystery series? I know I do. When I'm looking for an inexpensive way to fill in those spots, my go to place is

I was introduced to this site by a cozy mystery friend. It's a treasure trove of back titles in all genres. And in some cases, the titles aren't that far back! No, you can get some rather current titles. 

Aunt Dimity and the Buried Treasure (Aunt Dimity Mystery)

They have several titles in the Aunt Dimity series.

Away in a Manger (Molly Murphy Mysteries, Bk. 15)


Beyond a Reasonable Stout (Sloan Krause Mystery)


The Candy Cane Cupcake Killer (A Fresh-Baked Mystery)


Cat Among the Pumpkins (Hettie Bagshot Mystery, Bk. 2)


The Cats Came Back (Magical Cats, Bk. 10)


Charmed Bones (A Sarah Booth Delaney Mystery, Bk. 18)


The Chocolate Bunny Brouhaha (Chocoholic Mystery, Bk. 16)


The Cozy Cookbook


Dachshund Through the Snow (Andy Carpenter Mystery)


Dead Cold Brew (Coffeehouse Series, Bk. 16)


Dyeing Up Loose Ends (A Knitting Mystery)


Egg Drop Dead (A Cackleberry Club Mystery, Bk. 7)


A Finely Knit Murder (Seaside Knitters Mystery)



Twelve Slays of Christmas (A Christmas Tree Farm Mystery)


Twelve Angry Librarians (Cat in the Stacks Mystery, Bk. 8)


Terns of Endearment (Meg Langslow Mysteries, Bk. 25)


Sleep Like a Baby (Aurora Teagarden Mysteries, Bk. 10)


These titles are just a sampling of the great books you can find! 
Make sure to check out the whole site!
 Click the Book Outlet Logo

This is also a great way to try out new authors/series, if, in some cases, you don't mind starting a series out of order.

Note: Beware the Scratch and Dent books. They can come in in really bad shape. "Sometimes" it's worth the even more discounted price, but not often. I stick with the ones marked "Bargain Copy".  

Disclaimer: I am NOT in any way affiliated with The Book Outlet. I make no money for recommending titles or sharing links with you.
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, May 1, 2020


It's
Cozy Food Friday!

That means it's time to share a recipe from 
another great cozy mystery!

This week's recipe is from
THE DIVA SPICES IT UP
Book 13 in the Domestic Diva Mysteries
by Krista Davis


She's a young Martha Stewart...in Old Town Virginia!
New York Times bestselling author Krista Davis delights with the 13th in her enormously popular and completely charming Domestic Diva Mystery series. When a celebrity ghostwriter dies on the job, it's up to Sophie Winston, Old Town, Virginia's favorite entertaining expert and sporadic sleuth, to whip up an impromptu investigation...


Sophie never considered ghostwriting as a side gig, until former actress and aspiring lifestyle guru, Tilly Stratford, trophy wife of Wesley Winthrope, needs someone to write her celebrity cookbook. Sophie agrees, hoping she'll earn enough bread on this assignment to finish her bathroom renovations. But as it turns out, Sophie isn't the first foodie to get a taste for recipe ghostwriting, and if the marginalia are any indication, this project could be a killer...

Wesley claims professional ghostwriter, Abby Bergeron, suddenly abandoned Tilly's cookbook with no warning. But Sophie quickly discovers that Abby may be more ghost than writer now...and her disappearance was no accident. So Sophie cracks open a fresh investigation but sifting the seasoned murderer from this sampling of salty suspects won't be easy. Will Sophie savor another case closed or will the culprit simply melt away?

🍽🍽🍽🍽🍽

ROASTED PARMESAN CHICKEN BREASTS

photo property of www.spicysouthernchicken.com


Ingredients

1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1½ Tablespoons parsley flakes
½ cup mayonnaise
1 cup panko
½ cup Parmesan cheese
4 chicken breasts

photo property of www.cincyshopper.com

Directions

   Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 9 x 9 inch baking pan. Mix the garlic powder, paprika, salt, pepper, parsley flakes, and mayonnaise in a bowl. 
   
  Mix the panko and Parmesan cheese in a seperate bowl. 
   
  Dip the chicken breasts into the mayonnaise mixture and then into the panko  mxture, covering the breasts completely. Pleace the breasts in the baking pan. 
   
  Bake 30 to 35 minutes until the chicken registers 165 on a themometer. 

photo porperty of www.cafedelites.com

Well, now I know what 
I'm adding to my grocery list!

🍽🍽🍽🍽🍽

Please keep reading to check out my 
installments of 
Book Beginnings on Fridays
and
The Friday 56

Both the BB and 56 are from


THE DEVA SPICES IT UP


Book Beginnings on Fridays is a meme hosted by Rose City Reader
Share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading.

The Friday 56 is a meme hosted by Freda's Voice
Rules: *Grab a book, any book. *Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader (If you have to improvise, that's okay.) *Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it) that grab you. *Post it.

My Book Beginnings 

Dear Sophie,
My mother-in-law takes great pride in her cooking. But it's so hot that I can't eat it. Seriously, my tongue goes numb. I watch the others eat with gusto. Do you think she's adding something to my plate so I won't come to dinner at her house?
Mrs. Numb Tongue in Hazardville, Connecticut
 
My 56
We turned together as if our move had been orchestrated. 


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.