Culinary Fiction

Nell Valenti is settling into her role of transforming the Villa Orlandini into a superb farm-to-table cooking school, and the time has finally come for a full taste test run. But when Chef Orlandini prepares to reveal his top secret marinara recipe for the first time to a group of American gastro-tourists, Nell realizes she might have bitten off more than she can chew.

Halia Watkins has her hands full cooking, hosting, and keeping her boisterous young cousin, Wavonne, from getting too sassy with customers. Having fast-talking entrepreneur Marcus Rand turn up in her kitchen is annoying enough when he's alive - but finding his dead body face-down on her ceramic tile after hours is much worse. Marcus had his enemies, and the cast iron frying pan beside his corpse suggests that at last, his shady business deals went too far. Halia is desperate to keep Sweet Tea's name out of the sordid spotlight but her efforts only make Wavonne a prime suspect.

A tattoo parlor on Victoria Square? Some of the merchants get hot under the collar at the proposal, but could they be driven to kill to stop it? That's what the sheriff's office and Katie Bonner want to know when the building's owner is electrocuted with his own saw. Meanwhile, tensions rise when a hot chef takes over the square's tea shop. Will Katie have three men vying for her affections, or will her rival take the tea cake?

Baker Winnie Johnson does her best work when the heat is on. As owner of the Emergency Dessert Squad, she has a deft touch in the kitchen and a soft spot for lost causes. So when her business professor beau, Jay Morgan, expresses misgivings over having to fail one of his fourth-year students, Winnie cooks up a sweet solution. She'll offer an extra credit opportunity in exchange for a little help with her growing business. But when her protégé's first dessert delivery poisons a student journalist, the publicity threatens to burn Winnie's business to a crisp.

Summer has come to Elkview, Alaska, bringing 20 hours of sunlight every day, not to mention a surge of tourists and seasonal workers. Chef Charlie Cooke is eager for a busy yet relaxing season, but when a young man working a summer job at the local fish processing plant dies moments after walking into the Bear Claw Diner, she is quickly swept into the investigation. Soon, through her best friend Annie Jensen, Charlie learns that another student worker at J and M Processing has disappeared, leaving more questions and fewer answers.

It's not Fourth of July on Mackinac Island without fireworks and fudge. The Historic McMurphy Hotel and Fudge Shop is supplying the treats-and Allie McMurphy has hired Rodney Rivers, the biggest name in aerial displays, to create an unforgettable spectacle. Unfortunately, it turns out to be a case of red, white, and boom when Allie finds him dead, covered with screaming chicken fireworks, just before the entire warehouse of pyrotechnics goes up in smoke. Is it arson or is it murder?

Marygene Brown always figured she'd marry her childhood sweetheart, Alex Myers, not cater his wedding. But the Peach Diner could use the exposure. Most of the island is showing up - although more for the role-playing murder game at the reception than for the widely loathed bridezilla, Lucy Carmichael. Marygene may have to smile through the festivities, but Mama doesn't have to hold her peace - especially since only Marygene can hear her mother's ghost. Mama says she sees an aura of darkness around the wedding.

Olivia Glass, 34, turns her back on her life as a high-powered executive in Chicago and relocates to Tuscany, determined to start a new, simpler life - and to grow her own vineyard. Spring is in the air, and Olivia is beyond excited to finally debut her home-grown wine at a major wine festival. The festival draws people from all over Tuscany, and Olivia wonders if this will be her big break - until a customer, fighting over the last bottle of her wine, ends up killed. Can Olivia, stuck in the middle of it all, clear her name?

As local merchants unite to attract tourists for a much anticipated weekend quilting event, business is sure to spill over into eateries like Daisy's Tea Garden. Gorgeous craftwork is hanging everywhere - but among the quilts, potholders, and placemats, one gallery owner is wrapped up in some dangerous affairs....Reese Masemer had been dating one of Daisy's employees, Tessa, an artist, though their last interaction was as strained as a cup of loose leaf tea. Now Reese has been found dead near a covered bridge where Tessa's been practicing her sketches.

While viewing the harbor's Gaslights and Galleons Parade from the widow's walk of Timothy Neville's Charleston mansion, local banker Carson Lanier seemingly tumbles over a narrow railing, then plunges three stories to his death. But a tragic accident becomes something much more sinister when it's discovered that the victim was first shot with a bolt from a crossbow.

What's a kitchen witch to do when her almost-fiance leaves her suddenly single and unemployed? For Mia Malone, the answer's simple: move to her grandmother's quirky Idaho hometown, where magic is an open secret and witches and warlocks are (mostly) welcome. With a new gourmet dinner delivery business - and a touch of magic in her recipes - Mia's hopes are high. But her first catering job takes a distasteful turn when her client's body is found stabbed and stuffed under the head table.

On the tropical island of Paraiso, Plum Lockhart has a new zest for life. Not only is her new villa rental company growing like a weed, but things are also finally heating up between her and the handsome Director of Security at Las Frutas Resort. Plum's thrilled when she gets an invite to dinner on the yacht of a wealthy music executive, grateful for a luxurious night on the water, surrounded by A-listers. But days later, one of the servers from the yacht—a girl with a dragonfruit tattoo—washes up dead, and Plum's sweet bit of paradise quickly goes rotten.

An airport pet groomer meets her frequent flier crush in this captivating romance novella from the acclaimed author of How to Fail at Flirting Ollie Wright loves the thrill of taking chances, like opening a pet grooming salon in an airport where every day is a little unpredictable. The one...

When Thwing is found sleeping with the fishes beneath a local lobsterman's boat, the police quickly finger Julia's brother-in-law Sonny as the one who cooked up the crime. Sure, everyone knows Sonny despised the Mussel King . . . but Julia believes he's innocent. Proving it won't be easy, though. It seems there's a lot more than murder on the menu, and Julia needs to act fast . . .

Annie Hart, daughter of Bryan Hart—talent agent to the stars—spends her life getting roped into whatever new task her father needs her to do for his VIP clients. So when she inherits a yarn shop in the small Indiana town of Franklin, she is curious to see what it feels like to have something that is solely hers! But when her arrival is greeted by the local law enforcement, Annie senses things are not quite as they seem in this idyllic town . . . everyone knows everybody in Franklin yet when it comes to the death of the shop's previous owner, nobody seems sure of anything!

Franz Eberhofer, vor kurzem noch ein angesehener Kommissar bei der Münchner Polizei, wird strafversetzt – ausgerechnet in sein niederbayerisches Heimatdorf. Dort treiben ihn zwar erneut seine stocktaube Großmutter und sein Beatles hörender Vater in den Wahnsinn, doch ansonsten geht es in seinem Leben eher beschaulich zu. Bis eines Tages eine Reihe von seltsamen Unfällen die Idylle stört und seinen kriminalistischen Ehrgeiz weckt. Franz Eberhofer ermittelt in seinem ersten Fall und entlarvt die heile Welt der Dorfgemeinschaft als trügerisch.

Big Red is more than a pet…so much more. The large ginger ball of fluff is not the only one taken, which is a catastrophe for the owners who, like Maddie, consider them family. Of course, the body found behind her bakery takes precedence, with the police and the town is scared, but why is no one else searching for the pets? Sheriff Tanner, who happens to be her ex-boyfriend, is doing what he can to solve both crimes. Still, Maddie can’t sit by and wait. Going against her darling Gran’s wishes, she once again does her own detective work - with a little help from her friends.

The fun of an English baking contest set in the beautiful English countryside complete with witches, recipes, and murder. Join Poppy and her friends as she puzzles out another complex murder that might have ties to her!

What’s worse than cold chicken noodle soup? A dead ex-husband...When Sunny Charles opens her aunt’s café on a sunny Monday morning in small-town Parfait, Florida, she’s looking forward to a day of challenging work cooking and serving customers. The last thing she expects is to find her ex-husband lying dead on the floor, right between the coffee bar and the cake stand. Distraught, confused, and definitely a prime suspect, Sunny has to figure out why her ex-husband is even in Parfait in the first place, let alone murdered.

For five generations, the Belvedere family restaurant has been a Louisiana landmark. Unfortunately, the Belvedere clan inherits more than a talent for cooking from each other - they also have an unfortunate tendency of becoming insane. When the latest Belvedere patriarch loses his mind, his son attempts to take over the business, only to find that the ancient family cookbook has vanished - and with it, the priceless recipe for the world famous Oysters Belvedere. The Crescent City will never be the same.