Culinary Fiction

Amateur sleuth and proud owner of Dogwood Donuts Maggie Sharpe was gearing up for the holidays and having just another normal day in charming southern Missouri, when an unfortunate accident occurred in front of her shop in the wee hours of the morning. When a bus full of elderly potential witnesses on their way to a Christmas event puts out a distress call, Maggie feels obligated to find some answers. She discovers that what she thought was an accident was actually a murder, which makes things anything but jolly in Dogwood Mountain.

Kate knew immediately what to do with it: open a cider house. But her hopeful plans fall far from the tree when she finds the body of the orchard manager, Carl Randolph, leaving her to figure out who is at the core of this murder. She had been in correspondence with Carl, who had agreed with her brilliant idea of opening a cider house. But not everyone is so quick to buy what she was selling—Uncle Stan’s lawyer, Robert Larabee, paints a less rosy financial outlook of the orchard’s past, present, and future.

Who knew a simple trip to the consignment store would find Wendy being strong-armed by two strangers? So not allowed—especially as it could affect Doreen getting her month-end check! Trying to get to the bottom of this is one convoluted story to sort out. Corporal Mack Moreau is not at all happy with Doreen’s new male friend, Bernard, who has the money to keep her in the style she was accustomed to. However, Mack is happy Doreen is staying out of his cases. If only she could stay out of trouble! Then again, Doreen can find trouble like this without any effort on her part.

In Death in Florence (book number two), Diana arrives in Florence, ready to shake off the events of Paris and fulfill her lifelong dream of being proposed to on the romantic Ponte Vecchio bridge. But Diana can never possibly anticipate what she is about to find on that bridge and how it may just turn her romantic dream into a ridiculous nightmare!

Cat cafe owner, Lauren Crenshaw, with Annie, her Norwegian Forest Cat, and Zoe, Lauren's cousin, are catering the anniversary party at the local senior center in Gold Leaf Valley, when the greedy new landlord is killed in a hit and run. Was it an accident-or murder? Lauren, Annie, and Zoe aren't the only ones investigating. Their new friend Martha, a regular at the center, loves writing down tidbits of gossip. Has she inadvertently written down who the murderer is?

When Hayley is invited to do a cooking demo on one of daytime's most popular talk shows, it's a welcome distraction from her empty nest blues. And the newfound fame certainly has its perks - especially when Olivia Redmond, the posh bacon heiress of Redmond Meats, offers Hayley a writing gig with a juicy paycheck.

On the eve of her high school reunion, Hayley Powell dreads seeing the trio of mean girls who used to torment her: Sabrina Merryweather, Nykki Temple, and former prom queen Ivy Foster. These days Ivy wears a different crown as the cupcake queen - and flaunting her success is just the icing on the cake.

A treasure hunter finds a priceless coin on the beach in front of Allison’s bakery at sunrise, and she is stunned at the treasure. But she is more stunned to find him murdered. Allison, left standing at the scene of the crime, dog by her side, treasure in hand, couldn’t have picked a worse place and a worse time. She hardly looks innocent. And if she doesn’t solve this crime soon, things, she realize, are about to get a whole lot worse.

Audrey’s small Sicilian town hires a new building inspector to deal with the influx of one-dollar homeowners - and he sets about making Audrey’s idyllic Sicilian life utterly miserable. Just when things can’t get any worse, the inspector turns up dead - leaving Audrey as the main suspect. Audrey, without an alibi, is under more pressure than she’s ever been to solve the crime. But the inspectors list of enemies was long.

Back in Balsam Dell to heal after the death of her husband, Carly Hale is finally pursuing her lifelong dream — opening Carly's Grilled Cheese Eatery. After only five months, business is booming as Vermont vacationers and townspeople alike flock to lunch on her Party Havartis and other grilled-cheese concoctions. That is, everyone is but Lyle Bagley, her one-time high-school boyfriend who’s now the town bully — and he just bought the building that houses her eatery and wants her out.

Yarrow Glen’s favorite cheese shop, Curds & Whey, gets to be a part of the social event of the season: Summer Harrington’s wedding. Cheesemonger Willa Bauer is going all out for the wedding shower’s cheese bar. But the eagle-eyed Harrington family is proving to be a pain in her asiago. A last-minute tasting ends in disaster when one of Willa’s potential beaus, Roman, gets in a fight with the groom. Then the shower arrives, and while there’s anything but love in the air, there is plenty of cheese. Oh, and Roman… again. The day officially ends in disaster.

Summer in Eastport means lobsters and blueberries, though tourists and locals alike always leave a little room for baked goods from The Chocolate Moose. This year’s arts festival, featuring food, games, and rollicking local musicians, means even more sweet-toothed customers. But it’s also bringing competition from a new rival, Choco’s, that’s trying to slice into the action.

As Whispering Pines’ busiest tourist season ever draws to a close, Reeva Long, Ruby McLaughlin, and the other villagers are ready for things to quiet down. Instead, a break-in and a small fire set near Hearth & Cauldron puts everyone on edge. The only clue, a melted candle stub, gives the amateur sleuths little to work with. Soon other fires flare up, threatening the entire village, so Deputy Jayne O’Shea takes charge of the investigation. Can Jayne, with Reeva’s and Ruby’s help, catch the firestarter before someone gets hurt or worse?

Daisy Ellery is back to doing what she does best: making pies and killing guys. And it’s about to get more dangerous than ever. Daisy knows the statistic—domestic violence perpetrated by cops is rampant. It was only a matter of time before she was called in to help. But when this request arrives in her inbox, it isn’t accompanied by the required referral and that makes Daisy nervous. Is this really a woman trapped in a violent relationship, or is it a shady cop trying to uncover Daisy’s murdery side hustle?

Karen Rose Smith presents Book 10 in the Daisy's Tea Garden Mystery series.

This is the third set of books in Eryn Scott’s popular Stoneybrook Mystery series. Follow jam maker Hadley James and her friends as they solve crimes in their usually peaceful town. Each book features a different cat and two recipes.

Who better than food and cocktails columnist Hayley Powell to book a caterer for the Island Times holiday party? But Hayley's quest for a cook turns into the pursuit of a killer who caters to no one....

When the down-on-his-luck Emory Fulton moves into the crumbling Magpie Lodge and starts running historical tours, the locals are none too pleased. He’s inventing grisly tales about their lovely little village and disturbing everyone’s peace. But then he’s found dead in his bath, and everyone is suddenly running scared. Could something strange be happening? After all, the murder mirrors one of Fulton’s stories about Saxford’s dark past.

The heat is on for pastry chef, family business operator, and unlikely sleuth Jules Capshaw. Just when she thought she could enjoy some time away from the kitchen, Jules manages to discover a skull during a picnic by the lake. As if unearthing remains that may be connected to a missing-persons case from the 1960s isn’t enough on her plate, Jules must contend with the unsolved matter of her own marriage while her estranged husband Carlos sails the open seas, awaiting a verdict.

With Angie and Tate's wedding just around the corner, it's a happy time for Melanie Cooper and the bakery crew. Not only are they finessing the last-minute details of the big day, but their bakery, Fairy Tale Cupcakes, has just been hired to bake cupcakes for the blockbuster book signing of a controversial author who wrote a steamy best seller filled with juicy local gossip. But one by one, the people Angie has hired to work the wedding begin turning up dead. As the body count rises, the best-selling author is the next to bite the dust.