Cozy Mystery Food

As a single mom, Hayley Powell already has a full plate - she's got deadlines to make and a teenage daughter with eyes for an aspiring singer-songwriter. But when country music superstar Wade Springer rolls into town, Hayley spies an irresistible side gig: personal chef to her all-American idol. After he tries her home cooking, Wade's so impressed that he hires her on the spot - and invites her to dine with him alone.

Cinque Terre, a quant Italian harbour town, normally boasts of the aromas of garlic, basil, tomato sauce and crisp sea air, not the smell of murder. The pastel buildings and cobblestone streets are lined with Italian trattorias including my famous La Nonna’s Nonna, named after my grandmother. But when Pepperoni, my clue sniffing beagle, leads me to the dead body of the notorious food critic, Alistair, the normally bustling restaurant halts to a stand still. Marco, the charming wine bar owner, offers his help digging through the endless suspects and rumors. As investigations into the many ...

She’s settling into a new life. But when a fishing trip totally capsizes, can she get a friend off the hook for murder? Elizabeth Trout still feels awkward living back home. Discovering a BFF from her raucous high-school days has become the perfect mom is as weird as staying with her mother while awaiting construction of her new home. But she’s shaken to her core when her newlywed husband and beloved dog are nearly blown out of the water in a dockside explosion which leaves another woman dead … and her bestie is arrested for the crime. To clear her friend, Elizabeth and her spouse set...

Local innkeeper and vineyard owner, Avery Parker, is having a blast with her friends during the annual grape stomp in their small town of Los Robles, California. The air is filled with laughter, cheers, and the pulsating rhythm of stomping feet, creating an atmosphere that crackles with contagious energy. But the good times come to a sudden end when a corpse is discovered in the vineyard. Avery is stunned to learn that the motley collection of suspects includes a member of her own staff, who she had never considered a possibility. As Avery uncovers the secrets behind the mystery, the stakes...

In the glittering heart of Vancouver, inside a lavish hotel, the quest for eternal youth takes a sinister turn. For four individuals, the looming dread of aging becomes an obsession, fueling their desperation for Jeanine Bouchard's revolutionary skin cream – a miraculous concoction promising not only to reverse the ravages of time but to heal any wound. But how far would one go for a second chance at youth? As rivalries intensify, the line between ambition and madness blurs, turning desire into a deadly game. With a stellar ensemble of characters and a twist you won't see coming, this ...

When beloved baker Joe Holloway is found dead in his cozy Maple Bay kitchen, investigative reporter Julia Wright is pulled into a mystery as layered as his legendary pastries. A misplaced rolling pin, a cryptic puzzle tattoo, and whispers of a priceless “golden recipe” suggest murder—and the clues lead uncomfortably close to Julia’s late grandmother’s secret past. With her trusty golden retriever Cooper at her side, Julia dives into the flour-dusted chaos with help from her quirky librarian best friend Lucy, grumpy-but-brilliant florist Clarissa Marlowe, and Mason Clarke, a ...

Elly Blair welcomes the chance to escape her ex-fiance and job from hell when Grandma Imelda, ready to retire to sunny Florida, calls for her to take over her little southern cafe.Elly has no idea her grandmother has baked up magic for the unsuspecting townsfolk for thirty years–and now Grandma Imelda insists that Elly use her own hitherto unsuspected magical powers to carry on the family tradition.But Elly’s new at this stuff. Her dishes don’t turn out as full of smidgens of enchantment and dashes of wishes come true as she’d hoped. When handsome customer Rory Covington takes a ...

Angie Turner's Idaho restaurant, the County Seat, is known and loved for its fresh food. For Angie, it's also meant a fresh start. But when big agriculture comes to town - along with whispers of foul play - Angie could lose more than the farm.

Bar Harbor, Maine, is quieter in the off-season, but the population has just increased a bit with the arrival of Tim and Trudy Lancaster. Tim's taking over for a retiring minister, and Trudy runs a food truck called Wicked 'Wiches. When she stops in at the Island Times office to place an ad, Hayley happily devours the sample sub Trudy offers - and the two become fast friends. But when Trudy tragically dies in her truck while catering a Halloween party, suspicion falls on a cranky, competitive caterer who'd made veiled threats to Trudy.

THE GRAND FINALE - the Last book in the much loved Dolphin Bay Cozy Mystery Series 5 stars - ' Best of the best....reading...OMG wonderful' Dolphin Bay Mayor Bashed to Death The coastal California town of Dolphin Bay has fall fever. When the vicious mayor is found dead in the hay bale maze, there is no dearth of suspects. Anna and the Firecrackers aren't surprised that very few people in town are grieving the poor dead woman. Clues and red herrings abound but it's not easy to figure out who killed her. Series fans are in for a roller coaster ride with twists and turns that will keep them ...

Every year, Key West’s week long Mardi Gras-style festival has tourists and locals alike lining up for costumed revelry and delicious eats. Key Zest magazine has assigned Hayley to write a piece on the fest’s grab-and-go food, so she’s planning on hitting up the mobile eateries while checking out the party preparations. Hayley’s office mate, Danielle, recently elected Queen of Fantasy Fest, is also buzzing between festivities and fundraisers. But then a former royal rival gets taken out.

This Halloween, Hayley can't imagine a worse trick than her ex-husband Danny returning to Bar Harbor. Her kids may be happy to see their dad, but Hayley's determined not to be taken in by his charms, and suspects he's in financial trouble - again. Still, the haunted holiday is about to get a whole lot scarier after Danny's moonshine - making uncle is found lying dead next to a tombstone in a cemetery - and Danny quickly becomes the prime suspect. To prove her ex is innocent, Hayley will have to dig deep into her own bag of tricks to unmask the real culprit.

Food critic Hayley Snow and her pal Miss Gloria are overjoyed to welcome Violet and Bettina Booth, aka the Scottish Scone Sisters, to Key West. The sisters will host The UK Bakes!—Key West Edition. But the same day they arrive, the bed-and-breakfast the sisters are staying in gets torched. The contest begins the next morning featuring three local bakers. One is the inn owner’s wife, Rayna, who is not only the most talented chef of the group but now a person of interest in the fire. The next night, a dogwalker discovers a body near the bed-and-breakfast.

Hayley Powell, food and cocktails columnist for Bar Harbor's Island Times, is...well, kind of broke. So when she's selected for that extreme coupon-clipping reality game show coming to town...she's thrilled, especially when her competition is nasty nurse Candace Culpepper. But when Haley stumbles across a face-down-in-the-snow Candace - scissors gleaming between her shoulders - she knows the next thing she'll be selected for will probably be a police line-up.

Dubious diamond devotees and a dead loan shark. With the dad she thought dead suspected of murder, can she keep him from doing hard time? Elizabeth Trout thinks she must have rocks in her head. After receiving a crazy call that the father she never knew is cooling his heels in the local jail, the newlywed graphic designer posts bail and invites him home. But the family reunion loses its luster when she learns her old man is under suspicion for murder after he was found near a corpse. With the sheriff zeroing in on her dad and no other suspects on ice, Elizabeth starts her own investigation ...

The school secretary has a sharp tongue but is she a killer? Can Marty do the math or will he get schooled by a criminal mastermind? Marty Golden is frazzled. Struggling to juggle nieces, a rambunctious dog, a demanding job, and a serious relationship, the software engineer is never quite sure whether he’s coming or going. But when his nemesis begs for help after she’s accused of offing the school principal, the amateur sleuth agrees to hunt down the real culprit. Confounded to discover the cantankerous woman stood to take the dead man’s position, he strives to find anyone who could ...

During the week between Christmas and New Year's, the year-round population of Key West, Florida, faces a tsunami of tourists and snowbirds. It doesn't help that outrageously wealthy key-lime-pie aficionado David Sloan has persuaded the city to host his pie-baking contest. Every pie purveyor on the island is out to win the coveted Key Lime Key to the City, and Key Zest food-critic Hayley Snow is on the scene to report it. Meanwhile, Hayley's home life is turning more tart than sweet.

Question: What does a dead Kornville councilman, a nationally televised baking competition, and thousands of missing dollars have in common? Answer: Tabitha Clive! Amateur sleuth and baker extraordinaire Tabitha Clive must save Kornville’s new Mayor’s reputation before it is too late. The year is 1966 and Abigail Clive is doing an excellent job as the newly appointed mayor of Kornville, Nebraska. Well, it was going well until her harshest critic turns up dead. To make matters worse, money is missing from the town’s road improvement account, and no one knows where it has gone. Among ...

A leisurely morning in the Louvre... What could possibly go wrong? For Ava Sext, an amateur sleuth who sells books from an outdoor stand in Paris overlooking the Seine, a visit to the Louvre ends with the murder of an artist who manages to leave her a clue to his death before he dies. With the help of her fellow book seller, Henri DeAth, a former notary in a country where notaries are a powerful caste, Ava investigates a group of artists and discovers a mythical painting someone is willing to kill for and that includes killing her! Death in the Louvre is a light-hearted cozy mystery set in ...

Down a quiet backstreet in Kyoto exists a very special restaurant. Run by Koishi Kamogawa and her father Nagare, the Kamogawa Diner treats its customers to wonderfully extravagant meals. But that's not the main reason to stop by... The father-daughter duo have started advertising their services as 'food detectives'. Through ingenious investigations, they are capable of recreating a dish from their customers' pasts – dishes that may well hold the keys to forgotten memories and future happiness.