Culinary Mystery

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.

A French patisserie opens in the village of Ashton Mead in time for Christmas. Local residents are pleased, but Hannah, owner of the Sunshine Tea Shoppe, feels threatened by the competition. When the owner of the patisserie is killed, Hannah is suspected of murdering her business rival. Her friend, Emily, is determined to clear Hannah's name. She seems to be facing an impossible task… until her little dog Poppy makes a surprising discovery.

It's springtime in Honeytree, and Leona's pullets are finally laying. Customers are flocking to buy her farm-fresh eggs. But during the town's Easter Egg Scramble, Leona finds more than hidden treasure when she stumbles on the dead body of the pastor's wife. And the death isn't a fluke - it was poison. After Leona's eggs are blamed for delivering the fatal dose, her customers fly the coop along with her reputation. With her nest egg dwindling, she doesn't have time to brood. She must figure out who held a grudge against Honeytree's golden girl - and why.

It's the dead season in Leavenworth, Washington. The throngs of Oktoberfest crowds have headed home, and the charming Bavarian streets are quiet and calm - momentarily. Villagers use the reprieve to drink in the crisp fall mountain air and prepare for the upcoming winter light festival.

Competition is hotter than the pre-heated ovens as The Great British Baking Competition moves into cake week. Amateur baker Poppy Wilkinson has a lot to deal with, from learning she has talents she never knew about, to trying to keep cool and bake under pressure. She’s also trying to track down the secrets of her parentage. Meanwhile, she’s saved from death by a local Border collie who seems to think she’s part of his flock and herds her out of danger.

Love is in the air at FairyTale Cupcakes as Angie prepares for her wedding, but, at the same time, her co-owner, Mel, is about to help with a breakup. Mel's old friend Diane has decided to dump her fiancé after discovering he's only marrying her for her money. She wants Mel to personally deliver a batch of caramel breakup cupcakes to the louse and give her a play-by-play of his reaction. But when Mel finally tracks the man down, the look on his face isn't what she expected: he's dead.

Melanie and Angie are taking a gamble by opening their first franchise of the bakery, and where better to hit the jackpot than Vegas? Holly Hartzmark is a former showgirl who's looking to bring Mel and Angie's sweet treats to Sin City, but Mel isn't so sure she's ready to hand her recipes over to a complete stranger - especially one as brash as Holly. But after the potential bakery location gets blown up, Mel begins seeing another side to Holly.

In a quiet small town in New Brunswick, old Agatha Treadway makes one last cranky complaint to her niece before dying on her kitchen floor. The cause seems to be a jar of contaminated string beans, which sat on Agatha's basement shelf for years before becoming her final meal. The town doctor calls it a tragic accident - and a warning to all who can their own vegetables - but Agatha's neighbor, the intrepid Janet Wadman, knows better. Agatha was an expert canner, which means the beans must have been placed there by someone else. This was murder.

This set includes the first three novels in the Cape Bay Cafe Mysteries, starring amateur sleuth Francesca Amaro—barista, baker, and owner of Antonia’s Italian Café: Cappuccinos, Cupcakes, and a Corpse; Tea, Tiramisu, and Tough Guys; and Margaritas, Marzipan, and Murder.

Excitement and anxiety envelop Winifred and Leo as they prepare for their first trip together—New Year's Eve in New York City. For Fred, figuring out what clothes to pack is a challenge, but nothing compared to the emotional knot and turmoil of leaving her cherished corgi sidekick, Watson. It is more than Fred's nerves, however, or Watson's grumpy mood, that threaten the trip. When Fred receives a text from Leo about a meeting at Madame Delilah's Old Tyme Photography, a quick errand leads to an unexpected mystery. And soon more than travel plans are in danger.

Fleeing some unsavory doings in her hometown of Charlotte, Jenna accepts her uncle's gracious invitation to stay with him in small-town Hokes Folly, North Carolina. In exchange, she'll help him out in his antiquarian bookstore. But soon after she arrives, Jenna finds her uncle's body crumpled at the base of the staircase between his apartment and the bookstore. Before the tragedy even sinks in, Jenna learns that she's inherited almost everything her uncle owned...which adds up to more than a million dollars.

Mia Carina has steered her Italian-American family's Astoria, Queens catering hall into becoming the borough's premiere party site, and nothing could make her happier—except her boyfriend proposing. There's just one presumed-dead obstacle in the way.

The island fishing village of Eastport has plenty of salty local character. It also has a sweet side, thanks to Jacobia "Jake" Tiptree, her best friend Ellie, and their waterfront bake shop. This summer, Eastport's favorite lovebirds, kindergarten teacher Sharon Sweetwater and Coast Guard Captain Andy Devine‚ are getting married. The gala reception is sure to be the fête of the season, especially with a wedding-cake-sized whoopie pie. But the celebratory air, and sweet smell of success‚ are ruined by foul murder.

Chef Carrie Ann Cole is about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime - an assignment as the new Personal Chef to the Royal Family at Kensington Palace. But no sooner has Carrie Ann touched down across the pond and donned her apron than a dead body crops up beneath the royal kale beds.

In the days of Marco Polo, men risked their lives for spices. And in an age when black pepper was so valuable that it was sold one peppercorn at a time, there was no spice more valuable than the legendary Ko Feng. Known as the Celestial Spice, it supposedly vanished five centuries ago, and its name lives on only as culinary myth. But now a sack of it has turned up in New York City, and the leading experts of world cuisine will kill for a taste.

When Yale Yee discovers her cousin Celine is visiting from Hong Kong, she is obliged to play tour guide to a relative she hasn’t seen in twenty years. Not only that, but her father thinks it’s a wonderful idea for them to bond by running a food stall together at the Eastwood Village Night Market. Yale and Celine serve small dishes and refreshing drinks, and while business is slow, it eventually picks up thanks to Celine’s surprisingly useful marketing ideas. They’re quite shocked that their bubble tea is a hit—literally—when one of their customers turns up dead.

When Zoe gives her cousin Lauren a disastrous "trim", they run to the new hairdresser in town, who manages to fix Lauren's hair. While they're there, an angry customer storms into the salon, complaining about her perm. A few days later, Lauren and Zoe are shocked to discover the angry customer strangled right in front of the salon! Who is a suspect? Brooke, the new hair stylist? The victim's best friend? Or the victim's ex-husband who is just recovering from their bitter divorce?

It's a quiet, snowy morning at The Cracked Spine bookshop when book seller Delaney Nichols receives a mysterious visitor, a messenger. He presents her with a perplexing note: an invitation to a meeting with eccentric socialite Shelagh O'Conner, who requests Delaney's participation in an exclusive treasure hunt.

As the autumnal hues of November fall over the Shakespearean hamlet of Ashland, Oregon, Jules and her team at Torte are working on their biggest event ever. They’ve been invited to create chocolate showpieces for the gala opening of a new exhibit, Shakespeare’s Lost Pages at SOMA. The museum, located on the campus of Southern Oregon University, is getting ready to unveil the Bard’s lost manuscript, Double Falsehood, which is being touted as the greatest artistic discovery of modern times.

Summer has ushered in a new season in the charming hamlet of Ashland, Oregon. Torte is bustling with tourists taking in star-drenched shows at the Elizabethan, setting out to hike in the surrounding Siskiyou Mountains, and sampling the bakeshop's summer lineup of raspberry lemon tarts and mint mojito cold brews. Jules and the team are buzzing with excitement when they learn that Andy, Torte's head barista, has been selected to compete in the West Coast Barista Cup.