Death by Chocolate #9
In Sarah Graves’ Death by Chocolate series, Jacobia “Jake” Tiptree runs the Chocolate Moose bakery in Eastport, Maine. Her partner and friend Ellie White have a reputation for serving up baked goods to die for, and finding out what people died for. Death by Chocolate Ladyfingers takes place in the summer amidst several town celebrations, including a class reunion, which provides Jake and Ellie with plenty of catering opportunities.
Class reunions tend to bring up more than memories of good times with friends — they also bring up old flames, grudges, and resentments. However, most high school angst does not result in a body. Cindy Munson is found murdered at the reunion’s masquerade dance. The primary suspect ends up being her ex-husband and grown high school bully, Terry Lawson. Given that Cindy’s body was found in Terry’s car, the local authorities do not see this as a difficult solve. However, a six-year-old daughter of Terry and Cindy, Ivy, is now caught up in a strange town with no one to look after her and no foster families readily available to take her in. As a former foster care kid herself, Jake feels compelled to help Ivy avoid the trauma of being drawn into the system and takes her in. Determined to figure out the truth so Ivy can either be reunited with her father, or protected from him, Jake and Ellie begin to investigate, which can be a little tricky when you also have a small child you are responsible for. There aren’t a lot of options for amateur sleuth childcare. Luckily, Jake’s parents come home early and are able to help take over some of the watch. read more
Vivien Chien’s thirteenth book in the Noodle Shop Mystery series is And Then There Were Bun. Main character Lana Lee manages her family’s business, the Ho-Lee Noodlehouse Restaurant, in Cleveland’s Asian Village. While managing the noodle house pays the bills, Lana has a very serious knack for managing mysteries as well. Twelve times over now, Lana has helped the local detectives, including her boyfriend, Adam Trudeau. With her team of friends, there never seems to be any mystery they cannot unravel.
