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Cooking Up Crime: Mysteries Featuring Cooking or Food

 

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For your culinary pleasure, Reader Advisor Cheryl Hassler has chosen a smorgasbord of some of her favorite yummy mysteries that feature cooking or food!

The Blue Corn Murders by Nancy Pickard.
Arizona rancher Eugenia Potter discovers Native American pottery on her ranch and signs up for a hike at an archaeological camp specializing in ancient Indian culture. During the trek through the wilderness, two women are murdered and a tour bus filled with teens disappears. Eugenia Potter series. RC 49664.

The Body in the Bouillon by Katherine Hall Page.
Faith Fairchild, former caterer, takes a temporary job in the kitchen of a retirement home so she can investigate the mysterious death of a resident. When a blinding snowstorm forces her to spend the night, another corpse turns up in her bed. Faith Fairchild series, book 4. RC 48878.

The Body in the Cast by Katherine Hall Page.
Faith Fairchild is hired to feed the movie company that is filming a version of The Scarlet Letter in the scenic town of Aleford, Massachusetts. But the leading lady is poisoned and two supporting cast members are killed before Faith discovers who the culprit is. Faith Fairchild series, book 6. RC 49505.

The Body in the Cornflakes by K.K. Beck.
Just before the grand reopening of his Galaxy Foods supermarket, old Karl Krogstad announces his engagement to the store's television model, Ginger of the enhanced bustline. When Ginger's body is found in the cornflakes display, assistant manager Ted Constantino suspects everyone: Karl's daughter-in-law, who thinks Ginger slept with her husband, Junior; Junior himself; and their spoiled son Lance, who wants the store . BR 9676.

The Cooking School Murders by Virginia Rich.
This mystery takes place in the small farming town of Harrington, Iowa. After the first session of a gourmet cooking class, one of the thirteen class members is found with her throat slashed, another commits suicide, and a third member drowns. All remaining members are suspects in this culinary mystery. Eugenia Potter series. RC 21819.

Mint Julep Murder by Carolyn G. Hart.
Death on Demand bookstore owner Annie Darling is acting as author liaison at the Dixie Book Festival on Hilton Head Island. Mint Julep publisher Kenneth Hazlitt generates a lot of anger with his proposed book, which promises to feature the festival's five, medallion-winning authors in a not-so-flattering light. When Hazlitt is poisoned, Annie is shocked that she is the prime suspect. Death on Demand series, book 9. RC 41877.

The Nantucket Diet Murders by Virginia Rich.
Returning to Nantucket for a midwinter reunion with her old friends, Mrs. Potter finds her friends dangerously thin as a result of diet doctor Count Ferencz's influence. She also finds the community plagued by "accidental" deaths, and begins to harbor fears that there may be a connection between their deaths and the diet guru. Eugenia Potter series. RC 23586.

The President Is Coming to Lunch by Nan and Ivan Lyons.
A mystery that mixes wit, fine dining, and foul play. Since Libby's is THE restaurant in New York, the president of the United States plans to dine there. Unfortunately, Libby Dennis's past holds a secret that would send terror through the ranks of Secret Service agents assigned to examine, inspect, and otherwise secure the premises. A playful novel rife with sex and romance that takes digs at the rich and famous. RC 27598.

Rosemary Remembered by Susan Wittig Albert.
When China Bayles finds CPA Rosemary Robbins murdered, the suspects include a wife-killer, a boyfriend, and angry clients. China's lover goes off in pursuit of the wrong suspect, leaving the imperiled China to solve the crime with the aid of spiritual forces. RC 43524.

Someone Is Killing the Great Chefs of America by Nan and Ivan Lyons.
The murderer Achille van Golk is not dead as believed. To prove a link between obesity and criminality, Dr. Enstein has transformed huge Achille into unrecognizably slim Alec Gordon and set him free. But when Alec takes a job with Natasha's American Cuisine magazine to woo her, chefs start dying. Great Chef Murders series, book 2. RC 37356.

The Sourdough Wars by Julie Smith.
Four rival bakers, two of them brothers, find themselves competing for a batch of sourdough starter, and the staff of life becomes the stuff of death when one of the brothers is killed. Lawyer Rebecca Schwartz and her journalist boyfriend race up and down the hills of San Francisco looking for the murderer. RC 22606.

The 27 Ingredient Chili Con Carne Murders by Nancy Pickard.
Widowed Eugenia Potter is cooking in her Maine cottage when she receives an urgent call from her ranch manager, Ricardo Ortega, requesting her immediate return to Arizona. Upon her arrival the following day, both Ricardo and his granddaughter Linda are missing and no one knows why Eugenia was summoned. Eugenia Potter series. RC 36501.


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