Monday, July 27, 2020

Blog Tour & Review: QUICHE OF DEATH A Sugar and spice Mystery by Mary Lee Ashford



Synopsis

When editor Sugar Calloway and baker Dixie Spicer went into business creating cookbooks, they found a sideline as amateur sleuths. Now a bitter family grudge could leave a fatal aftertaste…

At Sugar & Spice Community Cookbooks, the friends and business partners have secured a tasty new commission: producing a cookbook for the Arbor family. The Arbors have made their fortune in quiches, and Sugar and Spice have been invited to a weekend gathering where all the siblings, along with crusty matriarch Marta, will be in attendance. But it’s soon clear that this trip will come with a hefty slice of drama.

Theo, the only grandson, arrives with his flaky fiancĂ©e, Collette, who quickly stirs up trouble . . . and is found dead the next day. As the investigation unfolds, secrets—and recipes—are shared, and Sugar and Spice realize just how messy and murderous the situation may be. As another family member falls ill, can they solve the case without getting egg on their faces . . .and a target on their backs?

* Includes delicious recipes! *


Read an excerpt:

“Quiche me, you fool.”
The demand was followed by hoots of laughter as the sister—Jezzie, I think her name was—leaned into her spouse for a smooch. He hesitated but obliged.
I smiled at the boisterous group who clearly shared some inside joke about quiche and kissing. The warmth of the table and the sibling love melted my heart like butter on a biscuit. Taking a sip of water, I glanced over at Dixie, who sat across from me at the huge oak table.
She rolled her eyes.
“What?” I mouthed.
Dixie shrugged. Jezzie had perhaps a teensy bit too much wine, but still: When did my best friend and business partner get so darn stuffy? Maybe it was the inside-joke part that she found off-putting.
But we did know quiche was the family’s stock-in-trade, so it wasn’t that much of a stretch to figure out the expression had something to do with the Arbor family’s food business. After all, that was why we were here.

Excerpt from Quiche of Death by Mary Lee Ashford. Copyright © 2020. All rights reserved.

Review


An interesting setting and context - a family home with the matriarch closest to the grandson, for the primary purpose of creating a cookbook based on the family business. Sugar and Dixie have their work cut out for them as they sort recipes and try for the personal touch. When Collette is found dead, they suggest putting off the project, if only out of respect. The family disagrees and the project moves forward, Sugar taking possession of Collette's dog.

The key mystery here is the why of Collette's death. Noone other than Theo even knew her until they arrived and announced their engagement. The pace of the story is steady and the murderer nor the motive is truly obvious until the end. That's a good thing. There are some humorous moments and some tense moments. This is the third in a series, but can be read easily as a stand-alone. And there are some yummy recipes! If you like culinary mysteries with the added bonus of creating a homey cookbook, you'll enjoy Ashford's contribution to the genre.

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book in the hopes that I would post an honest review. This has not affected the content of my review in any way.

About the Author

Mary Lee Ashford is a lifelong bibliophile, and avid reader, and supporter of public libraries.

In addition to writing the Sugar and Spice series for Kensington Books, she also writes as half of the writing team of Sparkle Abbey, author of the national bestselling Pampered Pets mystery series from Bell Bridge Books.
Prior to publishing Mary Lee won first place in the Daphne du Maurier contest, sponsored by the Kiss of Death chapter of RWA, and was a finalist in Murder in the Grove’s mystery contest, as well as Killer Nashville’s Claymore Dagger contest.

She is the founding president of Sisters in Crime – Iowa and a past board member of the Mystery Writers of America Midwest chapter, as well as a member of Novelists, Inc., Romance Writers of America, Kiss of Death the RWA Mystery Suspense chapter, Sisters in Crime, and the SinC internet group Guppies. She loves encouraging other writers and is a frequent presenter for writers’ groups.

Mary Lee has a passionate interest in creativity and teaches a university-level course in Creative Management to MPA candidates, as well as presenting workshops and blogging about creativity.
She currently resides in the midwest with her husband, Tim, and cat, Zoey. Her delights are reading and enjoying her two sons and daughters-in-law, and six grandchildren.

Author Links

Website - https://maryleeashford.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/maryleeashford1
Twitter - https://twitter.com/maryleeashford
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/mary_lee_ashford/
BookBub - https://www.bookbub.com/profile/mary-lee-ashford
Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/maryleeashford/
Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/maryleeashford

Purchase Links 
Amazon - Barnes & Noble - Kobo - Google Books - Apple Books

a Rafflecopter giveaway


TOUR PARTICIPANTS

July 21 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – GUEST POST
July 21 – Baroness' Book Trove – REVIEW
July 22 – I'm All About Books – SPOTLIGHT
July 22 – Jane Reads – CHARACTER GUEST POST
July 23 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
July 23 – Hearts & Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT, RECIPE
July 24 – Celticlady's Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
July 24 – Thoughts in Progress – SPOTLIGHT
July 25 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews - REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW
July 25 – StoreyBook Reviews – GUEST POST
July 26 – Christy's Cozy Corners – GUEST POST
July 26 – Gimme The Scoop Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
July 27 – The Book Decoder - REVIEW
July 27 – Christa Reads and Writes – REVIEW
July 28 – Mysteries with Character - AUTHOR INTERVIEW
July 28 – Dee-Scoveries – SPOTLIGHT
July 29 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book - REVIEW
July 29 – Here's How It Happened – SPOTLIGHT
July 30 – Ascroft, eh? - CHARACTER INTERVIEW
July 30 – MJB Reviewers – SPOTLIGHT
July 31 - Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
August 1 - Literary Gold - CHARACTER GUEST POST
August 1 - Diane Reviews Books – GUEST POST
August 2 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW, GUEST POST
August 3 – A Wytch's Book Review Blog – REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW


2 comments: