“Fans of culinary cozies by Joanne Fluke and Diane Mott Davidson will enjoy discovering Crawford.”—Library Journal
Bernie and Libby Simmons, caterers extraordinaire, are hosting a televised cookie contest just in time for Christmas, but unfriendly rivalries cook up a cutthroat competition…
The feisty members of the Christmas Cookie Club Exchange are busy perfecting their recipes once again. And with the Baking for Life cookie contest on the line, the stakes are higher—and deadlier—than ever. When the odds-on favorite dies in a suspicious car accident en route to the show, Bernie and Libby start digging and are shocked to uncover a soap opera of sinister secrets and clandestine affairs. But they’ll stop at nothing to get to the truth, because no holiday treat is sweeter than justice.
Includes original recipes for you to try!
My Book Pick:
In Crawford’s busy ninth mystery featuring Longely, N.Y., sisters Bernie and Libby Simmons (after 2012’s A Catered St. Patrick’s Day), the elderly ladies of the Christmas Cookie Exchange Club are excited about the Baking for Life TV program coming to town for a contest. In particular, 82-year-old Millie Piedmont is confident her Millie’s Majestic Meltaways will be the winner. On the way to the show, Millie is injured in a car accident. Before she expires, she tells her niece, Amber, who works for the sisters’ catering company, that she wants Bernie and Libby to find her murderer. As the constantly bickering Bernie and Libby investigate, they discover that every club member had a grievance with Millie. Since the sisters are the contest’s judges, they face a potential conflict of interest when Amber announces her plan to take her aunt’s place. Squabbling suspects and a demanding TV producer create further complications in this lightweight holiday cozy. Agent: Evan Marshall, Evan Marshall Agency.
