Description

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In this feisty new culinary cozy mystery from Agatha and Edgar Award-nominated author Valerie Burns, social media influencer Maddy Montgomery is adjusting to her new life after moving to small-town Michigan to run a bakery and take care of a gigantic English mastiff—all while solving the murder of a one-time nemesis...

The small town, fish-out-of-water, baking-themed mystery for fans of Jenn McKinlay, Mia P. Manansala, Abby Collette, Jennifer J. Chow, Danielle Arceneaux, and Joanne Fluke!

“Books, dogs and food — and a well-structured sense of fun — connect almost all of Valerie Burns’s cozy mysteries.” — The New York Times

Thanks to Maddy’s social media savvy, Baby Cakes Bakery is becoming a huge success—so much so that she’s attracted the attention of her former nemesis, the fiancé-stealing Brandy Denton. When Brandy blows into New Bison like an ill wind and disrupts a vlog Maddy’s filming, their argument goes viral. After Brandy’s body is found at Baby Cakes, Maddy instantly goes from viral sensation to murder suspect.

As Maddy is still reeling from the murder, a stranger shows up in the bakery claiming to have been a friend of Octavia. He believes Maddy is in danger. When a second body washes up on the lake shore, it seems clear someone’s out to kill to keep a secret—and it may have to do with her great aunt.

Maddy rallies her aunt’s friends, the Baker Street Irregulars; Sheriff April Johnson; and her veterinarian boyfriend Michael—not to mention her English mastiff Baby—to do some digging and root out whoever’s behind the killings . . .

About the Author

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Valerie (V. M.) Burns is a mystery writer whose novels and short stories have been finalists for the Agatha, Anthony, Edgar, and Next Generation Indie Book Awards. She is the author of the Mystery Bookshop, Dog Club, RJ Franklin, and Baker Street Mystery series, as well as the Bailey the Bloodhound Mysteries under the name Kallie E. Benjamin. Valerie is a member of Sisters in Crime, Crime Writers of Color, Mystery Writers of America, and the Crime Writers' Association. She is also an adjunct professor in the Writing Popular Fiction Program at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, PA. Born and raised in northwestern Indiana, Valerie now lives in the southeastern United States with her two poodles. Connect with Valerie at VMBurns.com.

Praise For…

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Praise for the Baker Street Mysteries by Valerie Burns

 “Snappy dialogue, a well-drawn supporting cast and an irresistible canine companion all add delicious flavor. Gulp this book down or savor it, but consuming it will guarantee a sustained sugar high.” —The New York Times Book Review on Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder
 
“Burns proves that a girl and her mastiff can’t be defeated.” – Kirkus Reviews on Murder is a Piece of Cake
 
“A lively series launch, with an edgier heroine than the baking-framed novels by Jenn McKinlay and Joanne Fluke.” – Booklist on Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder

“For fans of cozy mysteries, bakeries, and dogs!” – Bookriot, Most Anticipated Mysteries of the Year, on Murder is a Piece of Cake

“Everyone is a suspect in Valerie Burns’s entertaining new mystery, filled with surprising twists, suspicious characters and a mastiff named Baby who will win your heart. Top that off with humor and delicious recipes and you have a delight of a cozy.” —Valerie Wilson Wesley, author of A Fatal Glow on Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder
 
“A sweet read.” —Criminal Element on Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder

“Books, dogs and food — and a well-structured sense of fun — connect almost all of Valerie Burns’s cozy mysteries.” — Sarah Weinman, The New York Times

“A great start to a series that is part poignant, part humorous, and part suspenseful while introducing a wonderful, new, African American heroine.” —First Clue Newsletter on Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder

“A Navy brat inherits a bakery in rural Michigan. Madison Montgomery carries all the baggage of a typical cozy heroine…Less common for the genre, Maddy is Black, and she’s young enough to document her life on Instagram.”- Kirkus Reviews on Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder

“All you need to read is the first chapter, and you will be enamored with Maddy Madison and the #hilarity that ensues. From this first chapter until the end, I could not put this book down, quickly becoming a page-turner as I had to know who was doing what to whom. This well-written and fast-paced whodunit kept me immersed in every minute detail in the reading of this drama.” —Dru’s Book Musings on Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder

“I love Maddy, her fashionista, social-media lifestyle, and how she continues to integrate that into small-town life with her beloved English mastiff, Baby.” – Criminal Element on Murder is a Piece of Cake