Death by Chocolate Snickerdoodle

January 25, 2021
The annual Cookie-Baking Contest is just a few days away in Graves’s well-crafted fourth Death by Chocolate mystery (after 2020’s Death by Chocolate Frosted Doughnut), and Jacobia “Jake” Tiptree and Ellie White, the owners of the Chocolate Moose bakery in Eastport, Maine, plan to enter, but they’re sidetracked by the hatchet murder of town curmudgeon Alvin Carter. The two ladies have developed a reputation as snoops, but they have good reason to get involved this time, since a loyal friend of theirs, Billy Breyer, who did yard work for Alvin and found the body, is the Eastport police chief’s prime suspect. Jake and Ellie, who are sure Billy is innocent, come to realize plenty of others might have had it in for Alvin, including Billy’s ramrod-stiff great-aunt, who spent a lot of time arguing with Alvin. More crimes occur, including a shooting, and a dangerous wildfire seems to be a case of arson directed at the bakery partners. Graves does a good job keeping readers guessing with multiple potential motives. Fans of cozies with a dark edge will have fun. Agent: Agent: Christina Hogrebe, Jane Rotrosen Literary.

February 1, 2021
A small-town shop owner investigates the murder of a nasty old geezer. No one in the island community of Eastport, Maine, has much good to say about Alvin Carter. His ramshackle house is an eyesore, and he treats anyone foolish enough to work for him to short wages and an abusive tongue. It gets so bad that the only one he can get to do his housework is sturdy, rawboned Mary Sipp, who carries a pistol in her purse and tolerates nonsense from nobody. But when Mary has to hack her way through the overgrowth with a machete to get to Alvin's front door, he agrees to hire Jake Tiptree's son, Sam, to do some landscaping. Sam and his partner, Billy Breyer, are making headway when Billy finds Alvin with a hatchet in his skull. Eastporters, including local police chief Bob Arnold, agree there's no way Billy could have killed Alvin; Billy wouldn't hurt a fly. But the folks on the state's murder investigation team arrest Billy anyway, prejudiced by the fact that a few years back, he killed his father. Jake, known best to her Eastport neighbors for the treats she sells at the Chocolate Moose, puts on her deerstalker, determined to crack this case both to save her son's business and to keep Billy's tyrannical aunt, Prunia Devereaux, from seizing custody of Billy's orphaned sisters, who are under his guardianship. What happens next is a series of disjointed episodes featuring Jake breaking into various venues, assisted by her best friend, her elderly stepmom, her daughter-in-law, who seems to be suffering from postpartum depression, and even the chief of police. Preposterous.

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January 29, 2021
Jake Tiptree and her best friend, Ellie White, owners of the Chocolate Moose, a bakery in Eastport, Maine, investigate after the disagreeable Alvin Carter is found dead, a hatchet embedded in his head. Even though Billy Breyer--an employee of Jake's son, Sam--is found covered in gore, with his fingerprints on the murder weapon, the two can't believe Billy is a killer. They interview suspects and resort to breaking and entering on several occasions to obtain clues. Other problems emerge: without Billy, Sam's business is in trouble; Jake's daughter-in-law, Mika, is suffering from a loss of confidence due to "mom brain"; and Billy's two teenage sisters are now at the mercy of their persnickety great-aunt. The story culminates in a harrowing ride through a raging fire. The over-the-top ride and the numerous breaking-and-entering capers, conveniently ignored by the police chief, strain belief, but the lovingly described small-town island setting, the two principled main characters, and the familiar secondary characters will charm fans, as well as appealing to readers of Leslie Meier's Lucy Stone cozies, also set in coastal Maine.

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