Cornbread, Ribs, and Murder (Chocolate Martini Sisters Mystery) - Softcover

Whiteside, Brenda; Proell, Joyce

Softcover

ISBN 13: 9798321496770

Publisher: Independently published, 2024

Synopsis

It’s a rib cookoff…with a recipe for murder.
Nicole Earp and Emma Banefield are celebrating another birthday at the Dulce Inn with the added fun of a rib cookoff in the park of their small town. Not only are chocolate martinis in their plans, Nic is baking and has her heart set on winning the cornbread contest. But as the excitement heats, someone is stirring up trouble for the inn and its employees.

Strange occurrences at the Dulce are on the rise. Slashed tires, menacing phone calls, and unsavory characters add a vibe that threatens the sisters’ anticipated fun-filled stay. When the hot-headed hotel owner is caught wielding a bloody letter opener over a dead coworker, the sisters are embroiled in a caper to help the one person who finds their sleuthing as welcomed as a rattlesnake in her bed. But is she innocent?

These amateur sleuths are primed to find out. First, they’ll have to eliminate a host of suspects that includes a dishonest restaurant owner, a jilted girlfriend, an ex-wife, the barkeeper, and a masseuse with a crush. If the Chocolate Martini Sisters can stay off the radar of the surly chief homicide detective long enough, they can put out the fire…unless the killer burns them first.

The third book in this amateur sleuths, cozy mystery series will have you chuckling and on the edge of your seat as the sisters solve the murder.

About this title

About the Author

After hearing countless stories as a mental health professional, Joyce Proell retired to create her own tales. An award-winning author, she writes historical romance and cozy mystery where all endings are guaranteed happy. She shares her home on the prairie with a husband and a little dog with a big personality. When she isn't reading or writing, she likes to swim and finds baking almost as relaxing as a day at the spa.
 
Brenda Whiteside is the award-winning author of romantic suspense, cozy mystery, and romance. She's a born and bred Arizona native who sets fictional stories in imaginary, but recognizable, Arizona locations. She and her husband live in Central Arizona. They share their home with a rescue dog named Amigo. While FDW fishes, Brenda writes.

From the Back Cover

Don't miss the other Chocolate Martini Sisters books:
Candy, Cigarettes, and Murder, book 1
It's a birthday weekend with the gift of murder.

Recently widowed, Emma Banefield looks forward to a getaway birthday weekend with her free-wheeling sister, Nicole Earp, sipping chocolate martinis at the peaceful, historic Dulce Inn. When a rude stranger, a nasty food critic, and a madhouse of temperamental artists greet them, all hope for a tranquil weekend evaporates faster than dew on a hot desert morning.

Overlooking the riotous atmosphere is doubly hard after Em discovers the body of a hotel guest, and a second murder affects Nic personally. Now, entrenched in a caper that pits them against a surly detective, they cozy up to a hotel staff hiding dangerous secrets to uncover clues to the killer.

Using their smarts and love of all-things mystery, will the Chocolate Martini Sisters solve the crime ahead of the obstinate Chief Detective or find themselves trapped in the middle of a third murder?

Reading, Writing, and Murder, book 2
At the writers' conference, murder tops the program.

Aspiring mystery author Emma Banefield and travel writer Nicole Earp are excited to attend a writers' conference during their latest sisters' getaway. Nic's birthday should be all about relaxation, writing, and a chocolate martini to toast another trip around the sun, but the climate at the gathering rumbles like a sudden desert thunderstorm.

When sparks fly between the keynote speaker and her timid assistant over a handsome mystery author, the subtitle on this anticipated tranquil weekend spells drama. If a heated love triangle, bruised egos, and betrayal aren't enough to upset the atmosphere, the conference banquet erupts into a drunken brawl and sends the place spinning. After a body is discovered, Nic and Em do what they do best—snoop—and become embroiled in a mystery that jumps off the pages of a true-crime bestseller.

With more than enough suspects and little time, the amateur sleuths have their hands full finding the killer. But can the competitive Chocolate Martini Sisters solve the crime before the prickly chief detective does, or will a murderer outwit them all?

Birds, Puppies, and Murder, book 4
Lost puppies, endangered birds...
The sisters are birddogs on a murder most fowl.

The sisters are thriving like mountain sage in an Arizona autumn. Nicole's yoga business is gaining a foothold in Wyatt. Emma's first mystery novel is scheduled for release. But a proposed, expansive building project in the pristine area of the bird sanctuary has the community in an uproar. It's Environmentalists versus Big Business, and the sisters are caught in the cross-fire.

When one of Nic's yoga students is found dead near the planned resort, the amateur sleuths are back on the trail of a killer. Who has the most to gain from her death—the morally challenged developer, the money-grubbing boyfriend, her jealous brother, a nasty neighbor, or a co-worker with dark secrets? And where has Skittles, the dog, gone?

While the Chocolate Martini Sisters sort through the litany of villains, they're leaving no mystery unsolved. The stakes are escalating, throwing the sisters on divergent paths that all come together at a dangerous intersection. As they unsnarl the tangled mysteries, will they expose the murderer before the killer finds a way to silence them?

From the Inside Flap

"I did, and all emotions would be expected, considering they'd once been friends. He seemed embarrassed he'd missed the opportunity to reconnect with Leo. Or, if not that, embarrassed we questioned him on it. Hearing about his death shook him, and his regret was palpable."
They'd reached the doors of the Dulce Inn. "I'm not coming in for a nightcap. I need to pack. You'll have total peace and quiet tonight, all alone in the room."
Em did a slow blink. "Yes, as much peace and quiet as one can have after witnessing the aftermath of a grisly murder."
She gave her sister a one-armed hug. "Put it aside, Em. Get a cup of tea to take to the room. Work on your next great novel or read. Enjoy the lovely inn décor without listening to hammers. I'll see you in the morning."
"Early?"
"No. Not too too, anyway. I'll give a call when I'm on my way."
Once Em disappeared through the inn entrance, she spun on her sandaled foot for the short hike to the parking lot. She truly hoped Em wouldn't fixate on the vision of Leo. Instead, she could use her smarts to analyze what clues they might have unknowingly collected today. As for herself, she wasn't sure what constituted a clue from the mishmash of sleuthing they'd achieved. Jillian? Bailey? The ex-wife? And what was Bear about? She rubbed her scar. This weekend brought more than a rib cookoff and birthday celebration. The Chocolate Martini Sisters had a mystery to solve.

Edition details

• Publisher: Independently published
• Publication date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 13: 9798321496770
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 311