Crypt Suzette

by Maya Corrigan

Overview

Val Deniston is catering the debut of Bayport’s newest bookstore—but the death of a customer is about to draw her into a real-life murder mystery …

Suzette Cripps has been occupying a spare bedroom at Val’s granddad’s house while she takes classes in this Maryland Eastern Shore town—but she’s always seemed a little secretive and fearful, and any talk about her past is a closed book.
 
After winning the costume contest at the Halloween-themed bookstore party, Suzette is mowed down by a hit-and-run driver—and Val and her grandfather start to wonder whether it was really an accident or if someone was after Suzette. Granddad is a little distracted by his new enterprise as a ghost-buster, but as Val talks to Suzette’s coworkers and fellow creative writing students, she grows more convinced that the dead woman’s demons weren’t imaginary—and that she needs to rip the mask off a killer …
 
Includes delicious five-ingredient recipes!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781496722423
Publisher:	Kensington
Publication date:	08/27/2019
Series:	A Five-Ingredient Mystery , #6
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	395,197
Product dimensions:	4.10(w) x 6.70(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Maya Corrigan lives near Washington, D.C., within easy driving distance of Maryland's Eastern Shore, the setting for this series. She has taught courses in writing, detective fiction, and American literature at Georgetown University and NOVA community college. A winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery and Suspense, she has published essays on drama and short stories under her full name of Mary Ann Corrigan. Visit her at mayacorrigan.com.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for the Five-Ingredient Mysteries by Maya Corrigan
 
 
“Suspects abound and the puzzle solution is deftly handled in this charming cozy . . . With recipes included, this is definitely a starter for fans of Diane Mott Davidson, Lou Jane Temple, and Virginia Rich.”
—Library Journal on By Cook or by Crook
 
 
“Fans of puzzle mysteries will enjoy the opportunity to sift through the clues to solve the puzzle.
—San Diego Fiction Examiner on Scam Chowder
 
“A good cook makes an even better detective when her grandfather is suspected of murder.”
—Kirkus Reviews on Scam Chowder
 
With humor, engaging dialogue, and a wonderful cast of characters, this was a delightfully entertaining tale, and I can’t wait for the next book in this endearing series.”
—Dru Ann Love, Raven award winner, on S’more Murders

From the Publisher

2019-06-17
Halloween offers a caterer a plethora of jobs along with the obligatory murder.

Val Deniston has adjusted to her move from a high-powered New York City job to her position as a cook/caterer while she lives with her grandfather Don Myer on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Grandad is a hoot to live with, and his jobs as a food reviewer and part-time detective provide endless possibilities for fun and murder (S'more Murders, 2018, etc.). When his friend Dorothy Muir plans to open a bookstore, she asks Val to cater a party for a grand opening and costume contest. Although Bram, Dorothy's techie son, isn't nearly as stoked, the party goes well, especially for the contestants for the costume prize, most of them members of the Fictionistas, a creative writing group started by Grandad's lodger, Suzette Cripps. Suzette takes the prize with her clever Moaning Myrtle costume. As a poor college student, she's thrilled to receive a gift certificate for books. But the next morning Suzette is found dead, the victim of a hit-and-run. Although the police think it's an accident, Val has her doubts. Suzette had quit a good job to work at a hotel, and she was secretive about her past. Both Val and Grandad go into detective mode, investigating both Suzette's past and her present job, which seems somehow questionable. Suzette's squabbling fellow Fictionistas are all suspects for various reasons. With some help from Bram, who turns out to be a lot nicer and better-looking than Val first thought, she winnows down the suspects in time for the denouement.

The heroine's charms are just charming enough to keep this run-of-the-mill mystery interesting.

Kirkus Reviews