Cooking Mystery

About the Book

Book: Cooking Up A Mystery

Author: Gail Pallotta

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Release date: April 24, 2020

CookingUpAMystery website large size Laney Eskridge worked to put her husband through dental school. Then he left with another woman. She’s on edge from the emotional scars and her parents’ deaths. Then she hears unexplained noises in her new tea house, and her anxiety is tripled. Add a budding romance with Eric—a guy with a fear of commitment—and it’s all too much to handle. She cuts ties with Eric and plunges into making her business pay off.

When Eric discovers that Laney’s in danger, he vows to protect her. But can he make a lasting promise? Will she trust him? . . .and when they overhear a threat that could cause national turmoil, will anyone believe them? There’s more brewing than herbal tea in Cooking up a Mystery.

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About the Author

Cooking Up A Mystery Annc. 2 Award-winning author Gail Pallotta’s a wife, Mom, swimmer and bargain shopper who loves God, beach sunsets and getting together with friends and family. A 2013 Grace Awards finalist, she’s a Reader’s Favorite 2017 Book Award winner and a TopShelf 2020 Book Awards Finalist. She’s published six books, poems, short stories and several hundred articles. Some of her articles appear in anthologies while two are in museums.

More from Gail

In Cooking up a Mystery running a business with no background or formal training in accounting or management overwhelms Laney, the heroine. George, her assistant, tells her she has him and God, who knows her needs. Then he adds, “You … have your mom’s wonderful recipes and you whip them up like a pro.”

I chose the food industry for Laney, a woman entrepreneur succeeding against the odds, because I have lots of cooking experience. I learned the skill at age ten. The reason, according to my father—I’d know how when I got married. I didn’t marry until I was thirty. By then, I’d received lots of instruction, so I knew how to prepare some pretty good dinners. My husband said, “You could start a restaurant.” I wanted to do other things instead, such as write, but I started one in this book.

Mt first woman entrepreneur appears in Hair Calamities and Hot Cash, a romantic comedy about a hairstylist. It’s set in Eve’s Clips, a salon in Triville, a fictitious town in the North Carolina Mountains where Laney opens Laney’s Delectable Delights.

A section in the back of Cooking up a Mystery, Laney’s Chefs in the Making, features over two dozen recipes. Only Laney’s Pineapple Rice is mine. The rest are from a book, Heavenly Delights, authored by my friend, Pam Nichols Griffin, as a fundraiser for Mission Love Seeds, a charity that helps children throughout the world and responds locally after disasters to demonstrate God’s love.

Laney’s Pineapple Rice

Ingredients:

Rice (can be instant, but not boil-in-the-bag)

Cooking oil or spray

One small onion (chopped thin)

Five cloves garlic (or minced gloves equaling five cloves)

One tablespoon fresh grated ginger

One cup fresh pineapple

Small amount of pineapple juice

One teaspoon sugar

One lime

Cook rice according to directions on the box, but substitute a couple of tablespoons to 1/4 cup pineapple juice (depending on taste) for part of the water.

Chill rice

Coat a heavy bottom skillet with oil. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, pineapple and sugar and stir. Add cold rice, break up, squirt with the juice of one lime and stir until heated and blended.

MY REVIEW

I like how the author lays a foundation in the first part of the book. It allows readers to get familiar with each character. The author doesn’t rush the story and let’s us savor each detail. Yes I was hungry the whole time I read the book. I could smell the delicate pastries and the hearty meals that was prepared by our star character, Laney. She is determined to make her place a success even it takes her away from everything else. I think maybe she is hiding behind her success because she has some emotional baggage to deal with.

Eric is perfect for Laney even though she fights her feelings for him. I liked how they met and thought it was a unique way to start a friendship. Eric is definitely intrigued by Laney and doesn’t give up easily. I liked Eric’s integrity and caring way he has about him. There is a faith element scattered throughout the story that is just the right amount without feeling preachy.

The mystery really picks up in the second half of the book when Laney continues to hear banging noises in the kitchen when no one is in there. I would not be able to stay there alone like she does at night. I’m glad others started to hear the same noises because I was beginning to wonder if she was imagining things.

The author does a great job of leaving hints like little crumbs as Eric and Laney start to investigate the building. I couldn’t wait to find out where the story would go. It has all the elements of a cozy mystery with enticing food, relatable characters and a little lesson on forgiveness and trust. It is a great recipe for an entertaining read filled with surprises and a great ending. I really enjoyed this story and the wonderful recipes included at the end of the book. It’s like getting a cozy mystery and mini cookbook packed together to fill you with joy.

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.