As Valentine's Day approaches, yummery owner Yolanda finds herself embroiled in a deadly mystery, with her boyfriend as a potential suspect. Join her and Detective Churchill on a suspenseful and thrilling journey of twists, turns, and treats in "Macarons and Murder."
Yolanda’s Yummery is filled with excitement as she prepares for Valentine’s Day by baking exquisite French macarons. That night’s TV appearance on America’s Best Bakeries will further benefit the yummery. But the festive spirit is shattered when a shocking discovery is made—a friend’s body is found in a nearby dumpster. Struggling to cope with the tragedy, Yolanda Carter partners with Detective Winston Churchill to find the killer. Surrounded by a cast of potential suspects, including her boyfriend, Nigel Garvey, Yolanda balances running her yummery, gearing up for the first anniversary celebration, and uncovering the truth.
With love, betrayal, and hidden agendas swirling around her, Yolanda embarks on a dangerous journey to untangle a web of deceit. This story weaves together elements of romance and suspense. Will she solve the mystery before it leads to her own downfall?
“Macarons and Murder” includes recipes for French macarons and cupcakes!
Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
Wednesday, February 13
Yolanda Carter had finally fallen asleep after working a fourteen-hour shift at her yummery. In her mind, she saw a white dry erase board in her Brentwood store’s office. The heart-shaped bullet points and neat red printing highlighted the variety of goodies, the baking schedule, along with her other duties as owner and baker. A floating pink and red heart pirouetted and flipped in her mind and then she saw them, one highlighted after the other like a stage show of events:
♥ 2-14 appearance on Dessert Network’s America’s Best Bakeries show @ 9 PM
♥ Valentine’s Day
♥ Macaron class
♥ Train Rusty & Suzie
♥ 2/28 Yummery Anniversary
The pink and red heart faded and vanished. Dozing had changed to sleep as her two feline companions heard her gentle snores. Cuddling up to her lay the classic tuxedo cat, Miss Chef. The medium-sized cat had a white stripe down her face and a lovely curved white smile. Her paws resembled white boots and a wide white stripe covered the front of her body. Mr. Whisker sported plush black fur and the larger cat had a single white whisker amidst his black whiskers. He was Miss Chef’s adopted younger brother and someone who appreciated resting next to his young owner on soft flannel sheets rather than in a small and lonely cage. Yolanda found him two years ago when she was an employee at the Crown Street Cat Shelter.
The Sherman Oaks cottage had been willed to her after her grandmother’s death several years ago. The bedroom was furnished in a Shabby Chic style that was a combination of her own taste and that of her predecessors’ homey style. Due to a cold snap of near freezing temperatures, Yolanda had made the queen-sized bed with new flannel sheets along with an electric blanket. The cold-blooded young woman had turned her cottage’s thermostat up to seventy to help ward off the chill.
Mr. Whisker sneezed and tightened his tail around his body. Atop the nightstand sat a clock. The red numbers read 2:17.
As she slept, Yolanda was unaware of someone lurking outside her yellow cottage on the corner of Dove Drive and Willowbrook Street. A house that was bought and paid for with Easter eggs. Yolanda loved her artisan family, a glassblower father, an artist and Pilates teacher mother, and her grandparents had made wooden Easter egg trees. Mostly her grandfather, Lukas. Her grandmother, Ingrid, decorated real eggs. She also strung colorful plastic eggs in an array of pastel colors that brightened up the trees and bushes on the corner property. An ornate hand carved tree was always on the front porch advertising Lukas Carter’s craftsmanship. Lukas and Ingrid were the proud owners of Sunshine Easter Eggs, Inc.
Yolanda dreamt about wedding bells and a large Mission style church on a bright sunny afternoon. She approached the church, radiating intense happiness, clutching the pink and white bouquet of gardenias, garden roses and tulips. The sweet fragrance soothed her, and she silently thanked her mother, Abby, for suggesting it. Her beloved father, Frederick, would be waiting to walk her down the aisle. Inside the church were gathered all the people she loved and cherished, and as she passed a blooming rosebush, a sudden cold wind gusted down, scattering the crimson petals in the wind, blowing her hair loose from her chignon, so it was streaming in the wind like a flag. Her white chiffon trumpet sleeves and veil billowed around her, obscuring her vision. The sky went from pale blue to dark sapphire. Her head bent down, she struggled against the high winds, the veil pressing against her face, and pellets of hail showered over her, as the pealing church bells changed to a strident ringing noise.
She sat up abruptly, heart loudly pounding; the feel of cold sweat on her neck and tangled chestnut brown hair. The cats blinked and raised their heads from beneath the tunnel of bed coverings, both with indignant stares as though she was responsible for the noise. For a second it stopped, and then it began again, the sound of recorded bells; not church bells—it was the front doorbell.
Her hazel eyes were wide in fright as she looked around, noticing the time. Far too early to leave for her job fifteen miles away. Adding another layer of warmth on top of the bed was her fleecy pink housecoat. She hastily pulled it on as she got up, feeling around on the carpet for her matching slippers. Tying the sash around her narrow waist, she stumbled across the floor, tripping on the edge of the woven rug, and catching herself on the wall next to the half open bedroom door. Fumbling for the light switch, the sudden brightness made her squint. I shouldn’t have gotten rid of the security system, she thought. If it were functional, a glance at the bedroom monitor would have shown her who was at the door. However, Mr. Whisker had taken an active dislike of anything connected to the motion sensors in the living room and hallway. He triggered it four times in one week and she finally took the hint and retired the surveillance stuff. The oval sticker with the name of the company remained on the front hall and living room windows.
The doorbell echoed throughout the two-bedroom; two-bathroom cottage built in 1932. She raced down the hallway, through the darkened kitchen, almost crashing into the center island, and burst into the living room. The curtain near the couch was half-open, allowing muted street lighting and natural moonlight to emit enough light for her to see the rest of the way to the front door. Yolanda’s slippers slid on the parquet foyer, and she again reached out and leaned on the wall. To her right was the light switch, but instead of flicking it on, she approached the door’s peephole and looked out. The porch light was on. In the area above the doorway was installed a faux security camera with a battery-operated blinking red light. She saw a man standing on the ceramic tiled porch; a sight that caused her to step back for an instant.
Professional Reviews
A Tasty Murder!
This was a tasty and busy one! Yolanda of all people is a suspect, because it's someone she knew, and someone is setting her up, but who??? I love how supportive her parents are. They never hesitate to drop everything to come to her aid. Good ol' Yolanda keeps sleuthing and baking. This was interesting and a bit bizarre, but I enjoyed it all. I voluntarily read a free copy of this book provided by book sirens and am giving an honest review.
Beverly, October 19, 2024
An Excellent Cozy
“Macarons and Murder is Book 4 in A Yolanda's Yummery Cozy Mystery by Lisa Maliga. Yolanda is a great baker with excellent assistant bakers. The only problem is the dead body in the dumpster behind her bakery. I enjoyed the characters and the story was very interesting. I thought that there was lots of action and problems. I think this is an excellent cozy. I also think that Yolanda might need a new boyfriend… just saying! I received an arc for free and am leaving my review voluntarily.”
Reviewed by my2doxie, October 21, 2024
Pace, Plot & Action are Stepped Up!
“A new line of baked goods at the store, new employees struggling to fit in, and another murder mystery to solve; it's all in a day's work for Yolanda Carter. What a shame the busiest sales day of the year, Valentine`s Day, is marred by the discovery of a body in a dumpster behind the building, even more so when comes to light that Yolanda knows the deceased, and negative, libelous reviews are threatening to ruin her livelihood. Pace, plot, and action are stepped up in Lisa Maliga's newest installment, and, although still qualifying as a cosy, it is yet much appreciated.
I love following along as the seasons change in the yummery – after reading the fourth book in the series, it`s beginning to feel a lot like home: I care about these characters and their trials and triumphs.”
Reviewed by Cindy Topp, October 27, 2024
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