Death by chocolate marshmallow pie /

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Summertime in the quirky island village of Eastport, Maine, is full of delights--including delicious treats from The Chocolate Moose, the waterfront bakery run by Jacobia "Jake" Tiptree and Ellie White. But these amateur sleuths are in for a rocky road when a chocolate shop rivalry turns deadly in the newest Death By Chocolate Mystery from the bestselling author of the Home Repair is Homicide Series!

Summer in Eastport means lobsters and blueberries, though tourists and locals alike always leave a little room for baked goods from The Chocolate Moose. This year's arts festival, featuring food, games, and rollicking local musicians, means even more sweet-toothed customers. But it's also bringing competition from a new rival, Choco's, that's trying to slice into the action.

Choco's owner, Brad Fairway, is pulling sneaky stunts to divert Moose patrons to his own shop, and Ellie finally confronts him about his tactics. But when Brad is found dead next day--and the weapon is a gun that belongs to Ellie--it's only a matter of time before she is charged with the crime.

Sifting through the victim's connections, Jake and Ellie sense they're getting close to the real culprit--a little too close. Can they serve up the solution before the killer dishes up another helping of murder?

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

In Graves's delightful sixth Death by Chocolate mystery (after 2022's Death by Chocolate Chip Cupcake), candy store owner Brad Fairway's unsavory business tactics leave a bitter taste in the mouths of chocolatiers Jacobia "Jake" Tiptree and Ellie White. Brad's new shop is competing with Jake and Ellie's longtime local favorite for summer tourist dollars in the small village of Eastport, Maine, with Brad undercutting Jake and Ellie's prices and bad-mouthing their baked goods at the annual art fair. To complicate matters, Brad knows about Jake's past laundering money for the New York mob, which she'd prefer to keep under wraps. When Brad is found dead after a confrontation with Ellie, and the murder weapon is Ellie's gun, Jake sets out to find the killer and defend the life she's built for herself in Maine. Before long, she starts to worry she or Ellie could be next. A bevy of memorable characters complement the breezy, intriguing plot. Established fans and newcomers alike will be satisfied. Agent: Christina Hogrebe, Jane Rotrosen Agency. (May)

Kirkus Book Review

A rival's death brings nothing but trouble to a rural Maine baker. It's not all moonlight and roses for Jacobia Tiptree, known to Eastport's chocolate fans as Jake. Her father and stepmother are quarreling about his plans to move from the home they share with Jake into assisted living. Her son, Sam, and daughter-in-law, Mika, are having some yet-to-be-disclosed disagreement. And while drama dominates at home, there's also stress at work ever since Brad Fairway, whom Jake thinks she remembers vaguely from her days in New York laundering money for the mob, opens up high-end patisserie Choco's directly across Water Street from Jake and Ellie White's Chocolate Moose. But finding Brad shot to death in his shop proves no solution to Jake's business woes, since the local police immediately pounce on Ellie as their sole suspect. While Ellie waits to be thrown in the slammer, Jake searches frantically for alternatives, beginning with Brad's lady friend Babs Littrell, a local textile artist. Her investigation takes her into Eastport's art scene, where she meets a painter, a potter with a pet pig named Jillian, a virtual artist, and a cross-eyed Siamese cat who charms the pants off Jake's stepmom. What she doesn't meet is success, until an accidental encounter with the real murderer puts Jake's life in serious jeopardy. Offering a peek into the world of 21st-century fine art gives an extra shot of class to a standard shopkeeper cozy. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Sarah Graves lives with her husband in Eastport, Maine, in the 1823 Federal-style house that helped inspire her books.

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