by Sandra Murphy

Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of Death Bakes a Pecan Pie. There is also a link to purchase it Amazon, and an indie bookstore where a portion of the sale goes to help support KRL.

Weatherford, Texas, is the setting for a new movie, based on a book Eve wrote. She changed the names and some details, but everybody knows the book is about Phyllis, a retired school teacher and Eve’s friend, who solves murders faster than the police. The movie set is in Austin, but for the Harvest Festival scenes where the body is discovered, the crew will be in Weatherford.

Phyllis and her roommates, Sam, Eve, and Carolyn, are invited to watch or even be extras. Eve is content to have written the story, Phyllis and Carolyn decline. Sam and his granddaughter are part of a crowd scene. All is going well, right up to the time to discover the body. It was supposed to be a prop, not a real live, well used to be alive, dead body.

Although in previous cases, Phyllis dealt with people she knew or at least the kind of people she was used to, she finds Hollywood movie people are of an entirely different mindset, focused on their lines or camera angles and lighting. To complicate matters, Phyllis has a shadow, the actress who is playing her in the movie. What better way to learn Phyllis’ motivation and thought processes than to tag along and learn firsthand.

When a storyline takes place in a crowded setting like the Harvest Festival, the number of characters can be overwhelming. Not in this case—suspects are limited to those who knew the victim and that narrows the field to a manageable number. Each has a good motive, which makes Phyllis wonder how he lived as long as he did. Phyllis and her friends are retirement age and as teachers, know how to research to uncover secrets and pay attention to small details, all good traits to have when solving a crime. I especially like the change of pace with older adults, a low-key romance between Phyllis and Sam, Eve’s more flamboyant personality and Carolyn’s grumpier attitude. I did miss reading more about Buck, Sam’s Dalmatian.

This is the thirteenth book in the popular series (several reviewed here). Phyllis and Carolyn share recipes for pecan pie, brisket, homemade flour tortillas, ranch style beans, Texas caviar (peppers, tomatoes, beans, peas, and corn), spinach pomegranate salad, veggie potato omelet, spicy caramel apple pie, and gluten-free oat nut pancakes.

To enter to win a copy of Death Bakes a Pecan Pie, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “pecan,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen February 9, 2019. U.S. residents only. If entering via email please include your mailing address (so if you win we can get the book sent right out to you), and if via comment please include your email address. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.

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Use this link to purchase the book & a portion goes to help support KRL & indie bookstore Mysterious Galaxy:

Death Bakes a Pecan Pie

You can also use this link to purchase the book on Amazon. If you have ad blocker on you may not see the link:

Sandra Murphy lives in the shadow of the Arch in St. Louis Missouri. She writes about eco-friendly topics, pets and wildlife for magazines and reviews mysteries and thrillers for KRL. A collection of her short stories, published by Untreed Reads, From Hay to Eternity: Ten Tales of Crime and Deception can be found at all the usual outlets. Each one is a little weird and all have a twist you won’t see coming.

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases using those links. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.