by Kathleen Costa
& Kathleen Bridge
This week we have a review of book 6 in Kathleen Bridge’s Hamptons Home & Garden Mystery series, along with a fun post by Kathleen about food in cozies. Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win an ebook copy of the book and a link to purchase it from Amazon.
A Fatal Feast: A Hamptons Home & Garden Mystery By Kathleen Bridge
Released 9/21/21
Murder With Style
Meg Barrett fled Manhattan and her top job at American Home and Garden magazine and escaped to Montauk, Long Island—bad break-ups can make for quite a cloudy day. One silver lining, though, has Meg using her background and experience to open up a small interior design business, Cottages by the Sea, and creating a successful enterprise. Another silver lining is partnering with good friend Elle Warner, who owns a local shop filled with vintage treasures, and using their “passion for interior design and junk pickin’” as resources on a local TV production about a 30s detective duo. A more personal silver lining was meeting and becoming involved with writer Patrick Seaton, who moved to Montauk after the loss of his wife and child. Unfortunately, a bit of tarnish interrupts her busy and comfortable life with a mystery, or a murder, and, due to the “cop gene” she inherited from her homicide-detective father, she just can’t help poking her nose into any investigation.
A Fatal Feast Earns 5/5 Glasses of Whine…Engaging & Clever!
What do you do when someone blames you for doing your job? Bethany Garnier is upset that her family’s home, suppose to have been sold to another loving family, has instead been renovated as Privé, a “private,” gourmet dining club, and Meg, handsomely paid for her talents, was the chief decorator inspired by the French country farmhouse appeal. Bethany’s plans to open soon a full-service, open-to-the-public restaurant at her vineyard and winery had been filed, and after accusing the Privé owners of collusion, she adds they must have the zoning commission on their payroll. Also, Bethany has nothing nice to say when she learns that Sasha Morgan is Privé’s sous chef, a woman with whom she has a contentious past having fired her from the winery. Bethany is relieved and happily gloats that the new “not a restaurant” is doomed. Meg is not deterred by Bethany’s complaints remaining excited about the exclusive pre-opening dinner to which she’s been invited with the three owners and kitchen staff, chef Kelsie and sous chef Sasha, the only ones in attendance. The multiple-course culinary experience was delicious, although she did have to play busgirl, but clearing off the plates and serving each course was the least of Meg’s worries: sniping in the kitchen, threats, ultimatums, awkward vibes among the guests, and…another dead body!
Bon appetit! Kathleen Bridge has decorated her sixth engaging cozy in her Hampton’s Home & Garden Mystery series with an intriguing murder mystery made complex by multiple suspects and motives of which karma might just approve the felonious actions: embittered competition, disgruntled lovers, blackmail, and secrets worth keeping at any cost. The varied characters, from admirable to quirky to destined for incarceration, have well-developed personalities, challenges from past tragedies, and respond in a reasonable fashion to situations…realism, I enjoy that. Kathleen’s writing style is always entertaining and compelling, easy to read with vivid descriptions to make the Hamptons all what you’d expect, characters you enjoy following, informative banter illustrating mood and tone, and a reveal that is always a satisfying surprise. Newbies can easily join the series here, but be aware…you’ll desire going back to the beginning to learn how everyone got here from there. Don’t miss out!
BONUS! Kathleen brings a traditional French-inspired treat from Meg’s father Jeff Barrett: Coq ah Vin. Also spread on your freshest baguette one of Meg’s Compound Butter Recipes: Garlic Herb, Jalapeño and Lime, Lemon and Herb, and Walnut & Blue Cheese. For something sweet, there’s Patrick’s Molten Chocolate Cakes. Don’t miss “Meg & Elle’s Think Outside-the-Box Guide to Cozy Decorating” with great ideas using everyday items in a creative manner to spruce up one’s home decor and tips when searching for vintage treasures.
Be a Big Kathleen Bridge Fan!
Kathleen Bridge pens wonderfully entertaining series with strong women in the lead, a bit of romance, and always clever, engaging drama. There is By the Sea Mystery with Liz Holt plagued with murders on Melbourne Beach, and this Hamptons Home and Garden Mystery with Meg Barrett dealing with her own homicides in the Hamptons. She offers something for every cozy taste!
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The Importance of Food in Cozy Mysteries
by Kathleen Bridge
Suffice to say that the sure way to a cozy reader’s heart is through their stomach. Be it the promise of recipes at the end of the book or the author’s descriptions of comfort food and culinary delights sprinkled throughout the mystery. After all, a big part of what makes a cozy mystery so cozy is those scenes where our main character and friends huddle around a table in a charming café or coffee shop, sleuthing out clues to a murder while sharing mouth-watering meals or desserts.
In my Hamptons Home and Garden Mystery Series and A By the Sea Mystery Series, I’ve included recipes at the back of my books. Even though my protagonists in each of my series wouldn’t be considered gourmet chefs or food critics, (one decorates cozy oceanfront cottages and the other is a bestselling author), I have added secondary characters who are excellent home chefs.
Kathleen Bridge
The first culinary cozy I remember reading was Joanne Fluke’s Hannah Swensen series, now brought to life on the Hallmark Movies and Mystery Channel. Here are a few of my favorite series that have themes relating to food: Ellery Adams’ A Southern Culinary Cozy Mystery Series, Jenn Mckinlay’s Cupcake Bakery Mystery Series, Lucy Burdette’s Key West Food Critic Mystery Series, Debra Sennefelder’s A Food Blogger Mystery Series, Libby Klein’s A Poppy McAllister Mystery, Lynn Cahoon’s Farm-to-Fork Mystery Series, and Lena Gregory’s All-Day Breakfast Café Mystery Series. Of course, there are SO many more that I could mention. There are even cozy culinary mysteries featuring pet bakeries, like Amy Hueston’s Canine Confections Mystery Series.
Facebook also has a few groups centered around food in cozy mysteries: Culinary Cozies Mysteries Fans and Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen. If you’re looking for a cozy with a cooking or baking theme, you will find it there, along with some great recipes! Also, your favorite online or independent book store might have a copy of three of my favorite cookbooks full of favorite recipes from mystery writers: The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook: Wickedly Good Meals and Desserts to Die For, The Cozy Cookbook: More Than 100 Recipes from Bestselling Mystery Authors, and Cozy Mysteries Cookbook: Recipes from Hope Callaghan’s Cozy Mysteries.
In my recently released Hamptons Home and Garden Mystery, A Fatal Feast, food is the catalyst that drives someone to murder. Having spent a lot of time in the Hamptons, I’ve found that besides the glorious oceanfront scenery and white sandy beaches there is also a plethora of amazing restaurants featuring classically trained gourmet chefs. And the small cozy unspoiled hamlet of Montauk, located on the easternmost tip of Long Island, is considered the fishing capital of the world—talk about fresh seafood!
But beware, dear reader. We need to be cognizant of another aspect that food has in cozy mysteries—it can be a conduit of deadly poisons. Just ask Miss Marple. She knows a small sprinkling of arsenic here or a pinch of oleander there can make the perfect recipe for murder!
Have you tried the recipes included at the back of your cozies? Do you have any favorites? As for me, out of the four recipes in A Fatal Feast, I think my favorite is Jeff Barrett’s Coq au Vin.
Please share YOUR favorite cozy mysteries and cozy recipes! I’d love to hear about them!
To enter to win an ebook copy of A Fatal Feast, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, with the subject line “feast,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen November 20, 2021. Only US entries and you must be at least 18 to enter. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.
Check out other mystery articles, reviews, book giveaways & mystery short stories in our mystery section. And join our mystery Facebook group to keep up with everything mystery we post, and have a chance at some extra giveaways. Also listen to our new mystery podcast where mystery short stories and first chapters are read by actors! They are also available on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, and Spotify. A new episode went up this week!
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Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. 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.
Sounds interesting! Count me in!
Sounds like another great book. Thanks for the chance.
diannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com
This book sounds so good. Thanks for the giveaway. I love reading the recipes in my cozies, but I’ve never actually tried to make one. They are usually too hard for me. But I would sure eat them if someone else made them. 🙂
Sounds like a good story.
This would be a new series
for me – always looking
for those. thanks
txmlhl(at)yahoo(dot)com
Fun news about author Kathleen Bridge. And great article, Kathleen. I love your books and I love to read about food! Thanks so much for the mention of my Canine Confections dog bakery series, too. Truly honored that you thought of my books, and also to have my name in the same article with these other authors.
Amy Hueston
New author for me, sounds good! tWarner419@aol.com
It sounds fabulous! I can’t wait to read it. You are so kind to include me in your post! I wish you much success with your delicious series. Love, Libby
Nice to meet you, Kathleen! Your book looks
Fun. Darling cover, fabulous review.
I know all the Cozy Author’s you mentioned and
Have read them. They are All unique, Marvelous, Write Terrific mystery stories, have mystery FB site’s. We used to live put ont on the East end of Long Island and enjoyed Montauk. I do actually try some recipes. I adore Cozies with food, furkids, NICE settings-small towns/villages.
Blessings for much success.
We have a winner!