Joan Leotta

Feb 2023 8

Strawberries & Poetry For Valentine’s Day

2023 Articles, Books & Tales, Mysteryrat's Maze

by Joan Leotta

Chocolate-covered strawberries are considered a love-treat to go along with champagne, especially on Valentine's Day. For me, it is the berries themselves that speak of love, as they did to the Cherokee people. If I were writing a mystery, I might add something nefarious to the sliced berries, but this poem was written with my one true love, my husband, in mind, so it is simply a statement of the joy of making up. Hope you enjoy strawberries.

Oct 2021 9

Halloween Cawse: Halloween Mystery Short Story

2021 Articles, Mysteryrat's Maze, Terrific Tales

by Joan Leotta

The toy crow I bought at the Halloween jumble sale at my middle school quickly became my favorite stuffed animal. Having just read Poe’s "Raven' poem, I almost named him “Nevermore.” But after I got an A on the essay I wrote on the poem, I thought of my crow, as a lucky charm that would both inspire my writing and lead me to success. So, his name became “Cawse,” a pun on the cry of a crow and on the stuffed animals as the Cause of my success.

Oct 2020 14

Joan Leotta’s Top 5 Mysteries I Have Read During the Pandemic

2020 Articles, Mysteryrat's Maze

by Joan Leotta

Here is the latest installment of our new column, Top 5 Mysteries I Have Read During the Pandemic, this one from mystery author Joan Leotta. As we continue to spend most of our time at home, we are all looking for book suggestions so we asked mystery authors and reviewers to share the top 5 mysteries they have read during this pandemic.

Apr 2020 4

Just Leave Out the Poison: Food Safety Should Not Be A Mystery This Easter

2020 Articles, Food Fun, Mysteryrat's Maze

by Joan Leotta

If you find a reference to a recipe in one of my short stories, you can be sure that if I offer it to you, (attached or as BOGO) I will leave out the poison! Hope that line has made you smile.

Sep 2019 28

An Ancient Recipe: Mystery Short Story

2019 Articles, Mysteryrat's Maze, Terrific Tales

by Joan Leotta

Leah Fields shifted in her chair as she took a break from reading and translating the ancient scroll before her. She smiled to herself.

Jul 2018 4

New Mystery Podcast Up!

2018 Articles, Lorie Lewis Ham, Mysteryrat's Maze, Theatre

by Lorie Lewis Ham

The second episode of our new podcast is up! This one features a mystery short story written by Joan Leotta and read by Fresno actor Julia Reimer.

Nov 2017 18

Surviving the Feast: A Thanksgiving Mystery Short Story & Recipe

2017 Articles, Mysteryrat's Maze, Terrific Tales

by Joan Leotta

I hate turkey. So, it is easy to understand why Thanksgiving's meal is not my favorite. The idea of giving thanks for bounty is great. I simply do not see the point in overstuffing one's self with dry turkey meat and stale bread stuffing along with cranberry juice reduced to a can-shaped gelatin.

Sep 2017 9

The Painted Queen By Elizabeth Peters & Joan Hess: Review/Giveaway

2017 Articles, Mysteryrat's Maze

by Joan Leotta

It's the Egyptian 1912-1913 archeological season. Our encounter with Amelia and soon, The Painted Queen (Nefertiti, wife of Akhenaton) is exciting. Amelia is startled in her hotel bubble bath by a would–be assassin who is himself brought down by a dagger. The fast start is typical of the series, but what is not typical is that this book comes out after Peters' death. It was finished by Peters' friend and fellow mystery writer, Joan Hess.

Jun 2017 3

Annual Meeting: A Mystery Short Story

2017 Articles, Mysteryrat's Maze, Terrific Tales

by Joan Leotta

John scanned the crowd. He stopped his survey when he noticed a tall, willowy redhead looking at him. Red was partially encircled by several of the conference's mostly male attendees. They were obviously entranced by her smile and her form-fitting green wool dress. Her emerald gaze, however, looked beyond her coterie of admirers.

Oct 2014 15

Midnight Plumbers: Halloween Mystery Short Story

2014 Articles, Mysteryrat's Maze, Terrific Tales

by

by Joan Leotta

My name is Tirzah. If you're a student of the Bible you may have heard of me. My sisters, Mahlah, Hoglah, Milcah and I, daughters of Zelophahad, were the first women to be able to inherit property under Mosaic Law. We were always forward and independent thinkers. So why should it be different now, just because we're dead?