Sunday Salon: Mysteries set in France and England

Finished reading: 

Murder a la Carte by Susan Kiernan-Lewis, July 2011, San Marco Press

Genre: cozy mystery set in France

Source: Amazon Unlimited ebook

Maggie accompanies her French chef boyfriend, Laurent, to France to look at a house and vineyard he has inherited in a tiny village there. She discovers that the property has a gory history, and that previous foreign owners had been shot at the house and a local man imprisoned for the crime.

When another foreigner, an American, is killed during a harvest party at the house, Maggie questions whether she wants to stay or not in France and try to get along with very  secretive and close-knit villagers.

The setting in a small town in rural France, with village life, customs, and food is very much an integral part of this interesting mystery novel.

Submitted for the

European Reading Challenge hosted by Rose City Reader

Currently reading: 

Death at High Tide by Hannah Dennison, #1 in the Island Sisters Mystery series

Publication: August 18, 2020; Minotaur Books 

Genre: cozy mystery set on Scilly Islands, off the coast of Cornwall, England

Source: Amazon Unlimited ebook

Evie and her sister Margot believe that Evie has inherited a house on an island off of Cornwall, and travel there to scout it out. They have to deal with the current owner/residents, however, who have no idea that the property may now belong to one of the sisters. Murder and mayhem follow, with Evie as a suspect. 

I'm enjoying this so far - with the rocky island setting as a big draw, as much as the unpredictable story line and well drawn characters.

I'm on a cozy binge this winter!

What are you reading this week?
Memes: The Sunday Post hosted by The Caffeinated Bookreviewer. Also,  It's Monday: What Are You Reading, and Sunday Salon

Book Review: Al Dente's Inferno by Stephanie Cole

Al Dente's Inferno by Stephanie Cole, Tuscan Cooking School Mystery #1, Berkley
Genre: cozy mystery set in Tuscany, Italy
Source: review copy from publisher

I loved the descriptions and setting of an olive farm and house in Tuscany, with an American woman, Nell, who comes to Italy to form a cooking school for a famous Italian chef.

Nell is surprised by the sudden appearance of her ex-boyfriend, a filmmaker who is supposed to make a documentary on the house and planned school. A dinner to promote the cooking school and the chef admits several distinguished members of the public to the house. A murder that later occurs has everyone puzzled and distraught, and Nell decides to not leave Italy until she has solved the crime and put the house, its chef, and its occupants back in order.

I enjoyed reading this book, its characters and setting, and the writing which seems to not follow the rote pattern that we find in many cozy mysteries.

                                                                       

Book beginning:

Twenty minutes after the train deposited me on a warm, deserted platform on Camucia-Cortona, Italy, I was still waiting for my ride. 

Page 56:

"...That woman is key to this whole operation, Nell. It's not Pop, it's not me, and it's not you."

Memes: The Friday 56. Grab a book, turn to page 56 or 56% of your eReader. Find any sentence that grabs you. Post it, and add your URL post in Linky at Freda's Voice. Also visit Book Beginning at Rose City Reader

Submitted for the 

European Reading Challenge hosted by Rose City Reader