The Chocolate Bridal Bash

Table of Contents

 

 

“A fine tale.”

—
Midwest Book Review

 

“I’ve been a huge fan of the Chocoholic Mystery series from the start. I adore the mix of romance, mystery, and trivia.... Satisfying.”

—Roundtable Reviews

 

“Engaging and interesting writing style. Lee is . . . appealing.”

—
Romantic Times BOOKclub

 

 

“The pacing is perfect for the small town setting, and the various secondary characters add variety and interest. Readers may find themselves craving chocolate, yearning to make their own.... An interesting mystery, fun characters, and, of course, chocolate make this a fun read for fans of mysteries and chocolates alike.”

—The Romance Readers Connection

 

 

“A Joanna Carl mystery will be a winner. The trivia and vivid descriptions of the luscious confections are enough to make you hunger for more!”

—Roundtable Reviews

 

“A fast-paced, light read, full of chocolate facts and delectable treats. Lee is an endearing heroine.... Readers will enjoy the time they spend with Lee and Joe in Warner Pier, and will look forward to returning for more murder dipped in chocolate.”

—The Mystery Reader

 

“The descriptions of the chocolates are enough to make your mouth water, so be prepared.... Once again, I enjoyed each page of the book and am already looking forward to my next visit to Warner Pier, Michigan.”

—Review Index

 

 

“Do not read
The Chocolate Bear Burglary
on an empty stomach, because the luscious . . . descriptions of exotic chocolate will have you running out to buy gourmet sweets.... A delectable treat.”

—The Best Reviews

 

“[Carl] teases with descriptions of mouthwatering bonbons and truffles while she drops clues.... [Lee is] vulnerable and real, endearingly defective.... Fast-paced and sprinkled with humor. Strongly recommended.”

—I Love a Mystery

 

“Kept me entertained to the very last word! . . . A great new sleuth . . . interesting facts about chocolate . . . a delicious new series.”

—
Romantic Times

 

 

“A mouthwatering debut and a delicious new series! Feisty young heroine Lee McKinney is a delight in this chocolate treat. A real page-turner, and I got chocolate on every one! I can’t wait for the next.”

—Tamar Myers

 

“As delectable as a rich chocolate truffle, and the mystery filling satisfies to the last prized morsel. Lee McKinney sells chocolates and solves crimes with panache and good humor. More, please. And I’ll take one of those dark chocolate oval bonbons. . . .”

—Carolyn Hart

 

“One will gain weight just from reading [this].... Delicious . . . the beginning of what looks like a terrific new cozy series.”

—
Midwest Book Review

 

“Enjoyable . . . entertaining . . . a fast-paced whodunit with lots of suspects and plenty of surprises . . . satisfies a passion for anything chocolate. In the fine tradition of Diane Mott Davidson.”

—
The Commercial Record
(MI)

SIGNET
Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto,
Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2,
Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124,
Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)
Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park,
New Delhi - 110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), cnr Airborne and Rosedale Roads, Albany,
Auckland 1310, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue,
Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa

Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

First published by Signet, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First Printing, August 2006

Copyright © Eve K. Sandstrom, 2006

ISBN : 978-1-101-56375-5

All rights reserved

 

REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA

Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

PUBLISHER’S NOTE

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

With thanks to my Michigan friends, always ready to help with background and fact-checking; to Colleen McGee and Ed McGee, who remember the 1970s, even if they were there; and to Dr. Doug Lyle, expert on violent death.

A
fter I overcame all my misgivings and invited my mother to my wedding, it was a little disappointing to learn that she didn’t want to come.

I admit it was the place, rather than the occasion, that drew her objections.

“Warner Pier?” Her voice was so angry it could have melted every line between her phone, in Texas, and mine in Michigan. “You’re getting married in Warner Pier? Why?”

“It’s where Joe and I live,” I said. “It’s where we plan to continue loving—I mean, living!”

I’d pulled one of my usual stunts, tangling my tongue. I misspeak so often—they’re called “malapropisms”—that most of my family and friends simply ignore my slips. Hoping my mother would do that, I went on quickly. “Warner Pier is where important parts of our families live. It’s where all our friends live. Why wouldn’t we want to get married here?”

My mom ignored my question. “Why not get married here in Dallas? We could plan a lovely wedding in Dallas.”

“Dallas? But Dallas was never—I mean, I don’t have good associations with Dallas. I know I lived there twelve years, but if people ask me where I’m from, I always say Prairie Creek.”

“Podunk Creek! You and your dad, the hick! I’ll never understand this compulsion you two have to live at the back of nowhere!”

I sighed. “If that’s the way you feel, you’d better know the worst. Daddy has already said he’s coming. And Annie is coming with him.”

“I knew she wouldn’t miss it!”

I ignored that. “And I’ve already told them I expect nice beheading—I mean, behavior! I expect nice behavior from all three of you.”

“I would never ruin your wedding by quarreling with your father and that woman he married.”

I sighed. “Just don’t run out on me, Mom.”

I’m not sure what I meant by that comment, and maybe my mom didn’t know what it meant either. There was a long silence before she spoke again. eHer voice was calmer than it had been.

“Lee, I wouldn’t run out on your wedding. Believe me, I wouldn’t. I want your wedding to be perfect for you. It’s just that—you know how I feel about Warner Pier.”

“I know how, Mom. But I’ll never understand why. Why do you dislike this town so much?”

“You’ve bought into the tourist view.” Her voice became sarcastic. “It’s a darling little Victorian resort town. A regular trip down memory lane to the good old days.”

“You’re forgetting the crime rate around here. I’m aware that the people of Warner Pier are like people anywhere. There’s a dark side to everyone’s personality. People are always—you know—doing things they shouldn’t have done and leaving undone things they should have done. Seems to me that happens in Dallas, too.”

“It sure happened in Warner Pier when I lived there. And in Prairie Creek, too.”

Another silence grew up between us. Then my mother spoke. “Is Nettie there?”

I was calling from my office, so I put the phone down and went back into the workroom of TenHuis Chocolade (“Handmade Chocolates in the Dutch Tradition”). Most of the ladies who actually make the chocolate had left for the day, but Aunt Nettie, chocolatier deluxe and my boss, was sprinkling light brown granules of Turbinado sugar over a tray of strawberry truffles (“white chocolate and strawberry interior coated in dark chocolate”).

“Aunt Nettie, your long-lost sister-in-law wants to talk to you.”