From the New York Times bestselling author of The Grilling Season comes a delectably deadly new novel of savory dishes and unsavory deeds, as caterer turned sleuth Goldy Schulz must find the missing ingredient to a killer concoction of high fashion, low-life, and murder. An unscrupulous new rival has pushed Goldy's beloved catering business to the brink of collapse. An even more unscrupulous local contractor has left her precious kitchen in a shambles. Yet Goldy has joined forces with her old mentor, French chef Andre Hibbard, to cater a fashion photo shoot at a turn-of-the-century mountain cabin. There, in a hopelessly outdated kitchen, Goldy and the temperamental but kindhearted Andre struggle to create warming Models' Mushroom Soup, Savory Florentine Cheesecakes, and a luscious spread for a vain and vacuous crowd of beautiful people whose personal dramas climax when a camera is pitched through a plateglass window...into the buffet. Things go swiftly from bad to worse when the infamous building contractor, Gerald Eliot, is found strung up in the house of one of Goldy's best friends, the president of the local historical society. Goldy is certain that her friend isn't a killer--even if he had every motive for murder. After all, how many others would have cheerfully strangled unethical Mr. Eliot, including Goldy? Now Goldy readies for a society soiree tasting party against her archnemesis that could make or break her career.  As she prepares Big Bucks Bread Pudding,  Andre's Coq au Vin, and Jailbreak Potatoes, Goldy faces the shock of a second murder closer to home. Suddenly she must find the ingredients of a mystery that includes the dead contractor's unwholesome past, a food saboteur, the theft of four historical cookbooks, and an overzealous D.A. who has suspended Goldy's detective husband Tom from the force. What she comes up with is the perfect recipe for murder. And Goldy may be the next one on the menu! You could die from reading one of Diane Mott Davidson's culinary mysteries: this one includes recipes for Jailbreak Potatoes (butter, whipping cream, freshly grated Parmesan cheese) and Labor Day Flourless Chocolate Cake with Berries, Melba Sauce, and White Chocolate Cream (butter, chocolate, eggs, sugar, whipping cream). So you might want to take both the recipes and Davidson's pinball machine-like plots in small bites. This time, caterer Goldy Schulz careens between the worlds of contracting and high fashion models, with bodies from both camps falling into the food. It's all in fun, and readers have been lapping up Davidson's merry mélanges with increasing appetite. Catering to Nobody , The Cereal Murders , Dying for Chocolate , The Grilling Season , Killer Pancake , and The Main Corpse are available on the paperback menu. --Dick Adler In her ninth culinary mystery, Davidson (The Grilling Season, Bantam, 1997) whips up a delightfully entertaining concoction, sprinkled with both corpses and chocolate. Goldy Bear Schulz, owner of Goldilocks' Catering: Where Everything Is Just Right! is known in Aspen Meadow, CO, as "the caterer who figures things out." While her husband remodels their kitchen, Goldy escapes the chaos by catering a magazine fashion shoot. When her beloved friend and cooking teacher is "accidentally" slain, Goldy is determined to find the killer. Davidson has sauteed a savory caper of crime and cooking (she includes 12 tantalizing recipes), with a touch of a historical puzzle for a garnish. Recommended for all public libraries.?Jill M. Tempest, Ocean Springs Municipal Lib., MS Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. Last seen in The Grilling Season , caterer Goldy Schulz returns in her usual fine form. However, things are a little disturbed in Aspen Meadow, Colorado, right now: Goldy's policeman husband Tom is having nasty arguments with a new assistant DA with political aspirations and no sense; there's a new caterer in town who seems to be underbidding Goldy at every turn and displays an extremely condescending attitude; and her kitchen is in a state of construction due to the defection of a contractor. Things go from bad to worse when Goldy finds the body of the missing contractor and an old friend, caught by circumstantial evidence, is arrested for the murder at the insistence of the obnoxious new DA. As usual, Davidson cooks up quite a stew, with Goldy as the prime ingredient, whipping up fantastic meals (recipes included) while sleuthing on the side. Good characterizations and a zippy style make this another enjoyable installment in this appealing series. Stuart Miller Five-star praise for The New York Times bestselling mysteries of Diane Mott Davidson: "The Julia Child Of Mystery Writers" --The Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph "Today's foremost practitioner of the culinary whodunit." --Entertainment Weekly "A cross between Mary Higgins Clark and Betty Crocker!" --The Sun, Baltimore "You don't have to be a cook or a mystery fan to love Diane Mott