A Potluck of Murder and Recipes

Reporter Emerald Malloy is back at the Hot Dish Heaven Café. This time she’s in Kennedy, a small Scandinavian farm community in Minnesota’s Red River Valley, for a wedding, although the festivities are quickly muddled by a murder. While vacillating between steering clear of police business and finding the killer before an innocent person is charged with the crime, Emerald and her zany friends end up at a colorful tavern, a high school hockey tournament, and a wedding dance at the local VFW. Along the way, they also learn the homicide may be linked to a fraud scheme quite possibly involving a number of townspeople. Of course this only complicates matters, leaving Emerald little time for anything beyond the investigation, including her fledgling love life. Love, however, is the last thing on Emerald’s mind when she and her dog find themselves in grave peril and at the mercy of a killer. Will they survive? Uff-da, you’ll just have to read the story and find out. And, as always, check out the old-time hot dish, Jell-O, and bar recipes at the back of the book.

Jeanne Cooney grew up in Minnesota’s Red River Valley, where she recently returned after forty years. While in college, Jeanne’s undergraduate classes focused on writing, while her graduate studies were in public affairs. She then spent her professional life performing community and media outreach for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota. Now that she has retired from her “day job,” she concentrates on humorous writing and public speaking. She also loves to read, bake, and spend time “at the lake” with family, friends, and her dog, Gus. Keep in touch with her via Facebook and her website, www.jeannecooney.com.