Amazon.com
Fans of Diane Mott Davidson's Goldy Schulz, the gourmet gumshoe
of Aspen Meadow, Colorado, love her modus operandi: "Treat
every puzzle with questions and chocolate." In Tough Cookie,
Davidson's ninth culinary mystery, Goldy is waiting to reopen
her catering business, which has been shut down by the health
department for lack of adequate drains. She's got a PBS cooking
gig for a few weeks, and is trying to build a reputation as
a personal chef, but she's desperate for a little extra Christmas
cash, so she agrees to sell a pair of vintage skis to Doug
Portman, a local art critic and former sort-of-romantic interest.
When Portman's killed in a skiing accident at Killdeer Resort
with Goldy nearby, the police treat her with suspicion. It
turns out that Portman was the easily persuaded head of the
Parole Board, and Goldy's ex-husband (a.k.a. The Jerk, who
was imprisoned for domestic violence) is coming up for parole.
But when Goldy herself narrowly escapes a chilly death after
her van is forced off a snowy highway, she starts looking
for connections and steps into a minefield of unsolved murders,
including the three-year-old avalanche death of her friend
Nate Bullock. There're a multitude of suspicious characters
lurking around Killdeer: Barton Reed, a crazy ex-con who sent
Portman a letter loaded with poison; Arthur Wakefield, whose
wealthy mother was also killed in a skiing accident at Killdeer;
Jack Gilkey, a handsome young chef who was convicted of manslaughter
in the death of Wakefield's mother (and released by Portman);
Boots Faraday, a local artist; and even Rorry Bullock, Nate's
angry widow. As usual, Goldy manages to solve the murders
(with the help of Chocolate Coma Cookies), save her own skin
(just!), skewer a few local snobs in passing, and revive her
catering business. Lots of fun, and recipes too. --Barrie
Trinkle
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