Crime De Cocoa
JoAnna Carl

Three Chocoholic Mysteries!

The Chocolate Cat Caper (originally published in March 2002)

Enjoy the Guilt
After giving up her career as a Texas trophy wife, Lee McKinney finds herself in a Michigan resort town, keeping the books for her aunt Nettie's luxury chocolate business. But she soon discovers that her new life isn't all truffles and bonbons....

Clementine Ripley, the defense attorney everyone loves to hate, is throwing a party that calls for several thousand dollars' worth of custom chocolates—some made in the image of her champion cat. Lee jumps at the job, but sweet success takes a bitter turn when someone adds an extra ingredient—cyanide—to one of their delicious chocolates and it finds its way into Ms. Ripley's mouth. Now it's up to Lee to figure out who tampered with the family recipe before she and her aunt end up behind not- so-chocolate bars.

The Chocolate Bear Burglary (originally published in November 2002)

Confessions of a Confectioner
After leaving her bad-new husband back in Texas, Lee McKinney moved up north to a quaint resort town. Now she keeps the books for her aunt's luxury chocolate shops. But Lee soon finds that Michigan winters can be murder.... Lee and Aunt Nettie can't believe their luck. A teddy bear promotion will have tourists flocking to Warner Pier, which could mean skyrocketing sales for TenHuis Chocolade. To help decorate the scrumptious tore, Gail, an antique dealer, lends them a collection of valuable chocolate molds. But after a burglary at the shop, Gail meets with a grisly fate—and the main suspect in her murder is Lee's troubled teenage stepson. Lee sets out to clear his name, but awakening long-hibernating family secrets might be more than this daring crime solver can bear....

The Chocolate Frog Frame-Up (originally published in December 2003)

Chocolate Chicanery
The quaint resort town of Warner Pier, Michigan, is abuzz with preparations for the Fourth of July. Things are going swimmingly for Lee McKinney and her aunt Nettie, as they debut their latest confections at TenHuis Chocolade-- chocolate frogs, fish, and lizards of all sizes. The first customer to buy a chocolate croaker is the town crank, Hershel Perkins—only minutes after having a public altercation in the post office with Lee’s boyfriend, Joe Woodyard. Lee and Joe are planning a romantic cruise up the Warner River in an antique wooden boat, but their plans are smashed when Hershel’s canoe, the Toadfrog, is found half submerged near Joe’s boat shop. Hershel has disappeared—and the police presume foul play. Joe seems the most likely suspect, but Lee thinks he’s being framed. And it’s a chocolate clue that leads her to the killer....

NAL, December 2005
512 pages ISBN: 0451216946
Trade Size
$14.00

Also by JoAnna Carl:
The Chocolate Snowman Murders, October 2008
The Chocolate Jewel Case, August 2007
The Chocolate Bridal Bash, August 2006
The Chocolate Mouse Trap, September 2005
The Chocolate Puppy Puzzle, December 2004
The Chocolate Frog Frame-Up, December 2003
The Chocolate Bear Burglary, November 2002
The Chocolate Cat Caper, March 2002
And the Dying is Easy, June 2001

(Notify me via e-mail when JoAnna Carl releases a new book.)