Cozy Wednesday with Terrie Farley Moran – Author of Caught Read-Handed – Giveaway too!

Welcome to Cozy Wednesday!

So Excited!
Terrie Farley Moran is my guest today fresh off her Caught Read-Handed
Great Escapes Book Tour!

As soon as they finished reading Well Read, Then Dead, cozy readers began bombarding me with one question. “Now that the story is over, you’re not going to send Aunt Ophie back to Pinetta, are you?” Yeah right, as if I, or anyone else, could make Ophie do anything she doesn’t want to do. I mean, really?

So I wasn’t the least bit surprised when in the very first paragraph of Caught Read-Handed there was Ophie tapping her well-manicured fingernails and making demands. I may not have invited her back to the Read ’Em and Eat Café and Bookstore in idyllic Fort Myers Beach Florida, but I surely didn’t have the nerve to tell her she had to leave.

In this second book of the Read ’Em and Eat series, Miguel Guerra is back in the kitchen whipping up tasty treats like Green Eggs and Ham, Harper Lee Hush Puppies and Miss Marple’s Orange Iced Scones. (The scone recipe was developed by Karen Owen and can be found in the back of Caught Read-Handed. To whet your appetite the finished product is pictured here.). And the food is still served on tables named for favorite authors, with bits and pieces of the authors work and a picture or two laminated on the table top. Care to have a seat at Robert Louis Stevenson, or is Dashiell Hammett more to your liking?

Ophie, complete with her trademark strappy high heeled sandals, has become a full time resident of the island community with a thriving consignment shop and a small bungalow of her own.

Sassy and Bridgy were thrilled to have their routine slip back to normal. But on a trip to the local library to donate books for a fundraiser, Sassy witnesses an argument between a loud, flashy woman and an uncommunicative man. He pushes his way out the door and right past Sassy to avoid confrontation. What was that about? She might have forgotten the entire episode, except that the man reminded her of an old friend. Within the next day or so, the woman is found murdered in her own hot tub and Sassy discovers that the wary man at the library is the brother of her old friend and has become the prime suspect in the murder. Seems to me the Read ’Em and Eat crowd is going to have to wait a while longer for normal.

If that is not enough chaos, Miguel is having difficulty focusing on his meticulous and delicious kitchen creations because he fears that his beloved Maine Coon cat, Bow, is in danger from the giant Anaconda snake that has made its way north from the Everglades and has been spotted swimming in Estero Bay. The community is of two minds as to what to do about the Anaconda. Some want it killed, others want it captured. It is a big clash for such a tiny island community.

So before I say goodbye, here are a couple of fun hints about what you can expect in Caught Read-Handed: 1. get ready for a change of Ophie’s foot gear when you least expect. 2. After this adventure, Sassy and Bridgy could easily call themselves the High in the Sky Detectives, still they prefer to remain the proprietors of the Read ’Em and Eat Café and Bookstore.

It is so great to talk to you all for a while. Now I am off to find a glass of sweet tea and a Miss Marple Orange Iced Scone. Happy reading.

About Terrie

Short-listed twice for The Best American Mystery Stories, Terrie Farley Moran is delighted to introduce mystery fans to the Read ’Em and Eat café and bookstore, which debuted with Well Read, Then Dead. The only thing Terrie enjoys more than wrangling mystery plots into submission is playing games and reading stories with any or all of her grandchildren.

Author Links:
Webpage     Facebook      Blog     Goodreads

Caught Read-Handed
(Read Em and Eat Mystery)
2nd in Series
Cozy Mystery
Setting – Florida
A Berkley Prime Crime Mystery
The Berkley Publishing Group (July 7, 2015)
Published by The Penguin Group
Cover Illustration by S. Miroque
Cover Design by Rita Frangie
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0425270295
E-Book ASIN: B00Q5DLWXA

From the national bestselling author of Well Read, Then Dead comes the second mystery featuring Sassy Cabot and Bridgy Mayfield, who bring Fort Myers Beach, Florida, residents plenty of sinful treats and killer reads at their bookstore café, Read ’Em and Eat.

Happy to help her fellow bibliophiles, Sassy visits the local library with book donations for their annual fundraising sale. Unfortunately, the welcoming readers’ haven is in turmoil as an argument erupts between an ornery patron and new staff member, Tanya Lipscombe—also known as “Tanya Trouble.” She may lack people skills, but everyone is shocked when she’s later found murdered in her own hot tub.

The man last seen arguing with Tanya is soon arrested. But Alan Mersky, a veteran with PTSD, happens to be the brother of Sassy’s former boss—and he’s no murderer. Now it’s up to Sassy and Bridgy to clear Alan’s name and make sure the real killer gets booked.

Includes a recipe for Miss Marple scones!

Dollycas’s Thoughts

So excited to return to the Read ‘Em and Eat Café! Sassy, Bridgy, Ophie and Miguel are back! This time a library volunteer is killed and we quickly see she was not a very nice person so there should be plenty of suspects but the police quickly hone in on a homeless veteran with PTSD, a man that looks very much like Sassy’s old boss, George Mersky.  Sassy contacts the man and finds out his brother, Alan is living in Florida. Sassy agrees to help the vet until his brother can get there to help. She enlists Bridgy to help her prove his innocence and find out who really killed “Tanya Trouble”.

Being back in Fort Myers Beach is like visiting old friends. Mary Sassafrass (“Sassy”) Cabot and Bridget (Bridgy) Mayfield are fabulous characters. They are girls after my own heart who love to read and eat and solve a mystery or two.  Ophie is a hoot and now has her own consignment shop. Miguel is back where he belongs, in the kitchen creating such wonderful delights. Jocelyn Randall is the pastor’s wife is always putting her foot in her mouth and only on her best behavior when the dear pastor is nearby. Through Pastor John we meet a fantastic group of veterans that rally to help their friend who has been wrongly accused. There is also a huge character that truly gave me pause. It seems there is an anaconda on the loose and poor Miguel is terrified his beautiful cat Bow will become its lunch.

Terrie Farley Moran has written a fantastic story. The characters are engaging. I especially like the wide variety of interesting people from the vets, to the ones that make up the book groups to tourists and residents that just stop by for a book or a meal. She a created a wonderful place for them to gather and enveloped them in a mystery that is very entertaining and just pure fun to read.

As I stated in my review of Well Read, Then Dead, the Read ‘Em and Eat sounds like a perfect escape if you ask me. If it were a real place I would pack my bags and leave today!

Thanks to the people at Penguin I have 2 copies to give away!
Contest is open to anyone over 18 years old
with a US or Canadian mailing address.

Duplicate entries will be deleted. Void where prohibited.

You do not have to be a follower to enter but I hope you will find
something you like here and become a follower.

Followers Will Receive 2 Bonus Entries For Each Way They Follow.
Plus 2 Bonus Entries For Liking My Facebook Fan Page.

Following the new Google+ Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book Fan Page
will earn you 3 Bonus Entries.

Leave a comment for Terrie for 5 Bonus Entries.

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5 Bonus Entries For Each Link.

Contest Will End August 5, 2015 at 11:59 PM CST
Winners Will Be Chosen By Random.org
Winners Will Be Notified By Email
and Will Be Posted Here In The Sidebar.

Click Here For Entry Form

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”