Cocoa butter soap, check. Lemon lip balm, check. A dead body?
That's just what Sophie Mae Reynolds finds in her workroom: the corpse of Walter Hanover, the neighborhood handyman. He died from drinking lye, something she has in good supply. But the police don't suspect Sophie Mae, a thirty-something widow who makes and sells beauty products. Instead they call it a suicide. But why would a man with lottery cash and a loving fiancée kill himself?
No one can stop the impulsive Sophie Mae from answering this riddle, not her sensible best friend Meghan or Detective Ambrose, who incites annoyance as well as stomach flutters. Sophie Mae's big mouth and sharp nose lead her to a peppermint-scented trail of arson, bigamy, and a shocking family secret that reveals a personal connection to Walter . . . and his killer.
This crafty new series features real recipes and a blundering, yet lovable, amateur sleuth who brings a fresh face to cozy mysteries.
A former resident of the Pacific Northwest where my mystery novels are set, I've always dabbled in the kind of practical home crafts that were once necessary to everyday life. The magical chemistry of making soap, the satisfaction of canning garden produce, and the sensuous side of fiber arts like spinning and knitting are just a few of the reasons these activities have fascinated me since childhood. As much an early fan of Nancy Drew as of Laura Ingalls Wilder, it's no surprise that my contemporary cozy series features a soap maker with a nose for investigation.
For two years I managed my own soap making business, including all product design, manufacturing and marketing. I've also worked at a variety of other jobs, ranging from driver's license examiner to software program manager. This fulfills my mother's warning that I'd never have a "regular" job if I insisted on studying philosophy and English in college.
Now I live in Colorado, fitting my interest in all things domestic around writing, hiking, biking and, currently, learning how to play golf.
