Author Guest Post - Cleo Coyle

Please welcome the bestselling writing duo known as CLEO COYLE, which is a pseudonym for Alice Alfonsi, writing in collaboration with her husband, Marc Cerasini.  Both are New York Times bestselling authors of the Coffeehouse Mysteries, now celebrating over ten years in print.  Alice has worked as a journalist in Washington, D.C., and New York City, and has written popular fiction, young adult and children’s books. A former magazine editor, Marc has authored espionage thrillers and nonfiction for adults and children. 


Alice and Marc are also bestselling media tie-in writers who have penned properties for Lucasfilm, NBC, Fox, Disney, Imagine, and MGM.  They live and work in New York City, where they write independently and together, including the national bestselling Haunted Bookshop Mysteries.

It has been awhile since I reviewed this series, the last was Holiday Buzz #12 (click here), and Roast Mortem #9 (click here.)  Let's check in with our writing duo and learn about the sixteenth in the series!

Dead Cold Brew: A Coffeehouse Mystery

It’s official. After sixteen books, our Greenwich Village coffeehouse manager, Clare Cosi, finally becomes engaged to her boyfriend, NYPD Detective Mike Quinn. Unfortunately, the vintage diamond Mike slips on Clare’s finger in DEAD COLD BREW, opens a Pandora’s box to a cold case murder that occurred sixty years before.

This chilling homicide happened in a stateroom of the Andrea Doria, a luxurious Italian ocean liner that tragically sank off the coast of Nantucket in 1956. On board that ship was a gifted Italian artisan named Gus Campana, the jewelry designer who created Clare’s engagement ring.

When Clare finds Gus poisoned behind his West Village workshop, she won’t rest until she uncovers who may have done it and why. Her search uncovers family scandal, a charming thief, and a deadly adversary.

If you are new to our long-running Coffeehouse Mystery series, don’t hesitate to pick up DEAD COLD BREW. You can read it as a stand-alone, and if you like it, you have 15 more mysteries to enjoy. But don’t miss this latest entry. It’s embedded with twists, turns, and wonderful secrets about New York City that we’ve discovered over the years—from an exclusive room in the legendary 21 Club, to the underbelly of the city’s Diamond District, to a hidden train platform beneath the Waldorf-Astoria.

“A fabulous diamond, blackmail, embezzlement, surprise inheritances, murder, and a decades-old family scandal…with lusciously rich recipes.”

—Publishers Weekly on Dead Cold Brew

DEAD COLD BREW is also a culinary mystery, with an

appendix of more than 25 recipes, including Cannoli Cream Cupcakes, Perfect Pumpkin Quick Bread, Blueberry Buckle Cake, (Meatless) Baked Ziti, Chicken Cacciatore (Red and White Versions), American Fettuccine Alfredo, Irish Cream Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chocolate-Espresso Cookies, tips on how to make Cold Brew Coffee like a pro, and much more. To see the book’s Free Recipe Guide, click here.

CLEO’S NEWSLETTER: Fun contests, bonus recipes, book news, and videos. To sign up, simply write an e-mail that says “sign me up” and send it to CoffeehouseMystery@gmail(dot)com

FREE TITLE CHECKLIST: Get a title checklist with mini summaries of all 16 Coffeehouse Mysteries and links to free recipe guides. To download the list as a PDF document, click here.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Thank You Alice and Marc! I love your series...and your recipes. 

Author Guest Post - Cleo Coyle

Please welcome the bestselling writing duo known as CLEO COYLE, which is a pseudonym for Alice Alfonsi, writing in collaboration with her husband, Marc Cerasini.  Both are New York Times bestselling authors of the Coffeehouse Mysteries, now celebrating over ten years in print.  Alice has worked as a journalist in Washington, D.C., and New York City, and has written popular fiction, young adult and children’s books. A former magazine editor, Marc has authored espionage thrillers and nonfiction for adults and children. 

Alice and Marc are also bestselling media tie-in writers who have penned properties for Lucasfilm, NBC, Fox, Disney, Imagine, and MGM.  They live and work in New York City, where they write independently and together, including the national bestselling Haunted Bookshop Mysteries.

On the Run in Washington 

What would you do if a handsome federal agent burst into your shop, offered you his hand, and told you:  “Your life is in danger, and you must come away with me now, no questions asked.”

If you’re coffeehouse manager Clare Cosi, and the agent is decorated Detective Mike Quinn, on special assignment with the US Justice Department, you would take his hand and go.

A divorced, single mom in her forties, Clare Cosi is a coffeehouse manager by day, a relentless snoop by night.  In Dead to the Last Drop, now available in its new paperback edition, Clare sets out to caffeinate our nation’s capital and becomes embroiled in a capital crime—one that involves the disappearance of the President’s college-age daughter.

Is this troubled young woman a runaway bride? Or is she in grave danger?

To answer that question, Clare takes readers on a suspense-filled ride through Washington, DC; and 
although this murder mystery has plenty of thrills and page-turning twists, it’s also laced with humor, heart, and hearty good food. Because you can’t save the world on an empty stomach—at least Clare and Detective Quinn can’t. 

And as food lovers ourselves, neither can my husband and I!

If you are new to our Coffeehouse Mystery series, don’t let that discourage you from picking up Dead to the Last Drop.   You can certainly read it as a stand-alone story, and if you like the ride, you have fourteen more books to enjoy.

But don’t miss this Washington entry. It’s embedded with hidden secrets about our nation’s capital that were inspired by my own experiences while living, studying, and working in DC.

And as you enjoy the book, be sure to drop by our new Jazz Space, www.VillageBlendJazzSpace.com, a virtual extension of the relaxed jazz supper club featured in Dead to the Last Drop. Listen to some of the music mentioned in the book, visit the locations, sample some recipes, and even listen to free live jazz, any night of the week.

Dead to the Last Drop is also a culinary mystery, with an appendix of more than 25 delicious recipes, including Double-Chocolate Espresso Cupcakes, Easy “Cake Pan” Cheesecake, the best Oatmeal Cookie Recipe you may ever bake, and a fantastic version of Black Magic Cake with a “secret ingredient” chocolate frosting.  Get your recipe guide, click here.  


Read the prologue and first chapter (click here.)

CLEO’S NEWSLETTER: Contests, recipes, news, fun facts, and videos. To sign up, simply write an e-mail that says “sign me up” and send it to CoffeehouseMystery@gmail(dot)com. You will receive a reply with links to past newsletters that include free recipes.

TITLE CHECKLIST: Get a free title checklist with mini summaries of all 15 Coffeehouse Mysteries. To download the list as a PDF document, click here.

www.CoffeehouseMystery.com 
www.Facebook.com/CleoCoyle 
www.Twitter.com/CleoCoyle 
www.Pinterest.com/CleoCoyle
www.VillgeBlendJazzSpace.com

THANK You Alice and Marc for this delightful post.  I am looking forward to that recipe guide!  You are very generous. 

Holiday Buzz

It has been awhile since I read this series.  The last was Roast Mortem (click here.)   Let's see how the most recent book in this popular series stacks up.  Let's visit New York during the holidays for  glittery parties and murder.

Author:  Cleo coyle

Copyright:  December 2012 (Berkley) 385 pgs

Series: 12th in A Coffeehouse Mystery

Sensuality:  mild

Mystery Sub-genre:  Amateur Sleuth, Cozy

Main Character:  Claire Cosi, manager of Village Blend Coffeehouse

Setting:  Modern Day, New York City - holiday season

Obtained Through:  from publisher for an honest review

The book begins at the Great New York Cookie Swap where pastry chefs bake up their very best for charity. Clare is in charge of the beverage service.  Clare and the owner of a bakery share an employee, Moirin Faigan, who disappears during the event.  Clare later finds her murdered beside the broken down carousel.  Naturally the police feel there is a connection with a serial "attacker."  Normally Clare works well with the police, but her boyfriend Mike Quinn is working in D.C. these days and there is a new cop, egotistic Detective Fletcher Endicott, who places all his faith in forensics only.  Clare quickly decides she will have to do some asking around and do the police's legwork.  Clare soon realizes that she knew very little about the real Moirin, some good and some bad.  But was any of it worth killing her over?

Clare has nearly taken to doing the policework in this addition to the series. She checks backgrounds, questions witnesses and acquaintances etc.  Which gives an odd feel to the story.  Even the snobbish Detective Fletcher Endicott eventually just starts turning to Clare.  This is the improbable part of the storyline.  I have missed a few books since the last Coffeehouse mystery I read, but Clare seems like a different character.  The good side is she is game to go in disguise and investigate, which brings a certain level of daring adventure to the plot.  The bad side of that coin is she thinks nothing of hunting a killer.  Additionally, her life has begun to revolve around Mike, yet he is gone for most of the story.  She bases many decisions on how Mike might handle things, or what Mike would like.  Her number one barista and Assistant Manager Tucker is the best sidekick.  Tucker has become my favorite sidekick in this series and I am thrilled he is getting more involvement in the plots.  Madame goes undercover at the Evergreen Recreation Center, which is a great chapter, but is essentially the only time we really get with Madame. 

Mateo's character doesn't have much left to offer in his philandering self-absorbed personality, which is why their divorce remains so plausible.  Mike was never a favorite of mine and I was okay with his being only a part-time character.  The surprise character was the aging ex-rock star.  I can't reveal more without saying too much.

The setting of New York during the holidays is depicted with a mix of glitz and realism that has become a trademark of this series.  I like how the author can give us the good and the bad of New York without the reader feeling like they have been to the Bowery.

Sometimes this series gets a bit more gritty than a standard cozy, while other times it remains solidly in the cozy arena.  This book remains squarely in the cozy field, which works perfectly for a holiday themed mystery.  The pacing is pretty steady and keeps your interest.  Just as you think this is beginning to drag a little, something happens and you are engaged again.  Although the killer was not a complete surprise to me, the motive took some pieces to be revealed as Clare dug up information before the reader could figure it out.  That worked well to keep the readers interest also.

The climax was exciting including a fight with the killer.  The wrap-up was a touch bittersweet.  This book has a heady mix of an aging ex-rock star, two "Real Housewives" divas, a nursing home, a casanova hockey player, and even Irish mob influences for an enjoyable mystery.


Of course there are the many amazing recipes too!

Rating:  Good fun read - Enjoyed it! But not the best in the series to begin with if you haven't read this series before.  Followers of the series will not want to miss this one, but bare in mind it is a lighter holiday plot than others.