Torte: Better Together by Jack Johnson
The team at Ashland’s beloved artisan bakeshop, is always better together. Torte is so much more than a bakery. It’s a gathering space for the entire community and a place to linger in one of the cozy booths by the front windows, watching the activity in Ashland’s bustling plaza with a steaming hot latte and a fresh-from-the-oven banana nut muffin. Jack Johnson’s laidback soundtrack is on rotation in the bakeshop, especially on a lazy Sunday morning when sunlight floods into the dining room while the team pulls strong shots of espressos and makes sure the pastry case is stocked with mouth-watering savory breakfast bites.
Juliet Capshaw: Love Story, Taylor Swift
Our pastry chef, turned amateur sleuth, comes by her romantic tendencies naturally. Who can blame her with a name like Juliet Montague Capshaw? When named after one of Shakespeare’s most romantic heroines and living in the sweet hamlet of Ashland, Oregon, Juliet (but please call her Jules), it only makes sense that her theme song and the theme song for the entire Bakeshop Mysteries is Taylor’s ultimate love anthem. Does she secretly—or not so secretly—play it at full volume while she’s baking orange cardamom scones? You don’t need to be a professional detective to piece together the answer.
Lance: Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me by George Michael and Elton John
As artistic director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and his newest endeavor, The Fair Verona Players, a theater troupe performing the classics under a swath of stars, Lance is well-known for his dramatic flair. Would he typically share the stage? No. Not unless there was someone of his caliber to share it with. Lance would be willing to sacrifice being solely in the spotlight with the late great George Michael and Sir Elton John. And for the record, Lance would never allow the sun to go down on him.
The Professor: Mambo Italiano by Rosemary Clooney
Ashland’s resident detective and Shakespeare aficionado has quite eclectic musical tastes, from classic jazz to Madonna and John Denver. But if you find him in the kitchen with his adoring wife, Helen, blasting Rosemary Clooney while sipping an Oregon Pinot noir and whipping up a delectable hand-made pasta and an heirloom tomato sauce. Music and lyrics are like poetry to him. He appreciates art in every form and has been known to hit the dance floor to show off his moves whenever one of Ashland’s local cover bands adds Rosemary Clooney and any of the Rat Pack crooners to their setlist.
Richard Lord: You’re So Vain by Carly Simon
No long-running mystery series would be complete without a nemesis, and no one does villainous, creepy, lurker better than Richard Lord. Richard owns the decrepit Merry Windsor Hotel with its green shag carpet, plastic busts of Shakespeare, and cheap, stale Costco muffins. He spends the bulk of his time spying on Jules and the team at Torte and preening through the plaza in his ridiculous golf outfits. Did Carly Simon write this song about him? No. Never. As if she has any idea who Richard even is. But will he tell you the song is about him? Absolutely!
Bakeshop Mystery
Another delicious installment in the Bakeshop Series set in Ashland, OR!
It’s late spring in Juliet's charming hamlet of Ashland. Spotted deer are nibbling on lush green grasses in Lithia Park, the Japanese maples are blooming, and Torte is baking a bevy of spring delights—lemon curd cupcakes, mini coconut cream pies, grapefruit tartlets, and chocolate dipped almond Tuiles.
Meanwhile, Juliet's friend Lance, the artistic director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, is taking center stage with his new theater troupe—the Fair Verona Players. Their performance in Uva's vineyard promises to be a modern, gender-bending twist on "The Taming of the Shrew," but as the curtain rises, so do the strange occurrences. Stage mishaps and internal bickering threaten to derail the production. But the real show begins when the leading actor, Jimmy Paxton, meets his final curtain call. Now, Jules is not only in the mix, but she's going to need to craft the perfect recipe for solving this theatrical whodunit.
Mystery Cozy | Mystery Culinary [Minotaur Books, On Sale: August 20, 2024, Mass Market Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9781250326195 / eISBN: 9781250326201]
Ellie Alexander is a voracious storyteller and a lover of words and all things bookish. She believes that stories have the ability to transport and transform us. With over twenty-five published novels and counting, her goal is to tell stories that provide points of connection, escape, and understanding.
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