I’m pinching myself that the 22nd book in my Bakeshop Mysteries is out in the world. I’ve spent the last fifteen years writing about delectable treats, savory pastries, and a side of murder. It’s such a gift to be able to return to Torte, my fictional bakeshop, year after year. The characters have become more like dear friends or family to me. Every time I sit down to write a new book, it feels like coming home again. So much so that sometimes I have to remind myself they’re entirely in my head and that I can’t just pop into the bakeshop and say hi to the team while grabbing a strawberry almond scone and a honey lavender latte. Without further ado, here’s a little taste of THE WHISKING HOUR.
T is for Torte, which is so much more than a bakeshop. It’s a community gathering space and a place where everyone who walks through the front door is treated like family.
H is for home. Jules found her way back to Ashland and rediscovered what home means.
E is for eclectic. Ashland is filled with eclectic artists, playwrights, actors, musicians, writers, and bakers.
W is for whipping. As a professional baker, Jules is constantly whipping up delectable sweet and savory pastries.
H is for host. Lance, the artistic director, is hosting his cast for a crime scene dinner with more drama than on the stage.
I is for icon. One of the lead actors, in true icon fashion, takes his method acting one step too far.
S is for Shakespeare. Themes of Shakespeare run deep in Jules’s world on and off the stage.
K is for killer. There is a killer amongst the cast.
I is for icing. Jules is trying to piece together a murder, all while icing tiered cakes with Italian buttercream.
N is for next. If Jules can’t sleuth out whodunit, there’s a chance she could be next.
G is for grandiose. Lance has grandiose plans for the theater. He can’t have a killer lurking in the wings.
H is for house. They say the show must go on, and it does, bringing down the house at the final curtain.
O is for ovation. This production deserves a standing ovation, not only for the stellar acting but also for catching a killer.
U is for under. There’s nothing like taking in a show under a blanket of stars at the outdoor Elizabethan Theater.
R is for return. With a killer behind bars and a successful run, everything in Juliet’s sweet hamlet can return to normal again.
Bakeshop Mystery #22
Another delicious installment in Ellie Alexander's Bakeshop Mysteries set in Ashland, OR!
Fall is in full flush in the charming hamlet of Ashland, Oregon, and baker Juliet Capshaw is excited to celebrate the season with a night at the theatre. Lance Rousseau, Ashland’s renowned theater director and one of Jules’ closest friends, has put his own spin on a production of the Broadway classic Perfect Crime, drawing the audience into a cozy New York apartment as a nefarious set of suspects pulls off the perfect murder. As the final show approaches, Jules and the team at Torte are eagerly whipping up a murderous feast for the cast party, baking a bevy of treats like panna cotta eyeballs with blood orange coulis, deviled eggs, and savory cheese fingers with pumpkin dipping sauce.
On the day of the soirée, life seems to imitate art when a storm rolls over the Siskiyou Mountains, ushering in gusty winds and unrelenting rain. The audience buzzes with electric energy as the lights flicker and the actors take the stage. After the actors take their final bow, the cast trickles into Carpenter Hall, ready for a night of frivolity. But when an actor is discovered dead in his dressing room, Jules wonders if she’s just witnessed the real perfect murder.
Mystery Cozy | Mystery Amateur Sleuth [ Minotaur Books, On Sale: February 24, 2026, Trade Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9781250410023 / eISBN: 9781250410030 ]
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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