I usually manage a café at an athletic club and cater small dinner parties, but there was nothing usual about Spooktacular Saturday, when I catered the grand opening of Bayport’s new bookshop. I made Halloween treats—Crypt Suzettes and Mummy Hand Pies—and served them in the shop’s CAT (Coffee and Tea) Corner. As bad luck would have it, a black cat came to the party and sat on the windowsill, gazing at the tombstones in the church cemetery.
A costume contest was part of the festivities. The contestants had to dress as characters from books, as did all of us who assisted at the shop’s grand opening. Among the contestants was Suzette, a young woman working her way through college and renting a spare bedroom in the house I shared with my grandfather. She was secretive and never talked about her family or her job. She seemed to be avoiding someone, taking roundabout routes home from the hotel where she worked. We knew she belonged to a creative writing group, called the Fictionistas. They all showed up in costume for the contest. Suzette was even secretive about her costume, not putting it on until it was her turn to emerge from behind the curtain.
As I told my friend Bethany, “People choose costumes that mirror their personalities.” If that’s true, Suzette’s fellow Fictionistas all had a violent streak: Lady Macbeth, the Phantom of the Opera, a zombie, and Morgan le Fay, the villainous sorceress from Camelot. Suzette won the contest, but her luck ran out after that. When she was found dead the next morning, the apparent victim of an accident, Granddad and I suspected foul play. So did the Fictionistas, who accused each other of murdering her. Did one of them kill Suzette or was her death rooted in the past she’d tried to escape? Having dressed as Nancy Drew for the bookshop party, I tried to answer that question and almost became the next “accident” victim. Meanwhile, Granddad’s ghost-busting enterprise netted us another suspect, but it wasn’t until I went into a haunted house that the clues jumped out at me.
Out of respect for Suzette’s secretive nature, I haven’t described her prize-winning costume. To find out about it, you’ll have to read Crypt Suzette.
Giveaway: If you were competing in a costume contest as a character from a book, which character would you be? Answer that question in a comment below for your chance to win a copy of Crypt Suzette (print copy for US entries, e-book outside the US). The giveaway ends August 31, 2019. The winner will be notified by email (so check your spam folder). Good luck everyone!
You can read more about Val in Crypt Suzette, the sixth book in the “Five-Ingredient” cozy mystery series, released August 27, 2019.
Val Deniston is catering the debut of Bayport’s newest bookstore—but the death of a customer is about to draw her into a real-life murder mystery . . .
Suzette Cripps has been occupying a spare bedroom at Val’s granddad’s house while she takes classes in this Maryland Eastern Shore town—but she’s always seemed a little secretive and fearful, and any talk about her past is a closed book.
After winning the costume contest at the Halloween-themed bookstore party, Suzette is mowed down by a hit-and-run driver—and Val and her grandfather start to wonder whether it was really an accident or if someone was after Suzette. Granddad is a little distracted by his new enterprise as a ghost-buster, but as Val talks to Suzette’s coworkers and fellow creative writing students, she grows more convinced that the dead woman’s demons weren’t imaginary—and that she needs to rip the mask off a killer . . .
Includes delicious five-ingredient recipes!
Purchase Link
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About the author
Maya (Mary Ann) Corrigan combines her passion for food and detective stories in her Five-Ingredient Mysteries: By Cook or by Crook, Scam Chowder, Final Fondue, The Tell-Tale Tarte, and S’more Murders. The books feature a café manager and her live-wire grandfather, the Codger Cook, who solve murders in a historic town near the Chesapeake Bay. Maya previously taught writing, American literature, and detective fiction at Georgetown University and Northern Virginia Community College. When not reading, writing, cooking, or eating, she enjoys travel, crossword puzzles, and trivia. Visit her website for more about the series and for trivia about mysteries at mayacorrigan.com.
All comments are welcomed.
Hmmmmm….I would be an Asian Hermione…..LOL!!
Thanks for commenting, Cyn. Hermione is a great character.~Maya
I’d be a contemporary Nancy Drew and just wear jeans and a sweater (since I’m not a huge costume fan, love watching others dress up though) lol
Hi, Tari. When I read Nancy Drew, she wore skirts and heels. I’m glad to hear that she’s in more comfortable clothes these days. Thank you for commenting.
~Maya
I never was a fan of costumes so I would probably try to get a cape, hat and pipe and go as Sherlock Holmes.
Hi Linda,
Your costume suggests you’re a fan of detective stories. 😉
Thank you for commenting.
~Maya
I always like to dress as a witch, and I picture the icon from the Wizard of Oz, the wicked witch of the West.
Hi Sharon,on
Thanks for commenting. You’d be a recognizable literary character on Halloween as the witch in Oz.
~Maya
I really enjoy historical fiction so I picture wearing something from the 1800’s. Not sure I could make it with the corset or the button booties, but it would be fun to try.
Hi Robin,
Thank you for commenting. The 19th century is also my favorite period to read about, but one advantage of living now is no corsets needed!
~Maya
I would be Lucy from Peanuts, a heroine of mine.
I’d be Amelia Peabody from Elizabeth Peters’ books set in Egypt.
Hi Karlene,
I’d enjoy seeing see your Amelia Peabody costume. Thank you for commenting.
~Maya
I would be Annie Oakley. The West and the history.
Hi Anne,
Dressing as Annie Oakley would be fun. Thank you for commenting.
~Maya
I would be Ollie Parras from The White House Chef Mystery series by Julie Hyzy.
Anne of Green Gables is a character who I would love to be.
Good choice, Ruth. A beloved character. Thank you for commenting.
~Maya
I love Halloween themed books, and this one sounds terrific! Halloween is a great time to make a favorite book character come alive. I would choose to come as Mrs. Frizzle from Joanna Cole’s Magic School Bus series! Her clothes and accessories are awesome!
Hi Barbara,
You have a soul mate in the book. Val’s best friend dresses up as Mrs. Frizzle in Crypt Suzette. Thank you for commenting. Good luck in the raffle.
~Maya
I think I would dress up as Sherlock Holmes. I’ve always admired him. Or, even more fun, dress up as Irene Adler. Congratulations on your new release!
Hi Autumn,
Coming up with a costume for Irene Adler would be fun. Thanks for commenting.
~Maya
I think it would be fun to dress up as Mary Poppins. I enjoyed A Day in the Life of Val Deniston and look forward to reading Crypt Suzette ~
Thanks for commenting, Celia. I hope you enjoy the book.
I would do Miss Marple
Hi Katrina,
Thank you for commenting. Dressing as Miss Marple would be fun.
~Maya
I’d like to dress up as Geneva from Molly MacRae’s Haunted Yarn Shop mysteries.
It would be Anita Blake from Laurel K. Hamilton’s Vampire Hunter series. She totally kicks butt, takes names and enjoys life.
Thank you for commenting, Nora-Adrienne. I’m not familiar with the series you mentioned, but anything to do with vampires usually works out well for a costume.
It would be Anita Blake from Laurel K. Hamilton’s Vampire Hunter series. She totally kicks Butt.
I would be Scarlett from Jenn McKinlay’s hat shop series. I love that one! Thanks for a chance to win!
Thanks for commenting, Lori. Good luck in the raffle.~Maya
I think I would be Sherlock Holmes or Anne of Green Gables. Thanks for the giveaway chance!
Thanks for commenting, Ashley. Good luck in the raffle.~Maya
I think I would go as Ginny Weasley. I’m already ginger. Thanks for the chance!
Thanks for commenting, Jaime. Good luck in the raffle.~Maya
Jack Reacher. He is tough and I am not. lol
Hi Karen, Thanks for commenting. If I dressed as Jack Reacher, I’d need stilts. Thank you for commenting. ~Maya
One of the Hardy Boys.
I’d love to be DAVIS WAY in Gretchen Archer’s DAVIS WAY Crime Caper series and I’d love to be working at a casino for those adventures and also to be young again!!!!
How about Ms. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus?!
I’d be Raggedy Ann! Thanks for the chance to win!
Elizabeth Bennett–while she wasn’t a detective, she had a good head on her shoulders.
I would dress up as Shannon Hammer from the A FIXER UPPER MYSTERY series by Kate Carlisle
I would be Pippi Longstocking. She was carefree but cared about people.
As long as I didn’t have to be tested main character or be as skinny as she would really be, I.would dress as Professor McGonnagall from the Harry Potter series. She always fascinated me even before Maggie Smith’s portrayal in the movies.
Galadriel from Lord of the Rings. I love that character. Thank you so much for the chance.
**** WINNER ****
Crypt Suzette is Tari Hann
Congratulations!