Death by Pumpkin Pie: A Hilarious Feel-Good Cozy Mystery

About Death by Pumpkin Pie: A Hilarious Feel-Good Cozy Mystery

A bake-off with big prizes. A French chef. And one dessert that proves deadly.

San Malvino’s first Autumn Bake-Off promises sweet treats and even sweeter rivalries. Locals and expats crowd the town square with cassava puddings, tres leches, guava tarts, and pumpkin pies—each hoping to win cash, fame, and a coveted spot on the Golden Fig’s menu. But the celebration curdles when Chef Étienne Moreau, the flamboyant French embassy chef on the judging panel, collapses after the final tasting.

Was it a bad dessert… or murder served à la mode? While Mendoza handles the chaos of furious bakers, Alex, Reg, and Bombay back Lucien as he digs into embassy secrets, and uncovers that the chef’s death may not have been about the bake-off at all. It's sweater weather on San Malvino.