The Chocolate Bridal Bash

Table of Contents
 
 
Praise for the Chocoholic Mysteries
The Chocolate Mouse Trap
“A fine tale.”

Midwest Book Review
 
“I’ve been a huge fan of the Chocoholic Mystery series from the start. I adore the mix of romance, mystery, and trivia.... Satisfying.”
—Roundtable Reviews
 
“Engaging and interesting writing style. Lee is . . . appealing.”

Romantic Times BOOKclub
 
The Chocolate Puppy Puzzle
 
“The pacing is perfect for the small town setting, and the various secondary characters add variety and interest. Readers may find themselves craving chocolate, yearning to make their own.... An interesting mystery, fun characters, and, of course, chocolate make this a fun read for fans of mysteries and chocolates alike.”
—The Romance Readers Connection
 
The Chocolate Frog Frame-Up
 
“A Joanna Carl mystery will be a winner. The trivia and vivid descriptions of the luscious confections are enough to make you hunger for more!”
—Roundtable Reviews
 
“A fast-paced, light read, full of chocolate facts and delectable treats. Lee is an endearing heroine.... Readers will enjoy the time they spend with Lee and Joe in Warner Pier, and will look forward to returning for more murder dipped in chocolate.”
—The Mystery Reader
 
“The descriptions of the chocolates are enough to make your mouth water, so be prepared.... Once again, I enjoyed each page of the book and am already looking forward to my next visit to Warner Pier, Michigan.”
—Review Index
 
The Chocolate Bear Burglary
 
“Do not read
The Chocolate Bear Burglary
on an empty stomach, because the luscious . . . descriptions of exotic chocolate will have you running out to buy gourmet sweets.... A delectable treat.”
—The Best Reviews
 
“[Carl] teases with descriptions of mouthwatering bonbons and truffles while she drops clues.... [Lee is] vulnerable and real, endearingly defective.... Fast-paced and sprinkled with humor. Strongly recommended.”
—I Love a Mystery
 
“Kept me entertained to the very last word! . . . A great new sleuth . . . interesting facts about chocolate . . . a delicious new series.”

Romantic Times
 
The Chocolate Cat Caper
 
“A mouthwatering debut and a delicious new series! Feisty young heroine Lee McKinney is a delight in this chocolate treat. A real page-turner, and I got chocolate on every one! I can’t wait for the next.”
—Tamar Myers
 
“As delectable as a rich chocolate truffle, and the mystery filling satisfies to the last prized morsel. Lee McKinney sells chocolates and solves crimes with panache and good humor. More, please. And I’ll take one of those dark chocolate oval bonbons. . . .”
—Carolyn Hart
 
“One will gain weight just from reading [this].... Delicious . . . the beginning of what looks like a terrific new cozy series.”

Midwest Book Review
 
“Enjoyable . . . entertaining . . . a fast-paced whodunit with lots of suspects and plenty of surprises . . . satisfies a passion for anything chocolate. In the fine tradition of Diane Mott Davidson.”

The Commercial Record
(MI)
Also by JoAnna Carl
The Chocolate Cat Caper
The Chocolate Bear Burglary
The Chocolate Frog Frame-Up
The Chocolate Puppy Puzzle
The Chocolate Mouse Trap
SIGNET
Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
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First published by Signet, an imprint of New American Library,
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First Printing, August 2006
Copyright © Eve K. Sandstrom, 2006
ISBN : 978-1-101-56375-5
All rights reserved
 
REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
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For Mary Jo Dilks.
Best friends forever.
Acknowledgments
With thanks to my Michigan friends, always ready to help with background and fact-checking; to Colleen McGee and Ed McGee, who remember the 1970s, even if they were there; and to Dr. Doug Lyle, expert on violent death.
Chapter 1
A
fter I overcame all my misgivings and invited my mother to my wedding, it was a little disappointing to learn that she didn’t want to come.
I admit it was the place, rather than the occasion, that drew her objections.
“Warner Pier?” Her voice was so angry it could have melted every line between her phone, in Texas, and mine in Michigan. “You’re getting married in Warner Pier? Why?”
“It’s where Joe and I live,” I said. “It’s where we plan to continue loving—I mean, living!”
I’d pulled one of my usual stunts, tangling my tongue. I misspeak so often—they’re called “malapropisms”—that most of my family and friends simply ignore my slips. Hoping my mother would do that, I went on quickly. “Warner Pier is where important parts of our families live. It’s where all our friends live. Why wouldn’t we want to get married here?”
My mom ignored my question. “Why not get married here in Dallas? We could plan a lovely wedding in Dallas.”
“Dallas? But Dallas was never—I mean, I don’t have good associations with Dallas. I know I lived there twelve years, but if people ask me where I’m from, I always say Prairie Creek.”
“Podunk Creek! You and your dad, the hick! I’ll never understand this compulsion you two have to live at the back of nowhere!”
I sighed. “If that’s the way you feel, you’d better know the worst. Daddy has already said he’s coming. And Annie is coming with him.”
“I knew she wouldn’t miss it!”
I ignored that. “And I’ve already told them I expect nice beheading—I mean, behavior! I expect nice behavior from all three of you.”
“I would never ruin your wedding by quarreling with your father and that woman he married.”
I sighed. “Just don’t run out on me, Mom.”
I’m not sure what I meant by that comment, and maybe my mom didn’t know what it meant either. There was a long silence before she spoke again. eHer voice was calmer than it had been.
“Lee, I wouldn’t run out on your wedding. Believe me, I wouldn’t. I want your wedding to be perfect for you. It’s just that—you know how I feel about Warner Pier.”
“I know how, Mom. But I’ll never understand why. Why do you dislike this town so much?”
“You’ve bought into the tourist view.” Her voice became sarcastic. “It’s a darling little Victorian resort town. A regular trip down memory lane to the good old days.”
“You’re forgetting the crime rate around here. I’m aware that the people of Warner Pier are like people anywhere. There’s a dark side to everyone’s personality. People are always—you know—doing things they shouldn’t have done and leaving undone things they should have done. Seems to me that happens in Dallas, too.”
“It sure happened in Warner Pier when I lived there. And in Prairie Creek, too.”
Another silence grew up between us. Then my mother spoke. “Is Nettie there?”
I was calling from my office, so I put the phone down and went back into the workroom of TenHuis Chocolade (“Handmade Chocolates in the Dutch Tradition”). Most of the ladies who actually make the chocolate had left for the day, but Aunt Nettie, chocolatier deluxe and my boss, was sprinkling light brown granules of Turbinado sugar over a tray of strawberry truffles (“white chocolate and strawberry interior coated in dark chocolate”).
“Aunt Nettie, your long-lost sister-in-law wants to talk to you.”

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