Cookin’ the Books

This breezy series launch from Meade (the Marjorie McClellan mysteries) introduces Letitia “Tish” Tarragon, a former banker who has moved to the little town of Hobson Glen, Va., to open Cookin’ the Books Café, which offers such dishes as Who’s Afraid of Virginia Baked Ham on Cheesy Edgar Allan Poe-lenta. The café is not yet up and running when her handsome landlord, Schuyler Thompson, tells her that he has recommended her services to Lavinia “Binnie” Broderick, executive director of the local library, who’s organizing an annual fundraising event. A descendant of one of Virginia’s oldest and richest families, Binnie feels it is her duty to instruct her fellow citizens on moral and social conduct, even if that means resorting to threats. She has therefore earned the antipathy of many Hobson Glen residents. When, at the big library do, she drops dead and the authorities start a murder investigation, no one’s surprised—and everyone seems to have a motive. Fans of food-themed cozies full of literary puns will be satisfied. (Mar.)