by Diane Mott Davidson

Bantam, April, 2001.
Hardcover, 301 pages.
ISBN: 0553107240

Caterer and amateur sleuth Goldy Schultz is thrilled about her first catering job in a month: to re-create a fabulous Elizabethan feast in a real castle which was dismantled and shipped to Aspen Meadows, Colorado piece by piece. But bad news follows the good: when her front window is shot out, Goldy, son Arch and husband Tom are forced to move into the castle temporarily. Then Goldy learns that her abusive ex-husband has been released early from jail, her husband Tom is shot and a body is found on the castle grounds. While Tom is recovering, Goldy must find a murderer, avoid her ex-husband, fix a delicious feast and keep an eye out for the castle ghost.

The castle setting for Sticks and Scones provides a great background for Goldy's latest adventure. With a creepy atmosphere, a rather strange host (he pictures himself quite the country squire) and hostess (she's Swedish and cleans obsessively) the return of one of the series' best characters, vegetarian assistant chef Julian Teller, and some of the best recipes yet, this is one of Goldy's most entertaining adventures to date.

--Claire E. White

Sticks & Scones is available for purchase on Amazon.com

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This review was published in the August, 2001 of The Internet Writing Journal.

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