#sarahfox

Six Sweets Under (A True Confections Mystery) Cozy Mystery 1st in Series Setting - Vermont Berkley (February 7, 2023) Mass Market Paperback ‏ : ‎ 304 pages ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 059354661X ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593546611 Kindle ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09ZRLT8QX

In a cute new culinary cozy from USA Today bestselling author Sarah Fox, budding chocolatier Becca Ransom must solve a murder before she meets a sticky end. Former actress Becca Ransom lived her dream in Hollywood for seven years before returning to her hometown of Larch Haven, known as the Venice of North America. The Vermont town has canals instead of roads, gondolas instead of cars, and charming cottages plucked from the pages of a fairy tale. It’s also where Becca is pursuing her newest passion as a chocolatier at True Confections, the chocolate shop owned by her grandparents, Lolly and Pops. While Becca’s testing new flavors and reconnecting with old friends, the town is gearing up for the annual Gondola Races, popular with both residents and tourists, with one exception. Local curmudgeon Archie Smith wants nothing more than to keep tourists away from Larch Haven. He’s determined to derail this year’s event and does his best to stir up trouble for the organizers, including Becca’s grandfather. Following a heated argument with Pops, Archie is found floating face-down in the canal, and Pops finds himself in hot water as one of the top suspects. Becca’s determined to clear her grandfather’s name, but when the case heats up, she could be facing a sticky end. Dollycas's Thoughts Becca Ransom left her idyllic hometown of Larch Haven, Vermont for the glitz and glamor of Hollywood. She had some success, staying there for seven years but now has returned to work in the family chocolate shop, True Confections, with a new passion as a chocolatier. Her timing coincides with her grandparents, Lolly and Pop taking a step back from the business to enjoy their lives in new ways. The town is now preparing for the Gondola Races where tourists and residents, including Becca's brother race through the canals and around Shadow Lake. Becca works hard to keep the shelves of the shop stocked as do all the other shops around town. With all the tourists it is a very busy time. There is one resident not happy about the influx of guests. Archie Smith hates all the people and is working hard making trouble hoping to get the event canceled. He even gets into a public argument with Becca's grandfather about the event. Later, Becca finds Archie's dead body floating in the canal and soon Pops is at the top of the list of probable murderers. Stunned by this Becca vows to clear his name knowing she could be the killer's next victim. Tempering chocolate and creating yummy truffles may be her passion but her love for her Pops knows no bounds. She may need to draw on her acting chops to get to the truth. _________ I really enjoy the Literary Pub Mysteries by Ms. Fox so I couldn't wait to see what she had planned for this new series. I was immediately struck by the unique setting. Larch Haven also called the Venice of North America is built along a series of canals just like that other Venice. People travel by gondola, boat, or walking. No cars are allowed in the town proper. The homes are unique as well. Like her neighbors, Becca lives in a cottage that looks like it was just plucked out of a fairy tale. The author does a great job of world-building so that her readers can easily visualize everything clearly. Ms. Fox has also created a fun cast of characters. Becca's life is in flux as she gets resettled at home while leaving her boyfriend back in California. She has her two cats, Binx and Truffles to keep her company.   Her grandparents live nearby so she can visit with them daily and they always seem to have something tasty to send home with her. Her cousins Angie and Milo work with her at True Confections and her grandparents and other members of her family drop by often. Desiree Bautista aka Dizzy has been her best friend since they met in preschool. She is a librarian and is very happy to have her friend back home. They also make a great team when a bit of sleuthing is needed. Of course, Officer Sawyer Maguire, who she has also known forever, would like her to keep her nose out of police business but he is also very happy that Becca is back in town. All the characters developed nicely throughout the story. Even the victim, "curmudgeon" Archie Smith was fleshed out well. The murder investigation was personal for Becca so it was easy to get caught up in its process. The victim had angered so many people with his behavior that there were plenty of suspects to question and alibis to check. This was very well-plotted with an extra little twist or two that scared our protagonist but she didn't give up. I really enjoyed that an old missing person case was revisited and that it could be connected to the current case. Becca's love life also took on a life of its own thanks to the Gossip Grannies.  All of this kept me engaged and entertained. I am sure there were clues I missed because I was totally gobsmacked when all was revealed. I truly was on the edge of my seat as the action unfolded. And yes, there is plenty of talk about chocolate, specifically truffles throughout the book. I really wish each book came with a sampler box of truffles because while reading and still days after my chocolate cravings have not been curbed. The recipes for Mint Melty Truffles and Peanut Butter Pretzel Truffles are included at the end of the story, but it may be easier to take a trip to the local candy shop. I am so happy we have one. Six Sweets Under has set this series off in a delightful way. The setting will grab you, the people will hold you and the mystery will have you hanging on tight. I am excited to see that book two, Baking Spirits Bright will be released on October 3. I have already saved a spot on my reading calendar.

Your Escape Into A Good Book Travel Agent Sadly, the publisher did not offer a giveaway due to Covid. About Sarah Fox

Sarah Fox, a writer of cozy mysteries, was born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, where she developed a love for mysteries at a young age. When not writing novels or working as a legal writer she is often reading her way through a stack of books or spending time outdoors with her English Springer Spaniel. Sarah's Links - Website - Facebook - Twitter - BookBub - 

Coming October 3, 2023

Also by Sarah Fox

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They searched for her— Sarah Fox. They checked the gym, the jogging trail, her classes; they retraced her steps. People printed out thousands of signs and placed them all over town, they posted up photos on social media, they conducted many search parties. They just couldn’t find her.

May 19, 2004 was a day like any other. Sarah Fox woke up, ate breakfast, and went about her day. She hadn’t gone to her classes because was taking a break. The aspiring drama student had told her mother that the Juilliard School was very demanding and that she just needed some time to get herself reinvigorated.

When 5:00 PM started rolling around, Sarah got dressed to go workout. She said goodbye to her

roommate, grabbed her compacted CD player, and headed out. Nothing was out of the ordinary; no one suspected that that’ll be the last time she was seen alive.

A couple days had passed and they still hadn’t found Sarah. Many people had started to fear the worst. When police were investigating the disappearance of Sarah Fox, many people pointed their fingers at Dimitry Sheinman, an immigrant from Russia. Dimitry was a regular at Inwood Park— just like Sarah. He always walked his Rhodesian Ridgeback off leash, usually causing conflicts with other people at the park. Dimitry was an artist with self proclaimed “psychic abilities.” When he was questioned by the police, Sheinman claimed to have seen the crime take place. He said that someone had killed her; he said that a stick was placed between her legs and that she had sustained broken ribs and a punch to the face. Most of which was in fact, not true.

On Tuesday, the 25th, many people were starting to loose hope. Nevertheless, they persisted. They were looking through Inwood Park, this time towards a secluded part of the jogging path. Many people suspected that this search would be the same as the rest. They thought they wouldn’t find anything, that they’d go home, go to sleep, and wake up to another day without Sarah. However, through the thick underbrush beside the jogging trail, someone saw something. That something confirmed their worst fears. Sarah Fox’s story had come to a conclusion.

Sarah was found decomposing, and nude. She had been strangled and sexually assaulted. Her body was found surrounded with Tulip tree petals and branches, like some sort of ritualistic idea. Botanist tested the leaves and branches found around her and concluded that they came from somewhere else in the park.

In 2012, eight years after the murder of Sarah Fox, Dimitry Sheinman walks into 34th Precinct NYPD, and hands them a letter. Inside the envelope, contained the name of the killer. The “killer” was supposedly a professor at the Juilliard; however the suspect was questioned and cleared at the time of the murder.

In recent years, new evidence has come up and the cold case was reopened. On August 2nd, 2016, 30 year old Karina Vetrano’s body was found in Queen’s park. Her body in the same condition as Sarah’s— strangled and sexually assaulted. Also like sarah, she too was a frequent jogger. Police have more suspects that they are looking into.

''I have no doubt that we would have seen her name in lights one day on Broadway,'

Messiah 19 December 2016