The Halloween season is serving up more tricks than treats for thirty-something Greek-American foodie and business owner Calliope “Callie” Costas. Don’t miss the 4th installment in this colorful culinary cozy mystery series!When a new employee at a neighboring business, Tea for Two, is found dead, Callie is drawn into a murky brew of motives and murder suspects. It turns out that the seemingly … that the seemingly mild-mannered victim might have a few skeletons in his closet. What’s more, the timing of the murder, just a day before Crystal Bay’s first annual Halloween Walk, has threatened to derail the town’s festive fall events, including a Halloween Gala benefiting the local food pantry, one of Callie’s favorite causes.
Callie’s already full plate is set to overflowing with the return of an old boyfriend who has his eye on developing a mall that will compete with and possibly destroy Crystal Bay’s small business scene. Could there be a tie between the mall and the murder?
Somebody has been stewing. Will Callie help find the unsavory killer before things reach the boiling point?
Includes delicious recipes from Callie’s Kitchen!
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I’ve loved the Callie’s Kitchen mysteries right from the get-go, but in this installment Callie has really hit her stride. As if preparing for Crystal Bay’s first Halloween Walk isn’t enough, a nasty murder has once again rolled into Callie’s path. With her family issues growing ever more complicated, a pushy ex-boyfriend dogging her, and her significant other out of the country, Callie’s culinary and personal plates are both overflowing. Callie handles every challenge with grace and gusto, and never lets the small stuff weigh her down. As insightful and logical as she is kind, she has all the ingredients for creating the perfect recipe to pin down a cunning killer.
Every scene in this cozy was steeped in the Halloween season. The food prep descriptions were so tantalizingly fun that I could almost smell the tangy spices wafting over me. Jenny Kales has nailed the art of the culinary cozy, from her sweet paxemathia to her spicy beef stew. With so many tasty red herrings swimming in the stew, the real killer swam right past me! The ending held the promise of future delights, making me already hungry for the next book in the series.
A wonderful addition to a series that never disappoints. The setting, characters, and plot are all fantastic!
I love this series and returning to Crystal Bay was so much fun! This fourth installment was truly a pleasure to read and perfect to curl up with on a chilly day. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series.
Autumn in Crystal Bay, Wisconsin is simply delightful! I enjoyed the Halloween theme for the downtown business district. This is the first book in the series that I read, but I recommend reading them in order so that you get the benefit of characters , their relationships with each other, the town, and Callie’s family. There is more drama with the ex, a slower economy ,an old boyfriend, and her fledgling relationship with Ian. I love to see how she juggles her roles, her ability to stand up for herself and those she cares for. There are times when she does dumb things, but that just “humanizes” Callie, as far as I am concerned.
The recipes look so yummy! I am cooking the lemony chicken soup, tomorrow.
Halloween is approaching and all the shops in the picturesque town of Crystal Bay, Wisconsin are decorating and gearing up for the Halloween Walk and Gala which will raise funds for the local food pantry. Callie Costa, owner of Callie’s Kitchen, is cooking up a storm as usual and missing her boyfriend who is in England visiting his mother. When an employee of a neighboring business, Tea for Two, is found murdered it threatens to play havoc with all the Fall festivities that are planned. Callie, being Callie, starts investigating on her own. Added to that is the assault of a delivery man and when an ex-boyfriend makes an unwelcome appearance things don’t go quite as planned. What do all three have in common? Or is it just coincidence? The list of suspects changes daily and the motive remains unknown. I love how descriptive the writing is..you can close your eyes and picture Crystal Bay and the characters. Have a snack at hand while reading because the delicious food mentioned will make you hungry. There are several delicious recipes included in the book. I highly recommend the series and this book!
I thoroughly enjoyed this 4th in the series.
Callie and the town are getting ready for the Halloween walk which benefits the local food pantry. Deocrations, take a selfie with a skeleton, a dead body…the body was not planned. When fellow shop owner is looked at with suspicion when her employee ends up dead, Callie steps in to help. With her boyfriend out of town and a new sheriff handling the case, it adds a slight problem. When her ex-boyfriend comes around only for her to find out that he is building a mall that could ruin the town, Callie has her hands full.
I love these characters, I adore the relationship that Callie has with her family and friends, not perfect but real. I was kept guessing, I did figure out who but not why until Callie did. I love being led along with the protagonist. I will definitely continue on with this series.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Plans are underway for Crystal Bay’s first Halloween Walk. All sorts of fun activities are planned and they will wrap up with a huge gala all to support the local food pantry. The shop owners are excited to participate and have placed unique skeletons in their businesses for a #selfie challenge for prizes to bring more customers in. Callie has her hands full with Callie’s Kitchen, but she is also helping with the gala. Having an ex-boyfriend show up touting the idea of a shopping mall on the outskirts of town is the last thing she needed. But the entire town is thrown for a loop when Henry, who works at Tea for Two across the street is murdered. The tragic death is sure to dampen the festivities especially when the police start looking at the shop owners as suspects. With Sands out of the country, Callie tries to stay out of the investigation but again finds herself right in the middle of another murder case.
This is another delightful cozy mystery from Jenny Kales.
Callie is on her own this time. Detective Sands is away, Sam is buried in work, Hugh and Raine are expecting a baby. Her father steps in to help with 11-year-old Olivia when needed, but he and his lady friend seem to be getting serious. The wonderful thing about these characters is that they are relatable and believable. The Greek heritage shines within the pages. I love the relationship Callie has with her dad and how she has taken what he started and ran with it.
The mystery was intriguing. Henry was a quiet man and no one knew much about his past. Callie’s ex Ben is in town pushing hard for a new mall that scares all the business owners. Can the murder and the mall be connected? When another person is attacked more questions arise? The officer in charge of the case has not impressed Callie or the other merchants. I understood Callie’s need to keep asking questions and was really surprised when the real culprit was revealed. Ms. Kales really twisted my thinking with some great red herrings.
Of course, I love the Wisconsin setting, and it is truly portrayed. All the nuances and places felt like home. The author really brings out the small town life of Crystal Bay.
The bonus is the authentic Greek recipes at the end of the story. My mouth was watering throughout the whole book. The stews, the cookies, everything made in Callie’s Kitchen sounded good to me.
A terrific addition to this series!
A STEW TO A KILL by Jenny Kales is the 4th book in the A Callie’s Kitchen Mystery series.
A STEW TO A KILL takes place during the Halloween activities in Crystal Bay, Wisconsin including the Halloween Walk and Gala which are designed to collect food and raise money for the Crystal Bay Food Pantry. Calliope “Callie” Costas local owner of Callie’s Kitchen is determined to help both with donation, ideas and hands on helping to make these events successful.
Crystal Bay’s downtown district is close knit group looking out for one another and lending a helping hand where needed. When fellow store owner, Christy Strouse, owner of Tea for Two, finds one of her part time employees, Henry Worthington, dead in her shop early one morning prior to opening, Callie was the first to show up to assist her, called 911 and was there for her with emotional support. This isn’t the first brush with dead bodies or the law that Callie has had. She knows first-hand how accusations can cause harm both financially and emotionally and is determine to help Christy figure out what happened.
When they find out for sure it was murder and method used, there seem to be even more questions than answers. Detective Ian Sands, Callie’s boyfriend, is out of town visiting his ailing mother back in England and his replacement Detective Diane Wilson seems set on looking only at Christy as a suspect. Callie has her hands full between her normal work, planning and preparing for the Halloween Walk and Gala and doing her sleuthing. Thanks to her close knit employees, Max, Piper and Josh who are more like friends/family, she’s able to keep it all running including running down leads.
Also in the mix, you have Callie’s ex announcing that his new wife is expecting their child, Ben Lucas – a man she made the mistake of dating after her divorce shows back up in town bugging her to sell out and join him in promoting the controversial projected new mall, Olivia her 10 year old daughter is growing up, and George – her Dad is very seriously dating Kathy. On top of this, Chuck from Dean’s Dairy was attacked outside Sweet Dreams. Was it somehow connected to the death of Henry??? Was he victim number two?
The author has a way of pulling it all together having you guessing and then second guessing everyone connected to Crystal Bay as you read and swiftly turn the pages. She dishes our clues just like she does delicious sounding food keeping the reader hungering for more of each. She satisfies both – one with a surprise ending that I personally didn’t see coming which I love in a cozy mystery and the other with great recipes at the back of the book for some of the dishes talked about in the book.
Although the fourth in a series, A STEW TO A KILL can definitely be read as a standalone. This was my first book in this series for me and I had no problem following along or knowing who was who. I recommend A STEW TO A KILL to anyone that loves a great cozy mystery with wonderful and colorful characters that you are bound to fall in love with. Jenny Kales with her skillful writing will NOT disappoint you!