Val’s new pies are foolproof—but not bulletproof. Old West ghost towns are as American as apple pie. So what better place to sponsor a pie-eating contest than the Bar X, a fake ghost town available for exclusive private events on the edge of Silicon Valley. Valentine Harris is providing the pies, hoping to boost business for her struggling Pie Town shop and become a regular supplier for the Bar … regular supplier for the Bar X.
But no sooner does she arrive in town than a stray bullet explodes the cherry pie in her hands. And the delicious dessert is not the only victim. Val finds the Bar X bartender shot dead in an alley. Egged on by her flaky friend and pie crust specialist, Charlene, Val aims to draw out the shooter. But solving a real murder in a fake ghost town won’t be easy as pie. And if Val doesn’t watch her back, her pies won’t be the only thing filled full of lead . . .
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Dollycas’s Thoughts
Bullets are blazing everywhere when Val arrives with her delivery to the Bar X, one even takes out a pie SHE WAS HOLDING!! Covered in cherry pie she discovers one of the bullets hit someone. She finds the bartender from the Bar X Saloon dead in the alley when she runs for cover. She really wants the business from this fake ghost town to improve her bottom line but is it worth getting killed over? Charlene has one of her “pie in the sky” ideas that she and Val (the Baker Street Bakers) can prove her old friend Marla is the murderer, I mean find the killer. But someone is not happy with their interference and lets them know it in some very dangerous ways.
Charlene is flakier than any of her fabulous crusts and Val loves her too much to call her out on her weird conspiracy theories. That is until she decides her old arch enemy Marla is guilty from the moment the shots were fired. Instead of trying to catch the real killer, who could still be Marla, Charleen tries to twist up all the facts. I will admit to laughing out loud as Marla and Charlene’s rivalry soared to new heights throughout the story. The author also introduces a supporting cast at the Bar X. These characters, like the ones we met in the first story, are very well written. We learn a lot about all of them within these pages.
I really enjoyed the setting of the Old West ghost town. Still new and just getting ready to open with a big event, a pie eating contest. A great way to mesh together the Pie Town shop with a new business. I also liked the little place Val has moved into. A very unique idea and the views are to die for.
The murder at the ranch gave a wide range of suspects. Who had alibis and who didn’t? Was it two people working together? Another murder shakes the investigation up as the fingers are being pointed at almost everyone.
A lot of drama took place away from the Bar X too. Val is being targeted by the killer, Heidi, owner of the gym next door is still on her SUGAR KILLS rampage, Val ex is still hanging around every though Val is trying to actually make it through a date with Detective Gordon Carmichael, and there may be fairies or ghosts in the local dog park.
Between Charlene’s trying to divert attention to Marla and the nice twists given by the author, I found this mystery very entertaining. Life at Pie Town and Val’s personal life added a lot to the story. I have never watched Stargate, but fans will love that Val and Charlene are watching the series and will enjoy the references to the characters.
Put all of this together along with all the pies and you have a delightful cozy mystery. I really like the cover too!
You are going to want to have pie available as you are reading. I recommend cherry, but skip the bullet!
Bleeding Tarts by Kirsten Weiss is the second slice of A Pie Town Mystery series. Val Harris owns Pie town in San Nicholas, California. Val along with her crust maker, Charlene McCree are taking pies out to the Bar X (an Old West ghost town available for events) for a pie eating contest. Val is hoping to get a contract to regularly supply pies from the owner, Ewan Frith which will help her struggling business (she has hired too many employees). Val is carting the cherry pies to the saloon when a shot rings out and shoots one of the pies splattering her with cherry goo. Val ducks into an alley and finds a man dead on the ground, and he is not playing opossum. Who was the shooter aiming at? The victim is Devon Blackett who was the bartender for Bar X. With Val once again a suspect in a murder case, her dinner date with Detective Gordon Carmichael is canceled. Charlene is determined that they (Baker Street Bakers) will solve the case especially since her archrival, Marla Van Helsing has decided sleuthing is her new profession (she even printed up cards). The killer, though, is a nasty varmint who wishes to derail their sleuthing by taking out Val. Then a second Bar X employee is killed. Val and Charlene need to work quickly before the Bar X turns into a real ghost town.
Bleeding Tarts is a humorous, quick paced cozy mystery. While this is the second installment in A Pie Town Mystery series, it can stand on its own. There are numerous quirky characters along with zany antics sprinkled throughout the story. Heidi, who own Heidi’s Gym, is back and she has increased the size of her “Sugar Kills” sign (her business is next door to Pie Town). Charlene is still going around town with Frederick, her cat, draped about her shoulders. Marla Van Helsing is a black widow (all of her husbands were rich and are now dead) on the prowl for her latest victim (i.e. husband). Val needs this venture with Bar X to be a success since her business is doomed without it. She has taken on too many employees and there is not enough money coming in to support them (assistant manager, pie crust maker, dishwasher, pie maker). It might help if she did not have coffee available for customers on the honor system (put money in a jar). I think Val should take some business classes or get a good accountant. Let us not forget Charlene’s obsession with ghosts, fairies and all things extraterrestrial. She is not sure if the problem in the local park is a ghost or if fairies have moved in. I did love the Samantha Carter, Rodney McKay, and Dr. Zelenka references (fans of Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis will get it). I wish the mystery had been a stronger. There are a limited number of suspects, and I was able to identify the guilty party. There is some misdirection that could send readers down the wrong trail. My rating for Bleeding Tarts is 3 out of 5 stars. Bleeding Tarts will have you laughing from the very first page as Charlene drives them out to the Bar X (she should have her license taken away).
Let me begin with how much I love the book cover. The colours, the kitty, the pies and the deliciously messy counter caught my attention and played a big role in my decision to give this new-to-me author a try….and boy, did I have a good time with this ghost town mystery.
Charlene is a hoot and I admire Val for putting up with her crazy ideas about fairies, ghosts and aliens. Even better were the looney encounters between Charlene and Marla – I couldn’t stop laughing about their attempts to one-up each other.
It was a solid plot that left me clueless about the murderer until the big reveal.
I am looking forward to reading more in this series.
I requested this book on Netgalley and would like to thank Kensington and the author for providing me a copy.
In this second book of the series Val is hard at work trying to keep Pie Town in the black. She has taken on Bar X, a Wild West Town, as a new client. They need pies for their pie eating contest and Val can’t wait to add their name to the list of places Pie Town serves and delivers to. While making the delivery with her crust maker they run into a woman that is Charlene’s nemesis. Charlene goes off to confront Marla leaving Val to deliver the pies and while doing so not only does she find a body but someone shoots one of the pies in her hands. The dead man is a bartender at the Bar X and has only been working there a few months, who would have wanted to kill him and why? Charlene intends to find out, she has been friends with the owner and his family for years and knows he nor his daughter could have done it. The only problem is Marla, Charlene’s nemesis, saying she’s is going to find the killer first. Charlene drags Val into the investigation and they start asking questions of the workers. When Val almost gets run over by horses she wonders if they are on to something. There are only so many suspects and all claim to have an alibi but do they really? Val aims to find out. Follow along as Val runs her business, follows clues, helps another client and tries to make a date with a certain cop. This is a fun series filled with interesting characters who believe in fairies, aliens, and so much more. It’s a wonderful series that will have you laughing out loud. I look forward to seeing what Val and Charlene get into next.
I just could not connect with the characters. There was nothing about Val,Charlene or the story that interested me enough to continue past 47%.
The one plus is that the detective actually acts like one and cuts off his relationship with Val until she is (presumably) in the clear.
I received a copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.