Blog Tour & Giveaway: Town in a Sweet Pickle by B.B. Haywood

A Traveler’s Guide to Cape Willington, Maine

by B.B. Haywood
author of Town in a Sweet Pickle

Welcome to the fictional town of Cape Willington, Maine, founded in 1737 by sea captain Elijah Blake Willington. Elijah and his crew were headed for Portland Harbor when they got caught in a storm and had to travel further up the coast to get to land safely. The town has grown one hundred fold since that night. Now you can take a stroll down the Main Street and see all of the shops, new and old, and meet a few of the local characters as well.

Your first stop should be the Main Street Diner for a bite to eat. You’ll find all kinds of fantastic diner food here, including fresh seafood and local favorites. You can also catch up on the local news with Henry “Doc” Holliday and his friends. They usually sit in the corner booth, unless it’s occupied by tourists. Doc sits at that booth so often everyone calls it “The Doc office.”

For dessert, I would recommend stopping at the Black Forest Bakery for authentic German pastries, freshly baked every day by Georg Wolfsburger. Georg is a relatively recent transplant to Cape Willington, and a welcome one at that. His pastries are well known up and down the East Coast. His humor and friendliness are baked into every pastry. Maggie Tremont will be at the front counter to greet you when you walk in. She will try to get you to sample a pastry! She’s pretty convincing, so I would do what she says. (Just a little local gossip: Maggie and Georg are engaged, although they haven’t set a wedding date yet. But who knows—maybe they will soon!)

Don’t forget to stop in at Zeke’s General Store, also located on Main Street. Trudy Watkins and her husband Richard run the general store, which has been in continuous operation since the early 1800s. You can still find all of your favorite penny candies and an old counter with stools, where you can sit and have an ice cream. Trudy has a wonderful eye for gifts, new and antique alike. The store is definitely worth a stop.

After you’ve totally stuffed yourself, head down Ocean Avenue to see the historical Pruitt Opera House. It boasts a beautiful widow’s walk at the top of the building. The story around town is that Candy Holliday and Maggie Tremont almost lost their lives defending themselves from a murderer who chased them up the stairs and out onto the walk about five years ago. Thankfully they survived, and Candy is now quite the sleuth, with Maggie by her side.

Now it’s time to take a drive along the breathtakingly gorgeous Coastal Loop road (Route 192 for those of you with maps) for beautiful views of the sea and the Cape. The cliffs are to die for. Leave your car windows down and take in a deep breath of fresh, salty sea air. You’ll feel like a whole new person. If only we could bottle that scent!

Just keep driving around the Cape and you might find yourself at Holliday’s Blueberry Acres, located on the outskirts of town. If you do, drop in for a cup of tea with Candy and her father, Doc. Candy just might offer you a slice of her famous blueberry pie. Do not refuse! The blueberries at the farm are the tastiest you will find in Maine. If they have time, they might give you a tour of the blueberry fields and gardens, and you can meet “the girls”—Candy’s chickens, which she keeps in a chicken coop behind the barn. I heard she is trying to teach them to speak French!

Take as many photos as you like for your Instagram. Enjoy your stay in town, and please visit again soon!

NOTE: Town in a Sweet Pickle is Book #6 in the New York Times bestselling Candy Holliday Murder Mystery Series. It will be available in print and as a digital book on Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2015. Other titles in the series include Town in a Strawberry Swirl, Town in a Pumpkin Bash, and Town in a Blueberry Jam. Large print editions of all the books and an audiobook of Town in a Blueberry Jam are also available. For more information on the series, visit www.hollidaysblueberryacres.com.

About the Author:

B. B. Haywood is a pseudonym of writing team Beth Feeman and Robert Feeman. They conceived the idea for the Candy Holliday mysteries while driving around the Maine countryside, stopping at different small towns throughout the state.

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When Candy organizes a cooking event for her local newspaper, the town’s most prominent citizens turn out to witness the popular cookbook author Julia von Fleming serve as a guest judge. But when Julia comes close to consuming a poisoned pickle, she begins to suspect someone in Cape Willington is trying to kill her—and Candy is completely jarred to be among the suspects.

But the first taste was just a sample, and soon more jars of poisoned pickles begin to pop up around town. In the face of a pickled poisoning spree, Candy will have to track down the culprit to make sure her own name stays well-preserved. Along the way, she’ll pull the lid off a briny barrel of blackmail, thievery, and revenge that’s been souring their seaside hometown for years…

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Jennifer’s Review of Town in a Sweet Pickle

Review (3.5 Stars): This is the sixth book in the Candy Holliday mystery series and I loved the idea of having poisoned pickles showing up around town causing Candy to search for clues as to who is behind all of it. I enjoyed the cooking contest and the yummy recipes that are included in this story that is sure to make your mouth water reading this delicious mystery.  Candy and the residents of Cape Willington are delightful as always and I look forward to each new mystery in the series.  I do recommend that readers start with the very first book in the series just because there was a lot of background and information that has been happening over the course of the series and this will make your visit to this wonderful community more enjoyable.

Giveaway

I’m excited to give away a copy of Town in a Sweet Pickle. This giveaway is for US Residents only.  To be entered in the drawing by February 15th, please leave me a comment below: