Blog Tour & Giveaway: Five-Alarm Fudge by Christine DeSmet

The Cape Cod of the Midwest is this cozy’s setting

With author Christine DeSmet, the Fudge Shop Mystery Series

Ava Oosterling and her Grandpa Gil operate Oosterlings’ Live Bait, Bobbers & Belgian Fudge & Beer on a harbor in Door County, Wisconsin, known as the “Cape Cod of the Midwest.”

In Five-Alarm Fudge, Book 3 of the Fudge Shop Mystery series, Ava and her Grandpa Gil are again mixed up in a fun fudge felony—this time involving romance, royal relatives, and revenge.

When a visiting European prince asks Ava Oosterling to unearth a priceless, 1800s divinity fudge recipe, the request fans the flames of foul play, with murder marring Ava’s Cinderella dreams.

Prior to the story, Grandpa took it upon himself to invite the prince of Belgium to visit. Grandpa insists the prince is a shirt-tail relation but far enough removed by ancestors to qualify as marriage material for Ava.

Ava is beside herself with Grandpa. She’s in the midst of a rekindled romance with her ex, Dillon Rivers, who is refurbishing the Blue Heron Inn in order for Ava to take it over. In the meantime, Ava lives in a rundown rental cabin with an ever-present field mouse.

Grandpa has also promised the prince that Ava will find a long, lost divinity fudge recipe supposedly hidden in a local historical church by a Belgian nun during an 1871 fire.

The irony of being surrounded by miles and miles of water in this peninsular county is that on October 8, 1871 the very real Great Fire happened—taking an estimated 1,500 to 2,000 lives in this region. This event occurred the same days as the famous Chicago fire that took about 300 lives.

This novel delves into a lot of real history of the region. Did you know that this area is home to the only church-sanctioned Marian sighting in the United States? You’ll learn about the real Sister Adele Brise, who hid in a wood church and was spared in the Great Fire. Prior to that event, she reported being visited by Mary, the mother of Jesus. Today, travelers from across the United States stop at the shrine in Champion, Wis., on their way to Door County.

Just north of there, in Namur, Wis., Grandpa Gil feels sure that the traveling, teaching nun must have hidden an early version of a divinity fudge recipe in the brick church, thus protecting the special recipe from fires.

Ava scours the local church for the recipe, but instead finds a dead body, a fire, and the start of a game of hide-and-seek with an arsonist out to do in Ava before she can try on the glass slipper.

Other regular characters in my series include Ava’s best friend Pauline, who’s a kindergarten teacher, and Laura, who’s having twins and waiting for her husband to come home from a special mission in the Middle East.

There’s also a smart gaggle of church ladies who often cause Ava no end of trouble when they volunteer at the fudge shop.

And Dillon Rivers’ American water spaniel, Lucky Harbor, finds his nose in all kinds of trouble in every fudge mystery.

My series presents a warm-hearted view of a real place popular for vacations. I hope readers have a chance to look it up online to explore and then visit sometime where reading a Fudge Shop Mystery while lazing away a day in a hammock is what Door County is all about.

About the Author:

Christine DeSmet writes the Fudge Shop Mystery Series (Penguin Random House/NAL/Obsidian). She’s also an award-winning scriptwriter and teaches writing at University of Wisconsin-Madison Continuing Studies where she directs the annual June Write-by-the-Lake Writer’s Workshop & Retreat. You can write to her at UW-Madison, cdesmet@dcs.wisc.edu or find her on Facebook or at her website, www.ChristineDeSmet.com.

It’s autumn in Fishers’ Harbor, Wisconsin, and fudge shop owner Ava Oosterling is busy preparing for the harvest festival and a visit from some royal relatives who live in Belgium. According to Ava’s grandpa, a famous divinity fudge recipe from the 1860s is hidden somewhere in a local historical church—a treat fit for a prince.

But when a fire in the church reveals the body of a murdered man, it looks like someone is willing to go to any length to possess the valuable secret to the divinity fudge. As Ava searches for the killer—and the recipe—she could use a little divine intervention, because she may have bitten off more than she can chew…

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Jennifer’s Review of Five-Alarm Fudge

Review (4 Stars): Five-Alarm Fudge is a charming mystery filled with irresistible treats, fascinating characters and a complex plot-driven whodunnit that kept me reading past my bedtime. Ava and her family are preparing for a visit from some royal relatives and Ava must find a missing fudge recipe that her grandfather said that she would make for their visiting guests.  When a fire in the church leads to the discovery of a dead body, Ava learns that this missing recipe may be the motive for murder and is on the hunt to find another killer before it is too late.

Ava is such an interesting character and I enjoy spending time with her and her lovely friends with each new mystery.  I loved seeing how far she has come over the course of the series, especially in her relationship with her old flame, Dillon.  The mystery was entertaining and fun and I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the Fudge Shop Mystery series.

Giveaway

I’m excited to give away a copy of Five Alarm Fudge. This giveaway is for US Residents only.  To be entered in the drawing by April 22nd, please leave me a comment below: