A Dickens of a Christmas turns deadlyâŠ
As the holiday season lights up Seattleâs famed Pike Place Market, Pepper Reeceâs beloved Spice Shop is brimming with cinnamon, nutmeg, and shoppers eager to stuff their stockings. Add to the mix a tasty staff competitionâa peppermint bark-offâalong with Victorian costumes for this yearâs Dickensian Christmas theme, and Pepper almost forgets to be nervous about meeting her fisherman boyfriendâs brother for the first time.
But when a young woman working in her friend Vinnyâs wine shop is brutally assaulted, costumed revelers and holiday cheer are the last things on Pepperâs mind. Who would want to hurt Beth? Or were they looking for Vinny instead?
The vicious attack upsets everyone at Pike Place, but none more than Pepperâs own employee, Matt Kemp. At first, Pepper is baffled by his reaction, but his clandestine connection to Beth could hold the key to the assailantâs motive. Or perhaps itâs Vinnyâs ex-wife who knows more than sheâs letting on . . . and what about the mysterious top-hatted man with whom Pepper saw Beth arguing that morning?
As the secrets of the market come to light, long-held grudges, family ties, and hidden plans only further obscure the truth. Is it a ghost of the past rattling its chains, or a contemporary Scrooge with more earthly motives? As Pepper chases down a killer, someone is chasing her, and in the end, the storied market itself may hold the final, deadly clue.
A cozy holiday mystery full of culinary delights and a rich cast of characters, the sixth installment in the Spice Shop Mystery series will keep you turning the page . . . and reaching for another piece of peppermint bark.