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I am very excited to be a part of the Great Escapes Virtual Book tour for EGG DROP DEAD by Laura Childs! While I’ve been a long time fan of Laura’s Tea Shop Mystery series, I haven’t read any books in her Cackleberry Club Mysteries until now…and I found that I’ve been missing out on another fantastic series! Even though EGG DROP DEAD is the seventh book in the series, I had an easy time jumping into the book and getting to know its delightful characters. The story starts off with a bang in the very first chapter, pulling you in to see if Suzanne can find the killer who brutally murdered a well-respected, elderly dairy farmer. As she asks questions around town, she finds out there could be numerous people who had a motive for killing the farmer, which kept me guessing with each turn of the page. Along the way she rescues horses, befriends an autistic teen, and serves up delicious food at the Cackleberry Club Cafe she owns with her best friends, Toni and Petra.
Another aspect of EGG DROP DEAD, that I greatly enjoyed, is the close relationship Suzanne has with her friends and fiancé, Dr. Sam Hazelet, who all realize that Suzanne has a “devilishly curious mind”. There is plenty of sassy repartee to enliven the conversations that kept me entertained and chuckling at times. The author’s descriptive and colorful use of language effortlessly draws you in, making you feel like you’re experiencing what Suzanne is experiencing. Being a co-owner of a cafe also means there is lots of mouthwatering food being served and the author provides several recipes at the back of the book. Laura has graciously allowed me to share her recipe for Suzanne’s Cherry Cake Bars with you. These amazing treats are part cake, part cookie and super easy to make starting with a boxed cake mix. The colorful and flavorful cherry pie filling will bring holiday cheer to your dessert table this Christmas season!
Amazon Synopsis
In Laura Childs’s New York Times bestselling mystery series, Suzanne, Petra, and Toni—co-owners of the Cackleberry Club café—are back to track down another bad egg…
Maintaining good personal relationships with their suppliers is one of the secrets of the Cackleberry Club café’s success, so Suzanne doesn’t mind going out to Mike Mullen’s dairy farm to pick up some wheels of cheese. She’s looking forward to a nice visit with the mild-mannered farmer before heading back to their hectic kitchen.
But when she arrives, Mike’s nowhere to be found. The moaning of his cows leads her to look in the barn, where she discovers a bloodcurdling sight—the farmer’s dead body. Apparently not everyone was as fond of Mike Mullen as the Cackleberry Club.
Churning with grief and outrage, Suzanne, Petra, and Toni vow to find the farmer’s murderer—but as they get closer to the truth, the desperate killer gets whipped into a frenzy and plans to put the squeeze on them…
A very special thank you to Laura Childs for providing 2 hardcover copies of EGG DROP DEAD! This giveaway is administered by Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours and you can use the Rafflecopter box located below the recipe to enter. Contest ends December 18, 2016 and is limited to U.S. residents only. Winners will be announced on this page and on Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours site, as well as notified by email (so check your spam folder!)
Ingredients
- I package white cake mix
- 8 tablespoons butter, softened (divided)
- 1-1/4 cup rolled oats (divided)
- 1 egg
- 1 (21-ounce) can cherry pie filling
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees (F).
- In a large bowl, combine cake mix, 6 tablespoons butter, and 1 cup oats. Mix until crumbly.
- Reserve 1 cup of this dry mixture for topping.
- To remaining dry mixture add 1 egg and mix well until blended.
- Press mixture into greased 9" x 13" inch pan to form bottom crust.
- Pour cherry pie filling over this crust.
- With reserved dry mixture, add remaining 1/4 cup oats, 2 tablespoons butter, nuts, and brown sugar. Beat until thoroughly mixed.
- Sprinkle carefully over cherry mixture.
- Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until golden brown.
- Allow to cool.
- May be served with whipped cream or ice cream.
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TOUR PARTICIPANTS
December 4 – Varietats
December 5 – Cinnamon, Sugar, and a Little Bit of Murder
December 6 – Laura’s Interests
December 6 – Brooke Blogs
December 7 – MysteriesEtc
December 7 – Readeropolis
December 8 – Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews
December 8 – Queen of All She Reads
December 9 – Island Confidential
December 9 – Community Bookstop
December 10 – The Editing Pen
December 11 – The Book’s the Thing
December 11 – Cozy Up With Kathy
December 12 – The Power of Words
December 12 – StoreyBook Reviews
December 13 – Bibliophile Reviews
December 14 – Texas Book-aholic
December 14 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf
December 15 – Melina’s Book Blog
December 16 – A Holland Reads
December 17 – 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, &, Sissy, Too!
December 18 – Booklady’s Booknotes
My son-in-law loves cherries! Thank you for sharing the recipe for Suzanne’s Cherry Cake Bars.
My son loves Cherries Just may have to try this one
My husband likes cherries and I have all the ingredients for these bars. I’ll try them today! Thanks.
Yummy recipe
Your recipe is a definite must try since it will especially fit in at this time of year. Thank you for the review of Laura Childs’s latest book. robeader53(at)yahoo(dot)com
First, I love cherries! Next, I am a big Laura Childs fan! Then, thank you for your insights into another ‘must have’ book! Last, Happy Christmas to all!
This sounds so good and my hubby will love making it as he loves cherries. Then I can enjoy the book and review on a few sites as he got the desert and i got to get the book. Thank you for introducing your book and have a happy holiday! [email protected] peggy clayton
Egg Drop Dead and the Cherry Cake Bars sound wonderful. I really enjoyed this post and appreciate the giveaway!
I think my family would like this
I love this series, thanks for the recipe, cherries are one of my favorites, I have got to try this.
looks good & sounds great!
I would love to print copy of Egg Drop Dead by Laura Childs. Her books are very interesting. Thank you for the chance.
The Crackleberry Club books are some of my favorite series to read! I can hardly wait for it to come out tomorrow! 🙂
Great series. Looking forward to reading “Egg Drop Dead”. Laura Childs is one of my favorite authors. Thanks for the chance.
I would love to win a copy of Egg Drop Dead. It sounds like a great story. And thanks for the recipe.
I love love love this series! Cannot wait to read it! Thank you for a chance to win! Good luck everyone!
The author’s books are great to read and full of suspense.
Thanks for sharing the recipe. I have o make it as it looks so good.
What a great recipe follow-up. And the video is fantastic. I am so glad to see such great interest in Cackleberry Club food!! Thanks Kim, for doing such an awesome job.
It was my pleasure, Laura! I so enjoyed both your book and your very delicious recipe!
I don’t make much with cherries. This looks good. Thanks.
Looks good. I need to make this without walnuts but I sounds yummy.