Peril in Paperback: A Bibliophile Mystery

his heels. His hand moved gently up and down the baby’s pink-pajama-clad back.
    I could feel my heart breaking, it was such a precious sight. Then he looked at me and smiled. “Pretty special, huh?”
    I nodded, unable to speak.
    “Oh, my God, Brooklyn,” Suzie whispered. “He needs one of those.”
    Oh, boy.
I fumbled for my tissue before I drowned in these darn tears.
    Next to me, Kiki sighed. “Isn’t that the sweetest thing you’ve seen all day?”
    “Pretty much,” I whispered, trying to swallow around the lump in my throat.
    “Oh, hey,” Suzie said, and looked at Grace. “You were supposed to make a big announcement tonight.”
    Grace rolled her eyes, then wrapped her arm around Ruth’s waist. “My big announcement. Well, I was finally going to come out of the closet in front of my family and friends, but Ruth decided to push me out instead.”
    Ruth blushed. “I’ve got a big mouth.”
    Everyone laughed and Suzie gave her aunt a tight hug. “Welcome to my side of the closet.”
    “You were my inspiration, sweetie,” Grace said softly. “You live your life with no apologies and no excuses, and I admire you more than anyone I’ve ever known.”
    “Oh no,” Suzie wailed, and began to cry. “Damn it! There I go again.”
    I silently handed her another tissue and she blew her nose.
    “You’re such a girl,” Vinnie said to Suzie, and hugged her.
    “I think it’s time for birthday cake and ice cream,” Grace announced.
    Merrilee was already on it. She ran to open the door for Chef Tang, who walked in pushing a kitchen cart holding a beautifully decorated sheet cake with blazing candles.
    We sang “Happy Birthday,” then the chef cut and plated the pieces of cake. Merrilee and Ruth walked around, handing a plate to each guest. I noticed that Grace wasn’t eating any.
    “Aren’t you having any cake?” I asked. “It’s delicious.”
    “I’ll have some tomorrow,” she said. “But tonight I get my favorite dessert. Once a year Tang bakes me a special treat. It’s an old family recipe his mother and his grandmother used to make. He brought it with him from his remote village in Thailand.”
    Tang walked back into the room, carrying a large parfait glass filled with an elaborate concoction topped with huge swirls of whipped cream.
    “What is that?” I asked.
    “Mm,” Grace said, licking her lips. “It’s Tang’s specialty. The best tapioca pudding in the world, made completely from scratch.”

Don’t miss the next Bibliophile Mystery,
    A Cookbook Conspiracy
    Available in June 2013 in hardcover from Obsidian and as an e-book.
    Here’s a peek at the opening pages…
     

I don’t mind admitting that I’m a little obsessed with food. A childhood spent competing with five brothers and sisters at the dinner table will do that to you. I grew up loving good food as much as I love old books, which is saying a lot, since I’m a bookbinder and old books are my life’s blood.
    My current food fixation is cheeseburgers, but I’m not picky; I love everything. Last month I was hooked on doughnuts. Before that, it was tamales. Chocolate is a constant, of course. I get happy chills when I see a new building going up in my neighborhood, because it means that food trucks will start showing up every morning to feed the construction crew. I love food trucks.
    So, given my deep admiration for all things foodie, it seems like a cruel joke that the universe declined to endow me with even the teensiest smidgen of cooking talent. Damn you, universe! You can be a real bully sometimes. And never was your cosmic cruelty more evident than the day my oddball sister Savannah received her Grand Diplôme from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, France. Savannah, a chef? It wasn’t fair!
    Let’s break it down. There are two kinds of people in the world: the ones who claim they “forgot to eat lunch” and the ones who have never missed a meal. Savannahhas been skipping meals her entire life. How she wound up in the Wainwright family is a question for the ages. Equally perplexing is how she ended up in charge of a world-class gourmet kitchen. The girl forgets to eat!
    Don’t get me wrong—I love Savannah. I love all of my siblings. My peacenik parents always encouraged us kids to treat one another with infinite kindness and unconditional love, even while we were pulling each other’s hair and stealing Barbie dolls and Legos.
    So a few months ago, when Savannah returned to Dharma, our hometown in the