Reading with Mrs. Leaf

Title: Murder is a Piece of Cake Author: VM Burns Publication: 6/27/2023  Genre: Cozy Mystery  Series: Baker Street Mysteries #2 Summary from the publisher :  With small town New Bison’s Spring Festival just around the corner, the pressure is on Maddy to continue her late great-aunt Octavia’s legacy. That means scoring the top prize and transforming Baby Cakes into Southwest Michigan’s must-visit bakery, even though her inexperience in the kitchen brings nightmares of humiliating tagged photos and scathing reviews. IThere’s another reason for lost beauty sleep. A second bakery is opening in town under the ownership of CJ Davenport, a shrewd investor with a reputation for sabotaging anyone who gets in his way. And savvy, flashy Maddy tops his list. It’s a sticky spot to be in—more so when Davenport turns up dead with a Baby Cakes’s knife stuck in his back. Maddy’s whole life just went from #thriving to barely surviving. Now, supported by the crafty Baker Street Irregulars ...

Today I am so excited to bring you an interview with Frank Anthony Polito, author of the quozy series Domestic Partners in Crime. This series has completely captured my heart, I pre-order each book as soon as I get a chance and recommend it to everyone. Thank you Frank for joining us today on my blog!  1. Can you give us a background of what your series is about?  Domestic Partners in Crime is a “qozy” (queer cozy) mystery series, featuring a gay millennial couple, Peter “PJ” Penwell and his real-life domestic partner John Paul “JP” Broadway. PJ is a bestselling mystery author and JP is a professional actor. After living together in Brooklyn, they move to Peter’s native Detroit, where they buy an historic house that they renovate as part of a hit TV home renovation show called...what else? Domestic Partners. Of course, someone always dies, and it’s up to PJ and JP to solve the mystery, since no one is ever murdered in the quaint little suburb of Pleasant Woods...until now. And...

3 years ago I jumped into the world of sharing my thoughts about books on Instagram and haven't looked back since. It's been quite the journey and I have loved every moment of it! My love of books has only grown over the years as I have learned more about my own reading habits, connected with other readers and authors and have had many opportunities come my way.  One of my goals for 2023 was to be more connected to the community as opposed to just sharing reviews. I wanted to have deeper conversations about the books I read,  the characters I love and to connect with other readers and authors. So far I’ve immersed myself into Bookclub chats, buddy reads and zoom calls. I’ve started interviewing authors & was even a guest on a podcast. Here are a few of the highlights from the last year:  Asking Kathleen a question about Crow Mary My very own Little Free Library! Hosting Leslie Budewitz in a Virtual Book club I was a guest on the Get Cozy Podcast in May I hosted an in ...