Cloche and Dagger

Praise for

Cloche and Dagger

“A delicious romp through my favorite part of London with a delightful new heroine.”

—Deborah Crombie,
New York Times
bestselling author

“Brimming with McKinlay’s trademark wit and snappy one-liners, Anglophiles will love this thoroughly entertaining new murder mystery series. A hat trick of love, laughter, and suspense, and another feather in [Jenn McKinlay’s] cap.”

—Hannah Dennison, author of the Vicky Hill Mysteries

“Fancy hats and British aristocrats make this my sort of delicious cozy read.”

—Rhys Bowen, national bestselling author of
the Royal Spyness Mysteries

Praise for Jenn McKinlay’s Library Lover’s Mysteries

Due or Die

“[A] terrific addition to an intelligent, fun, and lively series.”

—Miranda James,
New York Times
bestselling author of
the Cat in the Stacks Mysteries

“What a great read! I can’t wait to go back to the first title in this cozy, library-centered series. McKinlay has been a librarian, and her snappy story line, fun characters, and young library director with backbone make for a winning formula. Add a dog named Heathcliff and library programming suggestions—well, it’s quite a value-added package!”

—Library Journal

“McKinlay’s writing is well paced, her dialogue feels very authentic, and I found
Due or Die
almost impossible to put down.”

—
CrimeSpree

Books Can Be Deceiving

“When murder disturbs the quiet community of Briar Creek on the ocean’s edge, librarian Lindsey Norris springs into action to keep her best friend from being charged with the crime. A sparkling setting, lovely characters, books, knitting, and chowder! What more could any reader ask?”

—Lorna Barrett,
New York Times
bestselling author of
the Booktown Mysteries

“With a remote coastal setting as memorable as Manderley and a kindhearted, loyal librarian as the novel’s heroine,
Books Can Be Deceiving
is sure to charm cozy readers everywhere.”

—Ellery Adams, author of the Books by the Bay Mysteries

“Fast-paced and fun,
Books Can Be Deceiving
is the first in Jenn McKinlay’s appealing new mystery series featuring an endearing protagonist, delightful characters, a lovely New England setting, and a fascinating murder. Don’t miss this charming new addition to the world of traditional mysteries.”

—Kate Carlisle,
New York Times
bestselling author of
the Bibliophile Mysteries

Praise for Jenn McKinlay’s Cupcake Bakery Mysteries

Red Velvet Revenge

“With a rodeo, a road trip, and the delectable title
Red Velvet Revenge
, the Fairy Tale Cupcake bakers are back, lassoed into big trouble this time. You’re in for a real treat with Jenn McKinlay’s Cupcake Bakery Mystery. I gobbled it right up.”

—Julie Hyzy,
New York Times
bestselling author of
the White House Chef Mysteries

“Sure as shootin’,
Red Velvet Revenge
pops
with fun and great twists. Wrangle up some time to enjoy the atmosphere of a real rodeo as well as family drama. It’s better than icing on the tastiest cupcake.”

—Avery Aames, author of
Clobbered by Camembert

Death by the Dozen

“
It’s the best yet, with great characters, and a terrific, tightly written plot.”

—
Lesa’s Book Critiques

“Like a great fairy tale, McKinlay transports readers into the world of cupcakes and all things sweet and frosted, minus the calories. Although . . . there are some pretty yummy recipes at the end.”

—AnnArbor.com

Buttercream Bump Off

“A charmingly entertaining story paired with a luscious assortment of cupcake recipes that, when combined, make for a deliciously thrilling mystery.”

—
Fresh Fiction

“Another tasty entry, complete with cupcake recipes, into what is sure to grow into a perennial favorite series.”

—
The Mystery Reader

Sprinkle with Murder

“A tender cozy full of warm and likable characters and a refreshingly sympathetic murder victim.”

—
Publishers Weekly
(starred review)

“McKinlay’s debut mystery flows as smoothly as Melanie Cooper’s buttercream frosting. Her characters are delicious, and the dash of romance is just the icing on the cake.”

—Sheila Connolly,
New York Times
bestselling author of
Buried in a Bog

“Jenn McKinlay delivers all the ingredients for a winning read. Frost me another!”

—Cleo Coyle,
New York Times
bestselling author of
the Coffeehouse Mysteries

“A delicious new series featuring a spirited heroine, luscious cupcakes, and a clever murder.”

—Krista Davis, author of the Domestic Diva Mysteries

Berkley Prime Crime titles by Jenn McKinlay

Cupcake Bakery Mysteries

SPRINKLE WITH MURDER

BUTTERCREAM BUMP OFF

DEATH BY THE DOZEN

RED VELVET REVENGE

GOING, GOING, GANACHE

Library Lover’s Mysteries

BOOKS CAN BE DECEIVING

DUE OR DIE

BOOK, LINE, AND SINKER

Hat Shop Mysteries

CLOCHE AND DAGGER

THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP

Published by the Penguin Group

Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA

USA | Canada | UK | Ireland | Australia | New Zealand | India | South Africa | China

Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

For more information about the Penguin Group, visit penguin.com.

CLOCHE AND DAGGER

A Berkley Prime Crime Book / published by arrangement with the author

Copyright © 2013 by Jennifer McKinlay Orf.

Excerpt from
Death of a Mad Hatter
by Jenn McKinlay copyright © 2013 by Jennifer McKinlay Orf.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

Berkley Prime Crime Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group.

BERKLEY
^®
PRIME CRIME and the PRIME CRIME logo are trademarks of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

For information, address: The Berkley Publishing Group,

a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,

375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.

ISBN: 978-1-101-62469-2

PUBLISHING HISTORY

Berkley Prime Crime mass-market edition / August 2013

Cover illustration by Robert Steele.

Cover design by Diana Kolsky.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

For my brilliant editor, Kate Seaver.
You make my work sparkle and shine and I can’t thank you enough for all that you do.
You are wonderful!

Acknowledgments

Attempting to write about a foreign setting was a daring leap for me. Luckily, I had my agent, Jessica Faust; my editor, Kate Seaver; assistant editor, Katherine Pelz; and my family and friends to hold the net for me when I jumped. This is invaluable when you are taking a neck-breaking risk and so I thank each and every one of you.

I’d also like to express my eternal gratitude to my fellow authors Hannah Dennison, Rhys Bowen and Deborah Crombie for being willing to slog through the unedited galleys of
Cloche and Dagger
. As always, the generosity of the writing community leaves me humbled to be a part of it. Also, I’d like to thank my author friend Dorien Kelly, who introduced me to Andrea Blohm, a hat designer, who patiently answered my e-mails about the hat business and kept me from botching the details. And because it is all in the details, I’d like to acknowledge my cover artist Robert Steele for this truly brilliant cover. It’s perfect.

Lastly, I’d like to tip my hat to the three men in my life who make every day a wonderful new adventure. Chris, Beckett and Wyatt, I love you!

“Scarlett Elizabeth Parker, put down the MoonPie and listen to me,” Vivian Tremont ordered.

I held my cell phone away from my ear and frowned at it. How could my cousin who was almost five thousand miles away and in another country know I was eating a MoonPie? I put it down on my coffee table and swallowed the bite of cookie, marshmallow and chocolate I’d just taken.

“I’m not eating a MoonPie,” I said. Technically, it was not a lie since I had just put it down.

“Oh, please, I know you, pet,” Vivian said in her crisp British way. “You always eat MoonPies when you’re upset.”

“How’s business?” I asked. I had learned in my twenty-seven years of knowing her that a change of subject was the only way to throw Viv off track.

“Not good because I’m too busy worrying about you,” she returned. Obviously, she was not to be thwarted today. “Now, here’s what I think you should do.”

Viv paused to take a deep breath and I thought about how much I disliked any sentence that had “you should” in it. Still, she was winding up for what sounded like it would be a lengthy monologue, so I decided to make use of the time by finishing my MoonPie.

“Now you know Mim left the hat shop to both of us,” she said. “I know you had other career aspirations but since those have imploded, I think it’s time for you to come to London and take up your half of the business.”

I choked on a bit of cookie. I had to give it to her. I hadn’t seen that one coming.

“I thought you said you weren’t eating a MoonPie,” she said.

“Well, actually, I’m choking on one,” I said through my hacking cough.

“How can you eat that rot?” she asked.

“Aw, come on,” I said. “I know you ate the box that I sent you for Christmas.”

“I tried a nibble, to be polite,” she said.

“Ha, you ate them and liked them. I know you did,” I said.

“If I did, it was the child in me acting out, so it doesn’t count because I can’t be held accountable for what childish me does. Now moving on,” she said. “What do you think of my idea?”

I paused before I answered. Mim was our grandmother, and when she had passed away five years before, she had left Mim’s Whims, her millinery business, half to Vivian, who was already working for her, and half to me. Viv had been a natural fit. She had grown up down the street from the Notting Hill shop and had spent her teen and university years working with Mim.

As for me, I was born and bred in Florida, and although I had spent my school breaks with Mim and Viv, I didn’t know squat about the hat business, which was why I had gone into the hospitality business after college, working at the posh Santiago Hotel chain headquartered in Tampa.

“Oh, come on, it’s your legacy,” Viv cajoled. “Besides, your life is in the loo, love. It’s best you put some miles between you and that blighter who broke your heart—at least try it for a little while.”

“Uff.” I huffed out a breath as a sharp pain stabbed me somewhere in the vicinity of my chest, although it could have been angina from my steady diet of MoonPies, Pringles and French onion dip. I picked up the big box of MoonPies I’d scored at the Publix grocery store a few nights before. It was light, too light. I shook it. Empty. Damn.

“He isn’t a—” I began, but Viv cut me off.

“No! Do not defend that pile of rubbish to me. The man led you to believe he was available and then you find out that he hasn’t left his wife at all by walking in on a lavish anniversary party that he threw for her,” she fumed. “I’m delighted that you lobbed chunks of five-thousand-dollar cake at him. It’s a shame your escapade got recorded and went viral on the Internet, but it was no more than he deserved.”

I felt my insides wither as they were clutched in the unforgiving fist of humiliation. I had watched the clip of the video, repeatedly, hoping my shame would become less horrific with each viewing. It never did.

On the grainy video, I looked like a deranged redheaded banshee, grabbing fistfuls of the gorgeous three-tier cake and flinging them at a man in an impeccable tuxedo, while he held up his arms and tried to protect his handsome face from a frosting pelting. The nicest comment posted about the video was that I had an arm like Nolan Ryan in his prime.

“I don’t know, Viv,” I said.

“How long has it been since you’ve showered?” she asked. “Or left your flat?”

“Three days,” I said.

“That’s it then, either you come here under your own power or I’m coming to get you,” she said. Being two years older than me, Viv could be the teensiest bit bossy. “I’m booking you a ticket now for the first flight out of Tampa International tomorrow. Are you in?”

I thought about staying holed up in my apartment until I died. It had a certain appeal. Then I thought about fleeing the country to be with my cousin. It had slightly more appeal.

“All right,” I agreed. “Book it.”