L. J Washburn

All year round, retired schoolteacher Phyllis Newsom is as sweet as peach pie-except during the Peach Festival, whose blue ribbon has slipped through Phyllis's fingers more than once...Everyone's a little shook up when the corpse of a no-good local turns up underneath a car in a local garage. But even as Phyllis engages in some amateur sleuthing, she won't let it distract her from out-baking her rivals and winning the upcoming Peach Festival contest....

After all the planning, the big day has finally arrived. Eve Turner, one of Phyllis Newsom's boarders and best friend, is getting married to the affable Ray Porter. While she's sad to see Eve go, Phyllis is happy to host the event in her home and bake the wedding cake. The day runs as smoothly as buttercream, but the marriage doesn't last long past the honeymoon. When Roy is found dead at a bed-and-breakfast, Eve is the top suspect.

In the latest from the nationally bestselling author of The Candy Cane Cupcake Killer, Phyllis Newsom returns with a blackberry and blueberry pie recipe that's to die for ... It's late summer in Weatherford, Texas and Mike Newsom's childhood friend is sweltering in prison for a crime he claims he didn't commit, murdering his wife. So instead of asking his mother to please stop investigating a murder, as he usually does, he asks her and Sam to please...

It's time for the State Fair of Texas-and cooking contests galore! Fryers are heating up and stomachs are growling. But Phyllis Newsom had better watch out. Someone's brought an appetite for murder ... Phyllis and her friends Carolyn and Sam are ready to whip up their best dishes and win some ribbons in Dallas. And they're excited to learn that one of their favorite celebrity chefs-Joye Jameson of The Joye of Cooking-is broadcasting her TV show from...

"On Hank Littleton's first assignment as a Texas Ranger, he shows how his crack-shot aim can stop the careful escape plan of a group of prisoners being escorted to Austin. Then his captain again pairs him with war veteran Joe Casebolt on a do-or-die assignment: catch the notorious band of robbers led by former lawman Isom Whitaker that is working the stages and rails near San Antonio. The two Rangers soon conclude that this wouldn't be such a tough...

Going back to school can be a killer! Phyllis Newsom and Sam Fletcher come out of retirement to take substitute teacher jobs as a favor for some friends, but they soon realize that the more things change, the more they stay the same. That means getting up early, dealing with students and other teachers, and helping out with extracurricular activities. The problem is, for Phyllis, stumbling over dead bodies is an extracurricular activity! When murder...

"It's Halloween in Weatherford, Texas-- which means Phyllis Newsom is baking up a storm of yummy seasonal treats ... but she's about to get even busier unmasking a killer ... While Phyllis and her friend Carolyn are preparing for a baking contest, her housemate Sam adopts Buck, an adorable Dalmatian who was hit by a car. To thank local veterinarian Hank Baxter for helping the dog, Phyllis and Carolyn bake a batch of doggie treats for his other four-legged...