Invited to New York City by an executive interested in hiring her professor husband as a consultant, Carolyn Blue gets more than she expected when Max, the head of research and development for the pharmaceutical company, turns up dead in the pastrami.

At an opera party in Texas, the artistic director eats some bad guacamole that disagrees with him right to death. A scorned soprano admits to mixing the dish to get back at him for passing her over for her dream role. But Carolyn learns that foul play, not foul food, was the real culprit--and uncovers some unsavory secrets that lead to a full menu of suspects.

When her newfound friend, a lovely Italian woman named Paolina, is found dead in the hotel pool, food writer Carolyn Blue sets out to find the truth and put a clever killer behind bars, while sampling some of Italy's finest cuisine.

Accompanying her husband to his lecture in France, author Carolyn Blue, after an unsuccessful attempt on both of their lives, discovers that murder is on the menu when several people perish after eating poisoned gourmet delights.