Crime and Parchment: A Rare Books Cozy Mystery
by Daphne Silver
About Crime and Parchment
Crime and Parchment: A Rare Books Cozy Mystery
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Fictional town of Rose Mallow, Maryland on the Chesapeake Bay
Level Best Books (November 21, 2023)
Print length : 226 pages
Digital ASIN : B0CKVBLPCY
Rare books librarian Juniper Blume knows this much… an ancient Celtic manuscript shouldn’t be in a Maryland cemetery. But that’s exactly what her brother-in-law claims.
Last year, Juniper saw the 1,200-year-old Book of Kells in Ireland. She learned how their bejeweled covers were stolen centuries ago, never to be seen again. So how could they have ended up in Rose Mallow, a small Chesapeake Bay town? Being Jewish, the Book of Kells might not be her sacred text, but as a rare books librarian, the ancient book is still sacred to her, making it important to Juniper to find out the truth.
Rose Mallow is the same place where Juniper used to summer with her sister Azalea and their grandmother Zinnia, known as Nana Z. Ever since Nana Z passed away, Juniper’s avoided returning, but her curiosity is greater than her grief, so she heads down in her vintage convertible with her rescue dog Clover.
Juniper discovers that her sister Azalea has transformed their grandmother’s Queen Anne style mansion into the Wildflower Inn, backing up to the Chesapeake Bay. Although Juniper isn’t much of a cook, Azalea has kept their grandmother’s legacy alive, filling the house with the smells of East European Jewish treats, like sweet kugels and tzimmes cake. Will coming back here feel like returning home or fill Juniper with a deeper sorrow? Can she apologize to her sister for not being there when she was needed most?
Book Excerpt
My 1965, robin’s egg blue convertible backfired as I parked in front of the Wildflower Inn. The noise set off Clover barking in the backseat. Not exactly the quiet homecoming I’d hoped for. I jumped out of my Karmann-Ghia – or “KG” as I’d nicknamed her – to check under the hood, hoping I wouldn’t need to get the roadster serviced yet again. No idea where that money would come from.
A screaming, ranting madwoman poured out of a neighboring house. Maybe in her late seventies, she brandished a large umbrella. I dropped the hood to find the umbrella pointing at me. Clover – all twenty pounds of him – jumped out and started growling.
“Easy, boy,” I said.
“You shoot something off, Missy? Here to cause trouble? Because I’m on the board of the Friends of the Rose Mallow Police.” the woman said. She wore a perfectly fitted Mamie Eisenhower pink skirt suit with enormous pearls – straight out of the 1950s. Her white bouffant billowed around her head. She reminded me of a researcher I’d helped earlier that day at the Library of Congress. That woman had been a murder mystery author looking for books about early detectives. This woman looked like she wanted to murder someone – namely me.
About Daphne Silver
Daphne Silver is the author of the Rare Books Cozy Mystery series. She’s worked more than twenty years in museums and has the great fortune of being married to a librarian. When she’s not writing, she’s drawing and painting. She lives in Maryland with her family. Although she’s not much of a baker, she won’t ever turn down a sweet lokshen kugel.
GUEST POST
In Crime and Parchment, my main character Juniper Blume isn’t a good baker, but her sister Azalea is, often creating their late grandmother’s East European Jewish recipes. One of their favorites is creating kugel!
Sweet Lokshen Kugel (Jewish Noodle Pudding)
Ingredients:
- 8 ounces wide egg noodles
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 2 cups cottage cheese
- 2 cups sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup raisins (optional)
- 1/4 cup cornflakes OR 1/2 cup apple chips (optional, for topping, see recipe below)
Instructions:
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and grease a 9×13-inch baking dish.
- Cook the egg noodles according to the package instructions until they are al dente. Drain and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together until well combined.
- Stir in the melted butter, cottage cheese, sour cream, vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, and salt. Mix until the ingredients are thoroughly combined.
- Fold in the cooked noodles and raisins (if using).
- Pour the mixture into the greased baking dish. If desired, sprinkle cornflakes evenly over the top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 45-50 minutes, or until the kugel is set and the top is golden brown.
- Allow the kugel to cool slightly before serving. It can be served warm or at room temperature.
Apple Chips (to go with the Kugel or on their own)
Ingredients
- 2 firm, medium sized apples (I used Granny Smith and Honeycrisp to mix the sweet and slightly tart)
- 1/3 (approximate) granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp (approximate) cinnamon
- Pinch of nutmeg (to taste)
- Pinch of cardamom (to taste)
Instructions:
- Preheat your oven to 225
- Select apples of your choice
- Wash, core, and thinly slice (I used a mandolin to get the super thin cuts)
- Mix together sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom in a shallow bowl
- Dip one side of each apple in the sugar mix and place them sugar side up in a single layer on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 1 ½ – 2 hours until crisp.
- Chop lightly into large flakes
Note on spices: A light pinch of cardamom (just a pinch or two over the whole batch) will help accentuate the flavor of the cinnamon, and just a pinch or two of nutmeg adds a little depth to the flavors as well. Like all spices, this is really ‘to taste’
Author Links
Website www.daphnesilver.com
Facebook www.facebook.com/daphnesilverbooks
Instagram www.instagram.com/daphnesilverbooks
GoodReads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/45491307.Daphne_Silver
Purchase Link – Amazon
TOUR PARTICIPANTS
November 22 – Novels Alive – REVIEW
November 22 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – AUTHOR GUEST POST
November 23 – Thanksgiving U.S.
November 24 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW
November 24 – Mystery, Thrillers, and Suspense – SPOTLIGHT
November 24 – fundinmental – SPOTLIGHT
November 25 – Ruff Drafts – RECIPE
November 25 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
November 26 – #BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee – SPOTLIGHT
November 26 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
November 27 – Cozy Up With Kathy – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
November 27 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
November 28 – My Reading Journeys – CHARACTER GUEST POST
November 28 – StoreyBook Reviews – AUTHOR GUEST POST
November 28 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
November 29 – Literary Gold – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
November 29 – Lady Hawkeye – SPOTLIGHT
November 30 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT
November 30 – Diane’s Book Journal – SPOTLIGHT
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