A Deadly Thaw is the second in the DC Connie Childs series. This installment opens with the discovery of a body, unfortunately the victim is discovered to be a man who was supposed to be dead over ten years.  His wife. Lena, had pled guilty to his murder and served her sentence.  The team assembles and has to discover the identity of the first victim, who had been cremated,  and determine why Lena lied about who he was and what happened.

While the team is working on the case, Kat, Lena’s sister also investigates as a strange figure keeps leaving her clues to Lena’s past, pushing her to uncover the truth from Lena’s perspective.  A well plotted mystery with interesting characters and good pacing, I definitely want to read more in this series.

The Gourmet Detective is the first in a series with the character of the same name.  A former chef who now is a food detective who spends time tracking down obscure ingredients, finding sources for supplies, and finding the origins or ingredients in dishes.  He finds himself in over his head when there is a murder and now maybe he is a real detective.  A culinary cozy with very detailed food, wine and music combinations.  I enjoyed this a great deal.  I will say that the book was published in 1996 and some references are representative of that time.