Murder at Classy Kitchens: A Marcie Rayner Mystery

At the start of Eaton’s witty third Marcie Rayner mystery (after 2019’s Murder at the Mystery Castle), Marcie, an operative at Blake Investigations in New Ulm, Minn., gets an unexpected client one day: her ex-husband, Jordan Rayner, a charming philanderer. “I need to hire an investigator, Marcie, in order to find out who really murdered my wife,” he tells her. Eight months earlier, Jordan married beautiful Tawn Hamlin, a celebrated designer of million-dollar kitchen renovations. Three days earlier, she was found face down on the floor of the Classy Kitchens showroom, bludgeoned with a meat mallet. With the police breathing down Jordan’s neck, Marcie agrees to look into the matter. Tawn’s imperious, mega-wealthy clients and duplicitous colleagues provide a fine parade of colorful suspects that readers will love to hate. The lively plot races along, twisting and turning in surprising directions. Cozy fans will look forward to seeing a lot more of quick-thinking and tenacious Marcie. Agent: Dawn Dowdle, Blue Ridge Literary. (Mar.)