A Good Day to Pie: A Pies Before Guys Mystery

Baker Daisy Ellery, the narrator of Popp’s welcome sequel to 2022’s Magic, Lies, and Deadly Pies, can work magic into her pies—honesty, helpfulness, success, even revenge. Her specialty is doling out karma. She runs a side gig selling “murder” pies on the dark web to abused women, though her magic can’t kill anyone who doesn’t have it coming. When Daisy is invited to participate in a TV baking contest, she’s determined to win it on her baking talent alone—no magic allowed. To her surprise, she discovers one of the contest judges is her latest murder pie target. Things take a deadly turn when someone beats Daisy to it and kills the judge before the contest is over. The show must go on, however, and Daisy has to find the killer before the police learn she was hired to deliver justice to the awful judge. The fun premise and the in-depth descriptions of food more than make up for a large cast that can be hard to keep track of and a less than clear explanation of the pie magic. Several delicious (non-magic) recipes round out a volume sure to please culinary cozy fans. Agent: Rebecca Podos, Reese Literary. (Feb.)