The Tomato Jam Murder
- Series: Luscious Delights , Book 6
- Release Date: October 20, 2025
- ASIN: B0FL3GD75M
- Genre: Cozy Mystery
- Available Formats: eBook
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It’s burro racing season in the Rockies, and Roxy Constantine is all for it. Now if she can come up with a good recipe for tomato jam, her summer will be complete. But when Roxy finds a body on the burro race course, she’s suddenly plunged into a murder investigation. And when her innocent friend is accused of killing her ex, Roxy must challenge a corrupt police chief who wants to shut her up. Now she needs to find the real killer and save a neighboring town from a plot to ruin its mountain magic.
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Excerpt
The burro pushed his golden nose against my hand, and I rubbed a little harder. Whatever had upset him didn’t include me. “That’s a good boy,” I said softly. He looked familiar in a way I couldn’t quite define, and I didn’t know why. He obviously wasn’t one of Laurel’s burros, and they were the only ones I’d spent any time with. Still, his coloring was distinctive, and I was sure I’d seen him before. “Let’s see if we can find your human.” I picked up the burro’s lead rope and started down the trail slowly. He seemed happy to follow along, his hooves clicking on the rocks as we descended. I studied the brush and trees on either side of the road for signs of a struggle. I was guessing whoever had brought the burro up on the mountain hadn’t let go without a limited fight. I was also searching for any other people on the trail who could help me, but we had everything to ourselves at the moment. Below the next switchback, the burro came to a sudden halt, shaking his head again. “What’s the problem, boy?” I peered around his shoulder trying to see into the dense stand of evergreens on the uphill side of the trail. A flash of color caught my eye under one of the trees. “Hello?” I called. “Anyone there?” The burro jerked against its lead rope as I spoke. “It’s okay.” I reached out to rub his nose again, but he pulled away from me. I looked around for someplace I could tie the lead rope so that he wouldn’t wander off while I checked out whatever was underneath the pine tree. The brush wasn’t that sturdy, and putting the rope under a rock would probably lead to a missing burro. “Hello?” I called again. “Hello yourself,” a male voice called. I put a hand to my hammering heart then stepped back and peered up the trail. Silas and his burro were on the switchback above us. “What’s going on?” he asked. “I don’t know. I found this little guy wandering around, and I’m trying to find his handler. I think there might be somebody in this clump of trees.” I watched Silas climb down the trail above us. Oliver, his burro, wasn’t all that excited about slowing down his descent. “Okay,” Silas said when he was level with me. “Give me the lead rope. I’ll hold onto him while you see if his owner is around.” I handed over the rope gratefully enough and stepped into the evergreen grove. The dense thatch of branches blotted out a lot of the light, but the trees were a little farther apart as I walked away from the trail. A man was lying face down in the center of the grove. On the trail, I’d seen the bright red of the bandanna he had knotted around his neck. “Um…hi?” I said, tentatively. When he didn’t move, or give any sign that he’d heard me, I stepped closer. “Mister? Are you okay?” Something about the stillness of that body made my throat tighten. I’d seen a few dead bodies in my time, but most of them had been clearly and thoroughly dead. This guy was just lying there. Very quiet. You’ve got to check. You know that. I did know it, but I didn’t like it. I leaned forward and put my hand on his shoulder. I felt the cool dead flesh through his thin cotton shirt. Yanking my hand away, I stumbled to the trail where Silas waited. “Call 911,” I gasped. “There’s a dead guy in there.”
