Dying for Chocolate

Five-Star Praise for DYING FOR CHOCOLATE and the

Nationally Bestselling Mysteries of Diane Mott Davidson

“A CLASSIC WHODUNIT that’s the PERFECT BOOK for food lovers.”

— Daily News, NY

“VERY ENTERTAINING.”

—Cosmopolitan

“A CROSS BETWEEN MARY HIGGINS CLARK AND BETTY CROCKER.”

—The Sun, Baltimore

“Diane Mott Davidson’s CULINARY MYSTERIES CAN BE HAZARDOUS TO YOUR WAISTLINE.”

—People

“THE JULIA CHILD OF MYSTERY WRITERS.”

—Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph

“DAVIDSON HAS FOUND THE RECIPE FOR BESTSELLERS.”

—The Atlanta Constitution

“MOUTHWATERING.”

—The Denver Post

“DELICIOUS . . . SURE TO SATISFY!”

—Sue Grafton

“If devouring Diane Mott Davidson’s newest whodunit in a single sitting is any reliable indicator, then this was A DELICIOUS HIT.”

—Los Angeles Times

“You don’t have to be a cook or a mystery fan to love Diane Mott Davidson’s books. But if you’re either—or both—her tempting recipes AND ELABORATE PLOTS ADD UP TO A LITERARY FEAST!”

—The San Diego Union-Tribune

“Mixes recipes and mayhem to PERFECTION.”

—The Sunday Denver Post

“Davidson is one of the few authors who have been able to seamlessly stir in culinary scenes without losing the focus of the mystery. . . . [SHE] HAS MADE THE CULINARY MYSTERY MORE THAN JUST A PASSING PHASE.”

—Sun-Sentinel, Fort Lauderdale

“Goldy and her collection of friends and family CONTINUE TO MIX UP DANDY MYSTERIES AND ADD TEMPTING RECIPES to the readers’ cookbooks at the same time.”

—The Dallas Morning News

ALSO BY DIANE MOTT DAVIDSON

Chopping Spree

Catering to Nobody

The Cereal Murders

The Last Suppers

Killer Pancake

The Main Corpse

The Grilling Season

Prime Cut

Tough Cookie

Sticks & Scones

Available from Bantam Books

To my parents,

Admiral and Mrs. William Mott

“I wouldn’t ask too much of her,” I ventured. “You can’t repeat the past.”

“Can’t repeat the past?” he cried incredulously. “Why of course you can!”

—F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

Acknowledgments

The author wishes to acknowledge the assistance of the following people: Jim Davidson; Jeffrey Davidson; J. Z. Davidson; Joey Davidson; Sandra Dijkstra; Katherine Goodwin; Kate Miciak; Karen Johnson and John William Schenk, J. William’s Catering, Bergen Park, Colorado; Rob Esterbrook, Respond Security, Denver; the staff of the Evergreen branch of the Jefferson County Public Library; Ted Ning, M.D.; Thomas P. Campbell, M.D.; John Alston, Ph.D.; Heather Pashley; Melinda Thompson; Emerson Harvey, M.D.; Richard Drake, Ph.D., Department of History, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana; Deidre Elliott, Karen Sbrockey, and Elizabeth Green; the Reverend Connie Delzell; Lee Karr and the group that assembled at her home; Triena Harper, assistant deputy coroner, Jefferson County, and Investigator Richard Millsapps, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, Golden, Colorado.

Prayer book quotations are from The Book of Common Prayer, published by The Church Pension Fund.

Elk Park Preparatory School Elk Park, Colorado

June Alumni-Alumnae Brunch

CHAMPAGNE

FRUIT SALAD OF CANTALOUPE,

STRAWBERRIES, KIWI

ENGLISH CHEDDAR STRATA

RASHERS OF BACON

SALLY LUNN BREAD, SAUSAGE CAKE

MACADAMIA-NUT COFFEE CAKE, BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

PRESERVES AND HONEY

COFFEE, TEA

1.

Brunch is a killer. I hate it, and among food people I’m in good company. James Beard found the idea of a heavy meal between meals idiotic. He said, “You don’t have something called lunny-dinny, do you?”