Four Parties and a Funeral by Maria DiRico
You don’t need to be a fan of “reality TV” to enjoy this riotous romp with a twisted mystery to boot, brought to you by Maria DiRico. It’s the 4th installment in her delightful Catering Hall Mystery series.
Mia Carina runs Belle View Banquet Manor in Queens for her dad, Ravello. Ravello is a recovering mobster, having acquired the banquet hall as payoff for a gambling debt. Yup – he’s gone straight and he’s counting on his daughter, Mia, to not only keep it that way, but earn the family a tidy profit.
Even though The Belle View has a jam-packed event schedule with proms, graduations and weddings, it’s tough, but still doable. But then there’s that “straw that broke the camel’s back” thing – and it’s about to get seriously ugly.
An unexpected booking for a casting call for the pilot of a reality TV show, The Dons of Ditmars Boulevard turns Belle View Banquet Manor and its staff not only upside down, but inside out! There are flocks of reality TV wannabees flooding the banquet hall including outrageous teens, prissy young adults and plenty of just plain old “nut jobs!”
The extremely popular event is another “first” for Mia and her staff running the banquet hall, and they are all sincerely hoping it will be their last. But for one of the TV executives, this definitely will be “their last.” One of the head honchos winds up dead – murdered to be precise. Now this mobster reality TV series is making murder a real reality– definitely NOT in the script!
Add to the chaos, Mia’s newest employee and #1 suspect, Little Donny. His dad is Big Donny, Sr., a real mobster overlord and a friend of her father. Big Donny wastes no time in telling Mia she’s gotta catch the real killer and get his son off the hook – and there’s no way she’s gonna say “no!”
Maria DiRico’s characters will keep you laughing, moaning, groaning and shaking your head as you take a stroll onto the set for The Dons of Ditmars Boulevard. Be prepared for a zany cast of uniquely crafted characters, all flamboyantly displaying their “tough guy” bravados — guaranteed to keep a cynical smile plastered on your face. And be assured: those Donettes (female mobsters/dames) are just as crazy and lethal as their male counterparts.
Even the staff of the Belle View Banquet Manor has their own special madcap skill sets and quirky lifestyles. Mixing Belle View’s staff with the over-the-top drama infested Dons and Donettes will keep you entertained as you try to unmask the real killer.
In Four Parties and a Funeral, you’ll have to decide if the murder was planned to boost the TV ratings OR if the show’s competitor was trying to sabotage their pilot. And how about those employees the company stiffed for their paychecks or promised promotions? Of course you can always “follow the money” or suspiciously eye a “scorned lover” – so many scenarios and it’s up to you to figure it all out.
This is the perfect cozy mystery to transplant you onto the set of a reality TV show like no other. It’s reality TV at it’s worst – and Maria DiRico gives us her best with this fun ride. Four Parties and a Funeral was just released in April by Kensington Publishing.
Grab your copy today of Four Parties and a Funeral – another winner in Maria DiRico’s Catering Hall Mystery series. Cozy fans will definitely want to add this to their spring/summer reading list!
A copy of this book and cover photo were provided by Kensington Publishing.