Ladle to the Grave by Connie Archer (VBB, excerpt and GIVEAWAY) GFT

 

Ladle to the Grave

by Connie Archer

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GENRE: Mystery

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BLURB:

A poisoning at a pagan ritual . . . a dead man floating in the creek . . . Are both murders connected and will more victims fall prey to a killer?

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EXCERPT

One woman stepped forward and doused her candle on the stone altar.  She grasped the bowl in both hands.  Cordelia paused, about to speak, but before she could utter a word, the woman drank the brew in its entirety.  Cordelia stared at her, then filled the bowl again as a second woman stepped forward.   

A strangled sound came from the lips of the first woman to drink.  She gasped, clutching her throat.  Her eyes grew large in panic as she tried to speak.  Her chest heaved with the effort to breathe.  She dropped to the ground as her legs crumpled beneath her.  The others watched helplessly as the woman lay before them, retching and gasping for air. 

“Agnes,” Emily cried out. 

“What’s wrong?”  Cecily asked. 

Someone replied in alarm.  “She can’t breathe.  Help her!”

“Let me through.  I know CPR,” Emily Rathbone pushed the women aside.  They stepped back and stared as Agnes continued to gasp.  Emily struggled to lift Agnes’s head and open her jaw while Agnes writhed violently. 

“Help me hold her.”  Emily shouted.  Two of the women knelt.  One held Agnes’s arms and the other, her legs.  Emily tilted Agnes’s head and checked her throat.  “There’s nothing there.  Nothing’s interfering with her breathing.  Maybe it’s an allergic reaction.”  She deftly rolled Agnes to her side.  Agnes’s head fell forward, her movements still violent.  She retched again and whispered, “help me.”  Then her body went limp. 

Complete stillness filled the clearing.  No one spoke.  Someone finally whispered, “Is she breathing?” 

Emily felt for a pulse while the women watched in silence.  She looked up at their concerned faces.  “Agnes is gone.” 

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Connie Archer is the national bestselling author of the Soup Lover’s Mystery series from Penguin Random House (Berkley Prime Crime).  A Spoonful of Murder, A Broth of Betrayal, A Roux of Revenge and Ladle to the Grave are set in the imaginary village of Snowflake, Vermont.  A Clue in the Stew will be released in April 2016.  Connie was born and raised in New England and now lives on the other coast.  

 You can visit her at her website

Facebook
Twitter @ SnowflakeVT.

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