Hey there. My name is Vangie Vale and you may have seen my book, the MatchBaker Mysteries, Volume One. This whole thing got started when I decided I would pay back a little snark with a little karma.
It was not the best move, let me tell you.
I feel like a lot of us say some variation of, “well, karma will take care of that,” like somehow, we want to see someone get what they deserve. But I’m not so sure any of us really want to see that. When I saw Scarlet Jakes get what she “deserved” after leaving my bakery, it wasn’t pretty. I immediately regretted having sent her on the road to Rolo, instead of to the Rocky Mountain Bank.
But that’s what happens when people like me decide they’re going to take matters into their own hands. We make short-sighted decisions that could potentially end up getting someone hurt.
Of course, my little town of Saint Agnes, Montana still thinks I can do no wrong, but deep down inside, I know I shouldn’t have told Scarlet to take that wrong turn. And I know I’m going to be paying for that impulsive decision for a long—long, long—time. Because deep down, I want mercy and hope and love. Not just justice.
Maybe that’s why I like Saint Agnes so much. People here believe in you. They believe in hope and mercy. Not just in justice. I needed to be in a town like this, after my last experience. You see, I didn’t come to Saint Agnes because I want to be here. I was sent here.
Sent.
That’s what they call it in my profession. They send clergy to posts. Oh, sure, my profession is: baker—a MatchBaker, to be more specific—but my calling is to be a pastor. I see them as very different. One, I could walk away from at any time. The other will always be part of me. As much as I love baking, it’s only frosting on the cake of Vangie Vale. It’s not the warm, gooey filling.
My dad thinks I chose this. Montana. He was so thrilled when I decided to venture out into parts unknown. He’s a go-big-or-go-home guy, and he paved the way from Durham, North Carolina all the way to Saint Agnes, Montana, with Duke flags and Humvees, as he says. He wants me to succeed. He thinks I wanted to be here.
And maybe I do, now—now that everything with the macarons is over. But it wasn’t always that way. It took a very intrepid friend and a very twisty-turny story for me to feel like I was as invested in Saint Agnes as it has been in me.
And while I’ll never be glad for what happened—for the so-called karma I doled out—I will always be grateful that God can turn lemons into lemon custard. Or, in this case, lemon macarons.
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Vangie Vale and the Murdered Macaron
by R. L. Syme
Vangie Vale and the Murdered Macaron (The Matchbaker Mysteries Book 1)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting – Montana
Hummingbird Books (July 21, 2017)
Paperback: 362 pages
ISBN-13: 978-1548024437
E-Book ASIN: B073ZLKBZT
Small towns and gossip go together like flaky crust and sweet pastry cream. Between the police scanners, social media, and the senior center, it’s like a zombie apocalypse where the undead consume people’s secrets instead of living flesh.
But Vangie Vale wants nothing more than to stay under the radar…especially the police radar.
So when her new bakery becomes linked to a murder investigation, nothing will stop the gossip mill from connecting her to the dead body. Can’t have that.
Forced into the role of investigator, this new-in-town bakery owner has to become the very thing she hates–a nosy, small-town gossip–in order to clear her good name, and keep her face off the front page. But when a dating debacle brings her face-to-face with the Sheriff, Vangie can’t ignore the fact that one of her macarons was involved in a murder. She has to find the who-dun-it.
Book One in a cozy culinary mystery series from USA Today Bestselling Author, R.L. Syme.
About The Author
Rebecca Syme writes small town romance as Becca Boyd and cozy mystery as R.L. Syme. She is a long-time foodie and loves fancy cheese. Becca calls the mountains of Montana her home and draws inspiration from the beautiful vistas and heartwarming people. She is the USA Today bestselling author of the Line of Fire series of sweet romances and part of the Chick Tales series set in Somewhere, TX. You can find her on Twitter talking #fancycheese or #Chopped, and on Facebook with her fans in Becca Nation.
- Webpage http://rlsyme.com/
- Blog: same
- Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/bighopesbigheroes/
- Becca Nation Facebook Fan Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/BeccaNation/
- Twitter @beck_a_tron
- GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6878258.R_L_Syme
- Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/2ptfwtp
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