Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for Icing on the Murder (A Baker Street Mystery) by Valerie Burns. Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews and more!
Icing on the Murder (A Baker Street Mystery)
by Valerie Burns
Icing on the Murder (A Baker Street Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
4th in Series
Setting – Michigan
Publisher : Kensington Cozies
Publication Date : July 29, 2025
Print length : 272 pages
Influencer-turned-bakery-owner Maddy Montgomery has sold plenty of wedding cakes before, but before she turns one out for her and her fiancé’s wedding, she’ll have to solve a little case of murder . . .
Aunt Octavia would be so proud! Maddy has turned Baby Cakes Bakery—named for her 250-pound English Mastiff, Baby—into a runaway success, and she’s marrying the love of her life, veterinarian Michael Portman. #DreamWedding! Plus the timing couldn’t be better: the country’s biggest bridal expo has come to New Bison, Michigan, and Maddy has secured a spot for Baby Cakes to showcase their cakes. She’s also entered a contest for an all-expenses-paid wedding extravaganza offered by world-renowned wedding planner Serafina.
Unfortunately, supremely nasty Serafina truly takes the cake—she makes the worst bridezilla seem like a shy flower girl. But there’s one thing the wedding planner didn’t plan on—being impaled by one of the skewers Baby Cakes uses on their tiered wedding cakes.
While Maid of Honor Sheriff April Johnson rounds up suspects at the expo, Maddy and her aunt’s friends, the Baker Street Irregulars, and even Baby join forces to unveil a killer hiding in plain sight . . . before wedding bells start to chime.
BOURBON APPLE CIDER CAKE RECIPE
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups apple cider
- 3 ½ cups of all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 8 ounces of unsalted butter (two sticks)
- 2 ¼ cups sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 2 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground clove
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 ½ teaspoon allspice
- 2 Honeycrisp apples, peeled and cored, and then pureed
- 8 ounces of cream cheese
- 1 stick of butter
- 5 cups of powdered sugar
- ¼ cup plus 3 teaspoons bourbon
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
DIRECTIONS
- Heat the apple cider in a small saucepan on medium heat until it reduces by half, making 1 cup
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees, grease 3 9-inch cake pans and prepare ingredients.
- Whisk flour, salt, spices, and baking powder together in a large bowl.
- Cream butter and sugar together in a stand mixer until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs one at a time, beating completely before adding the next egg.
- Mix milk and vanilla together. While the mixer is on low, add 1/3 of the flour mixture, followed by 1/3 of the milk. Keep alternating wet and dry ingredients until all are incorporated.
- Pour in the pureed apples and reduced apple cider and mix to combine.
- Divide the mixture evenly between the cake pans and bake for 25 minutes.
MAKE THE ICING
- In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together.
- Slowly add in the powdered sugar one cup at a time.
- Add in the vanilla and bourbon and mix until combined.
- After frosting the cake, add 4–5 tablespoons of caramel as a glaze.
About Valerie Burns
Valerie (V. M.) Burns is an Agatha and Edgar Award-nominated author. She is the author of the Mystery Bookshop, Dog Club, RJ Franklin, and Baker Street Mystery series. As Kallie E. Benjamin, Valerie writes the Bailey the Bloodhound Mystery series. She is an adjunct professor in the Writing Popular Fiction Program at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, PA, and a mentor in the Pocket MFA program. Born and raised in northwestern Indiana, Valerie now lives in Northern Georgia with her two poodles. Connect with Valerie at vmburns.com.
Author Links
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/v-m-burns
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vmburnsbooks/
GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16534140.V_M_Burns
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vmburnsbooks/
Website: vmburns.com
Purchase Links : Amazon – Apple – Books A Million – Barnes & Noble – Bookshop. Org – Google Play – Hudson Booksellers – KOBO – Target – Walmart
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Icing on the Murder TOUR PARTICIPANTS
July 18 – Jody’s Bookish Haven – SPOTLIGHT
July 18 – Books, Ramblings, and Tea – SPOTLIGHT
July 19 – fundinmental – SPOTLIGHT
July 19 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
July 20 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW, CHARACTER GUEST POST
July 20 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
July 21 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
July 21 – Storybook Lady – REVIEW
July 22 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – RECIPE
July 22 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
July 23 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW
July 24 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR GUEST POST
July 24 – Baroness Book Trove – REVIEW
July 25 – Angel’s Book Nook – SPOTLIGHT
July 25 – Sarandipity’s – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
July 26 – Elizabeth McKenna – Author – SPOTLIGHT
July 27 – Boys’ Mom Reads! – SPOTLIGHT
July 28 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT
July 28 – Read Your Writes Book Reviews – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
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