The Golden Spoon

DEBUT A delectable tour de force of baking and mayhem, Maxwell’s debut mystery is one to savor. Change is in the air for the popular TV show Bake Week, starring “America’s Grandmother,” Betsy Martin. For the first time in the show’s history, Betsy will be joined by a cohost, fellow award-winning baker Archie Morris, whose bulldog personality contrasts with her approachable image. Betsy is livid about the change, but the show funds her sprawling estate, Grafton Manor, where the series is also filmed, so she agrees. Tensions are already high when the six contestants arrive, all ready to wow their idol with their tasty pies and perfectly formed breads. Things quickly go awry as ingredients are mislabeled and temperatures are fiddled with in the flawlessly manicured kitchens. Through unfolding narratives by each of the bakers and Betsy herself, readers come to realize that not everyone at Grafton Manor is there to compete. Past traumas and the manor itself come into play, culminating in a horror-filled evening.