For those of you wondering what the heck has been going on with Sally Solari, her father Mario, her ex-boyfriend/best pal Eric, and all the others in my culinary mystery series (the last of which—Murder from Scratch—came out over two years ago), I have some exciting news:
Sally is back!
Yes, I’ve just signed a two-book deal with Severn House Publishers to continue the Sally Solari series, the first of which is to be released this coming summer, on August 2nd. And how cool is this: it will come out simultaneously in both the US and the UK! My first international release!
As some of you may know, each of the previous four Sally Solari books have involved one of the five senses (taste, hearing, sight, touch—in that order).

Well, the fifth book, tentatively called The Fragrance of Death, concerns—you got it—smell. Or rather, the lack thereof, as on page one, poor Sally wakes up having lost her sense of smell. (No, it’s not Covid-related; the books all take place several years before the pandemic, thank goodness.)
The story also concerns an artichoke farm,

horses,

a winery,

and lots and lots of food (with recipes, of course!).

In other words, some of my very favorite things.
I now also have a deadline for finishing up book six in the series, though, something I haven’t experienced in a good while. <teeth start chattering in fear>
Yikes! Better go write…
But before I do that, I want to thank all of you for your support and encouragement, and for your continued belief in Sally and in my series.
Buon appetito!
So great to hear! Congratulations!
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Thank you, Linda!
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Congratulations and I can’t wait to read about Sally’s adventures.
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Thanks, Dru–it’s quite exciting!
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LESLIE: Yay, congratulations! Severn House is a great publisher and I am so happy to hear that the Sally Solari mysteries will be published by them in the UK and the US.
BTW, I do love artichokes but it is hard to get fresh ones here in Ontario at a reasonable price. I remember stopping in Castroville (“artichoke capital of the world”) on my way back from LCC 2014 in Monterey. My friends bought a huge bagful to take home.
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They used to sell baby artichokes for 10 cents each in Castroville back in the day–the best! I have a plant in my back yard, so twice a year I get a mini-harvest of my own!
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Once again you are making me super-jealous. Your own artichoke plant?!
Not sure how much my friends paid for that large bag of (regular sized) artichokes but I figure I could only buy 1 or 2 here for the same price!
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Congrats, Leslie! I’ll have to put Sally on my TBR list.
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Thanks, Tom!
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Leslie, that’s wonderful news! Know what you mean about a deadline…
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In know–scary, right? But good scary.
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Three cheers to you, Leslie!
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Thanks, J.C.!
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Congratulations, Leslie!
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Thank you, Liz!
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Yay! Congratulations!
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Thanks, Sally! Long live Sallys!
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So what is the sixth sense (besides a movie)?
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That’s something I’m pondering right now, as I write number six, Tom…
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Dear Leslie,
That’s wonderful news and best of luck as you bring Sally’s latest adventures into the light. Can’t wait to learn what happens next!
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Thank you, Ruth! It’s a fun journey!
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Yay for you, Leslie–and for us! Happy writing!
(So fascinating about an artichoke farm–I’ve never been to one.)
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Thanks, Jen! And you’ll have to come visit Santa Cruz some day; we have LOTS of artichokes in our county!
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Awww that’s great news, huge congrats on the new publisher! I did see your post on FB as well. I didn’t think Sally’s stories were quite finished, and I’m so happy you now have the chance to do that. And readers can once again yummily imagine all that awesome food! (or make it, but I’d rather have someone else do that lol).
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Thanks, Tari! I’m happy, too, as you’re right–her story was abruptly halted in the middle, so it’s wonderful that I get to continue on with it!
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That’s great news! And great that the next one comes out so soon. Can’t wait to read it.
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Thanks, Mark! And yes, I was so pleased to find out how quickly they’d be able to release number five!
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Major congrats, Leslie! Like Tom, I was wondering about the “sixth sense.” Look forward to the finding out!
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Thanks, Vickie!
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I am so, so glad to hear this! Congratulations, Leslie and you will totally rock book six, no doubt, chattering notwithstanding. Cannot wait for the new stuff. xx
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Thank you, Wendall! Rock on!
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This is such marvelous news, Leslie! I’m so thrilled Sally gets a new stage!
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So happy Sally’s back. The new book sounds amazing! Can’t wait. xoxo
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This is HAPPY DANCE-worthy! Huge congratulations, Leslie!!
So excited for you (and for us too, because we will get to read the books, woohoo). YAYYYYYYYYYYY! ❤
ps: those are the cutest artichokes I've ever seen.
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Congrats on finding Sally a new home! I’m looking forward to her return.
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Thank you, Marla–me too!
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Sorry in advance for the all caps, but I’M SO HAPPY AND EXCITED ABOUT THIS!!!!
Huge congrats, Leslie, and yay for all of us that we get more Sally. What delicious news!
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I’m so glad Sally is going to be back. I don’t even pretend to be a cook or chef, but I love this series any way.
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And I would NEVER want to run a restaurant, but I love writing about someone else doing it, lol!
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