Murder Alfresco

Returning from a party late one night, chef Sunny McCoskey is the first to discover the body of a murdered woman left outside a local winery, and she may even have witnessed the killer driving away.

Thrust into the center of a crime that has rattled the tranquil Napa Valley, Sunny pursues her own investigation, a journey that takes her from Northern California's wine country to the insular houseboat community along the San Francisco Bay. Uncovering a tangle of secret liaisons, Sunny closes in on the murderer, who responds with one more desperate act.

With Murder Alfresco, author Nadia Gordon again takes us into the heart of the food and wine culture of the Napa and Sonoma Valleys, and introduces us to an array of irreverent characters. As the Los Angeles Times said, "Sunny is a welcome, energetic heroine....She and her pals are fun to be around."

"An amusing romp in the culinary underworld." &nash;Booklist

"Highly enjoyable." –Washington Post Book World

Building on great reviews, this is the exciting third installment of the Sunny McCoskey mystery series based in the California's Wine Country--Napa Valley. In "Murder Alfresco, Sunny McCoskey's investigation takes the professional chef and amateur sleuth across the paths of a whole new array of colorful characters and suspects, including a hardy contingent of Northern California surfers and a shady community of houseboaters. With the help of the lively and irreverent crew of friends who helped her solve the murders in "Sharpshooter and "Death by the Glass. Sunny uncovers dark motives amid local winery's cool chardonnays, and finds herself now the focus of the killer's unwelcome attention.

Returning from a party late one night, chef Sunny McCoskey comes across the corpse of a naked woman, bound and hanging from a tree at an exclusive winery. She may also have seen the murderer driving away in a truck without lights—and the murderer may have seen her. Thrust into the center of a crime that has rattled the tranquil Napa Valley, Sunny pursues her own investigation that takes her south from the familiar vineyards and restaurants to surfers and houseboats in Sausalito. With the help of her usual crew of colorful and irreverent friends, Sunny identifies an eclectic group of likely suspects and finds dark motives amid the cool chardonnays.

Walking home late one night from a party, Napa Valley restaurant owner Sunny McCoskey happens upon the shocking sight of a murdered woman, bound and hanging from the tree of a local vineyard. Shortly before, she'd seen a truck leaving a local winery, driving without its headlights on. Was it the murderer? And did the murderer see her as well? Sunny's investigation introduces her to a whole new array of colorful characters and suspects, including a hardy contingent of Northern California surfers and a shady community of houseboaters. With the help of her lively and irreverent crew of friends, Sunny uncovers dark motives amid the cool chardonnays, and finds herself the focus of the killer's unwelcome attention.

Nadia Gordon's previous books include Sharpshooter and Death by the Glass, the first and second books in the Sunny McCoskey Napa Valley mystery series. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.