Harper (Paperback), ISBN 0-06-104454-7
In the seventh of this culinary mystery series, San Francisco chef Angie Amalfi starts a new business, wanders in strange places, and gives readers a smile, a chuckle or a laugh every page or two. Meanwhile, her policeman boyfriend/lover Paavo Smith faces challenges of his own. A string of weird murders leaves mutilated corpses in various San Francisco locales. 

Angie's first client for her new "Fantasy Dinners" business wants to host a dinner party for a group of UFO and government conspiracy fanatics. Unfortunately, internal conflicts in the group threaten to play hell with the seating arrangements. Soon Angie must contend with the Men in Black, the Roswell incident, alien abductions and a basketful of kooks, zanies, and other characters too strange to contemplate. So she doesn't. From Angie's standpoint, the only important issue is what do aliens eat. If she can figure that out, she can please her peculiar but rich client. 

But the further Angie goes in her search for a proper menu, the closer she comes to being taken out of the game, out of the world and into Paavo's case file -- the very last place Angie wants to be. 

Pence cooks up gourmet characters as easily as Angie whips up food -- and she does it just as well. Each time I read one of Pence's books, I am absolutely sure that she will never write another to compare with the last. Pence proves me wrong every time. A tasty morsel you can't help but savor, A Cook in Time reads like the fruit salad called ambrosia tastes -- exotically fruity, with a tangy aftertaste and just enough sweetness to make it a real delight. 

Patricia White 

Patricia White is the Sapphire Award-winning author of A Wizard Scorned. Her current book, the western Edwina Parkhurst, Spinster, is available from Hard Shell Word Factory.

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