Former spouse drama is never welcomed drama. Hayley Powell is faced with drama of her ex husband trying to worm his way back into her life while also trying to avoid murder charges. Hayley continues to write the humorous food and cocktail column for a local paper, keeps close tabs on her kids, and can’t resist investigating the mystery of Danny’s uncle, Otis.
In Death of a Pumpkin Carver (book #8 in the series), Lee Hollis takes the reader on a journey that the reader thinks could not possibly all come together, and then it does! This fall, you should read this cozy mystery and devour these fantastic pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.
Death of a Pumpkin Carver by Lee Hollis
Cozy Mystery Novel Book Review
Outline and Tone:
This is a Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery, book #8. Hayley is a single mom of 2 with a disastrously charismatic ex-husband, Danny. Danny shows up back in Bar Harbor, Maine, Hayley can expect drama and shenanigans. This time his arrival also coincides with the death of Danny’s moonshine selling uncle, Otis. And then it seems like the novel takes several turns away from the murder mystery as the reader is introduced to Hayley’s son’s best friend Spanky, Danny’s ex-girlfriend Becky, a Lawyer named Crystal, a Veterinarian named Aaron, a best selling novelist named Norman Cross and a few other characters. At one point while reading I said out loud “But what about Otis, the dead uncle, have they all forgotten about him?” And that’s when the pieces started coming back together in the most imaginative way I could fathom.
The author:
This book was written by Lee Hollis. Well sort of… Lee Hollis is the pseudonym for the real authors, a brother and sister team, Rick Copp and Holly Simason. There is more information on Goodreads. Like their protagonist Hayley Powell, Copp and Simason are from Maine. Copp moved to Hollywood and wrote for The Golden Girls, Wings, Teen Titans and a long list of impressive television and movies. Simason is a columnist in Maine and writes a cooking column. Fortunately for us readers, they decided to combine their talents and write the Lee Hollis series, currently being published by Kensington House Publishing Corporation. The Hayley Powell series has a Facebook page. The authors are active on both Twitter and Instagram.
What is not to like?:
The only unbelievable part of the series is how much of Hayley’s actual life she puts in her food and cocktail column. Yikes! I can’t imagine someone in a small town sharing honest feelings and personal stories that way. On the other hand, it makes for great reading for us. I absolutely love the column sections of the novel.
The verdict:
First the verdict on the pumpkin cookies. Yum! 5 stars! Will make again! Everyone in my house enjoyed them. In fact it is a small recipe for cookies so I made a double batch and I am glad I did. None of the cookies went to waste!
As far as the murder mystery, that gets a thumbs up from me as well. Hayley is such a likable and real life character. I continue to enjoy this description.
Disclaimer: In the name of full transparency, please be aware that this blog post contains affiliate links and any purchases made through such links will result in a small commission for me (at no extra cost for you).
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe
Assemble the Ingredients
In a small bowl mix melted butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together. There is no need for a stand mixer or even a hand mixer for these cookies. I even made a double batch and had no trouble whisking then mixing by hand.
In a large bowl combine the dry ingredients, flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves,
In the picture I am using the OXO Good Grips 7-Piece Nesting Measuring Beaker Set. Let me give a shout out to OXO! These are simply the best way to measure liquid, from a fraction of a teaspoon all the way up to one cup. And they nest for storage. I love these!
Also in the back of the picture is the pumpkin puree in and OXO Good Grips 2 Cup Adjustable Measuring Cup. This is my go-to tool whenever I measure something sticky like honey or partially liquid like pumpkin puree. You twist the cup to push the food out and it scrapes the sides making it easier to get all the food out.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix together with a spatula. This dough will be soft and after you add the chocolate chips it must be refrigerated for 30 min up to 3 days.
The OXO 3 Piece Mixing Bowl set has a spout on each bowl to make pouring easy.
Good Grips, no slip when mixing. Each bowl has a spout for easy pouring. Dishwasher safe.
After chilling the dough, line the baking sheet with parchment paper. Scoop rounded tablespoons onto the baking sheet and then flatten the cookies slightly with a tool such as a measuring cup. Dip the bottom of the cup in flour to prevent sticking. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes.
Hayley's Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 stick butter melted
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 6 Tbsp Pumpkin Puree
- 1½ cup flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ½ cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a bowl mix your melted butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together.
- Whisk in the vanilla and pumpkin puree.
- In a large bowl mix together your cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.
- Pour your wet ingredients into your dry and mix together.
- This dough will be soft.
- Mix in your chocolate chips and cover and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or up to 3 days.
- Line your baking sheets with parchment paper and remove dough from fridge.
- Take rounded tablespoons full of dough, and make balls, and place on cookie sheets.
- Lightly flatten with your hand.
- Bake for 10 minutes in a preheated oven at 350 degrees.
- Cool slightly and then place on a wire rack to finish cooling.
What would I do differently next time?
This time the question is an easy one for me to answer. I saw that the ingredients seems to be half of what a normal cookie dough would consist of, so I doubled the recipe. I would definitely do that again because these cookie were fabulous.
Ok, so that’s not technically something different for next time, but it is different than what is called for.
If you like these cookies, try Scout’s Brownies from Dying for Chocolate.
