Scone cold dead

A pregnant restaurateur wrangles hungry patrons, staffing shortages, family secrets, and dead bodies. Robbie Jordan is on the cusp of motherhood, and she and her husband, Abe O'Neill, couldn't be happier. Business is buzzing at Pans 'N Pancakes, Robbie's diner. But as she and her staff of two, Danna Beedle and Turner Rao, work hard to furnish the citizens of South Lick, Indiana, with a steady stream of delicious daily specials, Robbie can't help noticing that she isn't able to focus on business the way she used to. Maybe it's "pregnancy brain" that allows her to leave a stiff-moving customer to his own devices, even when he introduces himself to her as Ivan Sheluk and asks whether she's related to Adele Jordan before ordering a grilled cheese and chocolate milk. Robbie's supplier of baked goods, Hope Morris, seems to know Ivan. So does South Lick Mayor Corrine Beedle, Danna's mother. But by the time Robbie gets to talk to her Aunt Adele about it, Ivan's been found dead in Adele's sheep field. Adele turns out to have enough history with the man to make her a likely suspect, but Robbie is too absorbed by her impending delivery, as well as Danna and Turner's intermittent unavailability for work, to put much energy into helping her aunt. Braxton-Hicks contractions and a never-ending search for waitstaff compete with sleuthing for room in Robbie's head. In the end, finding a new cook seems just as important as finding out how Ivan died. Lots of down-home drama but no real mystery. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.