Novel by Emmeline August
Reviewed by Pennell Paugh
June 1, 2026 (San Diego) — San Diego mystery writer Emmeline August has written a fourth mystery. This time, the story is centered in Paris.
Cookbook author Katri Velvet goes to France to take a pastry class. She arrives to a world of murder and mystery that surrounds the kitchens of master chef, L’ecole Max. Kat befriends another student in her twenties, Geesen.
For the entire story, the bold young woman seems to be in the middle of mysterious deaths and acts of violence. Kat’s daughter and husband become touched by events. The three-month course turns into a twisted series of clues with no answers for Kat or her husband, Mickey. The site of the crime shifts to Florida. Will Kat and her family members survive as the series of crimes are solved? A fun book for mystery lovers who also enjoy French cuisine.
Below is an excerpt from the novel, Mystery in Paris:
“I scrawled a name in an open notebook, eyeing a sheaf of welcome documents. A rubbery young man flopped into our hooked classroom chairs rattling my reverie. He shuffled his papers on the armrest; adjusted a red bowler hat; then pushed into the hard Formica chair back.
“’All right – it’s time to introduce ourselves.’ Chef Max spoke French and expected us to do the same. High school French only here.
“’My name’s Katri Velvet and I’m here from Boca Raton, Florida for Pastry.’
“’My name is Geesen Kalinas and I’m here from Athens, Greece for Patiserie.’
“I couldn’t block my reaction; staring. She tipped her hat. The person next to me was a woman not a man. The red bowler hat hid shaved head, bang-up blue eyes and ruddy skin. She looked healthy as a farmer and stared back at me with an I-Fooled-You smirk.
“After the intros, Chef Max passed out class schedules for the coming week. We would meet twice which I found only a little disappointing – plenty of time to scope Paris. My husband Mickey would fly in for long weekends. His law practice was thriving and he’d worked like a dog for years. It was time to play.
“Actually, it was Mickey’s bright idea for me to attend L’ecole Max in Paris. The school offered an 89-day pastry course which fit perfectly into my schedule. Daughter Tilly was off to college at FAU and my latest cookbook was on the shelves of Florida bookstores. Things were good or so I thought. Class dismissed.”
Emmeline August graduated in Science Writing from Oregon State University in 1990. She has received a certificate in Pastry from the Cordon Bleu School in Paris. Her hobbies also include Ballroom and Salsa dancing. She enjoys fast-walking the park which loops Mission Bay in San Diego, and travels to intriguing destinations. These form backdrops for her suspense-thriller books on Amazon.
August is a member of Author’s Guild, Sisters in Crime, and Manny Cepeda Orchestra Fan Club. Her recent reading and book signings were at SD Mystery Book Club meetings 2024, 2025, and at Nicole Lovett’s art show 2021. She also participated in the Local Author Showcase/San Diego Central Library 2023, 2024, 2025.