SHORTLISTED FOR THE VAL McDERMID DEBUT AWARD 2024

Richard Osman meets MasterChef. In this cookery school, murder is on the menu...

'If Agatha Christie were to go on Masterchef, this novel would be the result.' Clare Pooley
‘A deliciously dark slice of murder and mystery.’ Chris Whitaker

A recipe for disaster.
When chef Paul Delamare takes a job teaching at an exclusive residential cookery school in Belgravia, the only thing he expects his students to murder is his taste buds. But on the first night, the unthinkable happens: someone turns up dead...

The school rests on a knife-edge.
The police are convinced Paul is the culprit. After all, he’s good with a blade, was first on the scene – and everyone knows it doesn’t take much to push a chef over the edge. To prove his innocence, he must find the killer. Could it be one of his students? Or the owner of the school – a woman with secrets and a murky past?

It all boils down to murder.
If Paul can’t solve the mystery fast – as well as teach his students how to make a perfect hollandaise sauce – he’ll be next to get the chop.

Why aren’t the recipes for this book available on ckbk?

We are building our collection of cookbooks all the time. This book is on our wish list, but it is not yet available on ckbk.

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Features & Stories

In Conversation: Food in Fiction—Orlando Murrin & Catherine Kurtz

Orlando Murrin and Catherine Kurtz are both food writers who have branched out to also write fiction. Orlando’s hugely popular crime series, starring a chef detective, includes Knife Skills for Beginners, and most recently Murder Below Deck (published as May Contain Murder in the US and Canada). Catherine’s debut novel Feast (published on June 4) is the story of a girl with an extraordinary sense of taste. We caught up with the two of them to talk food, fiction, and more…