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Good Scents Mysteries
Savage Gourmand
When a talented Baltimore baker turns up dead in their kitchen, friend and perfume shop owner Clare Buchowski knows it wasn’t an accident.
Suddenly, the charming cobblestones of Fells Point are the site of a murder investigation, and the local baking community is thick with suspicion, bitter rivalries, and rumors of stolen recipes. As Clare starts digging, with her cousin Ivy cracking wise at her side, she uncovers secrets that may finally lead her to the truth.
At the same time, Clare finds herself plagued by strange, vivid dreams that leave her wondering what she’s really picking up on, and what they might be trying to tell her. As the case grows more complicated, she’s forced to confront not only a killer, but a part of herself she’s struggling to understand.
Savage Gourmand is a cozy mystery about pastries and passion, found family and fatal ambition, and a woman who knows the most dangerous lies are often coated in sugar.
Suddenly, the charming cobblestones of Fells Point are the site of a murder investigation, and the local baking community is thick with suspicion, bitter rivalries, and rumors of stolen recipes. As Clare starts digging, with her cousin Ivy cracking wise at her side, she uncovers secrets that may finally lead her to the truth.
At the same time, Clare finds herself plagued by strange, vivid dreams that leave her wondering what she’s really picking up on, and what they might be trying to tell her. As the case grows more complicated, she’s forced to confront not only a killer, but a part of herself she’s struggling to understand.
Savage Gourmand is a cozy mystery about pastries and passion, found family and fatal ambition, and a woman who knows the most dangerous lies are often coated in sugar.
244 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 30, 2026
About the author
Kat LaGue
3 books2 followersFrom her childhood in the Baltimore waterfront neighborhood of Fells Point until now, Kat LaGue has had two great loves: reading and food. A fondness for fragrance came later. These days, she draws on her experience as a food writer and perfume fanatic and adds a dash of humor to write cozy mysteries set in her hometown. Why cozies? Because she loves stories about women who'd rather solve the problem than wait for someone else to.
Her debut novel, Killer Sillage, follows perfume-shop owner Clare Buchowski as she tries to figure out who killed a handsome and somewhat unlikeable perfumer. Book two, Savage Gourmand, pulls Clare into the bakeries of Fells Point, where another death leads to another investigation. A Bitter Accord, out this fall, takes her into Baltimore's classical music scene—where, naturally, someone else winds up dead.
Outside of writing, Kat enjoys drinking coffee, fussing over dogs, and cooking. You might occasionally catch her sniffing her forearm as she tests a new fragrance obsession.
Her debut novel, Killer Sillage, follows perfume-shop owner Clare Buchowski as she tries to figure out who killed a handsome and somewhat unlikeable perfumer. Book two, Savage Gourmand, pulls Clare into the bakeries of Fells Point, where another death leads to another investigation. A Bitter Accord, out this fall, takes her into Baltimore's classical music scene—where, naturally, someone else winds up dead.
Outside of writing, Kat enjoys drinking coffee, fussing over dogs, and cooking. You might occasionally catch her sniffing her forearm as she tests a new fragrance obsession.
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May 10, 2026I can't rate or review this book because I wrote it, but I hope that you will read and enjoy the second volume in my cozy mystery series. While the action still takes place around Good Scents, a fictional Fells Point perfume shop, Clare's and Ivy's fondness for pastries gets top billing as they become involved with the owners of two new neighborhood bakeries. There's a rivalry, and there's... murder.
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