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Quilt City Cookbook: A Companion to the Hadley Carroll Mysteries
Bruce Leonard never dreamed of owning a bakery. He wanted to be a novelist, but he found himself flour-dusted and sleep-deprived after his mother and he opened The Blues Bakery in Ventura, California. He loved creating recipes, interacting with customers, and drinking Blues Brew, the bakery's proprietary blend. But the physical demands of the job wore out his body, and the Leonards were forced to sell the business.
Bruce eventually became a novelist, writing Quilt City Murder, named Best Mystery of 2022 by the National Indie Excellence Awards, then Quilt City: Panic in Paducah, which raced to the Number One Best Seller rank on Amazon in the Quilts & Quilting category. Sequels are in the works.
Many readers responded enthusiastically to the distinctive insights, humor, life experiences, and adventures of Hadley Carroll, the wise-cracking quilter, journalist, and narrator of these cozy mysteries. Bruce combined his two most significant skills—baking and writing—to create Quilt City Cookbook.
Hadley narrates the book, relating humorous anecdotes and poignant events from her troubled childhood. Does she also include savory recipes and sprinkle jokes and possible plot points for future Hadley Carroll Mysteries throughout the cookbook? The answer is yes, a delicious yes.
Bruce eventually became a novelist, writing Quilt City Murder, named Best Mystery of 2022 by the National Indie Excellence Awards, then Quilt City: Panic in Paducah, which raced to the Number One Best Seller rank on Amazon in the Quilts & Quilting category. Sequels are in the works.
Many readers responded enthusiastically to the distinctive insights, humor, life experiences, and adventures of Hadley Carroll, the wise-cracking quilter, journalist, and narrator of these cozy mysteries. Bruce combined his two most significant skills—baking and writing—to create Quilt City Cookbook.
Hadley narrates the book, relating humorous anecdotes and poignant events from her troubled childhood. Does she also include savory recipes and sprinkle jokes and possible plot points for future Hadley Carroll Mysteries throughout the cookbook? The answer is yes, a delicious yes.
200 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 19, 2022
About the author
Bruce Leonard
27 books67 followersHello, Readers,
An Amazon reviewer wrote the following about Quilt City Murders, the first Hadley Carroll Mystery, named Best Mystery of 2022 by the National Indie Excellence Awards:
“I love a good mystery, and this is definitely one. The characters are believable. The dialogue is clever. The setting is perfectly described. The world of quilting is flawlessly portrayed from quilters' quirky ways to brilliant descriptions of fiber art. The plot is well woven and keeps the reader guessing. The author’s use of English Language was very entertaining for a Grammar Nerd like me. It left me wanting more.”
An appreciative fan of the Hadley Carroll Mystery series wrote:
“Thank you for creating a world that feels this alive and characters who feel like real people. Hadley isn’t just solving crimes. She’s healing, growing, and pulling all of us along with her. I don’t say this lightly: your work matters. And it’s clear your heart is in every word.”
Quilt City Murders is a thoughtful, character-driven cozy mystery featuring an intelligent, emotionally complex heroine, rich community ties, found family, and a story that delivers warmth, grief, humor, and justice.
Perfect for readers who enjoy:
Cozies with depth and real-world stakes that feature a strong sense of place and a found family
Strong, witty female protagonists who lead with empathy and intelligence
Small-town mysteries in which relationships matter more than clues
Across the series, Hadley navigates grief, anxiety, complicated family bonds, civic responsibility, and an evolving relationship with Detective Brandon Green. The mysteries unfold against the backdrop of real-world challenges, but violence is minimal, relationships are treated with care, and emotional truth matters as much as clues. Many readers have said the the humor in the series is its most-memorable element.
And then there are the countless jokes and dozens of delicious recipes inside of Quilt City Cookbook, narrated by Hadley at her funniest and most vulnerable.
Multiple award-winning Hard Exit is the most personal of the seven novels I've written. It takes place in Malibu and south Los Angeles and is narrated by grieving private eye Jack Drake, who lives in a Malibu beach mansion with movie star Amanda Bigelow.
Unlike the Hadley novels, Hard Exit isn't a cozy mystery. It contains cursing, a sex scene, and some violence. However, fists don't fly every twenty pages, and Jack doesn't subdue half a dozen armed foes with his wits and a handful of wet pork rinds.
I think Hard Exit—a love story wrapped in a murder mystery, and vice versa—will appeal to a broader readership than the Hadley novels. I hope you enjoy it.
The audiobooks of the first five Hadley novels are available now, as is the audiobook of Hard Exit. The audiobook of Quilt City: Payment Declined, the sixth Hadley Carroll Mystery, will be available soon-ish.
All of my books are available through my website, https://bruceleonardwriter.com
and the usual channels.
Please follow my author page at: https://www.amazon.com/author/brucele...
Thank you tremendously for your support.
All the best,
Bruce
An Amazon reviewer wrote the following about Quilt City Murders, the first Hadley Carroll Mystery, named Best Mystery of 2022 by the National Indie Excellence Awards:
“I love a good mystery, and this is definitely one. The characters are believable. The dialogue is clever. The setting is perfectly described. The world of quilting is flawlessly portrayed from quilters' quirky ways to brilliant descriptions of fiber art. The plot is well woven and keeps the reader guessing. The author’s use of English Language was very entertaining for a Grammar Nerd like me. It left me wanting more.”
An appreciative fan of the Hadley Carroll Mystery series wrote:
“Thank you for creating a world that feels this alive and characters who feel like real people. Hadley isn’t just solving crimes. She’s healing, growing, and pulling all of us along with her. I don’t say this lightly: your work matters. And it’s clear your heart is in every word.”
Quilt City Murders is a thoughtful, character-driven cozy mystery featuring an intelligent, emotionally complex heroine, rich community ties, found family, and a story that delivers warmth, grief, humor, and justice.
Perfect for readers who enjoy:
Cozies with depth and real-world stakes that feature a strong sense of place and a found family
Strong, witty female protagonists who lead with empathy and intelligence
Small-town mysteries in which relationships matter more than clues
Across the series, Hadley navigates grief, anxiety, complicated family bonds, civic responsibility, and an evolving relationship with Detective Brandon Green. The mysteries unfold against the backdrop of real-world challenges, but violence is minimal, relationships are treated with care, and emotional truth matters as much as clues. Many readers have said the the humor in the series is its most-memorable element.
And then there are the countless jokes and dozens of delicious recipes inside of Quilt City Cookbook, narrated by Hadley at her funniest and most vulnerable.
Multiple award-winning Hard Exit is the most personal of the seven novels I've written. It takes place in Malibu and south Los Angeles and is narrated by grieving private eye Jack Drake, who lives in a Malibu beach mansion with movie star Amanda Bigelow.
Unlike the Hadley novels, Hard Exit isn't a cozy mystery. It contains cursing, a sex scene, and some violence. However, fists don't fly every twenty pages, and Jack doesn't subdue half a dozen armed foes with his wits and a handful of wet pork rinds.
I think Hard Exit—a love story wrapped in a murder mystery, and vice versa—will appeal to a broader readership than the Hadley novels. I hope you enjoy it.
The audiobooks of the first five Hadley novels are available now, as is the audiobook of Hard Exit. The audiobook of Quilt City: Payment Declined, the sixth Hadley Carroll Mystery, will be available soon-ish.
All of my books are available through my website, https://bruceleonardwriter.com
and the usual channels.
Please follow my author page at: https://www.amazon.com/author/brucele...
Thank you tremendously for your support.
All the best,
Bruce
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
November 20, 2022
fantastic little cookbooks
I didn’t hesitate …. Made the pumpkin muffins first thing !!! Scrumptious!!!! Can’t wait to try the shrimp and grits
I didn’t hesitate …. Made the pumpkin muffins first thing !!! Scrumptious!!!! Can’t wait to try the shrimp and grits
November 24, 2022
Quilt City Cookbook is a delightful companion to Quilt City Murders and Quilt City Murders Panic in Paducah. It is filled with delicious recipes
(some of which I have had the pleasure of tasting, yummy) and humor only the author, Bruce Leonard, could come up with and a little more enlightment into the lives of the characters.
I will have a lot of fun trying out some of the recipes for Christmas eats, treats and gifts. These three books will not disappoint the readers.
(some of which I have had the pleasure of tasting, yummy) and humor only the author, Bruce Leonard, could come up with and a little more enlightment into the lives of the characters.
I will have a lot of fun trying out some of the recipes for Christmas eats, treats and gifts. These three books will not disappoint the readers.
November 30, 2022
Welcome to the mind and kitchen of Hadley Carroll (and the unbridled wit of Bruce Leonard) as you thumb through this delightful dessert cookbook. She will keep you entertained with her stories and antics as your cookies bake. I can’t say I’ve tested all the recipes, but the peanut butter cookies are out-of-this-world!
April 20, 2023
Delicious Recipes
This was the first Quilt City book I've read. Immediately I decided I needed a copy and then I realized I had.it on Kindle Unlimited.That made me very happy and I can't wait to try these!
This was the first Quilt City book I've read. Immediately I decided I needed a copy and then I realized I had.it on Kindle Unlimited.That made me very happy and I can't wait to try these!
October 16, 2024
Fun read...surprisingly as a cookbook, friendly chat with the author as recipe is being shared with tweaks and helpful hints along the way. I've got to keep this near the top of my stack to go back for some...several...okay, many of the recipes included.
September 8, 2025
Cookbook with humor
This is a companion to the Quilt City Murders series. The recipes are fine, but I mostly read it because it was narrated by the protagonist of the Hadley Carroll Mysteries and had some humorous comments.
This is a companion to the Quilt City Murders series. The recipes are fine, but I mostly read it because it was narrated by the protagonist of the Hadley Carroll Mysteries and had some humorous comments.
October 26, 2023
There were some interesting recipes but there was more narrative than recipes.
January 7, 2026
Cute stories go along with the recipes.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews