Sunny McCloskey, walking home from a party late one night, thinks she sees something unusual hanging from a tree in a vineyard. Is it... can it be... a body? A truck leaving the area passes her, and curiosity pushes her to take a closer look. She finds a young woman intricately bound by rope, shibari-style, dead.

Thus begins Nadia Gordon's third mystery, Murder Alfresco, featuring the restaurant owner and chef Sunny McCoskey who finds herself once again in the middle of a murder investigation – and this time, she's also a target.

Readers familiar with Napa Valley and Marin County should be delighted with the descriptions, as well as readers who appreciate fresh writing and a well-told mystery. Sunny and her friends are believable and likable characters, and their interaction will draw fans deeper into their circle. In fact, I read the McCoskey books as much for these characters as for the mystery.

Now the hard part – waiting for the fourth novel.