Cookie House Mysteries Books in Order

The Cookie House Mysteries follow Kate McGuire, a trained pastry chef who trades a broken life in Manhattan for a chance to begin again in Coral Cay, Florida. The island town has beaches, tourists, longtime residents, and a bakery called the Cookie House, where a fresh batch of cookies can draw a crowd. It also has an alarming habit of producing crimes that need a closer look.

In And Then There Were Crumbs, Kate takes a job with the bakery’s difficult but respected owner, Sam Hepplewhite. When a developer who wants the Cookie House dead turns up dead after eating Sam’s cinnamon rolls, Sam becomes the obvious suspect. Kate is new to town, but she knows enough to doubt the easy answer. Clearing her boss means learning who had reason to target both the victim and the bakery.

Coral Cay may be sunny, but it is not always calm.

The later books expand Kate’s ties to the community. In Sugar and Vice, a skeleton is found behind the flower shop owned by Kate’s best friend, Maxi, during the town’s pirate festival. The case mixes old island stories with a present-day threat, while Kate juggles bakery work and the unwelcome return of her former fiancé. In A Tale of Two Cookies, an old friend’s beach wedding is thrown into chaos when the groom vanishes just as a reality television crew arrives on the island.

Kate is the steady center of the series. She is good at her work, still finding her place in a new town, and unwilling to sit by when someone she cares about is in trouble. Maxi brings color, humor, and loyalty to her investigations, while Oliver, Coral Cay’s friendly town dog, becomes a regular companion. The supporting cast gives each book the feel of a community where people may gossip, disagree, and still show up when it counts.

These are cozy mysteries, so the danger comes with warm kitchens, local events, ocean views, and plenty of desserts. The investigations are driven by motives, secrets, and the complicated ways people see one another. Each book has its own central case, but Kate’s growing connection to Coral Cay provides the thread that carries through the series.

Start with And Then There Were Crumbs to see Kate arrive at the Cookie House and meet the people who shape her new life. The books work best in order, since her friendships, work at the bakery, and place in town develop from one mystery to the next.