Mumbo Gumbo by Jerrilyn Farmer Avon $67 'People die every second of the day ... That's part of life. But how many times in the history of the world do we have a chance to create a game show as perfect as Food Freak?' So says TV producer Artie Herman when adorably hip caterer Madeline Bean joins the oddball staff of TV's hottest new culinary series. Maddie, her business in a lull, gets a lucky break, filling in as a writer for a hot-hot-hot game show featuring a dishy celebrity chef and cook-off competitions with teams of amateurs. But the show's on the brink of disaster, with the head writer missing and staff quitting or disappearing weekly. Then a secret room, a priceless packet of Kool-Aid, and a bubbling Cajun gumbo from hell bring Maddie face-to-face with a murderer. Jerrilyn Farmer's fifth Madeline Bean novel is brisk and witty.
