“It’s a good thing our Bertram’s Hotel isn’t like the one in the Agatha Christie story,” Zach interrupted. He waggled his eyebrows. “If it were, we’d be sending those people straight into a group of criminals.”
Jude chuckled. Vicky stared at Zach for a brief minute, and then continued. “I made sure that Klara Patrick’s room is on an entirely different floor from Doug Corby, Leslie Sterling, and Charlene Jacques.”
“Hoo boy, that was smart, Vicky!” exclaimed Zach. “The Magnolia B and B would see some fireworks if they were sleeping down the hall from Chef Klara.”
“Whatever do you mean, Zach?” Bentley asked. “Aren’t they all professionals?”
“Supposedly, but Klara is always undermining the other chefs, especially Charlene Jacques, who has a show on the same network. And the food critic, Doug Corby, wrote a scathing review of a meal Chef Klara prepared for the Food Fair in Baltimore last month.” He feigned a throat cutting motion with his pointer finger. “Talk about the pen being mightier than the sword. Ouch!”
“I remember that review.” Flora leaned forward on the table. “He called her veal ‘leatherlike’ and her sauce ‘as heavy as cement.’ Said he wouldn’t feed her dish to a stray dog. Created quite an uproar at that food fair.”
Bentley frowned. “Well, let’s hope these people can manage to control their animosity toward each other at our events. Carry on, Lila.”
I scanned my notes. “Vicky, will the chefs all be here for the tour and Bentley’s catered supper tomorrow? Have you confirmed the pickup arrangements?”
“Yes,” she nodded. “Klara and her people are driving up in their limo, and three of the chefs are coming in on the train tomorrow. Doug Corby will be on the Inspiration Express on Friday morning. The television crew for Klara’s TV show arrived earlier this week to set up.”
“Speaking of which,” Zach interrupted, “the setup crew made some trouble about the stove at the Arts Center. It was wired for electric but not for gas, and several of the chefs, including Chef Klara, insist on cooking only with gas. So to keep the culinary kings and queens happy, we piped it in. That cost a wad of dough.” He rubbed his thumb over his fingertips. “Lila, can we bill Klara’s company for that?”
I shook my head. “I doubt it. And I can certainly understand a chef preferring a gas stove to electric. Especially one as talented as Chef Klara. I find the heat on a gas stove easier to control. Franklin, is everything in place for the release party for Klara’s new cookbook?”
Franklin stroked his hand over the dome of his head. “Sure is. It will kick off after the filming of the television show. There’ll be delectable food for people to sample and a display table for her new cookbook as well. She can sign books for her fans for as long as she likes.”
“That’s not to be confused with the signings scheduled at the Constant Reader,” Jude interjected.
Franklin shook his head. “No, those are separate. Although Klara expressed a desire to do a signing at the Constant Reader after her panel on Saturday morning. Can we schedule that in, Lila?” At my nod, Franklin continued. “The Cooks and Books chef signing session on Saturday afternoon at the Arts Center is for all the chefs other than Klara, and their latest cookbooks. The other Constant Reader signings are for books about food, but not necessarily cookbooks.”
“Like Doug Corby’s A Foodie’s Diary: Meals Worth Remembering (and some not so much),” Vicky said. “I found that an intriguing read.”
Flora giggled. “That man can be nasty,” she said. “In a funny kind of way.”
“I just hope Joel Lang’s new Asian Fusion cookbook won’t be too overshadowed by all the focus on Klara.” Franklin sighed. “It releases the same day, you know. I don’t know why publishers do that.”
Zach vigorously shook his head. “No way, man. There’s been as much buzz about his cookbook on TV as Klara’s. He’s booked solid on the area morning shows for the next couple of weeks. Even with all of the prepublication hype Klara’s been getting, Joel will still be a very popular dude. He might even steal her limelight.”
Franklin raised his eyebrows. “Nobody needs to steal anyone’s limelight, Zach. We want the pair of them to do well. They’re both clients of Novel Idea, remember.”
“Then let’s get two clients on the New York Times list at once.” Zach snapped his fingers in sequence. “Batta bing.”
“How about your ‘Food in Children’s Literature’ session, Flora?” I asked after I’d updated the whiteboard data. “Is that on track?”
“Yes, dear, it certainly is. It should be a tasty exhibition, to be sure. Ed from Catcher in the Rye and Nell from Sixpence Bakery helped with the sample list. Even How Green Was My Valley got on board. Let’s see.” She perused her notes. “On the menu, we have Stone Soup from the famous folktale, Marilla’s Raspberry Cordial from Anne of Green Gables, Pippi’s pancakes from Pippi Longstocking, Dr. Seuss’s green eggs and ham—”