The Marsh Madness

Everyone loves it when the signora serves these tender and delicious chicken cutlets.

6 small boneless chicken breasts (or turkey) 3 tablespoons flour

1? tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley Juice and grated zest of one large lemon 2–3 tablespoons dry white wine

Sea salt and freshly ground peppers Extra parsley, lemon wedges or zest for garnish If chicken pieces are large, cut in half. If they are thick, slice them in half. It is very important to make sure they are thin enough. Cover each piece of poultry with a sheet of plastic wrap. Pound the scaloppine with a mallet or a cup or a rolling pin until they are ? inch thick. This is pretty easy but also essential.

Coat with flour and shake off excess.

Heat two tablespoons of oil in the pan. Sear the chicken quickly on both sides, and then sprinkle with parsley, lemon juice and zest and white wine. Add remaining oil if needed.

Lower the heat and cook for about five minutes. Turn chicken over again. Season with S & P and cook for about five minutes until just cooked through.

Serve at once with lemon and parsley as garnish. They are great with rice, potatoes or pasta.





   Turn the page for a preview of Victoria Abbott’s next Book Collector Mystery

   THE HAMMETT HEX

   Coming soon from Berkley Prime Crime!





SQUISHED INTO A cable car, hurtling down a steep hill, clinging to a rail with the wind rushing in your ears amid the clang and clatter of metal and the shrieks of fellow passengers might not be everybody’s idea of a romantic moment, but, strangely, it was working for me. Sure, my knuckles were white, but I was happy because I was wedged up against Tyler “Smiley” Dekker, the occasional man of my dreams. Plus the cable car we were riding gave us a view of San Francisco Bay. The half-dozen squealing schoolgirls—black asymmetrical haircuts, shredded jeans and selfie sticks—couldn’t diminish the experience.

After all, you’re only young and pink-tipped once. One of them rolled her eyes at me.

I had also managed to tune out the puffy, bickering couple next to us. Who knew that you could sustain a twenty-minute dispute about the flavor of gelato? Chocolate hazelnut or nocciola? Obviously these two would never run out of things to fight about, and yet they’d miraculously agreed to the same 49ers T-shirt.

We’d bumped into them before on the tourist walks in the area near Union Station. They always had plenty to argue with each other about.

The hulking guy right behind me was a bit harder to ignore. His large, pink, moon face was damp with sweat and his short-sleeved, blue-checked shirt strained at the buttons. He had clearly forgotten his deodorant this morning. Worse, he didn’t appear to comprehend the idea of personal space.

Smiley turned and flashed his grin. I loved that little gap between his front teeth and the way his blond hair blew in the wind. I loved that we were here in this romantic city. I loved that I could still make him blush.

Two silver-haired ladies wearing Birkenstock sandals and Tilley hats nudged each other and smiled at us in approval. I recognized them from our hotel. I’d noticed their bright toenail polish in the lineup at the restaurant in the morning. Even though I was a bit jealous that they’d found seats on the cable car, I smiled back at them.

They each gave us a little wave as they eased their way to the exit behind me.

All the world loves a lover, as they say. Loves a lover! Imagine that. Smiley and I had taken a few sharp detours in our relationship. It was still hard to believe that we were on a getaway alone without hot-and-cold-running relatives and the persistent, gravelly voice of my employer, Vera Van Alst. Could a cop with ambitions to be a detective and a girl who was the first person in her family to go legit have a chance at happiness?