The Witless Protection Program, Maria DiRico
The Witless Protection Program, Maria DiRico
List: $19.99 | Sale: $13.99
Club: $9.99

The Witless Protection Program

Author: Maria DiRico

Narrator: Devon Sorvari

Unabridged: 8 hr 13 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 03/26/2024


Synopsis

Mia Carina has steered her Italian-American family's Astoria, Queens, catering hall into becoming the borough's premiere party site, and nothing could make her happier—except her boyfriend proposing. There's just one presumed-dead obstacle in the way.

A strong, independent woman and respected entrepreneur, Mia never imagined she'd pine for a marriage proposal. Yet lately, with her beloved Shane, she's on tenterhooks. It's especially surprising, considering Mia's first husband, Adam, was a philandering grifter, assumed lost-at-sea after a boating disaster. But everyone knows what happens when you assume.

While working a huge wedding expo in Manhattan, Mia is shocked to spot the man who nearly destroyed her life. The one who's supposed to be sleeping with the fishes. But she loses him in the crowd. And when it happens again the next day, it's time for an emergency meeting with the family—and the Family. Because if Adam is alive, Mia is still married.

Everyone wants Adam dead. Everyone except Mia. She's dealt with enough police for a lifetime. Mia needs to be a divorcée, not a widow. But someone out there disagrees, and if Mia doesn't discover who, she may never be free to marry Shane.

About Maria DiRico

Maria DiRico is the pseudonym for Ellen Byron, author of the award-winning, USA Today bestselling Cajun Country Mysteries. Born in Queens, New York, she is first-generation Italian-American on her mother's side and the granddaughter of a low-level Jewish mobster on her father's side. She grew up visiting the Astoria Manor and Grand Bay Marina catering halls, which were run by her Italian mother's family in Queens and have become the inspiration for her Catering Hall Mystery series. DiRico has been a writer-producer for hit television series like Wings and Just Shoot Me, and her first play, Graceland, appears in the Best Short Plays collection. She's a freelance journalist, with over 200 articles published in national magazines, and previously worked as a cater-waiter for Martha Stewart, a credit she never tires of sharing. A native New Yorker who attended Tulane University, Ellen lives in Los Angeles with her husband, daughter, and two rescue dogs.


Reviews

Goodreads review by James on February 19, 2024

How sad am I that this series has to come an end? Maria DiRico has created an extraordinary character who holds a piece of my heart. I've had the privilege of meeting this author once or twice, and her personality is beautifully imbued in a small piece of Mia from the Catering Hall Mysteries. With T......more

Goodreads review by Gloria on March 04, 2024

What a hoot this series has been, and I hate to see it end but it has been fun! We watched Mia Carina as she moved back to Astoria, Queens, NY from Miami after Adam, her cheating husband, disappeared and is presumed dead. She has gotten into all kinds of mischief as she worked to help run Belle View......more

Goodreads review by Sue Em on March 08, 2024

Each of DiRico's cozy series has its own special flavor, but this one may be my favorite with the robust cast of secondary characters who are fully fledged with their own eccentricities. From the Italian grandmothers to the PI-novel-writing police detective, they make me laugh while charming me. And......more

Goodreads review by Lisa on November 30, 2023

#TheWitlessProtectionProgram #NetGalley is such an excellent addition to the series. Mia is such a sweet character, and this book is so well done, I had a blast reading it. Mia believes she saw her ex husband, but that's impossible, right? Unfortunately for Mia, her nightmares have come true, and she......more

Goodreads review by Tracy on January 06, 2024

Event planner Mia Carina is loving life, except for one small detail. Her business, Belle View Banquet Manor, is now a successful venue for all things party, her family are well and happy although her brother still has six months of his jail time left to serve and living with her Nonna, Elizabetta,......more