Charter Books and the Newport Ladies Book Club will host paranormal investigator and author Amy Bruni at the Valley Inn Restaurant on Monday, Aug. 24, to celebrate her new cookbook, “Cuisine to Kill For.”
The venue is in the book. The Valley Inn, a 17th-century colonial property at 2221 West Main Road, is tied to one of the strangest murder cases in American history. In 1673, Rebecca Cornell — wife of early colonial settler Thomas Cornell — was found dead by the home’s fireplace. Her son, Thomas Cornell Jr., was accused of killing her after her brother, John Briggs, claimed Rebecca’s ghost appeared to him and suggested her death was not accidental. The restaurant’s Penne alla Vodka appears in Bruni’s book.
Bruni, who lives in Newport, began appearing on “Ghost Hunters” in 2007 and is now co-star and executive producer of “Kindred Spirits” on the Travel Channel and host of the true crime podcast “Haunted Road.” “Cuisine to Kill For,” published July 28, pairs 59 recipes with true crime and paranormal stories from nearly 60 locations worldwide, along with vintage photographs from each site.
She will be in conversation with Kylie McCollough, founder of the Newport Ladies Book Club, discussing the writing process, the recipes and the haunted places in the book, followed by a Q&A and book signing.
Doors open at 11 a.m. and the conversation begins at 11:30. A buffet lunch follows, with Penne alla Vodka, artisan pizza and salads. Tickets are $57 and include the meal and a signed copy of the book, available at charterbookstore.com/events.
