FLAT WHITE

An internet romance goes horribly wrong.

You might think that the name of their coffee shop, Uncommon Grounds, was some kind of cruel joke rather than just a tired pun, since co-owners Maggie Thorsen and Sarah Kingston seem to have no shared concerns and spend all day every day sniping at one another. Having Christy Wrigley, the neat-freak piano teacher from across the street, fill in for their barista, Amy, who’s vacationing in Europe, does nothing to lower the emotional temperature. In fact, Christy could have proved a lightning rod for the bickering partners’ wrath, since she’s been dating Sarah’s step-cousin Ronny Eisvogel, currently in prison for trying to murder Maggie. But the two of them focus instead on Christy’s obsession with scrubbing the condiment cart and her annoying yellow rubber gloves. Things don’t get any better when, midscrub, Christy reveals she’s dumped Ronny for globe-trotting Barry Margraves. Since she met her new beloved on a dating site, he’s showered her with gifts, including a diamond tennis bracelet from Tiffany’s. Christy expects Barry to come see her any day now, engagement solitaire in hand, for their first in-person meeting. But his arrival is a huge letdown. First, Barry is squashed like a bug by a snowplow thoughtlessly left running outside the shop while its driver used the restroom. Second, Barry turns out to be married. When she comes to town to claim Barry’s flattened body, Helena Margraves bumps the conflict up yet another notch, claiming that Christy not only stole her man, but raided their joint bank account. The ingenious solution to the puzzle almost gets lost in the ensuing catfight

For those who value conflict for its own sake.