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...See more
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. She can be found online at EllenByron.com and ChicksOnTheCase.com. See less
Maria Dirico's Featured Books
Maria Dirico book reviews
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The Witless Protection Program
Full of Excitement
by Lori, Apr 6, 2024
Dollycas's Thoughts
The Belle View Banquet Manor has become the top party place in Astoria, Queens, thanks to Mia Carina. Nothing would make Mia happier than to have her own wedding there, that is ... Read More
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Four Parties and a Funeral
HILARIOUS COZY MYSTERY
by Lori, Apr 15, 2023
Dollycas's Thoughts
Reality t.v. comes to Belle View Catering Hall with a casting call for the new show The Dons of Ditmars Boulevard. That along with weddings, proms, graduations, and a very ... Read More
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It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder
A Delightful Holiday Mystery
by Lori, Mar 18, 2023
Dollycas's Thoughts
The Christmas season has Mia Carina dashing through the snow to keep up with all the Belle View Banquet Manor events. From a Sweet Sixteen party that really needs to impress ... Read More