A funny, warm memoir about the perils of writer's block, the allure of an alternative career, and the age-old question of whether life really is like a box of chocolates. Out of words, short on ideas, and more than a little burned out, novelist Jessica Auerbach found herself on a hunt for inspiration. Her search landed her at a local chocolate shop, where she signed herself up for part-time work, in the hopes that a new setting would give birth to a fresh batch of characters and plots. As she learned the art of making truffles, fudge, butter crunch, and other delicious confections, she listened to her coworkers spin stories about their lives. Soon, those stories found their way into Auerbach's memoir. Helen, who is known in the shop as the Truffle Queen because of her skill at rolling those delicacies, loves using ganache to mold tiny penises which she coats in chocolate. She thinks Auerbach's next book should be Why Women Stay Married to Men They Can't Stand. Olivia, a high schooler who works part-time in the shop, claims to know almost everyone in town and more importantly, to know their secrets. Olivia says she's happy to reveal those dark secrets to add excitement to the book. Jane is passionate about wanting the book to be a murder mystery and suggests there should be a gun hidden within a chocolate Easter egg. She also insists that the fictional weapon be encased in food-grade cellophane so the health department doesn't object. Before long, Auerbach's story becomes two stories: the true story of what happens to her in the chocolate shop, and the murder mystery her coworkers are helping her weave. Along the way, she wrestles with questions like what it means to tell the truth, what makes chocolate delicious, and, of course, whodunnit?