Val is Trapped in Another Mystery
When I heard the premise for A Parfait Crime, the ninth entry in the Five-Ingredient Mysteries, I knew we were in for a treat. It had the potential to be fun, and author Maya Corrigan has proved she can pull of something like this before. And I was right.
A brief introduction – the series features Val Deniston. Val is a former cookbook publicist who has left her job and moved to a town on the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. She’s living with her grandfather, who has a recipe column in the local newspaper featuring recipes with five ingredients or less. Val herself runs the café at the local health club and caters on the side. The two have found themselves involved in quite a few mysteries over the last couple of years.
This one kicks off with Grandfather joining a local reader’s production of Agatha Christie’s classic play The Mousetrap. The cast is just planning to read the play for the audience instead of doing a full production with a set and movement on stage. However, a house fire kills the woman who was going to play the lead. Even stranger, the firefighters find a dead body hidden in a freezer elsewhere in the house. Val is drafted to fill the dead woman’s place in the play, and it gives Val and her grandfather perfect access to others who knew the victim. What will the duo uncover?
A mystery around a production of The Mousetrap. What could be better? As I expected, the execution was wonderful, with some clever nods to the play over the course of the book. Since I’ve seen the play multiple times over the years, I really got a kick out of seeing those Easter eggs worked into the story.
But, if you haven’t seen the play, don’t worry. Anything you need to know is mentioned, so what happens in this book will still make sense to you. And there are absolutely no spoilers for the play. In fact, there is very little in the way of discussing the specifics of the play over the course of the book. It’s actually very impressive how the author was able to pull this off. But seriously, what are you waiting for? The play is fantastic. Go out and see it as soon as possible.
The plot of the book is good. We have multiple suspects and plenty of clues and red herrings to keep me guessing about what was really going on. While the series has gotten away from pointing out the five suspects and five correct clues that are layered into every book, I felt like we had more than enough of both to keep me engrossed. I did feel the climax was a little abrupt. I get what the author was going for, but it didn’t quite work for me. But I’m a little picky when it comes to climaxes, so this is a personal preference. The book did wind everything up successfully, and I felt like the identity of the killer was logical.
And I do love the characters. Over the course of nine books, I’ve really come to care for them. I appreciated the character development and the advancement in several relationships we got here. The suspects were just as good, and made me question just what they were up to the more we got to know them.
As always, we get some five-ingredient recipes at the end of the book. In fact, we get five of them, with a variety of offerings. You’re sure to find something to enjoy after you’ve finished reading the book.
If you enjoy a well plotted mystery, you’ll be glad you picked up A Parfait Crime. Fans of The Mousetrap will be even more entertained by this book.
Here are the rest of the Five-Ingredient Mysteries.
NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.
Thank you for reviewing A Parfait Crime, Mark. I'm so happy you noticed the Mousetrap Easter eggs! I felt as if I was walking on eggs, trying not to reveal too much to those who aren't familiar with the play, but enough that someone like you who knows the play would get the parallels. ~Maya
ReplyDeleteThis series is on my TBR and I do love when there are Easter eggs - especially Easter eggs connected to one of my favorite plays!
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