Book Review: Serving Up the Truth by Debra Klein (Amanda Knightly Mysteries #1)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Amanda and the rest of the cast, a good mystery

Cons: Writing a little rough at the beginning, mystery could have been a little stronger

The Bottom Line:

A bad customer

Freeing a family friend

Overall it’s fun

When a Frustrating Customer Gets Murdered

I recently had the good fortunate to win a copy of Serving Up the Truth, the first in a series from Debra Klein, from the Chicks on the Case blog.  It sounded like fun, so I bumped it up my To Be Read mountain range.  And I’m glad I did.

The book introduces us to Amanda Knightly, who lives with her young adult children and her husband in Oak Hills, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago.  She works behind the deli counter of the local market, and she has earned a reputation for her excellent customer service.

Which is why the young lady frustrates her so much that afternoon.  She is arrogant and rude, taking her time despite the long line behind her before ultimately deciding to buy nothing.  Amanda does her best to shake it off, but she learns the next morning that the woman was murdered that night.  Then, one of her son’s close friends is arrested for the crime.  Amanda believes the young man is innocent, so she sets about trying to figure out what really happened.  Can she do it?

This book is a first novel, and the first couple of chapters show it.  I get it.  It’s really hard to introduce characters and relationships smoothly. The limited attempts at writing I’ve done have run into the same issue.  Fortunately, once the mystery gets going, things do smooth out.

I was pulled into the case pretty quickly.  Amanda found some solid suspects.  I did figure a couple of things out early on, but I was still entertained on my way to the logical climax.

So many cozies have similar set ups, so this one was refreshing.  Amanda is a happily married middle aged woman with two kids in their early to mid-twenties.  All of them are good characters, and we meet some other fun series regulars.  I’d definitely be interested in visiting them again.

I’m glad I prioritized reading Serving Up the Truth.  This is a debut that introduces us to a great town I hope we get to visit again.

Book Review: A Murderer’s Guide to Mardi Gras by Ellen Byron (Vintage Cookbook Mysteries #5)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Characters, plenty of Mardi Gras atmosphere, and a great ending

Cons: While plenty happens, the mystery’s pacing could be better

The Bottom Line:

Join Mardi Gras krewe

Is it hiding a killer?

A fun mystery

Did Ricki Join a Krewe with a Killer?

Normally, I try to spread out books by authors, even favorite authors.  But when one of those favorite authors has two books in two series from two publishers coming out back-to-back, I easily make an exception.  So, I picked up A Murderer’s Guide to Mardi Gras just a couple of weeks after reading another book by Ellen Byron.

This is book five in the Vintage Cookbook Mysteries.  As you might have guessed from the title of the book, it is set in New Orleans.  It features Ricki James-Diaz who has recently moved to the city from Los Angeles and has opened a vintage cookbook and kitchenware store inside Bon Vee, one of the historic mansions in the city.  While you can jump in here and follow the story, there are some ongoing storylines you’ll enjoy more if you back up to the first book and read the series in order.

As this book kicks off, Mardi Gras season has hit the city.  It’s the first since Ricki moved, and she’s gotten caught up in the fever.  It helps that her boyfriend, celebrated chef Virgil Morel, is being named the king of the Krewe of Chew, so many of their friends from Bon Vee are jumping into this particular krewe.  Of course, that means more parties and events leading up to their actual parade than Ricki bargained for.

The captain of the krewe is an egotistical bully.  And those are his good qualities.  After leaving one of the events, Ricki and Virgil stumble upon his dead body.  The victim’s wife is the police’s prime suspect, but Ricki has become friends with the woman, and she doesn’t believe it.  The problem is, the number of suspects in the krewe are numerous.  Can Ricki figure out what really happened?

Let’s get my criticism of the book out of the way.  This is a prime example of a book where a lot happens, but the mystery’s pacing was off.  Now, hear me carefully, I was being entertained and I had lots of fun.  And I loved the climax when we reached it.  Things came together in a way that made perfect sense.

I knew only the bare minimum about Mardi Gras going into this book, but that wasn’t an issue at all.  Since Ricki is also a novice, she is learning right along with us.  I have a much greater appreciation for all the work that goes on behind the scenes for the many, many events that happen during the season now.  And yes, the story does continue to unfold around these events.  After all, the murder involves Ricki’s new krewe.

There’s a large cast of characters, so the list at the beginning of the book is helpful.  A few of the series characters take a back seat, but the ones who do get to take a front seat are plenty of fun.  We also meet some charming, quirky, and mysterious new suspects who are entertaining.

And the ongoing storylines I mentioned?  I liked how one in particular developed here.  I felt like Ricki especially got some chances to grow, and we saw another character in a new light as a result of what happens in this book.

A Murderer’s Guide to Mardi Gras is another entertaining cozy from Ellen Byron.  Whether you are new to Mardi Gras or an old hand, you’ll be glad you picked up this book.

Enjoy the rest of the Vintage Cookbook Mysteries.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

I'm reviewing this book are part of a blog tour.  Check out the rest of the tour stops by visiting the tour's home page.

And don't miss the tour wide giveaway.

Book Review: A Taste for Murder by Matt Baker

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Great writing and characters

Cons: Needed a better focus

The Bottom Line:

Grieving detective

Solving a case on Capri

Needed to focus

Two Books in One, and It Shows

When I was looking at upcoming book, A Taste for Murder caught my eye.  Not only did the title sound like a book I would pick up and enjoy, but the author’s name helped.  Matt Baker may not be related to me at all, but the name caught my eye.  I wasn’t sure about the book, but I decided to give it a shot.

The book introduces us to DCI Joe Mottram.  He’s leaving behind his native England and his job as a detective to spend the summer with his teenage daughter and his in-laws in Capri.  He’s hoping that the time will help him reconnect with his daughter and help him deal with the grief of losing his wife.

But then an English business woman falls of a cliff.  Mottram is brought in as a consultant since the victim’s father is powerful.  While at first it looks like an accident or a suicide, there are things that don’t add up for Mottram.  Can he figure out what is going on?

Despite the title, this isn’t a cozy but a police procedural, and includes the things that go along with that subgenre.  I was half expecting that when I picked up the book, so it wasn’t a big surprise to me.

My problem with this book is that it tried to do too much.  We get the story from three different points of view – Mottram, his daughter, Angelica, and the local detective that Mottram winds up partnering with, Lara Sarrancino.  That’s at least one perspective too many.  The issue is that Angelica gets her own storyline, which is one of the weakest aspects of the book and often slows things down.

While focusing on Mottram would help, the book still can’t quite decide what it wants to be.  Is it a mystery?  Or is it a story about dealing with grief?  They are both given equal weight.  Honestly, I was pulled into them, but the switches in focus were a bit jarring.  And the climax of the grief storyline is short changed.

Most of the characters are strong, which is what helped pull me into the story.  One, however, gets a twist part way through that was not handled well at all.

The mystery itself was solid, with plenty of twists and complications on the way to the logical climax.  Not all the twists surprised me, however, since the book leaned into cliches a few times.

While this is a police procedural, Mottram’s in-laws run a popular restaurant, so the culinary scenes are numerous and made me hungry as I read.

I’ve picked up a few books recently where the narration summarizes conversations for us, and this is another of them.  We’d be in a scene where we’d get a direct quote from one character, a summary if how the other person responded, and then a direct quote again.  It was weird and pushed me out of the book.

The book ends with a cliffhanger involving Mottram’s personal life and I just didn’t care.  I won’t be back for a second book with these characters.

Looking at reviews, I seem to be in the minority on A Taste for Murder.  I’m not sorry I read it, but it needed another edit to really polish what was there.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

Book Review: Pour Choices by Adrian Andover (Mixology Lounge Mysteries #2)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Great characters and a confusing mystery

Cons: Listing cons would be pour form

The Bottom Line:

Comic turns up dead

Case is no laughing matter

Can’t wait for the next

Laughing at Murder is a Poor Choice

I really enjoyed last year’s Whiskey Business, the debut from Adrian Andover.  And I wasn’t the only one since it has won both the Lefty and the Agatha for best first novel this year.  I was hoping that the follow up, Pour Choices, would be just as good.  Fortunately, it was.

The first book introduced us to Reece Parker, who has just opened Subplot, a literary themed speakeasy, in his hometown of Hope Mills, Pennsylvania.  He’s trying new things to promote his business, and as this book opens, he and his team are preparing for their first comedy night.  They’ve brought in up-and-coming comic Meghan Spencer.  While there are a few awkward moments, overall, the evening appears to be a success.

The next morning, however, Reece’s best friend finds Meghan’s body floating in the nearby Delaware River.  Not only does Reece want to make sure his friend doesn’t take the blame for the crime, but he is concerned his business will get a dark mark with another murder connected to it.  But it seems like each person he interviews just adds to his confusion.  Can he solve this murder?

The plot of this book is strong.  I’m not kidding about all the confusion that Reece encounters as he tries to unravel this second murder.  I was kept guessing since I was just as confused as Reece was.  However, he does begin to unravel things, and when we reached the climax, everything made sense.  And the climax has me turning pages as quickly as possible.

My favorite series are the ones that create a sense of community filled with characters we can’t wait to spend more time visiting.  That’s already present with this series.  In fact, I was a little surprised at just how much I felt it after just one book.  We got to spend more time with all the supporting players we met in the first book, and I enjoyed getting to know them better.  While the romantic subplot involving Reece’s potential love interest, Julian, wasn’t super surprising, I still enjoyed it.

And what reader wouldn’t love a literally themed speakeasy?  The names of the drinks are fantastic.  I like that we have non-alcoholic drinks as well.  There are definitely a couple I’d like to try if Subplot were a real place.

Pour Choices is going to please all the Adrian Andover’s fans and win him some new ones.  Grab your favorite beverage and prepare for a fun second mystery.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

Book Review: Between a Roquefort and Hard Place by Linda Reilly (Grilled Cheese Mysteries #7)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Carly in an entertaining mystery

Cons: The supporting characters could be a bit sharper

The Bottom Line:

Renovation death

Carly must clear her husband

Delicious and fun

Shocking Murder at a Mansion

I wasn’t sure if we would get more Grilled Cheese Mysteries. The last book would have been a great ending to the series. So I was happy when I saw Linda Reilly was back with Between a Roquefort and a Hard Place. 

The series features newlywed Carly Hale Mitchell who runs a grilled cheese diner in her hometown in Vermont. Business is booming, but she can’t help getting involved in the various murders happening in the area. 

As this book opens, it’s been ten months since her wedding, and Carly and Ari are happily settling into married life. At her restaurant, she and her employees are working on a grilled cheese competition. But Carly drops everything when she is invited to Peppermint Mansion, the biggest and most mysterious house in the area, to cook a grilled cheese for the elderly owner. The mansion is undergoing renovations, and Ari is handling the electrical. But while Carly is there, the general contractor dies. The police quickly determine it wasn’t an accident and start looking at Ari as their prime suspect. Can Carly clear her husband?

The book does a good job of setting up the plot and getting to the murder quickly. We have several good suspects and the plot kept me guessing and engaged until we reached the logical ending. 

Over the course of the series, we’ve met quite a few supporting characters. While they all have had a book to shine, they didn’t stand out from each other here. This is mostly true of Carly’s employees. It can be a problem in  a long running series when we get so many characters we want to see again, but they wind up having very little page time as a result. The suspects, on the other hand, were good, as were the other new characters we met. And Carly and her husband are fantastic. 

As always, there are some grilled cheese recipes at the end of the book. We get three more, and they sound delicious. 

Between a Roquefort and a Hard Place is another delicious mystery. Grab a grilled cheese and enjoy. 

Pick up the rest of the Grilled Cheese Mysteries. 

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book. 

Book Review: The Bush Tea Murder by Ashley-Ruth M. Bernier (Caribbean Island Mystery #1)

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Naomi and the rest of the characters and setting brought to life by great writing

Cons: The structure didn’t work for me

The Bottom Line:

An island cold case

Characters and setting shine

Structure lets them down

Naomi Solves Her First…Side Quest

It had been a while since I tried a new to me author. I kept coming back to The Bush Tea Murder by Ashley-Ruth M. Bernier. Billing itself as the first Caribbean Island Mystery, the combination of the setting and the fact that it also has a culinary theme convinced me to give it a shot. I wish it were as good as I hoped it would be. 

Naomi Sinclair is a culinary journalist living her dream with her job at EAT TV hosting a show where she gets to interview chefs. When a potential new show investigating culinary related cold cases is presented to her, she immediately thinks of a famous case on her native St. Thomas. Four decades ago, the owner of a tea company on the island was killed while locked in her office. It’s the perfect case for her potential pilot. But will she be able to solve it? 

If the book had focused on that case, I’m sure I would have enjoyed it. However, that’s not what this book turned out to be. Along the way, Naomi finds herself involved in a series of shorter mysteries that pull her focus. Since the author has previously published some short stories, I’m wondering if these stories were previously published elsewhere. Or maybe they were just the format she feels most comfortable with. Either way, there are attempts to tie these stories into the over arcing mystery since Naomi will often get something she needs from someone we met in these side quests after the short story is over. Honestly, if we connected all the parts focused on the main mystery together, it would probably be a short story itself. 

This is all presented as Naomi talking to the executives at the television network about what has happened over the last year as she investigated the story. So we kept jumping forward and back in time. Yes, it was all clearly marked, so I had no trouble following it all. 

At this point, I am sounding like Naomi’s annoying co-worker who is also competing for the gig hosting this potential new TV show. He keeps commenting about how Naomi gets sidetracked and wanting her to get on with it. I started out being very annoyed by him, but it wasn’t long before I agreed with him. Which also annoyed me. I didn’t want to be like him. 

Here’s the sad part. If the structure of this novel had been better, I am sure I would have loved it. The characters came to life for me. When I was reading, they’d pull me into whatever side quest Naomi was involved in at the moment. Her parents, her boyfriend, her best friend, other friends and neighbors – all outstanding. 

And the writing itself is very evocative. I felt like it was on St. Thomas with Naomi and the rest. 

I tried to give the book a chance since I quickly realized this wasn’t going to be a typically structured novel. The problem was, the constant interruptions made it hard to stay invested. I couldn’t keep the suspects straight when we were talking about the main mystery since it might have been 75 pages since we’d talked about any of them. 

If this has been billed and set up as a short story collection, it would have worked for me. And I would have savored every page. 

Also, while this might appear to be a cozy, there is a fair amount of foul language, at least for that subgenre. 

If the next book in the series is a more traditional novel, I would gladly give the series another chance. But the structural problems keep The Bush Tea Murder from being anything other than average. 

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

Book Review: Murder, Local Style by Leslie Karst (Orchid Isle Mysteries #3)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Fun setting and a solid mystery

Cons: Characters are good, but could be a little stronger

The Bottom Line:

Trying to make friends

But murder complicates things

I love this setting

Is There a Poisoner in the Neighborhood?

I always enjoy finding series that are a bit off the beaten path. That’s the case for Leslie Karst’s Orchid Isle series since I don’t read any other books set in Hawai’i. And I was happy to be back for Murder, Local Style, the third book in the series. 

The series follows Valerie Corbin, a retired caterer who has moved to the Big Island with her wife, Kristen. While they are settling into their new house in Hilo, they are still trying to build a new circle of friends. Valerie decides to follow her interest in orchids and join the orchid society. Since so many of the members are in her neighborhood, it will be a big boost to her social life. 

Valerie’s first meeting is right before a fundraiser for the society, and she gets roped into helping prepare the food. But, no good deed goes unpunished, and the morning after the event, it appears that a bout of food poisoning has hit many of the attendees. Then the society’s president dies from an especially bad case of the food poisoning, and the police get involved. Could it be murder?

Valerie being new to town gives us a nice entry point since we are meeting people as she is. Of course, most of these new people become suspects. It’s what happens in a mystery. People we’ve met in previous books take a bit of a back seat, and I still wish I felt like we were getting to know Valerie and Kristen a little better. But those are minor points. 

The mystery was solid. We had plenty of good suspects and surprises that kept me guessing until we reached the logical climax. 

And yes, I loved the setting. Even though we weren’t visiting touristy places, it still made me want to hop and plane and head back to visit the island. 

As with any good culinary cozy, there are recipes at the end inspired by local dishes. All told, there are five recipes to enjoy. 

If you are looking for a tropical getaway, you’ll be glad you picked up Murder, Local Style. This mystery tinged with local flavor will keep you entertained. 

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book. 

Book Review: Fatal Fried Rice by Vivien Chien (Noodle Shop Mysteries #7)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Lana and the rest of the regulars

Cons: Pacing could be better

The Bottom Line:

Deadly cooking class

Lana is in the hot seat

Slow start but still fun

Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Murder

I’m getting back to many series I have in progress this year, but I suspect soon the bright and shiny new releases will start distracting me. Before that happens, I managed to get another book from mount to be read in. This time, it was Fatal Fried Rice by Vivien Chien. 

This is book seven in a series set in Cleveland. Lana Lee, our main character, has taken over managerial duties for her family’s Chinese restaurant. But much to everyone’s dismay, she can’t actually cook any Chinese food. She decides to do something about it by signing up for a class at a local continuing education school. 

Lana is hoping to keep her class a secret, but that becomes much harder when she returns after class to find the instructor stabbed in the back. With the detective assigned to the case certain that Lana is responsible, she must figure out what happened. But with the victim a stranger, can Lana learn anything about her?

Honestly, that was the biggest issue I had with the book. Yes, I bought that Lana would investigate to clear herself. But it took us far too long to really start to learn anything about the victim or begin to get any suspects. Lana was frustrated as well, so at least I was in good company. As we headed into the final third, the story gained some traction, and we reach a logical conclusion. 

Fortunately, the series regulars are enough to keep us entertained. Lana has quite a fun group of family and friends, and I enjoyed checking in with the core cast again here. We don’t spend as much time in the shopping center in this book, so we don’t see some of those supporting players. And, once we started to gather suspects, they proved interesting. 

As always, this is one of the few culinary series without recipes. So you’ll have to have your favorite Chinese restaurant on speed dial to satisfy your cravings. 

While the pacing could be stronger, fans will still enjoy getting to check in with Lana in Fatal Fried Rice. 

Check out the rest of the Noodle Shop Mysteries. 

Novella Review: Pompeii, Paccheri, and Panic by Traci Andrighetti (Pasta and Piazza Mysteries #0.5)

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Good mystery and main characters with book laughs

Cons: Language/accent concerns and some of the humor, both could be me issues

The Bottom Line:

Italy research

Murder, mayhem, novella

Not quite what I hoped

Not Quite the Intro I Hoped For

Author Traci Andrighetti has long been on my radar.  In fact, I’ve had the first in her Franki Amato series for a few years now.  When I saw she was introducing a spin off series and she was offering an introductory novella for free to her newsletter subscribers, I jumped on it.  After all, it was a good chance to meet these characters and hopefully jump on in at the beginning of a new series.  However, Pompeii, Paccheri, and Panic wasn’t quite as enjoyable as I hoped it would be.

This story introduced me to Giada Adair, who is going through a painful divorce and has taken a job as a tour guide in Italy in an attempt to rebuild her life.  She and her best friend have headed over before her first official tour to do a little research in Pompeii.  But her trip takes an unexpected turn when an ancient lamp just unearth from Pompeii disappears and Giada finds herself implicated.  Worse yet, a young woman dies in front of Giada, and she becomes a suspect.  That is, unless she was the intended victim.  Giada is going to have to channel her cousin Franki if she wants to get out of this alive.

While yes, this novella is the first book to star Giada, she and her friend Moira have apparently appeared in at least one of the books about Franki.  And Franki did have a cameo here as well.  However, that wasn’t an issue for me.  We were given enough background to follow these two characters and everyone else was new.  And I did like our leads and felt the supporting characters were sufficiently mysterious.

And my issues with the story have nothing to do with the plot.  For a 100-page novella, the story was quite good.  We got a couple of fun twists before reaching a logical conclusion and a page turning climax.

One of my issues was with the language.  No, I’m not talking about four letter words.  I’m talking about the fact that the book takes place in Italy.  Yes, there is a glossary in the back, but I’m lazy.  I don’t want to keep flipping back to understand what I just read.  This is a me issue, but it was something in the back of my mind, especially since it ruined another series I tried to read set in Italy for me.  Additionally, one of the characters spoke in an accent that was just annoying.

The other issue I had was the humor.  A lot of it was coming from potty humor, quite literally.  (Okay, ancient potty humor, but still.)  At times I was cringing.  Others, I was laughing.  And they would often happen just a line or two apart, so clearly, again, this is more of a me thing than anything else. 

This is designed to be a culinary and travel themed cozy series, and it got off to a great start there.  My mouth watered at some of what they ate, and we get a delicious sounding recipe at the end.

I don’t want to dismiss Traci Andrighetti after one novella.  But I’m not quite as anxious to start this series.  I think I’ll try the first book in her other series I already have before I decide if I want to continue with her books or not.

Book Review: Lime and Punishment by Cathy Wiley (Fatal Food Festival Mysteries #5)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Great characters and mystery and humor

Cons: Not a lemon in sight

The Bottom Line:

Some lime in the keys

Murder on menu again

A fun concoction 

Murder Leaves a Tart Taste on This Festival

Cathy Wiley’s Fatal Food Festival Mysteries has become a favorite series, so when Lime and Punishment, the fifth in the series, crossed my radar, I jumped right in to the latest adventure. 

The series features Jackie Norwood, a former celebrity chef whose career ended thanks to her alcoholism. Now sober, she trying to rebuild her career, and part of that path is as a celebrity guest judge at various food festivals all over the country. 

This time, Jackie and her friends have landed in Maverick Key, one of the smaller of the Florida Keys, for their key lime festival. Everyone is happy to be there since it is February. But Jackie is disturbed to find out that two bar owners have been killed in the last few weeks. She was hoping for a more relaxed festival this time, however, it looks like murder has followed her once again. But it’s only after she runs into her high school band teacher and learns he’s the prime suspect that Jackie decides she must investigate. Can she clear her friend of the crime?

As always, the book does a good job of setting up the story while also reintroducing us to Jackie and the rest of the characters. She has quite the entourage who comes with her in every book. Not that I am complaining since I love them. They each contribute something to the enjoyment of each book, and provide the cozy core we might normally miss in a travel-based series. Yet they are balanced well with the suspects, who are entertaining and keep us guessing. 

The mystery itself is strong. Once things are set up, we are off with plenty of twists and red herrings to keep us guessing. The ending was completely logical and resolved all my questions. 

While you can read this book as a standalone, there are character arcs that are building on what has come before, and you’ll enjoy them best if you’ve read the series in order. But they are all delightful, so that’s not a problem. 

Rounding out the ingredients for this book is the humor. There are lots of puns, which I always love. We’ve also got some character-based humor. 

And I can’t leave out the recipes. We’ve got several, the majority of which are dessert based, but there are some other choices as well. All of them fit the key lime theme.

As I said, this is a favorite series, and Lime and Punishment was well worth the wait. If you have yet to start this series, you’ll want to start following Jackie around the country today. 

Travel to the rest of the Fatal Food Festival Mysteries. 

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book. 

Book Review: At Death’s Dough by Mindy Quigley (Deep Dish Mysteries #5)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Characters and an overall good mystery

Cons: Some pacing issues early on

The Bottom Line:

Body under ice

The pacing is off early

Still good overall

A Frozen Valentine’s Day

I’ve always enjoyed reading series set in resort communities, either real or fictional. I enjoy getting to take virtual vacations when a book is set during popular times, but I also enjoy it when those series set books in the quieter seasons. That’s what we get with At Death’s Dough, the fifth Deep Dish Mystery from Mindy Quigley. 

These books are set in Geneva Bay, Wisconsin, and focus on Delilah O’Leary, who owns a deep dish, gourmet pizza restaurant. You’d think that would keep her out of trouble, but she still finds ways to get involved in danger. 

It’s the beginning of February, and Delilah is finding the quiet season is quieter than she planned on. She’s hoping for a full restaurant on Valentine’s Day to help carry her through to tourist season again. On one of the restaurant’s days closed, Delilah and her great aunt go out ice fishing, and they make an unexpected discovery - a dead body under the ice. The victim was dressed for scuba diving, but who would dive in the lake in the middle of the winter?

This book certainly has an intriguing premise, and I was quickly hooked. However, the book seemed to take more time than it needed to really get to the meat of the story. Yes, the story was setting up suspects, but it wasn’t obvious how everything was going to tie into the main story early on, and I found myself frustrated by what appeared to be random characters, wishing things would move forward. 

Also, we got a bit more details about the discovery of the body than I felt we needed, especially for a cozy. It was pushing the boundaries a bit. 

Once the plot really kicked in, I did get caught up in the mystery. The suspects were good, and the plot took some fun twists. There was one aspect that was obvious early on, but I was still wondering how it would play into the overall story. The last quarter really ramped up with some page turning scenes. And the climax brought things to a logical conclusion.

The series has always had strong characters, and this book is no exception. I enjoyed getting to see Delilah’s staff again, and we got to spend a bit of time with a couple of them. What I really enjoyed was seeing her relationship with her boyfriend grow. Delilah herself is not a typical cozy heroine is some ways, and I also appreciated seeing how she is growing over the course of the series.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a culinary cozy without some recipes. There are a total of four here, and only one is a pizza recipe, so there is some variety.

At Death’s Dough will leave you with cravings for pizza and more of the series. If you are a fan of culinary cozies, this is a series not to be missed.

Grab another slice and the rest of the Deep Dish Mysteries.

Book Review: Catering to the Dead by Kim Davis (Cupcake Catering Mysteries #8)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Great characters in a fun mystery

Cons: A couple of niggles with the plot, but minor overall

The Bottom Line:

Death after party

Hosts want to blame Emory

Eighth fun mystery

Who Took the Day of the Dead Literally?

It’s always a treat to travel to Orange County and catch up with Emory Martinez with the Cupcake Catering Mysteries. So when I learned that Kim Davis was releasing book eight in the series, I added Catering to the Dead to my reading list. 

This entry in the series finds Emory providing the cupcakes for a Dia de los Muertos party. She’s also helping out her sister, who is providing the rest of the food. But as Emory is cleaning up after the event, she finds a member of the Mariachi band under the dessert table. She doesn’t consider this a case she needs to get involved in until the hosts keep trying to point the finger at her. Can she find another killer?

It is true that Orange County, California, is hardly the small town you’d typically picture for a cozy mystery, but it works well here. It does help that I enjoy spending time in a location I have a passing knowledge of, and that’s the case here. 

It also helps that we’ve gotten to know Emory’s circle of family and friends over the course of the series. All the regulars get at least a cameo, and it’s nice to check in with them again. The suspects are interesting and keep us guessing as we read. 

Which brings us to the mystery itself. It was a little uneven early on, and the ending left me with a couple of minor questions. Overall, I did enjoy the plot and was satisfied with the ending. 

Since this is a culinary cozy, we get some recipes at the end, all in keeping with the Day of the Dead theme. There are nine of them here, including some cookies and cupcakes, a soup, and even a cocktail. Plus, we get two crafts. 

Those looking for a bit more of an urban setting for their next cozy mystery will be glad they picked up Catering to the Dead. As always, it will leave you hungry for more. 

Snack on the rest of the Cupcake Catering Mysteries. 

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book. 

Book Review: Crescent City Christmas Chaos by Ellen Byron (Vintage Cookbook Mysteries #4)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Great mystery, fun characters, seasonal fun

Cons: A couple of minor things that hopefully got caught in a final edit

The Bottom Line:

Delving into past

Lead to a Christmas murder

Filled with season’s charm

Ricki’s Past, Family, and a Christmas Murder

It’s no secret I love Christmas, so I’m always happy when I see a series I enjoy has a Christmas offering.  One of this year’s new Christmas cozy mysteries is Ellen Byron’s Crescent City Christmas Chaos, the fourth entry in her Vintage Cookbook Mysteries.  As expected, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This series features Ricki James-Diaz who owns a vintage cookbook and cooking utensil gift shop in one of the historic mansions in New Orleans.  The mansion is opened for tours, and so Ricki has a steady stream of customers.  She’s moved back to the city in order to find out more about her birth family since she was adopted as a baby.  She’s hoping to make some headway this year since her parents have come to town as a surprise for the holidays.

But her mom seems reluctant to talk about that part of their past.  Ricki does find one of her mom’s old co-workers, but the day after meeting her, the woman turns up dead.  Unfortunately, Ricki’s mom soon finds herself a suspect in the case, and the longer the case drags on, the more of Ricki’s friends and family find themselves suspects.  With the police trying to juggle too many cases, Ricki jumps in to try to solve this one.  Can she do it?

There is a lot going on here between the main mystery and several subplots.  In lesser hands, it might have led to chaos, but Ellen Byron does a great job of balancing everything.  This also means that the story is always moving forward and I was never bored.  The mystery itself moved forward at a steady pace, and I enjoyed following Ricki as she figured things out.  The ending made sense when we got there.

I will say there were a couple of things in the first third that made me scratch my head and should have been caught in a good edit.  I was reading an ARC, so hopefully they were tweaked.  Either way, they are minor and don’t really impact the story in any way.

Ellen’s series tend to attract characters.  That’s not a complaint, just a statement of fact.  I enjoyed getting to spend time with them again and making some new friends.  After all, this is the most time that Ricki’s parents have had in a book, for example.  All the characters get a moment to shine, which is another testament to Ellen’s ability to juggle it all.  There is a cast of characters at the beginning, although you’ll enjoy getting to know the characters best from reading the series in order.  There are some minor spoilers for ongoing storylines here, too, if you don’t go back to the beginning.

And yes, the Christmas setting was tons of fun, as I knew it would be.  Some elements were pretty funny, and others were charming and cozy.  If you save this one for December, you’ll be glad, but it can give you the Christmas feeling no matter when you read it.

Speaking of Christmas, the recipes at the back of the book focus on a New Orleans Christmas tradition I hadn’t heard of before.  A Réveillon Dinner is a special dinner served after the midnight mass.  And yes, Ellen adapted the recipes from vintage cookbooks in her collection as always.

With Christmas just a few weeks away, now is the time to start planning your holiday cozies.  Whether you read Crescent City Christmas Chaos now or wait to savor it during December, you’ll be glad you picked it up.

Be sure to check out the rest of the Vintage Cookbook Mysteries.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

Book Review: A Murder Most Fowl by Carmela Dutra (Food Truck Mysteries #1)

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Story does draw you in

Cons: Could have used some work to make it better

The Bottom Line:

When contestant dies

Food trucks become dangerous

Book could be better

This Debut Wasn’t Quite My Chicken Wing

When I spotted A Murder Most Fowl by Carmela Dutra, I couldn’t resist. Culinary cozies always catch my eye, and this one was set in the San Francisco Bay Area, and I grew up near there. I just had to give it a try. Sadly, it didn’t quite work for me. 

The book introduces us to Beth and Seth Lloyd, twins who have inherited a chicken wing themed food truck from their aunt Dolly. Beth has gotten the idea to enter them in a reality TV show for a food network, and Seth is going along for the ride. 

Unfortunately, among the competitors is Benji, a fellow food truck owner that Beth knows all too well. Another local, they have clashed in the past. So when Benji turns up dead in his truck at the end of the first day of filming, Beth finds herself answering lots of questions. Can she get a few answers of her own to figure out what really happened?

The book started out well. I was laughing at the first couple of chapters, and settled in for what I hoped would be a good read. Then the problems started. 

The first was the plot. While it started quickly, this was a classic example of events masking any real investigation. We learned little about any suspects and rehash the few things we do learn. Beth does figure some things out near the end, but we don’t learn what they were until later. I did feel the solution answered my questions, but I would have appreciated a bit more sprinkled throughout the book. 

As I said above, the suspects are pretty flat. Honestly, I had a hard time keeping most of the other contestants straight. Some of the other supporting characters did fare a little better. 

Even our main trio of Beth, Seth, and their friend Rylie were only a little better. I felt like their reactions to things was a little over the top. I found that funny early on, but it wore thin before the book was over. And Beth missed a few obvious things and was a bit too stubborn as things went along. 

Even the location turned out to be less than I’d hoped for. The setting was fictional, which I get and can enjoy. But there was little to anchor it to the San Francisco Bay Area. But I would bet that others have felt that way about fictional settings near areas they know well. 

This is one of those cases where the book’s flaws are obvious, but it doesn’t mean the book was bad. I still got caught up in the story as I was reading it. It just wasn’t as good as I’d hoped for. 

Yes, this is a culinary cozy with a couple of recipes at the end. They do sound good. 

If A Murder Most Fowl really appeals to you, give it a shot. You might find that you enjoy it more than I did. 

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book. 

Book Review: Whiskey Business by Adrian Andover (Mixology Lounge Mysteries #1)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Characters, setting, and a good mystery

Cons: A minor niggle or two, but nothing major

The Bottom Line: 

Body in alley

Reece must find the killer

In this strong debut

Reece Finds Murder In His New Business

When I was at Malice Domestic this last spring, I met Adrian Andover, who was there promoting his debut mystery. Whiskey Business sounded like a lot of fun, so I kept my eyes open for the announcement that ARCs were ready and quickly requested one. I’m glad I did because I enjoyed this cozy. 

This book introduces us to Reece Parker. He’s recently opened Subplot, a literature themed cocktail lounge in his small town in Pennsylvania. He’s slowly gaining customers, but he’s still looking for any way to bring in new customers, so he gladly agrees to host a monthly whiskey club. The first meeting is a little on the rocks thanks to a new member who is arrogant and pushy. He’s obviously getting under the skin of the members, especially one, who tries to call him out on his behavior. 

Later that night, when Reece goes to take out the garbage, he finds the new member’s body in the alley behind his lounge. Afraid it might reflect poorly on his business, and afraid the police might use it to make his life miserable, he starts investigating. Can he find the killer?

This book has the cozy vibe down perfectly. I don’t drink, and I’d still love to visit Subplot. The descriptions make it warm and inviting, and I love the drink titles, which are riffs on classic literature. Yes, I’d be sticking to the non-fiction mocktail side of the menu, but I think I’d enjoy a visit. 

Of course, I’d want to visit between murders. This book does a great job of balancing introducing the characters and setting up the story. It’s obvious who the victim will be, and we really don’t waste that much time before he dies. From there, we get some good surprises and clues as well as red herrings until we reach the satisfying conclusion. A couple of things could have been smoothed out, in my opinion, but that’s a minor point that probably only I would care about. 

In addition to opening his cocktail lounge, Reece is also struggling with his sexuality, having recently broken things off with his fiancée because he’s finally admitted to himself that he’s gay. Granted, I haven’t read too many stories with gay main characters, but usually they are further along this journey. I appreciated how this subplot was handled since Reece is still coming to terms with what this means for his future. 

And the rest of the cast? They are outstanding as well. We get a clear picture of them, series regular and suspect alike. Just like the setting, they give off the cozy vibes. I can feel the love they have for each other, and I want to spend more time with them. 

While I consider this a culinary cozy, there aren’t any recipes at the end. Since I don’t drink, that’s not an issue for me, and not all culinary cozies have them.

Whiskey Business is a strong debut. You’ll be glad you picked it up. Me? I’m looking forward to my next visit already. 

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

Book Review: Edam and Weep by Linda Reilly (Grilled Cheese Mysteries #6)

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: The characters are charming as always 

Cons: Competing predictable storylines

The Bottom Line:

Grumpy vendor killed

Loses steam in second half

This one’s for the fans

Carly Finds Murder at a Fundraiser

When I found out that we were getting a new Grilled Cheese Mystery, I immediately cleared my plate to read it. Unfortunately, I found Edam and Weep a little under grilled. 

This is book six in a series set in a small Vermont town. Our protagonist is Carly Hale who has followed her dream and opened a grilled cheese diner in the town square. It’s turned into a popular destination for residents and tourists alike. And Carly has found herself involved in the occasional murder or two. 

As this book opens, it’s just over a month until Carly’s wedding to Ari. But today, she’s focused on the 50’s diner themed fundraiser for the local high school’s gym. While she’s selling simple grilled cheese (of course), some of the other vendors are offering various other offerings. But the man selling sodas clearly doesn’t want to be there, and his rude behavior leads to a confrontation with Carly’s mom. When the man is found dead later with the scarf that her mom was wearing around his neck, Carly jumps in to figure out what really happened. 

Since this is book six in the series, it was great to spend time with the characters again. We have a core group that I enjoy. I would have liked to see more of some of the supporting players, but that’s a minor complaint. 

My major issue comes from the plot. Or, should I say, plots. The mystery itself was a little underwhelming. While I didn’t have the killer figured out, I knew where it was going early. And it had a too familiar feel to it. That’s all I will say. 

Unfortunately, that storyline was competing for page time with another A story involving a previously unseen sister that Ari has. While I was enjoying that story early on, it got a bit predictable by the half way point as well with one character involved wearing thin. 

On the other hand, fans of the series will definitely want to read to the end. 

And fans of the series will want to pick up this book overall. Obviously, we love the characters if we keep reading the series. And the time spent with them in enjoyable as always. 

Since this is a culinary cozy, we get two more cheese centric recipes as well. 

Edam and Weep isn’t the strongest entry in this series. While fans will still want to pick it up, those new to the series should start with an earlier book. 

Here are further servings of the Grilled Cheese Mysteries. 

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book. 

Book Review: Killer Kung Pao by Vivien Chien (Noodle Shop Mysteries #6)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Delicious mystery and fun characters

Cons: Maybe pacing at the beginning (but that might be me)

The Bottom Line:

Beauty shop murder

With unpopular suspect

Killer fun entry

Did an Accident Lead to a Shocking Murder?

Since I’ve fallen woefully behind on Vivien Chien’s Noddle Shop Mysteries, I decided to focus a bit more on them this year, so I’m reading my second on for 2025. (Two instead of one in a year. I did say focus a bit more.) That’s what lead me to pick up Killer Kung Pao, the sixth in the series. I’m glad I did because I really enjoyed it. 

The series focuses on Lana Lee, who is running her family’s Chinese restaurant in an Asia focused shopping center in Cleveland, Ohio. It’s been a few books since we had a story that focuses on Asia Village, but that’s what we get here. 

All Lana wanted on that particular Friday night was to leave work to go hang out with her boyfriend, Detective Adam Trudeau. Instead, she witnesses an auto accident in the parking lot of Asia Village. When the participants, June Yi and Millie Mao, start threatening each other, Lana wonders what is behind their animosity. 

But the next morning, Lana’s hair appointment gives her a ringside seat as the two start to go at it again in the shopping center’s salon. Then Millie is electrocuted. The whispers that June is guilty begin almost immediately, but Lana thinks that’s too easy. She may not personally like June, but she doesn’t want to see the woman sent to prison for a crime she didn’t commit. Can Lana find the truth?

When I started this book, it was an incredibly busy weekend, and I didn’t get as much reading time as normal. When something like that happens, it always makes me wonder when I feel the beginning of a book is a little slow. Is it just me? Or did the book take a little longer than it needed to before it fully picked up? My guess is I was being a bit picky. 

Either way, once Lana begins to fully investigate, I was hooked. Millie wasn’t well liked, but Lana still needs to find some concrete motives and suspects. Once she did, I was kept guessing until we reached the logical solution. All my questions were answered at that point. 

Since we spent so much time around Asia Village again, we saw lots of the regulars, which was fun. A couple of subplots provided some good growth for a couple of them, and one scene left me laughing. One subplot was left purposefully dangling, and I’m very curious where it is going to go in future books. 

While there are no recipes at the end of this book, there is plenty of discussion of food that will leave you placing an order from your local Chinese restaurant. 

It’s easy to see why this fun series has so many fans. Killer Kung Pao will leave you craving the next in this delicious series. 

Order the rest of the Noodle Shop Mysteries. 

Book Review: Thrown for a Scoop by Dana Mentink (Shake Shop Mysteries #4)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Fun characters in another great mystery

Cons: Some continuity issues missed in the editing, but minor overall

The Bottom Line:

Podcaster in town

Is his death tied to cold case?

Fun to revisit

Is the Solution to an Old Mystery Here in Town?

When the publisher ended the Shake Shop Mysteries at book three, I thought the series was over. And the ending of book three would have been a nice farewell to the characters. But the author decided to self-publish one more entry - Thrown for a Scoop. 

This series is set in the town of Upper Sprocket in the eastern part of Oregon and features Trinidad Jones, who has opened the Shimmy and Shake Shop in town.  As this book begins, it’s been about six months since we last checked in with her, and Upper Sprocket is gearing up to celebrate its centennial.  Naturally, Trinidad has created a special freak shake for the occasion that she is hoping will sell well with the locals and the tourists alike.

But things take a turn when a stranger walks into Trinidad’s shop asking questions.  It turns out that he is a true crime podcaster who is certain that the answer to a fifty-year-old hijacking is somewhere in town.  Even worse, he thinks that Trinidad’s fiancé’s brother holds a clue.  Doug has some special needs, so Trinidad knows a stranger demanding answers from him won’t go over well.  But when the podcaster is killed on the brothers’ nut farm, all the evidence seems to point to Doug.  Trinidad swears she won’t get involved again, but she can’t seem to help it.  Can she figure out what really happened to the podcaster?  Was he on to something with this old mystery?

The book doesn’t waste time at the beginning.  It reminds us of the characters and updates us on their lives and sets the mystery in motion very quickly.  From there, we get some great moments as Trinidad goes about gathering information.  It kept me confused up until the end, but once Trinidad figured everything out, it all made sense.

I will say that there were some rather annoying continuity errors early on in the copy I read.  Either I stopped noticing them later in the book or they weren’t an issue.  They felt like the result of some changes between drafts that weren’t completely caught after the changes were made.  As annoying as they were, none of them impacted the story at all.

It was great to visit the characters again.  The cast of supporting characters is quite colorful, and I love spending time with them.  Fans will be happy with some of the updates we get for the characters here.  The suspects were good and kept us guessing up until the end.

If you have a weakness for ice cream (and who doesn’t), this book will leave you drooling quite a bit.  And I’m very curious what exactly is in the breakfast ice cream that is the subject of a subplot.  Sadly, there aren’t any recipes at the end of the book, so I’ll have to try to come up with ideas on my own.

I mentioned at the beginning feeling happy with where the characters had been at the end of book three.  Yes, they are in a good place again at the end of this book.

It was nice to get another case for Trinidad.  Fans should scoop up this book.  While the author has moved on to other things now, if she were to revisit these characters, I’d gladly return to Upper Sprocket.

Here’s the scoop on the rest of the Shake Shop Mysteries.

Book Review: Night of the Living Bread by Mary Lee Ashford (Sugar and Spice Mysteries #4)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Wonderful to revisit these characters in a good mystery

Cons: Mystery could be stronger overall

The Bottom Line:

A well-loved victim

While creating bread cook book

Happy series back

Can Sugar Rise to the Occasion and Find Another Killer?

It’s been years since we had any new books in the Sugar and Spice Mysteries.  With the original imprint that published the series shutting down, I assumed that was all we were going to get.  But a new publisher stepped in to resurrect the series, and I quickly added Night of the Living Bread, the fourth, to my to be read pile.

This series is set in the town of St. Ignatius in Iowa.  Our main characters are Sugar Calloway and Dixie Spicer, best friends who had joined together to create Sugar & Spice Community Cookbooks.  Their company focuses on creating cook books that various community groups can use as fundraisers.  Of course, they seem to find themselves in various mysteries along the way.

As this book opens, Sugar and Dixie are working on a new project for the Jameson County Historical Society.  It’s a cook book focused on various breads.  It may sound a little narrow, but they already have several ideas for subcategories, and the pair are excited about it.  Their contact for the project is Marla Mercer.  But Sugar’s appointment one morning never happens since she finds Marla dead on the office floor, a bread knife in her back.  Everyone seems shocked by the murder, insisting that Marla was well loved.  So who would want to kill her?

It may have been a few years since I last visited these characters, but I slipped back into their world easily.  There was enough context to remind me of the characters and their relationships.  And it was great to be back in their world again.  The main cast and their relationships are charming, and I enjoyed getting to revisit them.  The new characters were just as charming – at least on the surface.

The mystery started strongly.  I was intrigued to see what motives Sugar would uncover for this murder.  While I didn’t have all the pieces together before I reached the end, I had figured several pieces out.  And, when I did reach the end, everything made perfect sense.

There are a couple of subplots as well that helped keep my attention as I was reading.

And what kind of culinary cozy would this be if it didn’t include recipes?  Yes, there are bread recipes, 3 of them in fact.  But we also get recipes for a couple of different, and delicious sounding, desserts.

It’s always nice to see a series I enjoyed find a new home and make a comeback.  Fans of this series will be happy to pick up Night of the Living Bread. 

Be sure to check out the rest of the Sugar and Spice Mysteries.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

I’m also reviewing it as part of a blog tour.  Check out the rest of the stops and enter the tour wide giveaway below.

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Book Review: Bait and Swiss by Korina Moss (Cheese Shop Mysteries #6)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Characters we love in a great mystery

Cons: Willa does something head scratching early

The Bottom Line:

Willa’s past in town

Who would poison chocolate?

Winning sixth entry

Chocolate and Cheese Make a Deadly Pairing 

If a main character in a mystery series has something interesting in her past, you know that it will eventually show up in the series. That’s the case for Willa Bauer in Bait and Swiss, the sixth Cheese Shop Mystery from Korina Moss. And it makes for another great entry. 

As this book opens, Willa is looking forward to celebrating the second anniversary of her cheese shop, Curds & Whey, in the small town of Yarrow Glen. In that time, she’s come to love the friends she’s made with her neighbors and employees. It’s why she is happy for Hope, who is about to celebrate the grand opening of her rebranded Cakery (a bakery focused on cakes). However, that celebration comes with a bitter surprise for Willa. Hope has teamed up with Chocolate Bliss to offer specialty chocolate. 

Willa knows the two owners of Chocolate Bliss all too well – her ex-fiancé who left her for her ex-best friend. With both of them in town, she is going to be forced to deal with feelings she’d been trying to avoid for years. 

But then someone dies, and it looks like they were poisoned by some chocolates. The question becomes, who was the intended victim? Can Willa figure out what is going on?

Before we get any further, I do need to point at that Willa does something pretty stupid near the beginning of the book. I’m not talking about stupid because you are the character in a book, which I can usually forgive. I’m talking about something that made no sense other than to make her a suspect. As head scratching as it was, it is a minor part of the book. 

And the rest of the book is great. There are many different questions that Willa needs to answer, so there is always something to confuse us. I did feel things got a little over complicated at the end, but ultimately, everything made sense. 

Over the course of these six books, we’ve made some good friends, and I enjoyed spending time with many of them again. The core cast is present, and I love them. It was nice to see some advancement in their lives. We also got to see some characters we haven’t seen much in the last couple of books, which I greatly enjoyed. Naturally, there are some new characters who make for excellent suspects. 

As I always talk about, Yarrow Glen is supposedly in Sonoma County, an area I grew up in in Northern California. It is always nice to return fictionally. 

And if you are expecting some cheese related recipes, you’ll be rewarded. There are three, and they all sound delicious if you love cheese. Which is almost everyone, right?

Bait and Swiss will please fans of the series. If you enjoy a good culinary cozy mystery and haven’t read this series yet, fix that today. 

Be sure to check out the rest of the Cheese Shop Mysteries.