Red herrings abound in a fishy tale featuring a determined sleuth and plenty of Alaskan traditions.
A diner owner with a sideline in investigations looks into some fishy business.
When Ethan Johnson keels over in the Bear Claw, the only diner in Elkview, Alaska, and later dies, owner Charlie Cooke feels a responsibility to investigate even though there’s no evidence that her food killed him. For one thing, her friend Trooper Cody Graham—just Trooper to most—is already swamped with work. Ethan was one of the college students earning large amounts of summer money working at the local fish processing plant. His distraught girlfriend, Zoe Michaels, is obviously hiding something. So Charlie gives her a shoulder to cry on while trying to worm out some of her secrets. The news that Ethan died from mercury poisoning spooks the management of the fish plant because of their possible liability. Their lawyer, Charlie’s former fiance, shows up immediately and begins to stonewall the investigation. Although running her diner and spoiling her cat are already keeping Charlie busy, she teams up again with reporter Chris Doucette, whose stint in the military left him with many hidden talents. Charlie’s sleuthing hits a nerve with someone who starts sending her threatening messages. Now she and Chris need to figure out whether Ethan was killed for love or money before she becomes the next victim.
Red herrings abound in a fishy tale featuring a determined sleuth and plenty of Alaskan traditions.Pub Date: Nov. 24, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593100-46-2
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: Sept. 1, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Suspects are ultimately uncovered and problems solved in a delightful cozy larded with appetizing fudge recipes.
Mackinac Island continues to be beautiful, touristy, and chock-full of murderers.
Most of the ups and downs in Allie McMurphy’s romance with police officer Rex Manning can be traced to Allie’s inability to stay out of homicide investigations. Just as she’s congratulating herself on two years of running the historic McMurphy Hotel and Fudge Shop, her best friend Jenn Carpenter’s doula, Hannah Riversbend, plunges her into another murder case. Allie, Jenn, and Mal the Bichonpoo are out for a walk when they find Hannah holding a gun near the dead body of her boyfriend, park ranger Matthew Jones. After Hannah’s obligatory denial that she’s killed Matthew, Jenn goes into a meltdown at seeing her doula arrested for murder. So Allie naturally agrees to do everything she can to make the doula available for Jenn’s imminent delivery. On top of all that, Allie’s mom arrives on the island with Allie’s wealthy high school sweetheart, Brett Summers, hoping Allie will dump Rex for him. When the ambitious new district attorney persuades the judge to set a high bail for Hannah, Allie gets Brett to loan her the money in exchange for helping him secure permits for a flashy new resort. Hannah’s released in time for Jenn’s delivery, but if she’s to remain free, Allie and her friends need to come up with more motives for Matthew’s murder. The strain puts pressure on her relationship with Rex, and she realizes it won’t be easy to find a happy ending to either challenge.
Suspects are ultimately uncovered and problems solved in a delightful cozy larded with appetizing fudge recipes.Pub Date: March 26, 2024
ISBN: 9781496743701
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Kensington
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Like her heroine’s chatty columns, this is for those who want their murder with a side of personal drama. And lots of clams.
When her best friend’s sworn enemy dies, a restaurateur digs into a case with some surprising connections.
Hayley’s Kitchen, the restaurant local food columnist Hayley Powell owns, is such a staple of the Bar Harbor food industry that not even the nemesis of her good friend Mona Barnes can stay away. In spite of Lonnie Leighton’s ongoing war over all things seafood with Mona, he can’t resist the many iterations of clams on Hayley’s menu, though his temper challenges his ability to keep his truce with Mona. It’s not as if Mona has her own temper in check, and the two almost ignite the place in a firestorm of anger when they find out that Mona’s son Dougie is engaged to Olive, one of Lonnie’s three daughters. It might just be the first thing Mona and Lonnie have ever agreed on. Before the dust can settle on the news and the outraged parents can decide how to punish their erstwhile offspring, Hayley discovers Lonnie’s body in the dunes, presumably having keeled over while he was clamming. Worse still, Dougie might be implicated in this mess. Mona insists that Hayley do some digging of her own—metaphorically, of course—and draw on her past success in solving mysteries to help her. The profusion of both Hayley’s food columns and her cocktail and clam recipes throughout leaves just enough room for Hayley to solve the case as she’s giving readers ideas for dinner.
Like her heroine’s chatty columns, this is for those who want their murder with a side of personal drama. And lots of clams.Pub Date: July 25, 2023
ISBN: 9781496736512
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Kensington
Review Posted Online: April 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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