Candy, Cigarettes, and Murder Review

 

Genre: Amateur Detective, Cozy Mystery, Culinary Mystery

Buy Link: https://amzn.to/3IYeH20

Blurb

Recently widowed, Emma Banefield looks forward to a getaway birthday weekend with her free-wheeling sister, Nicole Earp, sipping chocolate martinis at the peaceful, historic Dulce Inn. When a rude stranger, a nasty food critic, and a madhouse of temperamental artists greet them, all hope for a tranquil weekend evaporates faster than dew on a hot desert morning.

Overlooking the riotous atmosphere is doubly hard after Em discovers the body of a hotel guest, and a second murder affects Nic personally. Now, entrenched in a caper that pits them against a surly detective, they cozy up to a hotel staff hiding dangerous secrets to uncover clues to the killer.

Using their smarts and love of all-things mystery, will the Chocolate Martini Sisters solve the crime ahead of the obstinate Chief Detective or find themselves trapped in the middle of a third murder?

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Ornery Owl's Review

Four out of Five Stars

Sisters Emma and Nicole hope for rest and relaxation during their annual vacation at the Dulce Inn. Instead, they are treated to murder when someone axes the notorious food critic and wannabe artist David Shaw. There are plenty of people with ample reason to want Shaw dead, not the least of whom is the hotel's self-important owner, Jillian Jackson. Following Shaw's death, someone attempts to poison the inn's temperamental chef Grayson Payne, who himself had reason to want David Shaw dead.

There are plenty of red herrings in the story to keep readers guessing. The plot is compelling and the characters are engaging. The sister sleuths have a friendly dynamic rather than being at each other's throats, however, they are different enough to keep them from becoming two different iterations of the same character. Their dynamic is realistic and charming. I appreciated a story featuring middle-aged female heroines.

The one thing that kept me from giving the book a five-star rating was Emily's obsession with calorie counting and dissatisfaction with not having a size zero physique. Her behavior was, sadly, realistic. Nonetheless, it detracted from my enjoyment of the story. As someone who became bulimic at twelve years old and tried to hate myself thin for a good thirty-three years of my life, I would love to read about a plump heroine who kicks ass, takes names, and frankly doesn't give a damn what anyone else's opinions of her are. 

The book kept me guessing all the way through, and that is what I want from a mystery. The flow of the story was right in the Goldilocks zone: not too quick, but not too slow either. It hit the just right sweet spot. It also didn't hurt that the story is set in Arizona, which is a place I love to visit although when summer comes I'm glad enough not to live there. 

If you like cozy mysteries and plucky middle-aged heroines, you will surely enjoy Candy, Cigarettes, and Murder. I will read other books in the series as they are released.