by Dawn Greenfield Ireland
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Just released: June 2014
Publisher: Artistic Origins
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Paperback: 400 pages, with recipes
Rating: 4
Hot Chocolate series:
Hot Chocolate
Bitter Chocolate
Spicy Chocolate - to be released 2016
The characters you loved in Hot Chocolate are back with more escapades of life in Houston's wealthy River Oaks.
Lila Mae is in a tizzy over the Chocolate Ball - a huge event that she and her sisters, Dorothea and Madge, host every year. But due to unusual circumstances, Dorothea and Madge dump everything in Lila Mae's lap. If it weren't for Julian Gillespie of Event Is King, the Chocolate Ball would have melted.
Bernie, the Alcott sisters' 92-year-old father, decides he wants his Bentley back. The sisters and Bambi are horrified. They hire Joseph's cousin Chewie as Bernie's new chauffeur.
Wolfram, Lila Mae's new astrologer, gives clues of things to come. This leaves Lila Mae and her sidekick Amelia with brows furrowed.
On her day off, Amelia decides to bake a chocolate blueberry pie. She discovers she needs to make a grocery run. When she returns home, she discovers her kitchen door is slightly ajar. Arms loaded with groceries, she toes the door open.
Three things catch her attention: a vase of flowers on the kitchen island that was not there when she left the house, her marble rolling pin covered with blood... and a dead body on her kitchen floor.
Amelia's eyes drift toward the dining room and beyond - is the house empty, or is there a murderer inside? She backs up, turns and hurries outside. After setting the bags on the ground, she slips back into the kitchen and snaps a picture of the dead guy. Then she calls Detective Chance Walker, Lila Mae and finally... 9-1-1.
My two-bits:
This was my first cozy mystery read. I found it to be a kind of mashup of chick-lit and light mystery.
Book 2 in this series continues to follow the details of daily living of a family with the main characters being three middle-aged sisters in a small community in Houston, Texas. I like how they stick together and are involved with each others lives despite the craziness of life.
It was interesting to get perspectives from the large cast of characters and especially amusing to get the point of view of Lila Mae's dog at times.
There are touches of new age, astrology and food references (including recipes).
I had an overall pleasant experience with this read.
* stay tuned for giveaway of this book tomorrow - signup here
* added this to my Bookish Bingo challenge
* review copy courtesy of book tour - check out the other stops here for more details on this book and goodies sponsored by Premier Virtual Author Book Tours
