Daphne Martin loves baking cakes. So when her life takes a nose dive, Daphne decides to start a cake business in her hometown in southern Virginia. When Daphne finds her first customer, town gossip Yodel Watson, dead in her home, Daphne’s Delectable Cakes takes a hit. With business going slowly, Daphne realizes that the sooner she can clear her name, the sooner she can get back to work.
But, as it turns out, Yodel Watson’s gossiping has left her with quite a lot of enemies, and every one of them is a suspect. Can Daphne solve the case before she becomes the next target? I thought this book was a good read. I liked the character of Daphne early on, her love of cakes and her niece and nephew. I was a little surprised by some of the other characters, things they would say or do, but for the most part, I felt they were still realistic characters. The small town setting was perfect for the small business venture, as well as, the mystery behind the murder of Yodel Watson. I liked how, even though Daphne just moved back to town, she was meeting new people, they were not all acquaintances from her childhood, and that she was able to learn and get to know them, fairly quickly. A large portion of this novel focused on Daphne’s family issues more than the mystery, or so it seemed. Since it took so long for the connection to be revealed, it seemed as though the novel had veered away from the mystery. I really wish that there had been more investigating into other possibilities during this section of the book, so that I did not feel that the mystery had taken a back burner to the main character’s problems. I realize that having a good main character, with a strong background is necessary for the book to work. I just felt that Daphne should have delved into more possibilities as far as motive is concerned during this time, in order to give the story more depth. I was somewhat surprised by the ending. I figured out who the murderer was before Daphne, but only just before. I love being surprised by the end of a good cozy mystery, so this was a very good ending. I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys a good cozy mystery, and cakes. I bought my copy of this novel from bookoutlet.com and have been granted permission from the publishers at Gallery Books to use an image of the cover artwork above.
Evie Blackwell is a successful detective in the Illinois State Police. The new governor has recently established a Missing Persons Task Force, and Evie has been selected to be part of the team.
With her new partner, David, Evie heads to Chicago to solve the mystery of a missing college student, while David tries to locate a missing Private investigator. It has been nine years since Evie’s college student disappeared and Evie is hoping to help the family find closure. When David and Evie’s cases intercept, it becomes clear that more may be on the line than the governor’s new task force. Can David and Evie solve the case before another young woman goes missing? Evie Blackwell is a strong, vivid character that draws the reader in with her drive to find the truth and solve her case. The case is very interesting, seemingly simple, but proving to be much more complex as certain aspects unfold throughout the investigation. Her new partner, David, is rather charismatic and seeing the different ways that they both employ to solve their missing persons cases is interesting. Both Evie and David are devote Christians and employ their faith to help them solve cases but they also understand that not everyone, including ones that they love, share their faith. They sometimes discuss their faiths together, opening up the gates to the religious questions that sometimes plague the faithful as well as those seeking the truth behind Christianity. Despite the religious aspects of this story, this book is a great read for anyone looking for an interesting cold case investigation type of read. It focuses more on the case than the faith, making a great read for Christian and non-Christian mystery fans. I’ve always been a fan of a good mystery novel, especially one that kept me guessing, which this one did. It was difficult to be able to guess ahead of time, but still a very satisfying mystery. The dynamics involving local and non-local celebrities, such as the governor and the senator, heightened the interest of the social dynamic outside of the college crowd. I would have liked the case to have been slightly more intense than it was, however, understanding that this was a nine year old cold case made the intensity level understandable. As the case progressed so did the intensity level to some extent. I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys a tough puzzle and/or anyone who enjoys Christian fiction mysteries. I borrowed my copy of this novel from my local library and have permission from the publishers at Bethany House to use the image of the cover artwork featured above. |
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