Published: February 1, 2011
BOOKS 1, 2, 3 --
WICKED HUMOR CLOAKED IN MURDER
DEATH BY CHOCOLATE by Sally Berneathy is an aptly named murder mystery. The author’s wicked sense of humor cloaking a very cleverly written tale, reading the first few paragraphs told me I was in for an exhilarating ride.
I do remember when this book was first published and the stir it caused. So when I saw a promo for it, I decided to see for myself as to why it had garnered so much attention and received so many stellar reviews. The fact it took this long for me to read was surprising given that I love mysteries almost as much as I do chocolate. So it was without a moment’s hesitation that I took the plunge and was immediately treated to a scrumptious delight that kept my Kindle burning brightly into the night.
Ms. Berneathy has created quite a world for us to play in, and who better than lead character Lindsay Powell to make the introduction. And while there are lots of ways she could have greeted us, we find the chocolate chip baking goddess waking to the fact that she’s slept with her very psychotic/very estranged husband Rick. Oopsy! You know how that goes, and so does Lindsay because she is always being taken in by the uber handsome womanizing louse she knows will never change. While she staves off early morning manipulation games designed to talk her into doing one more thing she doesn’t want to do, it isn’t long before she spots Paula, a woman who rents a property from Lindsay, being questioned by the police. The questioning begets Lindsay speaking to Paula … and then a neighbor Fred … which begets her wondering what the heck Fred does do for a living … which begets taking in a feral cat that found his way to her front porch … which begets a murder … or does the begetting of poisoned chocolate come first?
It's for you to find out and enjoy! As for Berneathy, she does a masterful job in fleshing out characters while keeping all the irons hot and juggling in the air. She does such a stupendous job, that I fell head over heels in love with that man named Fred without even trying—and I never even liked the name before this! The writing sharp, the dialogue is spot on and ruthlessly honest. Veering from hilarious to fatally somber without missing a beat, the entwining of extremes and everything in-between is difficult at best. But trust this author to nail it all down without the fast pace suffering from the switching of gears. She truly makes the entire affair effortless.
Conclusion: Sally Berneathy is terrific. Like Lindsay, she has that perfect secret recipe … not for baking cookies … but for writing remarkably entertaining books. Witty, zany, intriguing, puzzling, larcenous, and outright hilarious, DEATH BY CHOCOLATE is a sparkling winner that I can’t recommend highly enough. Five stars is just not enough, so how about ‘five stars and all the chocolate chip cookies you can eat’! Enjoy!
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DEATH BY CHOCOLATE
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TRIPLE CHOCOLATE MURDER
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