(Image from Barnes & Noble)
Note: While this review will not contain spoilers for Murder Made to Order, it may inadvertently spoil plot surprises from its predecessor, Scone Cold Killer. As always, I recommend reading books in a series in order.
Gia Morelli, the newest resident of Boggy Creek, Florida, and owner of the popular All-Day Breakfast Cafe is still reeling from finding her ex-husband's body in the dumpster behind her restaurant. The last thing she needs is another shock. Gia just wants to run her business in peace, but the forceful president of the town council has other ideas. A forgotten city ordinance is being trumped up by the council in an effort to close Gia down. Truth is, it might be just the motivation Gia needs to leave all of Florida's quirks behind and head back to New York, where she really belongs.
While Gia is debating whether to stay or go, she comes across a shocking sight while out on a walk with her dog. It's not a dreaded gator, but the dead body of Marcia Steers, the very woman who was trying so hard to shut down the All-Day Breakfast Cafe. Although Marcia had plenty of enemies in town, suspicion immediately falls on Gia. There's only one way to clear her name and that's to find the killer herself. Hunt Quinn, aka Detective Tall, Dark, and Gorgeous, will frown on Gia's do-it-herself sleuthing, but when has that ever stopped the intrepid chef?
Murder Made to Order, the second installment in Lena Gregory's All-Day Breakfast Cafe series, is another fun cozy mystery. Not gonna lie—these books require a big suspension of disbelief, but once you're past that, they're great for a bit of light entertainment. I enjoy the Boggy Creek setting, the likable townspeople, and Gia's friends. I'm hoping the characters get more developed as the series goes on. Even with that, though, I enjoy this series. It's nothing shout-it-from-the-rooftops amazing, but the books make me smile and they don't give me nightmares, so I'll for sure keep reading them.
(Readalikes: Scone Cold Killer by Lena Gregory. Also reminds me of cozy mysteries by Ellie Alexander.)
Grade:
If this were a movie, it would be rated:
for brief, mild language (no F-bombs), violence, and innuendo/non-graphic references to sex
To the FTC, with love: Another library fine find
I'm all for books that make you smile! (Just the title of the first one does it for me: Scone Cold Killer. Ha!)
ReplyDeleteCozy mysteries often have very "punny" titles :)
DeleteI always think it's funny when a series of mysteries are set in a small town because I wonder how many people can die in one small town. :-)
ReplyDeleteHa ha. I know. A tiny town where there has never been a murder and suddenly, there's one every week? It takes a little bit of disbelief-suspending for sure!
DeleteI've read a few books in her psychic series and really enjoyed them and have been wanting to read this series for awhile. I'm glad you're enjoying it! You definitely have to suspend belief for cozies. Otherwise small towns would be incredibly dangerous!
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