Member Review

In Key West, Florida, Key Lime Pies are the favorite dessert of locals and tourists alike. At the kickoff of a Key Lime Pie contest, a new bakery owner named Charlotte is frustrated by not being allowed entry into the contest. Her oh-so-French Key Lime Neapolitan is ruled not a pie. Charlotte retaliates by throwing a pie into Sloan, the contest host’s, face. Only hours later, Charlotte is found dead on her lawn posing as a drunken Santa in The (perfect) Key Lime Crime.

Hayley Snow is a food critic for Key Zest Magazine. She married Key West Detective Nathan only three weeks ago. Nathan’s mother, who Hayley has never met, visits the newlyweds and discovers Charlotte’s dead body along with Hayley and her elderly neighbor, Gloria. Even though Nathan tells Hayley to leave the detecting to him, she can’t help investigating too.

Even though this is the tenth book in the series, I had no trouble with reading it as a stand-alone. The hijinks of the denizens of Key West are hilarious. Think Dave Barry’s Florida non-fiction or Serge Storm’s fictional adventures but toned down to a cozy mystery level. The characters are sincere and began to feel like friends by the end of the novel. The mystery was challenging. Overall, 4 stars for this funny foody cozy mystery.

There are also eight recipes seen in the book included at the end. From cheese puffs to chai snickerdoodles to steak and salad, many different choices are available. Plus the book’s David Sloan is based on a real person who wrote the book described in this book. Talk about being meta-fiction.

Thanks to Crooked Lane Books, Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours, and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.