Cover Image: The Key Lime Crime

The Key Lime Crime

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

Entertaining and well written cozy mystery. Good plot and character development. Mystery fans will love this book. I received an arc from the publisher and this is my unbiased book.

Was this review helpful?

What an entertaining book I really enjoyed the story and finished it in one day. Perfect for a day of light reading.

Was this review helpful?

Hayley and Nathan are newly married when his mother springs a surprise visit on them. Since things are cramped at the houseboat, Hayley's mother offers to let Nathan's mother stay with her. Hayley and Miss Gloria take Nathan's mother on a tour to look at Christmas decorations. Miss Gloria wants to go back and look at one of the displays again and when the three return they find a dead body. Hayley starts investigating with the help from Nathan's mother. I enjoyed this book. I liked the arrival of Nathan's mother and how pleasing her new mother in law was so important to Hayley. As always the setting of Key West is spectacular. The mystery was well done and I enjoyed how the current mystery tied in to an old one. I can't wait to read more in the series.

Was this review helpful?

A fun cozy mystery set in Key West around a Key Lime Pie contest. A pie in the face starts this contest out and moves on to murder. Was someone so jealous? Follow Hayley and her new mother-in-law on their adventures through the streets over New Years.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for providing me with an ARC of this book. It was with great pleasure that I read The Key Lime Crime. Hayley and Gloria are fun characters, and it was interesting to be introduced to Hayley's mother-in-law. I like the fact that the characters are not perfect, it adds to the charm of the book. The story is well built and more complex than it first appears. Lucy Burdette builds a solid story line, and her latest book does not disappoint. A highly enjoyable entry in the series.

Was this review helpful?

I love this series and this installment has lots of action. Key West is one of my favorite places to be so this series has the perfect setting. Hayley meets her mother-in-law and they do a little sleuthing together. I enjoyed visiting with these characters again and hope to see them in many more installments.
Many thanks to Crooked Lane Books and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Was this review helpful?

Lucy Burnett’s takes readers back to Key West for a mystery around the holidays. You take in the fun and fantasy of the Southernmost place in the US while collecting clues about a murder and taking in food ideas and recipes.

Was this review helpful?

This mystery was fun. Mother in law's unexpected visit drives the investigation as she is linked to the murdered woman. Living on a house boat with several animals and three people has it's own challenges. Would love to have the job of sampling all those pies!

Was this review helpful?

This was a very fun read read filled with loveable characters in a cozy little town. It was at times humorous and the mystery was adoreable but clever. It had quite a few twists and turns to keep you guessing. I really enjoyed this quaint little cozy. I definitely recommend it.

Was this review helpful?

A recently wed food critic and Key West resident, Haley Snow, is beset by a “perfect storm” of events. First there’s the annual Key Lime pie baking contest she has been tapped to report on, next an unexpected visit from the mother-in-law she has never met (and who it seems just LOVED wife #1) has her anxiety level boiling, third there’s her police detective husband Nathan who, for a number of reasons, is noticeably absent for most of his mother’s visit. Adding to the cast of players are a number of competitive pastry chefs, a flood of tourists invading the key for the new year, and feisty octogenarian neighbor on whose houseboat Haley and her husband along with a menagerie of pets are residing while their houseboat is being remodeled, and last but not least there is the discovery of the requisite dead body and the mystery of who-dunnit.

KEY LIME CRIME is a cozy puzzle that will challenge your definitions of family and friendship as well as putting your cooking talents to the test when you try out some of the tasty recipes mentioned in the narrative and provided by the author at the end of the tale.

Was this review helpful?

I’m on the fence on how to rate this book. I liked it until about the last 30 pages. Then the murderer did something that can best be described as standing up and shouting “Well, hello, it’s me. Haven’t you figured that out yet?” I don’t like murderers that draw attention to themselves like that.

Hayley Snow, the food critic in series title, is a bit worked up: her mother-in-law is coming for an unexpected visit and she hasn’t met the woman yet (?!) Apparently, Mrs Bransford had reasons not to attend her son’s wedding. She’s cold and keeps her distance, until Hayley and she discover the dead body of a pastry chef on her porch. Helen Bransford becomes an active investigator and Hayley can’t help to keep up.

The pastry chef was new in town and caused a bit of a raucous at a presentation for a key lime pie contest. Hayley is writing about the contest for Key Zest magazine and figures one of the other contestant or the organiser is the murderer, because the new chef was too much competition in a town that already had too many bakers.

The story is well-written and pretty well plotted. I just didn’t like the reveal of the murderer.

The book includes recipes and I’m thinking of trying one out.

Was this review helpful?

This series has such wonderful characters and they get into the most not wonderful situations. And every time I read one I want to pack for Key West.
I know this is fiction, but I also know that Lucy does a lot of research to assure authenticity.
I’m always delighted to see something new with her name on it.
Welcome, T -Bone!

Was this review helpful?

A cozy read with affable characters and an interesting story line. This is my first experience with this series. The descriptions of the food and desserts, especially appealed to me, and the recipes at the end were a sweet finish! I enjoyed all the antics. The author has a way of visually capturing each moment for the reader. Treat yourself and read this lighthearted novel. Thank you Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Was this review helpful?

In the 10th book of her Key West Food Critic mystery series. Burdette picks up the story of Hayley Snow, who is newly married to Nathan Bransford, a police detective.
Hayley and Nathan are currently living aboard a boat, which they share with Hayley’s friend Miss Gloria and several animals. When Nathan’s mother announces that she is coming for a visit the week between Christmas and New Year’s, Hayley is horrified. This is the busiest week for tourism in Key West, and she is already assigned to cover the key lime pie baking contest being hosted by David Sloan. Luckily her parents step in and offer Nathan’s mother a room at their place, but her main goal is to spend time with the newlyweds.
Hayley takes her mother-in-law along to the contest and on the Conch Train Tour of holiday lights. When Miss Gloria spots something suspicious along the tour route, Nathan gets even busier — it’s a dead body.
I love the characters in this cozy mystery series and have to admit that reading it makes me want to visit Key West.

Was this review helpful?

I haven't liked the last 2 books in this series but this one is great. We meet new characters and none of the storylines get lost or confused.

Was this review helpful?

Princess Fuzzypants here: Every time I read a book in this series, it is like a trip to Key West. You get the flavour and the feel of this laid back place. I do feel sorry for the locals when they are over run by tourists but you can hardly blame the tourists. In this outing, it is between Christmas and New Years and the place is chockablock with visitors including Hayley’s new mother-in-law who unexpectedly announces she is coming to visit. She knows very little about her but she is going to learn a lot of surprising things as the two of them team up to figure out who killed a newly arrived baker who is shaking up a Key West staple. Key Lime Pie!
Hayley, her mother-in-law and her elderly room-mate Gloria are quite the trio. But Hayley and Nathan’s mom are worried there is more going on than a key lime death. They think one of Nathan’s arrests may be out for revenge and they both know it would not be the first time. There is lots going on including three kitties, lots of tasty delights and a good double mystery. It is a fun series and a tasty read.
Four purrs and two paws up.

Was this review helpful?

I've read a couple books in this series but tgis one definitely had the most twists and unexpected revelations. I love the quirky Key West location and the lovable characters. I thought this was a great blend of cozy with just a bit of edge to it.

Was this review helpful?

Faced with a complex murder mystery that baffles them, Hayley and Helen were left with no other choice but to investigate even though Nathan Haley’s husband and Helen’s son warned them against doing such. Helen is aggressive and straight forward in her questioning while Haley is a bit more subtle, the clues were not adding up, and there were more questions than answers. They find themselves in dire straits having being kidnapped by the killer if this wasn’t enough shock for Hayley her mother-in-law Helen had to reveal then, the truth of her impromptu visit which almost had Hayley blowing a fuse. An entertaining and amusing cozy mystery.

Was this review helpful?

Times are a bit tense for newlyweds Hayley and Nathan. Nathan is slammed at work-not enough policemen to help during the crazy week leading up to Key West's New Year's Eve. Haylie is grumpy trying to get around the island for work with tourists clogging the streets and ignoring traffic laws. Their houseboat is not ready for moving into with the work crew working on other projects. They are all crammed into Miss Gloria's boat with pets competing for space. And then Nathan's mother announces she is coming to visit. Tomorrow. She did not come to the wedding. Hayley has not met her yet. So, what could possibly go wrong? Murder, for starters. I loved this latest slice of Key West life from Lucy Burdette. So many of the places mentioned are authentic that it is like a return trip to the island or at least a colorful travelogue. The murder case is wonderfully convoluted with plenty of suspects. But motive? Much harder to figure out. You'll enjoy this story.

Was this review helpful?

A laugh out loud cozy mystery with charming characters, plenty of suspects, and multiple red herrings that kept me guessing the entire time. Not having read the previous books in the series, there was some back story referenced that I didn't fully understand, but it definitely didn't take away from me enjoying the book.

Was this review helpful?