I received this advanced reading copy from NetGalley and Kensington books and exchange for my honest review.

This amazing cozy mystery had me on the edge of my seat and made my jaw drop throughout the story especially when I thought the mystery had been solved but then another twist and turn took place and I would sit there the one who committed the murder??? I also enjoyed having the authors shared the characters backstory‘s along with their delicious food and drink recipes..

Hayley is excited over the new Italian restaurant opening in town and looks forward to eating and writing a review over what she experiences. She soon learns the chef is a lively character who has no problem expressing his feelings. Hayley's brother Randy becomes sick and ends up in the hospital and she isn't surprised when Chef Romeo ends up as his roommate. Apparently the chef had a mild heart attack most likely brought on by his eating habits. When the chef ends up dying the police believe he died from a heart attack and don't plan to look any further. Randy swears he saw someone put something into the mans IV and Hayley believes him. She decides to investigate on her own and figure out just who had it in for the chef. She soon learns that the chef was hiding a secret and they may have been.what lead up to Romeo's death. Follow along as Hayley follows the clues left behind in hopes of nabbing a killer, will she be able to help in the end or will a killer get away?

⭐⭐⭐⭐ -- Enjoyable cozy mystery!

I thought for sure I had read a book(s) by this author before, but apparently it was just a short story and um...I rather disliked Hayley. 🙈 However, I am happy to say that I had no such issue with her in this one. In fact, I found this entire book to be enjoyable from beginning to end. It was well written. The plot was intriguing and kept me guessing. Given this is book number 14, and I have read none of the other books in this series and wasn't the least bit lost. I can safely say this works well as a standalone.

I only really had one issue with this book. In every "cozy" I have read until this point the recipes are found at the end of the book. That was not the case here. The author sprinkled the recipes (and the short stories that went along with them) between chapters throughout. I found this a little annoying as it interrupted the pace of the story. Especially when the previous chaptered ended on a cliffhanger and then BOOM there are several pages of antidotes/recipes that really had nothing to do with the story itself. I honestly skipped them the farther along I got. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Overall, though, this was a quite an entertaining read and I look forward to the next book in the series.

**ARC Via NetGalley**

4.5 Stars

This is the fourteenth book in the Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails series by Lee Hollis.

This series is already on book fourteen and it feels as fresh as it did in the beginning. I was gobsmacked after reading this and realizing it was the fourtteenth book. Wow, what a great writer with a similarly great vision for her series.

Hayley’s job has been one of a food reporter and columnist with a pretty popular foodie column in the Island Times. She goes to review a new restaurant and meets Chef Romeo. He discovers what a great cook Hayley is and on the eve of his grand opening the Chef has a heart attack and lands in the hospital in the same room as Hayley’s brother, Randy, who had a gallbladder attack. In the night, Randy sees someone murder Chef. And while Hayley is trying to takeover for Chef Romeo while he is in the hospital, she does some digging into who could have killed the new Chef in town.

Great mystery. I was hooked from the very beginning. Love the characters and the community in this one. The mysteries in Lee Hollis’ books are always intricate and fun to follow since there are red herrings all over the place. The plotting and pacing were bang on and the idea that this book is taking the series in a new direction really excites me. Looking forward to more from Hollis!

Great series to follow. Must read series for me!

If you love a cozy mystery, definitely check this one out. Great new must read book great series too!

I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in return for an honest review. I thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title. Opinions are completely my own.

When a new local chef is incapacitated with a heart attack, Hayley is asked to take over the running of his restaurant until he can get back on his feet. However, when he ends up dead in his hospital bed and the person in charge of the case doesn't seem to think it was foul-play, Hayley takes it upon herself to find out what happened.

I loved returning to this series for this book! I enjoyed seeing Hayley and her family again. I really enjoy Hayley as a character and find her fun to read about. I had my suspicions from the beginning of this book, but I still found the journey fun. I was so surprised by some things at the end, though. I'm excited for Hayley and her next steps in life!

Death of an Italian Chef by Lee Hollis is the 14th book in the Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery series, and another great addition to the series. Hayley and her new husband Bruce live in Bar Harbor, Maine, and both work for the Island Times Newspaper. Hayley's brother Randy was rushed to the hospital with with an infected gall bladder. Chef Romeo, Randy's roommate after he suffered a heart attack. When Chef Romeo dies during the night, Randy swears he saw a man murder him. Hayley is determined to find out who killed him. This book is fast paced with a well thought out plot and great characters. Once I started this book, I had to keep reading, until I was done. I often find myself laughing out loud, when reading this series. I strongly recommend this book/series for all cozy mystery book lovers like myself.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

3.5 Stars

When murder is on the menu, things can get a little dicey in the kitchen. This is the fourteenth book in the Hayley Powell Mystery series by Lee Hollis.

Haley’s life was in a bit of a professional rut, lately. Writing her column at the Island times was great, but it just didn’t feel like enough. Still, she was wonderfully happy with her husband Bruce, her best friends, Liddy and Mona and her life in her small town. But when an opportunity comes up for Haley to completely shift gears unto another direction, she hesitantly jumps at the chance. This chance is the one she’s been dreaming about her whole life, where she finally gets to cook as a professional cook. But things come to halt, when suddenly the owner of the restaurant has a heart attack and then mysteriously dies at the hospital. Haley has no choice but to get involved and she’s hoping murder is not on the menu.

I had a hard time connecting with this story. To me, the story lacked interest and intrigue. Still, I liked that this story was excellently written and edited, and the flow of the story was good, and the characters had smart dialogue. This book was an easy read and one that I read in one day.

I found the characters in this book to be a bit bland. The main character, Haley, was good and dedicated during her investigating, but my thoughts are that there was nothing particularly witty and enthusiastic about her characterization. Most of the time when the main character lacks interest in the story, the supporting characters pick up the slack, unfortunately the supporting characters did not make up for the lack of qualities in the main character, Haley. There was also a lot of shady characters posing as good citizens and some of their transgressions were a bit much and for me it was hard to still consider them good characters. I couldn’t get passed this and the story bombed for me.

The story was good and there certainly was charm, but it just lacked some umph. There is, however, lots of delicious Italian recipes and cocktail recipes scattered through out the book. I am very much looking forward to trying some of those out.

~ Patricia

A great addition to the series. I enjoy visiting with Hayley and her quirky, loveable family and friends. The mystery itself was front and center and the twists and turns had me guessing for most of the book. Even when you knew who the killer was, the why was still surprising. I loved the direction this book is taking and can't wait for the next one with Hayley's new endeavors.

Italians like to discuss about the best way to cook a carbonara and I laughed a lot when I read the beginning of the book. To be honest the "real" carbonara is prepared using cheek fat and not bacon :)
I love this series as it's always funny and well written.
Hayley is well rounded character, interesting and relatable. I was glad to catch up with the characters, quirky and well written as usual.
The mystery is solid, full of twists and turns, and I liked the solution that surprised me.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Two of my favorite things about this series: the setting (coastal Maine) and the characters! Protagonist Hayley, her brother Randy, and her best friends Mona and Liddy. The characters are all so different from one another, yet are a great combination for this mystery series. Hayley writes a food column for her newspaper, and I love how her articles are added throughout the book, providing humor, personal anecdotes, and tasty recipes.

In Death of an Italian Chef, Hayley is tasked with temporarily taking over a hot, new Italian eatery while its proprietor is incapacitated. When the chef unexpectedly dies, Hayley feels compelled to get to the bottom of his suspicious death. This mystery really kept me guessing, and I enjoyed following Hayley in her sleuthing.

I somehow missed the book previous to this in the series, but I had no problems with spoilers or feeling like I had missed something important, so I think this could easily be read as a stand-alone.

I received an advance copy of this book. This review contains my honest thoughts and opinions.

a wonderful entertaining story. Interesting complex characters, murder and mayhem, mystery and intrigue make this a page turner. A must read I received a copy from netgalley and this is my honest review All opinions are my own.

Death of an Italian Chef by Lee Hollis is the fourteenth installment in Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery series but it can be read as a standalone.

I have read books from this series out of order and never had any problem getting into the story but it is always better to read in order if you are interested in main characters personal life.

Another lovely read where our main protagonist has many interesting stories which go along with mouth watering recipes. This is one of my favorite parts of these series and somethings that sets it apart from similar books.
There will be some changes in Hayley's life which I can't wait to read about.
The story was well presented and thought out.
It is fairly fast paced and there is never a dull moment. It kept me interested and engaged.
There are a few colorful characters if a bit stereotypical as well as several funny moments.
I thoroughly enjoy this duo's writing style and highly recommend it.

Oh boy, the trouble a brother and sister can get into when their loved ones are out of town, lol. Hayley and Randy were on their own, and since crazy stuff always follows our awesome Hayley, she found herself involved in a murder investigation of a chef who she'd been helping with his restaurant while he was in the hospital. The worst part was that Sergio was in Brazil, and a no-nonsense skeptical-of- anything-Hayley-told-her sergeant was in charge.

One hilarious part was Donnie and Earl following her around like lovesick puppies. Bruce was on a story in New York, but he still helped with the investigation by researching for Hayley, while she saw herself coming and going with the restaurant and a very demanding Randy recovering from surgery. That led to another funny scene when Mona babysat him. Mona was also a hoot as a waitress at the Italian restaurant, kind of a similar performance to when she subbed in a play last Christmas.

I love this series so much because we're always presented with a fun rollercoaster of an investigation with so many madcap situations Hayley and crew find themselves in. From wild side stories about the mob and someone's affair to the actual heart and reason of the murder, I know I'm always guaranteed a good exciting showdown. And there was a pretty awesome twist to this one which led to a great ending and new adventure coming for Hayley and her friends and family. Don't miss this when it comes out next Tuesday!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, Kensington, and my opinions are my own.

Death of an Italian Chef is a fun, cozy mystery and the fourteenth instalment in the Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery Series written by Lee Hollis. I have only read one other instalment in the series (book 12 - Death of a Blueberry Tart). I'm not how I missed book thirteen, but there you go.

If you love a food-themed mystery with plenty of delicious sounding Italian fayre, and add to the mix a new restaurant setting, one dead chef, a food and drinks columnist who takes on a chefs role, some sweet and slightly more tart employees, family dynamics, all seasoned with a generous splash of colourful, well fleshed out characters, then this is a good choice for you. The pacing is good, the mystery is absorbing and there are clues aplenty. I had several suspects in mind throughout but was still caught by the terrific twists and surprises.

There are lots of comedic moments and although I arrived extremely late to the party with this particular series, I thoroughly enjoyed Death of an Italian Chef. For me, the book worked extremely well as an individual read as the mystery within was self-contained, though I appreciate that I have probably missed out on some of the backstories and nuances, coming in so late. Even so, I certainly have not been deterred from reading the other instalments, and I look forward to finding out what Lee Hollis has in store for Hayley, next!

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Kensington Books via NetGalley and this review is my unbiased opinion.

Fourteen books, so far, in this delightful series and I'm not disappointed. It was the perfect escape. Hayley has another murder to solve when Chef Romeo first suffers a mild heart attack but dies later. It would have been called natural causes due to the heart attack but not so fast. He shared his hospital room with Haley's brother and he is adamant that he witnessed the chef being murdered. Haley is already involved because she agreed to keep the chef's restaurant running while he was recovering. It's a lot to deal with when added to her job at the newspaper and nursing her brother after his surgery. Not to worry, her friends lend helping hands and a big dose of humor to track down the chef's killer.
Haley is a well developed character supported by a great group of family and friends. The setting of Bar Harbor, Maine makes me want to pack my bags for a long vacation. Add food to the mix and I'm a happy reader. The mystery will always keep me guessing wrong, jus the way I like it.
My thanks to the publisher Kensington and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

This novel was so fun! I immediately loved the dynamic personalities of Chef Romeo and Hayley. They ebbed and flowed so perfectly that I almost forgot they weren’t real.

I think what I liked most was that it was a very fast paced Murder mystery and Hollis gives you so much more time to get to know everyone and understand them before the murder actually takes place.

I certainly delivered on suspense! Highly recommend this to any fan of cozy mysteries!

This mystery is interesting as many of the characters are away. Hayley’s brother becomes sick and she has to care for him as his husband is in Brazil. Hayley gets roped into helping a new restaurant survive using her cooking skills. The chef at the new restaurant appears to have been murdered; however, the substitute chief of police seems to have no interest in solving a potential crime. And every time I thought that I had figured something out, it wasn’t to be. I loved this book and the end will surprise you!

I really enjoyed this cozy mystery. Characters were great, plot was simple but enjoyable, and it was very fast paced. There were parts that made me laugh too.
IF you love cozy mysteries, this is a definite read!
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed every delicious minute of Death of An Italian Chef..Perfect example of a light read, cozy mystery.

An entertaining addition to a terrific series. While I have only read a few, they have been quite enjoyable, including this one. The recipe columns are a delightful inclusion to the story. More than just some fabulous recipes, a short tale is involved with them. Clever mystery with some surprising turns. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy via NetGalley.