Another wonderful installment in a series full of books, delicious sounding food, and murder. Keaton and Kolby are becoming a wonderful sleuthing team in addition to their new business venture. I wish I could stop by Books & Biscuits because it sounds like a lovely time. I also really enjoyed seeing more of Mama Zola; she is loving and loyal and I appreciate how she stands up for Pete. There are a couple different working theories for the motiving in this book and I was definitely kept on my toes until the very (dramatic) end! I love this series and can't wait to read more mysteries and also watch the development of their new venture.

Soul of a Killer was really enjoyable and a good follow up to Body and Soul Food.

I really like Keaton and Koby are very different from each other. I like the dynamics of the reluctant amateur sleuth and her impulsive brother who jumps in head first.

I'm really looking forward to the next book.

What a fantastic cozy mystery. Fraternal twins separated at birth but who found each other. They run a cafe but solve mysteries as well. There’s no stopping until you find out what happened. Love it.

I really enjoyed this second book in the series. It was fast paced and edge of your seat reading. I can’t wait to see what is going to come up next.


I received a complimentary copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

I really enjoy cozy mysteries and this book fits that description perfectly— they even bring that point up in the book. The plot was intriguing and while the investigation starts from almost the get go it pulls you into the adventure. While the main plot was fun, the brother and sister separated at birth then reunited was heart warming and I will truly enjoy seeing the pair find their birth mother. Can’t wait for the next book!

This was an enjoyable cozy mystery set in a small Washington state town not far from Seattle. Keaton and her twin brother, Koby, who were separated at birth and grew up apart, but discovered each other as adults and now run their own business, a bookstore and biscuits restaurant, try to discover the identity of the person who killed a member of Koby''s foster mother, Mother Zola's church. This puts the twins in jeopardy. This cozy mystery was instantly engaging. I highly recommend it to other cozy mystery readers. I received an ARC of this book from Net Galley, and the opinions expressed are strictly my own.

an interesting story with complex characters. I especially love Mama Zola! Murder and mayhem and lots of twists and turns. Trouble finds Keaton and Koby and this time it is personal. A real page turner and a must read!

This is the second book in the Books and Biscuits mystery! I really have grown to love these characters! Twins Koby and Keaton were separated when they were babies, Keaton got adopted into a well to do family and Koby went from foster home to foster home until he came to Mama Zolas house! She offered him love and stability and even now that he is grown they are very close. Koby and twin sister Keaton were reunited as adults and go into business together! Koby runs the food side of things with Mama Zola and Keaton runs the bookstore!

In this book someone from mama Zolas church ends up dead and the manner of death seems suspicious. The police start to look into the direction of an employee of Books and Biscuits and even look into Mama Zola as being involved! Koby and Keaton quickly start looking into suspects and try to find the real killer before the wrong person goes to jail!

I thought this was a very well written and well planned out story. The mystery itself was interesting and kept me guessing until the end! All and all a good cozy mystery anyone would enjoy! I highly recommend this series and thanks the author and the publisher for the ARC and opportunity to read it in exchange for an honest review #netgalley

An interesting mystery. Keaton and Koby are helping Mama Zola set stuff up at her church's potluck when someone finds a dead body. The man was not very well liked by many people. Turns out he had conned quite a few people over the years. When Keaton and Koby's employee is brought in for questioning, they know they have to help prove his innocence. He also has a past, but he isn't a murderer. The police even think Mama Zola may have been his accomplice. Can they find the real murderer before they convict the wrong person?

Soul of a Killer is the second book in her A Books and Biscuits Mystery series. I should start by admitting I did not read the first book and am hoping to read it soon because I did feel I was missing some information that was likely shared in book one.

Keaton and Koby are twins separated as children and reunited as adults. They opened together Books and Biscuits, café and bookstore. Mama Zola, Koby's foster mom and Pete, the bookstore's employee take a peach cobbler to the church picnic where someone drops dead and Zola and Pete are the suspects. Keaton and Koby are determined to find the actual killer and clear Mama Zola and Pete.

I enjoyed this book but it was not my favorite by Collette. I enjoyed the portrayal of the church and small town folk dynamics. The characters are fun and the story is well developed. I wish there was more time spent on the main character development. I plan to go back and read part one to see if that helps. I particularly wanted to understand Koby more as we get more of Keaton's point of view. Overall I think this series has a great potential and I am excited to read future books from this series.

I requested and received a free e-book copy from Berkley Publishing Group via NetGalley. Thank you!

Koby and Keaton are twins that were separated as babies, they never knew who their real mother was. Koby wanted to find Keaton, and he did. Now they own a book/cafe that they enjoy running along with Koby's adoptive mom Mama Zola. At the latest potluck dinner at the local church, a man is murdered by electrocution. The twins seem to be involved in finding out who did it. This is a great mystery with twists and turns and lot of action and suspects. A great story, I look forward to reading more in this series.

I have to admit that when I began reading this book I wasn’t particularly impressed. It just seemed to get bogged down. But once I got past the first few chapters I was drawn into the story and became invested in the characters lives. The storyline was centered around twins who were separated and raised apart only to reunite as adults. Their twin telepathy still works just fine even if one twin is a bit more into the amateur sleuthing they do. The mystery was well plotted and the characters all a bit quirky. A fun read.

I received an arc of this book and voluntarily provided a review.

When Mama Zola attends her first Annual Founder's Day Potluck held at her church, Mama took an instant dislike to Austin James, another church member. Later Austin ends up dead and everyone had heard her comments to him earlier, and they weren't kind. But the police have Pete in custody for the crime. Can Koby and Keaton find the real killer? I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book

Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Jeanie

This is a fun, fast-paced addition to a series that appeals to those of us who enjoy bookstores and cats and/ or specialty cafes and dogs. It captured and held my attention from the beginning and throughout. The mystery was very well plotted and kept me guessing until almost the very end.

Fraternal twins Koby and Keaton had been given up by their mother when they were two years old. Keaton was fortunate to be adopted by a loving couple soon afterwards but didn’t remember she had a twin. Koby had gone from one foster or group home to another until he met Mama Zola. When he learned he had a twin sister, he began to put together a plan to find her. Reunited as adults, they just opened a unique store, Books & Biscuits. Keaton has always loved to read, so opening a bookstore was perfect. Koby learned how to cook from Mama Zola, the foster mom who was like a real mother to him. The Biscuits part of the store is a soul food café, with biscuits being his specialty.

Mama Zola is thrilled to be cooking with Koby and creates a signature dish, soul rolls, that outshines even Koby’s biscuits. She recently moved to Timber Lake, the town the store is in, and found a church she wants to join. She has been cooking since 3 AM, making foods to take to the church Founder’s Day potluck. Pete, Keaton’s assistant on the bookstore side, went with Zola to help her set up and serve at the potluck. Within a few short hours, Zola called Koby. She may be arrested for killing someone, and by the end of the day, the acting chief of police prefers to railroad Pete to prison.

The victim is Austin James, former preacher at a megachurch he started that ended up shutting its doors. Austin had gone to prison for fraud, money laundering, and embezzlement at the huge trading firm where he, Pete, and Zola’s pastor, Calvin Lee used to work. It was suspected some of the money to start the megachurch was funneled from the funds Austin had managed. The former preacher died because of an older coffee maker rigged to a frayed cord by someone who knew Austin had a pacemaker, how to set the trap, and how much Austin loved coffee.

Pete had once been in prison because of working with Austin at the trading firm, and it cost him his wife, children, and reputation. The acting police chief is certain Pete is guilty partly to get revenge for those losses, never considering the many people whose retirement accounts were taken by Austin. Koby is determined to not let Pete go down for something he didn’t do. Keaton is much more amenable to helping solve this mystery than the last one they were involved in and discovered she is getting good at it. “Koby and I are living a cozy mystery” was a sobering thought, however, when remembering she was almost killed when they tracked a killer just weeks earlier. She believes in Pete’s innocence as much as Zola and her twin do.

The author has crafted a delightful variety of personalities for both principal and one-time characters. Keaton and Koby are my favorites. They have the twin telepathy thing going on. Keaton and I have a couple things in common, one being that we prefer books to cooking. Like me, she also enjoys cats but unlike me, she has only one. Koby’s dogged determination in finding his twin and his background from being in group homes and on the street make him very understanding in employee relations and at helping others.

I appreciate that the twins are primarily focused on their family, and that for them, family includes those related by choice rather than blood. Working on building their new business is also a priority, and for Koby especially, finding their finding their birth mother is their current, ongoing challenge. Looking for Mr. or Miss Right doesn’t figure into the equation yet, and that is admirable.

The plot has a variety of twists and turns, especially when, as Keaton said, there could literally be thousands of people with motive to kill Austin. My guess list kept changing until almost the very end. I finally had a good idea who the bad guy was but took no pleasure in being right. I highly recommend this cozy mystery, and this series! I hope this series will be around for the long haul, as it has almost every element I enjoy in a cozy mystery.

recipes, Washington-state, bookseller, restaurant, family, family-business, soul-food, murder, murder-investigation, law-enforcement, amateur-sleuth, small-business, small-town, situational-humor, friendship, betrayal, adopted, fostering*****

Brother and sister run a bookstore/cafe in the Pacific Northwest. Each of them has a different way of looking at clues and suspects, which is really good. A peculiar murder turns up and the pair (with foster mother as foil) work to figure out what went on. The characters are fun, the sleuthing is interesting, and the food is mouthwatering. Loved it!
I requested and received a free e-book copy from Berkley Publishing Group via NetGalley. Thank you!

I just finished reading this book and it works as a stand alone. The twins play well with each other. I did find Koby annoying at times though. He did seem to take his sisters business for granted. The plot was rich with clues and suspects. I will be reading the first book to get more background before continuing the series.

Keaton and Koby are at it again in the book Soul of a Killer this time it is Keaton’s’ assistant that is under suspicion.

Soul of a Killer referenced author Nicole D. Miller and her book entitled Urban Soul with an excerpt. Also, throughout Soul of a Killer visions of mouth water delectable food is mentioned and as a bonus at the end the reader is awarded with recipes.

The book moves swiftly and smoothly to the epilogue.

What a wonderful book! The dynamic duo twins are back at it again, solving another murder that just happens to occur as they're trying to live life. The characters are so realistic, down to earth, and relatable. It's easy to see everything happening in your head, because the dialogue seems so natural. The premise, while somewhat far-fetched, was cute and easy to accept. It was definitely an escape, but also one you can buy into. Lots of the same characters from the first book popped in to say hello, which always makes it feel familiar. However, you don't have to have read the first book in the series to understand what's going on. This is a must read for anyone looking for a light-hearted who-do-it with lots of family warmth and love. It made me feel warm and cozy, laugh out loud, and kept me on the edge of my seat until the end!

Enjoyable book with a plausible story line and well developed characters. It also includes some humor. While this book is listed as the second in a series, it can be read as a stand alone book. I enjoyed it and will read further books in the series. I received a copy of this book through Netgalley. I am reviewing voluntarily.

This is the second book in this series.
Although it is the first I've read in this series,
it is a standalone book.
Koby and Keaton, brother and sister that have reunited
after Keaton was adopted, have reunited and now own
a cafe/bookstore.
When one of their employees is accused of murder at a potluck
luncheon at the church Koby's foster mom attends because of
a prior working relationship with the deceased.
Koby and Keaton set out to prove his innocence.

Pro's:
Developed characters, a solid storyline and some humor.

Con's:
Keaton's character tends to second guess almost everything
while her brother jumps in feet first without giving thought or
care to any consequences of what his actions may be. And those
actions are mostly detrimental to Keaton and her wellbeing.
Even though Keaton does have an intuition about how things may
have happened, her brother tends to simply override her opinions
as she never stands up for what she thinks.

It was a good story and I will read the next in the series.

I'd like to thank Berkley publishing and the author for allowing me to
read this Advanced Readers Copy.