Death of a Cupcake Queen (A Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery #6)

Author:  Lee Hollis
Genre:  Mystery

Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book; Audiobook
ISBN #:  9780758294531
Kensington Publishing
311 Pages
$7.99; $5.99 Amazon
May 26, 2015

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On the eve of her high school reunion, Hayley dreads seeing the trio of mean girls who used to torment her; Sabrina Merryweather, Nykki Temple, and former prom queen Ivy Foster.  These days Ivy wears a different crown as the cupcake queen - and flaunting her success is just the icing on the cake.

But maybe the prom queen should have been voted Most Likely to Die.  At the reunion, Ivy is found murdered, cupcakes scattered around her.  Is a killer out to teach the mean girls a lesson?  As Hayley tries to get the scoop, she'll have to be careful...or someone may be writing this columnist's obituary next.

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When Hayley Powell is railroaded into providing food for her high school reunion, she doesn't expect that the only other person with food will be murdered before the cupcakes are even set out.  One of the mean girls in school, Ivy Foster, is found murdered in the kitchen of the club where they're holding the reunion.  While several people aren't surprised - Ivy was not a nice person and even had no problem fighting with her husband in public - someone hated her enough to bash her head in.  And Hayley, knowing somehow Sabrina might be involved, decides to find the killer....

Well, let me first say that the best part of this book is Hayley's phone.  I want one.  Because in one scene, someone takes it and smashes it against the wall, and in the very next, she pulls it out of her pocket to answer it.  Wow.  Who wouldn't want a phone that magically reassembles itself after something like that?  You get my drift...

Now, the rest of the review is a huge spoiler, because it's the end of the book and tells why it was bad.  Please don't read if you haven't already read this book or are planning on never doing so.  It gives the ending away!

The murders Did Not Make Sense. The murderer killed two women and was going to kill a third because - get this - twenty years ago his father died because he hit his head on concrete and fell into a swimming pool and drowned. Okay, 1) the guy who died was trying to rape a teenage girl at the time; 2) the girls were upset and trying to escape from being attacked or worse; 3) the dead guy was an actor who paid off his son's mother because HE WOULDN'T ADMIT PATERNITY. That's right, folks! His father wouldn't admit he was his dad and paid off the SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD girl's parents and wanted nothing to do with him or his mother! But hey - 4) he's so upset about this (the father that wanted nothing to do with him or his mom and wouldn't acknowledge his existence) that he feels the need to vindicate him. Say what????? It does not make sense. At all. In any way, shape or form. WHY would he even be concerned about the guy who impregnated his mother and then acted like she (and he) didn't exist? What the fudge? And we're supposed to think this is believable.

So, if you've read the spoiler, then you'll understand why this book was a huge disappointment.  It rather ruins the rest of the book when the ending doesn't make any sense.

https://www.amazon.com/Death-Cupcake-Hayley-Powell-Mystery/dp/0758294530/

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2329531161

More on Lee Hollis's Books:  https://www.fantasticfiction.com/h/lee-hollis/