Genre: Mystery
Mass Market Paperback; Digital Book
ISBN #: 9781496727848
Kensington Publishing
304 Pages
$7.99; $6.99 Amazon
August 25, 2020
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Sherry's hoping her Savory Shrimp Lettuce Cups will impress the judges, and she's invited her brother, Pep, to serve as her sous-chef. The good news is that she takes first place in her category, the bad news is that it's easier to win when your toughest competition is dead...
After contestant Fritz Frye is found with a fishhook in his next, Pep's strange behavior doesn't help his case when the police consider him top suspect. While Pep sits through a shakedown, Sherry searches near and far for the real culprit -- before another deadly course is served...
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Sherry Oliveri channels her competitive streak into entering cooking contests, and usually winning. But this time she's up against Fritz Frye, who has no problem telling anyone and everyone that he beat her once in a contest. While Sherry finds him obnoxious, it seems so does everyone else. While at a dinner for the contestants in the latest contest, she sees that he's having arguments with many of the guests, including one with her younger brother Pep. Pep's in town to help Sherry as her sous-chef in a two-hour cooking time, and it's obvious that something else is going on in his life. He's constantly looking at his phone and texting someone, and won't tell her about it. He disappears without telling her where he's going, and Sherry's worried that he won't be able to bring his A-game to the contest.
But when he does, and she wins, she's pleased. After the contest is over, however, she finds out that Fritz has been murdered, and Pep is at the top of the list for killing him. While he refuses to tell anyone where he was at the time of the killing, leaving him without an alibi, Sherry knows she needs to discover who wanted Fritz dead more than anyone else. But with a nosy reporter, a Russian maid who won't say anything, and Pep's disappearances, she's up against more than usual. Also, Detective Ray Bease is this time welcoming any help Sherry can give him which surprises her until she discovers that he has problems of his own. Now Sherry's on the trail of a killer who might just be following her every move...
This is the latest book in the series, and I have read them all. This might also be my favorite one. I love the addition of Pep to the story line, and perhaps Sherry might also be heading on a new chapter of her own life. While there was, of course, time given to tell us about the cook-off and every recipe Sherry made, it didn't seem to take anything away from the mystery itself this time.
I found that with Pep a suspect, it was all very mysterious, especially when he wouldn't come forth with the reason for his hiding things. It really made me wonder what he was doing with his time and where he was going. Secrets abound in this tale, and it's up to Sherry to filter out who's telling the truth and who's not. But it seems more than one person isn't who they are supposed to be, and secrets are coming out not just from the woodwork, but from the walls, too. It made for a very interesting story, and one that kept you reading throughout.
When the murderer is discovered, we find out almost at the same time as Sherry, and that's a good thing. It makes for a good mystery, and leaves us wanting more. The reasons for the murder seem rather out of desperation, but who knows what is in the mind of a murderer? I am glad to say that I truly enjoyed this book and look forward to the next in the series, and hopefully, seeing more of Pep. Recommended.
More on Devon Delaney's Books: https://www.fantasticfiction.com/d/devon-delaney/
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