LecClier K. (SierraK) -
Helpful Score: 2
First in a new cozy mystery series set in Burlington, Vermont. J.J. (Josephine June) Tanner has recently moved to Burlington to accept a job as an event planner with her college friend Skye Drake. When the caterer is murdered at the end of J.J.'s first big party, she finds herself and several of her friends as prime suspects in his death. Another enjoyable aspect of this story is that J.J. and three of her friends have formed a Dinner Club called Culinary Capers where they prepare a meal once a month using recipes from the same cookbook. I really enjoyed the characters and the food chatter in this story. Very much looking forward to reading the second book when it comes out!
Lori C. (dollycas) reviewed Toasting Up Trouble (Dinner Club Mystery, Bk 1) on + 707 more book reviews
Dollycas's Thoughts
Jennifer "J.J." Tanner works for her friend, Skye Drake, at Make It Happen, a party planning business. After the first caterer for a birthday party for the daughter of a high-tech millionaire backs out J.J. gets chef Antonio Marcotti to cater the affair. Things go well until he makes an unauthorized addition to the menu that could cost Make It Happen a lot of money. She confronts him about it and the matter is still not settled when she heads home. When she returns to the home the next day to clean up, there are police everywhere. She learns the esteemed chef never made it home. He is dead, murdered...and the police think J.J. killed him.
J.J. is a fine protagonist, independent, persistent, and gutsy. A girl after my own heart, buying cookbooks more for the beautiful pictures than for the recipes. Hoping to change that she joins the Culinary Capers Dinner Club. A group of people who have now become her friends. Each month they choose a cookbook and create a dinner with recipes from the book. They also are great helpers in her quest to find the real killer of Antonio Marcotti.
All the characters we meet fun and engaging, well except for the victim he was quite a "Divo", the male version of a diva. J.J. is quite a sleuth, I enjoyed the way she talked her theories through, even with her police officer friend, Allison. Allison walks a fine line of "helping" J.J. while not releasing any confidential information. Private Investigator Ty Devine starts out tailing J.J. but soon they end up sharing information and almost working together. This relationship is just starting but it has a lot of potential.
There are two mysteries in this book, the murder of Antonio Marcotti and the investigation into who is stealing J.J.'s party ideas. She was working on a party plan with a client only to find out another party planner proposed the exact same idea, almost word for word. Skye was a little more helpful with the second investigation. She wasn't too involved in the first, which was surprising to me. She did stay on top of things at Make It Happen so J.J. could leave to follow up on clues.
I enjoyed the introduction of the Culinary Capers Dinner Club. What a fantastic idea! I love that real cookbooks are used by the characters. This time J.J. chose Nigellissima: Easy Italian-Inspired Recipes by Nigella Lawson. I just took a peek at the pages Amazon previews from this book and can see why it drew J.J. s attention. Of course there are recipes in the back of the book too!
Linda Wiken is off to a fabulous start for this series! I want to get to know these characters better. I want to see what the author dreams up for them next. I hope this becomes a long running series because this first tasty treat was absolutely delicious.
Jennifer "J.J." Tanner works for her friend, Skye Drake, at Make It Happen, a party planning business. After the first caterer for a birthday party for the daughter of a high-tech millionaire backs out J.J. gets chef Antonio Marcotti to cater the affair. Things go well until he makes an unauthorized addition to the menu that could cost Make It Happen a lot of money. She confronts him about it and the matter is still not settled when she heads home. When she returns to the home the next day to clean up, there are police everywhere. She learns the esteemed chef never made it home. He is dead, murdered...and the police think J.J. killed him.
J.J. is a fine protagonist, independent, persistent, and gutsy. A girl after my own heart, buying cookbooks more for the beautiful pictures than for the recipes. Hoping to change that she joins the Culinary Capers Dinner Club. A group of people who have now become her friends. Each month they choose a cookbook and create a dinner with recipes from the book. They also are great helpers in her quest to find the real killer of Antonio Marcotti.
All the characters we meet fun and engaging, well except for the victim he was quite a "Divo", the male version of a diva. J.J. is quite a sleuth, I enjoyed the way she talked her theories through, even with her police officer friend, Allison. Allison walks a fine line of "helping" J.J. while not releasing any confidential information. Private Investigator Ty Devine starts out tailing J.J. but soon they end up sharing information and almost working together. This relationship is just starting but it has a lot of potential.
There are two mysteries in this book, the murder of Antonio Marcotti and the investigation into who is stealing J.J.'s party ideas. She was working on a party plan with a client only to find out another party planner proposed the exact same idea, almost word for word. Skye was a little more helpful with the second investigation. She wasn't too involved in the first, which was surprising to me. She did stay on top of things at Make It Happen so J.J. could leave to follow up on clues.
I enjoyed the introduction of the Culinary Capers Dinner Club. What a fantastic idea! I love that real cookbooks are used by the characters. This time J.J. chose Nigellissima: Easy Italian-Inspired Recipes by Nigella Lawson. I just took a peek at the pages Amazon previews from this book and can see why it drew J.J. s attention. Of course there are recipes in the back of the book too!
Linda Wiken is off to a fabulous start for this series! I want to get to know these characters better. I want to see what the author dreams up for them next. I hope this becomes a long running series because this first tasty treat was absolutely delicious.
Toasting Up Trouble by Linda Wiken is the first book in A Dinner Club Mystery series. Jennifer "J.J." Tanner is an event planner and works for her friend, Skye Drake at Make It Happen. J.J. is also a member of Culinary Capers Dinner Club in Half Moon Bay, Vermont (near Burlington). They do monthly dinners. Each month a different member picks a cookbook. Everyone then makes a dish from the book for a delightful dinner. J.J.'s latest job is to create an Italian themed birthday party for Angelica Portovino. Angelica is turning twenty-one and the party will be held on the Portovino estate. The caterer she hired backed out and J.J. needs to find another chef. Antonio Marcotti, of Bella Luna, was recommended to her. He is rumored to be difficult to work with, but he is an excellent chef. Antonio wishes to use a special appetizer (a signature dish) but it is too expensive (does not work with the budget J.J. was given). Antonio does not take no for an answer and manages to include it at the party (behind J.J.'s back and instructions). J.J. has words with him after the party. The next morning J.J. arrives at the Portovino estate to finish the clean-up and is greeted by the police. Antonio was found stabbed to death (he was not a pleasant man). J.J. was the last person seen with him (of course), and they did argue (just a wee disagreement). J.J. needs to clear her name (pronto). The gang from Culinary Capers is ready to assist her in the investigation. Can J.J. find the real culprit before she ends in jail or the next victim?
I found Toasting Up Trouble to be a little slow, and I am not sure if I like J.J. (need to get to know her more). I found her a little pushy at times. In this book there was too much time devoted to her thinking and contemplating (pages and pages). Overall, Toasting Up Trouble is a good novel and has some interesting characters (like Rocco Gates). I did find some information repeated a few times which was not necessary. The main thing I enjoyed was the mystery (which is good since it is a cozy mystery). It was complex (just like I like them) with a couple of twists (the reader can solve it if you pay close attention). I give Toasting Up Trouble 3.5 out of 5 stars. The series has potential and there are some delicious sounding recipes included. I enjoyed the reference to Victoria Abbott's latest mystery in the novel (cute touch). I will be reading the next book in A Dinner Club Mystery series. I believe as the main character develops, I will find her more likeable and relatable.
I received a complimentary copy of Toasting Up Trouble from NetGalley (and the publisher) in exchange for an honest evaluation of the novel. The comments and opinions expressed are strictly my own.
I found Toasting Up Trouble to be a little slow, and I am not sure if I like J.J. (need to get to know her more). I found her a little pushy at times. In this book there was too much time devoted to her thinking and contemplating (pages and pages). Overall, Toasting Up Trouble is a good novel and has some interesting characters (like Rocco Gates). I did find some information repeated a few times which was not necessary. The main thing I enjoyed was the mystery (which is good since it is a cozy mystery). It was complex (just like I like them) with a couple of twists (the reader can solve it if you pay close attention). I give Toasting Up Trouble 3.5 out of 5 stars. The series has potential and there are some delicious sounding recipes included. I enjoyed the reference to Victoria Abbott's latest mystery in the novel (cute touch). I will be reading the next book in A Dinner Club Mystery series. I believe as the main character develops, I will find her more likeable and relatable.
I received a complimentary copy of Toasting Up Trouble from NetGalley (and the publisher) in exchange for an honest evaluation of the novel. The comments and opinions expressed are strictly my own.
