Financial fraud of elderly villagers in Leavensport, an urban sprawl threat to the community, disastrous dates, cross-sell marketing gone wrong, and another murder? Jolie Tucker is ready to try dating again. Well, she has no choice—since her family auctioned her off to the highest bidder. Her best friend, Ava, has agreed to a double date, but both friends find out hidden secrets about their … their partners as well as deception by one of the village’s own, who will soon be found dead. This plot is sure to be spicy!
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*I received a free copy of this book which I voluntarily chose to write an honest review for.
First I have to say that I love the title! The story lives up to it as well with a dish that made my mouth water and I don’t even like spicy things. The quirky characters are a hoot really making it that much better. The mix of mystery and personal is perfect with each giving us plenty of surprises. That ending surprised me which is rare. A total must read for fans of culinary cozy mysteries. I totally loved it so I give it 5/5 stars.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
We are back in Ohio at Cast Iron Creations where things are getting jalapeno hot!! A new restaurant has opened and Jolie hopes to work a cross-promotion deal as she has with other businesses, she also is finally going to go on her auction date with Detective Meiser, (her family auctioned off at a fundraiser in the last book), residents are worried about urban sprawl, oh, and there is another dead body.
Ms. Rath’s characters are fun and entertaining. Again, there is a large cast but I was very comfortable after getting to know most of them in the first book. I enjoyed the continued character development. The new characters were all key to the new mystery. The interactions were all realistic and the dialogue was crisp.
I continue to be amazed by how much drama and action this author brings a reader in less than 200 pages. She does a fabulous job of blending intrigue and everyday life. The daily grind plus secrets, twists, turns, and a surprising ending are all baked together wonderfully by the time we reach the last page. It is a quick read and impossible to put down.
I am not a fan of peppers especially jalapenos but I loved the way that ingredient was incorporated into the story. I also appreciate that cast iron skillet recipes are included for readers to try.
Together Pineapple Upside Down Murder and Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread Murder equal the length of 1 standard cozy mystery, so I do recommend reading both in order so you can really get to know the characters. I am really looking forward to more books in this series.
Okay now, why would anyone hurt the editor?
Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread Murder by Jodi Rath is a great story that is a continuation of the last two books. When we enter this installment, it’s summertime and Jolie dealing with another murder and everything else.
Jolie Tucker
Jolie is our sleuth and the co-owner of The Cast Iron Creations. She is trying to get past her issues while dealing with a new murder in town. Jolie is trying to do better her despite what everyone thinks. She has a lot of problems, and it isn’t helping with all the murders in town.
I like that Jolie is trying to help solve the murders, but despite what has happened to her. She is lucky that she has her friends and family there. Jolie has done an excellent job figuring out the mystery. I love how she does her murder board as hers is a lot different than what we see from other sleuths murder boards.
Things to look for (and that I liked)
• I still love the coziness of living in a small town.
• Everyone is still concerned about Jolie and the terrible trouble she gets into.
• The new relationship between Jolie and Mick is endearing.
• Jolie realizes she still has issues to work through.
5 Stars for Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread Murder by Jodi Roth
My rating for Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread Murder by Jodi Rath is five stars. I still like everything about what Ms. Rath’s have done with this book. This book is excellent. I couldn’t figure out who did it, but I can’t wait for the next book to come out. Don’t forget to take a look at the recipes in the back of the book.
I highly recommend this book to all Cozy readers.
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread Murder by Jodi Rath.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Great Escapes Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Anyways, until next time,
Karen the Baroness
Happy Reading
If you would like to see other reviews like this one, check out BaronessBookTrove.com.
I found the characters to be likable, realistic, and multi-layered. The plot was entertaining and full of twists and turns. The author included cast iron recipes that are truly mouth watering! I highly recommend this book and series!
I will be back for full review- no time now.
Absolutely love this author, her writing style and this cast iron series.
Loved it and left review on Amazon!
Welcome to the little town of Leavensport, a quaint little place with a little pinch of murder! This is my first book by Jodi Ruth and it was a fun little read. I haven’t read book one ‘Pineapple Upside Down Murder’ but that didn’t hinder the reading of this book, there was enough of a back story to fill in points throughout the book making this one easily read as a stand alone,
Jolie Tucker and her best friend Ava run Cast Iron Creations, a delightful little restaurant that makes some yummy food! My mouth was watering reading their concoctions (incidentally there is are recipes at the end of the book that I cant wait to try out!) When a new business opens in town and people begin to talk about things like Urban Sprawl and land for sale, Jolie decides to go an meet the new owners and try see about cross-selling between the businesses.
Then things take a turn – a resident turn up dead, and it turns out he has been dwindled the elderly residents of Leavensport out of a lot of money. Before long Jolie is being a super sleuth to find out how everything is connected.
I loved this clean cozy mystery filled with quirky characters and an engaging plot that I cant wait to see what is in store for Jolie Tucker and her Cast Iron Creations next.
4 stars
This is an easy to read mystery that had me guessing until the end. It has a quaint setting with likeable characters, some quirky. You get the mystery along with humor, love of family and friendship and a hint of romance.
There are recipes included.