While shopping for bread to serve at her gourmet dinner party, Jane Marsh overhears the pastry chef’s murder in the bakery’s kitchen. The killer also destroys an elaborate and expensive wedding cake made for a celebrity couple.To recoup the loss, the bakery owner files a lawsuit against his insurance company, a client of the law firm where Jane works. With a murderer on the loose, and Jane as the … the only potential witness, she must solve the crime in order to defend her client…and take a killer off the streets.
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Jane Marsh is hosting this month’s gourmet dinner club and heads over to the local bakery for bread. When she enters, she overhears a confrontation in the kitchen and the next thing she knows a biker in full gear (including helmet) is running out of the bakery and the pastry chef is dead. He has been stabbed with a knife and pushed into an elaborate $300,000 wedding cake for a celebrity couple.
To recoup the loss, the bakery owner files a lawsuit against his insurance company, which just so happens to be a client of Jane’s law firm. Stuck being a witness and trying really hard not to be in an ethical dilemma, Jane finds herself trying to solve the case.
What I like about the book is the main character. Jane is a fifty-something-year-old woman who has been married twice and is newly engaged. She has a level head on her shoulders, but still has doubts about her future. But wouldn’t you if you have been widowed twice and the man you are about to marry still has an ex-wife that has him on speed dial. She has a great group of friends that can laugh and joke with one another easily but are 100% there for each other when needed.
If you are looking for a mystery that is cozy, includes humor, has some romance, and is written by an author that has a great writing style, then you need to add this book to your pile. I can’t wait to see what the next book in the series holds for Jane… perhaps we finally get to see her get married.
cozy-mystery, amateur-sleuth, women-sleuths, culinary, contemporary
Good friends get together at one home or another regularly for food and conversation, but this time one of them has overheard a murder. Jane is a paralegal and there’s a possibility that her boss could become compromised if her snooping tendencies were noticed. But she and a girlfriend or two try very hard to be discreet and succeed most of the time. The characters are interesting and engaging, and the plot is full of twists and red herrings. I really enjoyed reading it!
“Just What I Kneaded” by Karen C. Whalen is the first book I have read by this author. Even though this book is #5 in the series I believe it can be read as a standalone. I started this book when I was only planning on reading for a half hour; once I got started I was unable to put it down. I had to know who the culprit was. This book was well written and a quick easy read. The book kept you guessing and the ending was not what you would have expected. I enjoyed this book so much that I want to go back and read the other four books. I now have another new author to read.
The well-written fifth book in the A Dinner Club Murder Mysteries series. I could not put this book down I had to know who it was. I also like the recipes at the end. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Fun Story, good characters, an entertaining read. Love this series, loved this book.