Food blogger Hope Early finds one item not on her scavenger hunt list—a dead husband . . . Between developing her food blog, Hope at Home, and choosing low-cal recipes for a feature in Cooking Now! magazine, Hope has a full plate. Still, she’s never too busy to compete in a Jefferson, Connecticut, tradition—the town’s annual scavenger hunt.But as she races with her team to check off the next … her team to check off the next item, Hope discovers a grisly surprise—the body of shady real estate developer Lionel Whitcomb, shot in a parking lot. His wife Elaine, who’s also in the hunt, gasps and nearly faints. But two other women on the scene cry out that their husband is dead.
It turns out this louse of a spouse was more than a little lax in legally divorcing his former wives. Did one of them put a bullet in the bigamist? Number one suspect and number three wife Elaine begs Hope to investigate. Now Hope is on a new kind of hunt—for a cold-hearted killer and triple widow-maker . . .
Includes Recipes from Hope’s Kitchen!
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I like food blogger Hope Early. She’s a strong woman determined to make her blog, Hope At Home, successful. In book three, a bigamist husband is exposed and things quickly take a morbid turn during an annual scavenger hunt. Hope begins meddling in order to help solve the crime in a timely manner. The plot is filled with humor, yummy food, and clues galore; all of which keep the story moving along at a great pace. There are suspects galore, including the three wives the victim was allegedly married to! Ms. Sennefelder keeps you guessing whodunnit until the very end. This is a great traditional cozy sure to please readers. Recipes from Hope’s Kitchen included at the story end.
I reviewed a galley arc provided by the author for an honest review. Thank you.
Debra Sennefelder ‘s third book in the Food Blogger series, Three Widows and a Corpse is such a great read. The characters are engaging and well developed, the mystery is twisted and unusual, the setting is perfect—Connecticut in autumn, and the pace does not lag.
The plot thickens when a murder occurs during the town scavenger hunt that the MC (Hope Jefferson),is a part of. Hope is working to keep her food blog relevant by devising heathy, lower calorie recipes. When the next death occurs, more than one person claims to be the spouse. What?! The story just flies from this point forward.
I am already looking forward to the next adventure for Hope and her crew….and possible relationship.
I enjoyed this book!
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Food blogger Hope Early is one busy bee. Her blog, a magazine assignment, and the town’s annual scavenger hunt are all on her plate. Her team has won the scavenger hunt several times but this year when they arrive at a local restaurant to take care of one thing on the scavenger list, Hope finds a bonus item . . . another dead body.
Lionel Whitcomb, a local real estate developer has been shot next to his fancy car, right there in the parking lot in broad daylight. His wife, Elaine, also taking part in the annual event faints as she sees her husband. Then another two women come onto the crime scene and claim Lionel is their husband too. There are Three Widows and a Corpse – seems Mr. Whitcomb was a bigamist and he has left behind three angry wives and three viable suspects. Two of which beg Hope to do what she does and find the actual killer. Her team did lose the scavenger hunt, maybe she will have better luck finding the culprit that saved Lionel from explaining things to the three women in his life.
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All the characters I have enjoyed in the previous book return. Many are on Hope’s scavenger hunt team and are on hand when Whitcomb’s body is found. Boyfriend/Chief of Police Ethan Cahill wants Hope to leave the investigation to him and Detective Reid and she had every intention of doing so, but soon she is asking one question here and another there and then she finds herself in total investigation mode. The killer rewards her participation with a few warnings but she doesn’t back down. Hope is a strong protagonist and doesn’t shy away from using her culinary talents to get the answers she needs. I do enjoy her relationship with Ethan and the way it is slowly progressing. She also has a strong group of friends to support her. I can’t forget her pet brigade, her dog Bigelow and Poppy the chicken are now joined by Princess the cat. Human and animal characters are all well developed and very entertaining.
The wives are the obvious suspects but there are a few others pulled in too. My heart broke when a second person was killed and I was totally all wound up in the investigation myself. The author cleverly filled the story with twists and red herrings that slowed both this reader and Hope down but I circled back around and honed in on the killer just a bit before Hope. I loved the way this story flowed and was wrapped up.
As a blogger myself I loved following along with all the behind the scenes machinations of creating a successful blog and keeping content fresh and interesting and for Hope profitable. Our fields are totally different but the premise is basically the same for all bloggers. Pictures are always important and Hope has really learned a lot about photographing food and I feel like I have learned a few things too. I also love the recipes that are included.
Debra Sennefelder gives readers a strong mystery in Three Widows and a Corpse. Great characters with perfect amounts of family life, romance, and humor. I was entertaining from beginning to end and can’t wait for my next visit Jefferson, Connecticut.
Three Widows and a Corpse by Debra Sennefelder is the third A Food Blogger Mystery. Hope Early is participating in the town’s annual scavenger hunt which benefits the local community center. Her team stops at Avery Bistro to obtain an item on the list when Hope notices a familiar looking car in the back parking lot. She wanders over to find the driver’s side door open and real estate developer, Lionel Whitcomb dead on the ground. It soon becomes apparent that in addition to Lionel’s shady business dealings, he was also a bigamist. There are three women claiming to be his wife. Hope has no intention of getting involved with the case, but her natural curiosity wins out. The killer is not happy with Hope’s nosiness and issues a series of warnings. Three Widows and a Corpse can be read as a standalone for those new to this series. Hope Early is a food blogger and is working on an article for Cooking Now magazine as well as taking care of her animals and working on her home. I found Three Widows and a Corpse easy to read and it moved along at a steady pace. Jane Merrifield and her sister, Sally are back along with Drew Adams (reporter and friend), Ethan Cahill (Chief of Police and boyfriend), and Claire Dixon (sister). When Hope stumbles upon Lionel Whitcomb’s body, she states she is not going to investigate which pleases Detective Sam Reid and Ethan Cahill. However, Hope cannot help but ask questions especially when witnesses keep showing up at her home unannounced. Hope asks questions while plying them with her culinary delights. Of course, she is told by Detective Reid and Ethan several times to stay out of the investigation. The guilty party warns Hope off, but it just makes Hope more determined expose the killer. There are several suspects along with misdirection and direct clues. Readers will have no problem identifying the killer long before the solution is revealed. There is mild foul language in this novel. Three Widows and a Corpse is the perfect story for those readers who enjoy lighthearted, food related mysteries. Three Widows and a Corpse is an amiable cozy mystery with a troublesome two-timer, warring widows, a scavenger search, a sad sibling, and a repressive reporter.
Series: A Food Blogger Mystery – Book 3
Author: Debra Sennefelder
Genre: Cozy Mystery/Culinary
Publisher: Kensington Books
Page Count – 352
The latest culinary cozy mystery book, Three Widows and a Corpse in the “A Food Blogger Mystery” series from Debra Sennefelder, hits stores on Tuesday, October 29th. Published by Kensington Books this is a wonderfully delicious series that readers can sink their teeth into.
Hope is a very busy food blogger, and in this addition to this culinary cozy series, she finds herself knee-deep in the middle of a murder investigation and has no choice but to track down the killer. Hope volunteers to help with town activities. She is also working at a magazine on a feature. Even though she is busy, she still enjoys participating in local festivities and events, and the traditional scavenger hunt is one she plans on winning again this year. Before she and her team get started, Hope discovers the body of a local man who is about to go on trial for criminal activities. However, his wife and neighbors are about to find out that he was more than just a fraud; he was also a bigamist. This comes to light as soon as Hope finds the body, and even though she is trying to stay out of the investigation, people keep dragging her back into it.
This culinary cozy series is original, entertaining, and filled with great characters and fascinating plots. It’s rare to have a cozy deal with something as distasteful as bigamy, but in this book, it almost becomes comical. The widows, all look different but are very much alike. Each suspect, which includes the widows, a business partner, a household staff member, and company employees, is uniquely human with human flaws. The cast of characters is as varied as the setting is charming, and readers will love Hope and her friends from beginning to end.
The killer is found, and readers will likely surmise from the clues, and the many twists the identity before Hope reveals it, but this does not happen early in the book, so it makes the reading fun from start to finish. Readers will love the mouth-watering recipes. I am thrilled to recommend this new addition Three Widows and a Corpse to the culinary cozy series. I can’t wait for the next one!
Lots of changes have many people emotionally off balance. Hope has been enjoying success with her food blog but the option of a steady paycheck is appealing. Her sister Claire has lost an election and is no longer part of her real estate office. She’s holed up in a huge, unfinished house.
So when it is time for the town’s annual Scavenger Hunt, bringing people together, Hope is hoping for some entertainment and fun. What she does not count on is finding ANOTHER dead body.
Could it be coincidence that two women have just arrived in town that share the dead man’s last name?
Emotionally charged and full of shady connections, this is a book about moving forward and dealing with life’s difficult situations head on. Will Hope get involved in the investigation? After all, she DID discover the body. Will this put Hope in physical danger herself? She tries to protect those she loves and be friendly to others she perceives as hurting.
Plenty of delicious opportunities pop up to help Hope and friends as they get mixed up in a murder. Was it revenge or just being in the wrong place at the really wrong time?
You may want to read this book while waiting for a few of the delicious recipes included to bake up.
I loved “Three Widows and a Corpse” the third book in Debra Sennefelder’s “A Food Blogger Mystery” series. Visiting Jefferson, Connecticut has become a pleasure, I love the description of the town and surroundings I can picture it in my mind what it must look like there in the fall as the trees turn colour and the air becomes crisp and less humid.
This time Hope is helping out with the town’s annual scavenger hunt as well as an assignment with Cooking Now! magazine. During the Scavenger Hunt, as Hope races with her team to check off the next item, she discovers a grisly surprise—the body of shady real estate developer Lionel Whitcomb, shot in a parking lot. To make things worse his wife Elaine is there competing in the hunt and sees the body, but as she screams two other women on the scene cry out that their husband is dead!
I love Hope as she is real and I have become invested in her and what is happening around her. I like her family and friends, Claire, Jane, Drew and of course Ethan (Police Chief boyfriend) and the dynamics between them all. Don’t get me started on her dog Bigelow, Poppy the chicken and now the addition of Princess the cat!
There was drama, romance and a little bit of humor thrown in with the mystery. I did suspect the killer early on but there were lots of twists and turns I started second guessing myself. I liked how there were your normal mixture of nasty, suspicious people but how some just turned out to be misunderstood.
I also liked the behind the scenes look at her food blogging and magazine assignment, shows me that blogging is a full time job and then some. I also enjoy all the food recipes.
I highly recommend this book and I cannot wait to see what’s next for Hope in this series and I look forward to reading the next book …
My Rating 5*
I requested and received an advance reader copy of this book from Kensington Books and Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Hope has a lot going on in this latest Food Blogger Mystery. She has her blog to work on, she’s doing an assignment at a food magazine and she’s on the committee for the town Scavenger Hunt and she’s also on a team for the scavenger hunt. While participating in the scavenger hunt, Hope finds more than what’s on the list when she discovers a dead body. The dead man had a lot going on in his personal life with three women claiming to be his wife. This book was full of new characters and surprises. I love how Hope follows her own moral compass and does what she feels is right even when other people don’t want her to get involved. The descriptions of all of the food that Hope is making for her blog posts and the magazine assignment sounded delicious too.
I received a complimentary copy of this ebook from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
I enjoyed this story by a “new to me” author. The writing was easy to read, the story flowed, and the plot was easily followed. The main characters were believable and the story was a good one. I can easily recommend this book.
This was an easy book to read and a fun read. It’s good to read something light inbetween the serious stuff.
I couldn’t even finish this book. The first chapter is ok, due to finding the body, but after that it’s full and slow, characters are cheesy stereotypes.
The story was ok. I have a problem when the heroine the deliberately puts herself in harms way because she is just too nosy to leave the investigation alone.
Great book!! This book really kept me guessing and second-guessing myself. During the town scavenger hunt, Hope finds the dead body of a local real estate developer. Turns out the man had not divorced his two previous wives, so now three women and the man’s business partner are suspects. Hope investigates all while freelancing at a magazine and working on her blog. This book was delightful and I love the characters. Can’t wait to see what’s next for Hope and Ethan and try some of the delicious-sounding recipes!!!
I love this book. The characters, pets and recipes are great. The story was a fun mystery. I can’t wait for the next one.
Another fun entry into the food blogger series! Hope finds herself in the middle of another local murder, this one just as crazy as the previous. Local business man Lionel Whitcomb is murdered and wives start coming out of the woodwork. Seems as if the two new ladies in town, visiting the local inn each have a connection, each claiming to be his current wife. But how can he have two others when current wife Elaine is known to be his wife amongst town folks. While Hope is starting to fly with her new blog and working with the Cooking Now staff, she finds a few minutes to delve into the local gossip and set the record straight. It’s fun to have another story with the great characters of this town. I enjoy Hope’s relationships with her sister Claire and her Chief of Police boyfriend and local news reporter Drew – they all have great chemistry and are fun to follow. Looking forward to the next entry in this fun series!
This is the third book in the Food Blogger series, but the first I’ve read. I liked Hope and her crew and the pets (which always add some fun to a cozy mystery). I enjoyed the mystery, which kept me guessing for a while.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias.
It is time for a trip back to Jefferson to see what Food Blogger, Hope Early, has new in her life. Hope finds herself knee-deep in another mystery when she stumbles across another dead body while on a scavenger hunt. The bigger surprise comes when two other women appear in town and claim to still be married to the deceased. Who is the true widow? Will Hope survive the search for the killer? You’ll have to read the book to find out those answers and much more.
I’ve enjoyed this series because I love food and I am always intrigued at a look behind the scenes of what food bloggers do to create their recipes and posts. I love to cook but have never really created my own recipe. I have adapted some recipes but that is about all. Several of the recipes in this book have chocolate in them so my mouth was watering just reading about the muffins, cookies, and cakes. Recipes are provided and a few have caught my eye.
The mystery is intriguing and the author does a splendid job of hiding the killer in plain sight. I’m not sure I suspected this character so I was surprised when the story came to a head and the killer was revealed. There are several potential suspects and while I would have liked it to have been one character, no such luck.
Hope has multiple sides to her – she inserts herself into the case trying to solve the murder (despite her boyfriend the sheriff asking her to stay out of the investigation), she doesn’t know how to say no, and is a little insecure when it comes to her relationship with Ethan. But all of these pieces come together to form a likable protagonist.
Overall I enjoyed this book and look forward to the next one in the series. We give it 4 paws up.
Three Widows and a Corpse by Debra Sennefelder is the third installment, and I loved it!
Will Meg give in to her curiosity and find the murderer?
What I like about Three Widows and a Corpse:
• Meg Early is back and cooking up wonderful recipes in her kitchen. She is extremely curious. So, remember what you say and do around her.
• The Town Charity Scavenger Hunt started with a bang.
• Drew is charming, funny and knows Meg well enough to be there when she needed him.
• Claire and Hope have an excellent sister relationship. They are supportive and yet still honest with each other. I am delighted that Claire figured out what she needed to do.
• The three widows were kind of funny with their arguing and bickering.
What I dislike:
• The second murder victim, as that was extremely uncalled for as the murderer, should have done better research before killing that witness.
• Ethan wasn’t involved in the story much. Also, I know he is the Police Chief, but cutting Hope out makes her more curious. He needs to find a way to work this out with her.
• Last I didn’t like the killer; no reason is good enough for what was done. Although I didn’t care for this person before they were caught. I see lots of anger management in the future for the culprit.
Five Stars
Three Widows and a Corpse by Debra Sennefelder is getting five stars. It is a fun, witty read with great characters and outstanding food. Ms. Sennefelder also gives us a look into everything that a food blogger does to make money. Oh, and don’t forget the brilliant recipes in the back of the book. So, if you like cozy culinary mysteries, then I recommend you read this series.
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.
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Three Widows and a Corpse by Debra Sennefelder.
Anyways, until next time,
Karen the Baroness
If you would like to see other reviews like this one, check out BaronessBookTrove.com.
Three Widows and a Corpse by Debra Sennefelder is book three in the Food Blogger Mystery series. This was the first one I have read but was able to get current right away.
Hope and her team are just starting the town’s scavenger hunt when she finds the body of a shady business man. Then wives start coming out of the woodwork. In addition to his current wife, two more appear and they happen to be in town. They all have motive or do they… When Hope starts digging around, she paints a target on her back.
This book has plenty of twists and turns. The characters are likeable and the setting is great. I want to go to Jefferson. There is romance, family, humor, and recipes.
I was given an ARC by NetGalley and Kensington Books for an honest review.