Recipe for Murder

Pine Cove Mystery, #2

by

Marla A. White

When Mel's love interest returns to Pine Cove, he's followed by a killer!

Recipe for Murder is the second book in author Marla A. White's cozy Pine Cove Mystery series set high in the California mountains and featuring retired LA detective turned innkeeper, Emmeline "Mel" O'Rourke. When former love interest Jackson Thibodeaux suddenly arrives back in town long after what was to have been a short two-week stay with his mother in New Orleans, he's not alone. While cooling his heels in the Big Easy, he'd signed up for a culinary school course and, midway through, had discovered a classmate deceased in the school's kitchen, and now someone was taking shots at him, too. He wants Mel to find out who killed his friend, Kaya, since the New Orleans PD closed the case as a suicide, and the scene he found in the kitchen doesn't add up to their conclusion. Meanwhile, Mel and local sheriff's deputy Gregg Marks had grown closer after Jackson left her hanging, and she's struggling to separate her feelings for the two very different men. 

Mel is an engaging, likable main character who is trying to make a success of her second career as an innkeeper, after an on-the-job injury scuttled her first. Her family had pooled their resources to help her follow her new dream, but the old inn itself seems to be doing its best to make this as difficult as possible. She is supported in her new venture by her now friend and former cat burglar, Poppy Phillips, who's a great cook. She also has a growing affection for Mel's brother, Liam, a plumber, who keeps patching The Brook back up whenever something breaks. Joining them is Grandma O'Rourke, who mans the front desk and applies her mad computer skills to the research Mel needs to investigate her new unofficial case. 

While business is looking up for the inn, especially with an upcoming music festival in town, the old girl's infrastructure springs a major leak. While Liam does what he can to make repairs and get the rental cottage that was affected back in service, Mel works to uncover the truth behind Kaya Woods' death and stop whoever has hunted Jackson all the way back to Pine Cove. The plot moves quickly as Mel's long-distance investigation yields more clues, and she tries to do the honorable thing by committing to pursuing a relationship with either Gregg or Jackson. While it was fun watching her decision-making, it was even more fun watching Poppy, Grandma, and cousin Gemma's reactions to her dilemma. The banter among the women in the story absolutely sparkled. There was some clever misdirection, a red herring or two, and plot twists that kept me guessing, but I really enjoyed the exciting reveal when it came. 

I recommend RECIPE FOR MURDER to cozy mystery fans. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.