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The Fatal Funnel Cake (2013)

by Livia J. Washburn(Favorite Author)

3.91 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

0451416619 (ISBN13: 9780451416612)

languge

English

genre

Nonfiction

publisher

NAL Trade

series

Fresh-Baked Mystery

review 1: This is the 1st of the freebies that I read over the past weekend. I was pleasantly surprised since this is book 8 in a well-established series (though the author hasn't updated her website since about book 6). It was easy to jump into the story and into the characters lives. I have a feeling the group of retired teachers that the books center around aren't overly complicated characters in general. There isn't a lot of backstory that I missed out on by not reading the 1st 7 books in the series which was nice. Phyllis, the main character, and her friends head to Dallas to attend the state fair of Texas and meet one of their favorite cooking celebrities, Joye Jameson. Phyllis, Sam and Carolyn have entered various cooking contests and hope to win blue ribbons. Of course Joye ... moreends up dead and Phyllis becomes the initial prime suspect! Phyllis and her friends start sleuthing and try to get to the bottom of the mystery so they can clear their names and enjoy their winning dishes!Overall, this was an enjoyable free read and easy to follow. The mystery was tied up nicely and there were tons of great recipes included in the book. I think the mystery was almost too simple and too light. I like it well enough but I don't know if I would go back and read the 1st 7. If I had endless amounts of time, I probably would but for now, I'll take them as they come.
review 2: When Phyllis, Sam, Eve and Carolyn hear that celebrity chef Joye Jameson of The Joye of Cooking will be broadcasting live from the Texas Fair they quickly make arrangements to stay with Carolyn’s cousin Peggy’s place and go to the fair. Phyllis even plans to enter the funnel cake competition even though she has never made one in her life. Carolyn is interested in the cookie competitions and Sam may even throw his hat into the ring of contests.Things go better than expected and when one of them wins they get to meet Joye Jameson in person and even appear on her show. But the show takes a deadly turn when its host suffers a fatal allergic reaction after taking just one bite of the ribbon winning treat and the retired school teachers find themselves right in the middle of another murder investigation.Dollycas’s ThoughtsChapter 1, Page 1 had me laughing out loud. You see I sat down to read this book, tuned the television to ESPN and sat back to read. Sam was saying he doesn’t “get cooking shows”. Phyllis says she doesn’t “understand the appeal of fishing shows” Then Carolyn pipes up with “At least it isn’t NASCAR. Why in the world would anyone sit there and watch a bunch of cars drive around and around all day is totally beyond me.” I was watching the NASCAR race from Texas near where the state fair takes place and reading this story. I am a huge NASCAR fan, specifically Matt Kenseth in the #20 car and I love funnel cakes and cozy mysteries too!! Carolyn we need to talk!! :)I look forward to these books arriving because this foursome is one of favorite cozy groups. I can’t wait to see what they get themselves mixed up in each and every story. This one really excited me because funnel cakes are one of my favorite treats. We used to have a fall event at our church and those ladies made some awesome funnel cakes. Phyllis tries some interesting recipes out as she tries to figure out what to enter at the fair and they all sounded yummy to me. Of course there are some recipes included in the back of the book for us to try.The author has cooked up another fine mystery with plenty of suspects and this was a fun read because I figured out the guilty party at the same time as Phyllis. It also really hit home with me as I have a similar allergy and learned I need to be even more alert when I try those deep fried goodies at the fair. Great characters with snappy dialogue, a prime location, a wonderful whodunit. Mix together and you have another fantastic cozy from Livia Washburn. Her books always leave me smiling and anxiously waiting for another trip to visit Phyllis and her friends. less

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