Book Review: Sugar and Iced by: Jenn McKinlay

 Normally Melanie Cooper and Angie DeLaura wouldn't be caught dead at a beauty pageant, but when Mel's mom asks them to provide cupcakes for the seventy-fifth annual Sweet Tiara contest as a favor for her best friend, they can't say no. Plus, between cooking up a daily display  for the three-day event and sponsoring a cupcake creation challenge for the participants, Fairy Tale Cupcakes will get great publicity.

But the world of pageants is even hotter than Mel's kitchen. A high-strung judge and a pushy stage mom target Lupe, a young friend of Mel and Angie's, at the competition and aim to take her out by any means necessary. When the same judge shows up dead underneath Mel and Angie's cupcake display, Lupe is crowned the lead suspect. Now Mel and Angie will have to find the real killer quickly or Lupe may be strutting the catwalk in prison pinstripes...

With every Cupcake Bakery Mystery that Jenn writes... this series just keeps getting better and better! Mel and Angie are stirring up the batter again, only this time its with a local beauty pageant which Oz's skateboarding beauty buddy gets entered in to win a scholarship. The pageant does not start off well at all... there are bossy judges, snotty contestants and someone who's about to sashay down the catwalk for good! Jenn also leaves you on the edge of your seat with the Mel's turbulent romance between "Dear Joe" the love of her life, and the handsome yet incorrigible Detective Manny Martinez... the sharp twist at the end will having you dieing to know what happens next!

Book Review: Death of Mad Hatter By: Jenn McKinlay

Scarlett Parker and her British cousin, Vivian Tremont, are hard at work at Mim's Whims their ladies' hat shop on London's chic Portobello Road to create hats for an Alice in Wonderland themed afternoon tea, a fund-raiser for a local children's hospital. It seems like a wonderfully whimsical way to pass the hat, and Scarlett and Viv are delighted to outfit the Grisby family, the hosts who are hoping to raise enough money to name a new hospital wing after their patriarch. 

Unfortunately, the Grisby heir will not live to see it, he's been poisoned. When traces of the poison are found on the hat Scarlett and Viv made for him, the police become curiouser and curiouser about their involvement. Now the ladies need to don their thinking caps and find the tea party crasher who's mad enough to kill at the drop of a hat...

Scarlett Parker and Vivian Tremont are back at it again, "Mad" with suspense and excitement in this "hare" raising tale of mystery! Like most of Jenn McKinlays other mystery books, I am quickly falling in love with this series as well. I love all the characters and a certain slow boiling romance between Scarlett and Harrison! I also love being transported to the quaint village of Notting Hill, and I feel right at home at Scarlett and Viv's shop on old Portobello Road. Death of a Mad Hatter is Jenn's second edition in the series and I love it as much as the first! It was very witty, fun and suspenseful. It really had me guessing up until the end, and you'll never guess who's just "mad" enough to commit murder! 

Book Review: Cloche and Dagger by: Jenn McKinlay

Not only is Scarlett Parker's love life in the loo as her British cousin Vivian Tremont would say it's also gone viral with an embarrassing video. So when Viv suggests Scarlett leave Florida to lay low in London, she hops on the next plane across the pond. Viv is the proprietor of Mim's Whims, a ladies' hat shop on Portobello Road bequeathed to both cousins by their beloved grandmother, and she wants Scarlett to finally join her in the millinary buisness. 

But a few surprises await Scarlett in London. First, she is met at the airport not by Viv, but by her handsome business manager, Harrison Wentworth. Second, Viv who has some whims of her own seems to be missing. No one is too concerned about the unpredictable Viv until one of her posh clients is found dead wearing the cloche hat Viv made for her and nothing else. Is Scarlett's cousin in trouble? Or is she in hiding? 

Loved it! Classically witty and brilliantly suspenseful! Jenn McKinlay has out done herself in writing this amazing little British crime cozy! I loved the descriptive writing and it really had me longing for a stroll on Portobello Road and cozing up in a pub in the heart of Notting Hill. I loved the characters very much and am happy to say, it feels like reading about friends rather than characters in a book. Then again Jenn always manages to make her characters feel that way, it's one of the many reason why I enjoy her writing so much. This is a perfect written "first in a series" and if you love Jenn's other books than rest assured you will love Cloche and Dagger just as much!

Book Review: Going, Going, Ganache by: Jenn McKinlay

After a cupcake-flinging fiasco at a photo shoot for a local magazine, Melanie Cooper and Angie DeLaura agree to make amends by hosting a weeklong corperate boot camp at Fairy Tale Cupcakes. The idea is the brainchild of Ian Hannigan, new owner of Southwest Style, a lifestyle magazine that chronicals the lives of Scottsdale's rich and famous. He's assigned his staff to a team-building week of making cupcakes for charity. 

It's clear that the staff would rather be doing just about anything other than frosting baked goods. But when the magazine's features director is found murdered outside the bakery Mel and Angie have a new team building exercise find the killer before their business goes AWOL.

Going, Going, A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!! Once again I am thrilled by another fabulous addition of the Cupcake Bakery Mystery series! Jenn McKinlay (as always) keeps me guessing, and re-guessing until the end and even then I am blown away by the real killer! Great story, great plot, great twist and of course great group of characters that really seem to come alive in her books!

My one and only small, tiny, itsy-bitsy grievance is really not one that is a fault of the book or author it's just my own bias opinion, that Mel is crazy to be seconding guessing her feelings for a certain distinguished and handsome DA that just so happens to be her best friends brother! She has been in love with Joe DeLaura since she was twelve years old and he loves and adores her with all his heart... although I can see where a new smart, witty and attractive detective can wedge just enough charm in between her and her (what I believe to be) true love.

As always, I am left at the mercy of waiting for the next edition in this series, not only to see what mischief and mayhem Angie and Mel get up to next but, also to see who will REALLY gets to butter-cream Mel's heart over for good.

Book Review: Red Velvet Revenge By: Jenn McKinlay

It may be summertime, but sales at Fairy Tale Cupcakes are below zero and owners Melanie Cooper and Angie DeLaura are willing to try anything to heat things up. So when local legend Slim Hazard offers them the chance to sell cupcakes at the annual Juniper Pass Rodeo, they're determined to rope in a pretty payday!

But not everyone at Juniper Pass is as sweet for Fairy Tale Cupcakes as Slim, including bull-rider Ty Stokes. Mel and Angie try to steer clear of the cowboy's short fuse, but when his dead body is found facedown in the hay, it's a whole different rodeo.

With a vengeful murderer on the loose, the ladies are quickly realizing that while they came to save their business, they may have to save themselves and that's no bull!

Another fabulous mystery from Jenn McKinlay. As always I am left wanting more from her endings, in stitches from laughing from her awesome cast of characters and crazy troubles that always seem to find them. And just when I thought I knew who the killer was... BAM! Out of no where does she throw me for a loop! I also loved "meeting" some new characters from this book as well.Loved it! This one is sweet & sassy from start to finish!

Book Review: Death by the Dozen by: Jenn McKinlay

Melanie Cooper and Angie DeLaura are determined to win the challenge to the chefs at this year's Scottsdale Food Festival. Taking home first prize will be great publicity for their Fairy Tale Cupcakes bakery-and beating rival Olivia Puckett will be the cherry on top.

Mel's mentor from culinary school, Vic Mazzotta-now a Food Channel celebrity chef- is one of the judges, but Mel and Angie will have to win fair and square by whipping up delicious cupcakes with a mystery ingredient.

Though the real mystery is who put Vic Mazzotta on ice, literally-when his dead body is found inside a freezer truck. Mel and Angie will need to use their best judgement to find the cold-blooded killer who iced Vic, or they may lose more than the contest-they may lose their lives...

Loved it! I seriously LOVE how this series is going! Thank you Jenn, for another great book and another epic Mel & Angie adventure! As usual, you had me guessing till the end! I loved the story and it had a death had a great style in this book! Who would have though... could kill someone... ;) Can't wait to read "Red Velvet Revenge" next! And I am hoping that Joe and Mel might be hearing wedding bells in their future!

Book Review: Books Can Be Deceiving By: Jenn McKinlay

What is the only word in the English language that ends in -mt? Answering tricky reference questions like this one is more than enough excitement for recently single librarian Lindsey Norris. That is, until someone in her cozy new hometown of Briar Creek, Connecticut commits murder, and the most pressing question is whodunit... Lindsay is just getting into her groove as the director of the Briar Creek Public Library when a vacationing New York editor brings a little buzz to the small town. It's the perfect chance for her friend Beth to sell the children's book she's written. Unfortunately, Beth's boyfriend, Rick, a famous author and local celebrity, tries to stop her. When Lindsay and Beth meet the editor, they uncover the real reason for Rick's bad attitude... They go confront Rick at his house on the storied and mysterious Thumb Islands, only to find him murdered. The local chief of police likes Beth for the murderer and isn't interested in looking elsewhere. Now Lindsey has to act fast before they throw the book at the wrong person...

I loved it! Great start to a new series! Jenn McKinlay always leads me into a suspenseful, nail biting frenzy with a awesome and satisfying ending! Lindsay and Beth make me feel like we've been friends forever, and the town of Briar Creek is amazing and picturesque! I love all the quirky "creeker's" and the story has me longing to be a "creeker" as well, because "once a creeker, always a creeker." Read it! You'll love it! And if you don't, well... we're just gonna have to put you to work with the lemon Ms. Cole! I am definitely looking forward to reading her next book in this series! You rock Jenn!

Book Review Buttercream Bump Off by: Jenn McKinlay

Melanie Cooper and Angie DeLaura must be doing something right with their Fairy Tale Cupcakes bakery. Their business rival, Olivia Puckett, is parading up and down the sidewalk dressed as a Giant Cupcake to steal customers. With Valentine's Day just around the corner, she's clearly feeling desperate.

Unfortunately, she's not the only desperate one in Scottsdale, Arizona. Someone has iced Baxter Malloy on his first date with Mel's mother. Her mom had been hoping for someone drop dead gorgeous-but not literally. Now she's a suspect, and Mel and Angie need to find time between frosting Kiss Me Cupcake to dig into Malloy's past and discover who served him his just desserts.

A awesome follow up to "Sprinkle with Murder"! I think its safe to say that Jenn McKinlay has me officially hooked on her cute and hilarious cupcake mystery capers! Buttercream Bump Off had a great plot and some hilarious scenarios! I love the bits of romance Jenn McKinlay works into the storyline as well. These books are refreshing fun reads and I cant wait to see what Mel Cooper and Angie DeLaura will be baking up next!

Book Review: Sprinkle with Murder by Jenn McKinlay

"Cupcakes to Die For!"

Melanie Cooper and Angie DeLaura are finally living out their dream as the proud owners of Fairy Tale Cupcakes bakery. Their first big order is a sweet deal, too-five hundred cupcakes for a fashion designer's wedding. The only sour note is the demanding bridezilla who insists on orginal recipes for the cupcakes.
When Mel stumbles upon the bride-to-be dead-by-cupcake, she immediately becomes the prime suspect. The police believe that the secret ingredient in the cupcakes caused her death. To save Mel and their business, the ladies need to find the real murderer-before the cupcake killer ices someone else...

This was one of the cuuuuuuutest little cozy's I've read yet! What a spectacular ending too! I did recognize the killer a little over half way through the book but it was still very much enjoyable by how psychotic they were! I love the friendship between Mel, Angie and Tate and I also love the little bit of romance that Jenn McKinlay threw in there as well. All in all this book was absolutely adorable and dripping with so much pink frosting cuteness, that I cant wait to read her follow up "Buttercream Bump Off"!

30 Days of Books: Day 30

Day 30 – What book are you reading right now?

Seeing how I have quite literally just finished my last "Candy Shop Mystery" book (Sucker Punched by Sammi Carter) I have the pleasure of saying I will be starting Sprinkled with Murder by Jenn McKinlay YAY!!! The Candy Shop Mysteries have been really good reads and I will be putting these on my bookshelf for some rainy day reading :) I am really excited to start this new "Cupcake Bakery Mystery" series tomorrow though, oh and be on the look out for my review of Sucker Punched soon ;)

30 Days of Books: Day 25

Day 25 – Any five books from your “to be read” stack

Well, I am about 3/4th's of the way through my last book in the Candy Shop Mysteries by Sammi Carter. I have to say that I have really enjoyed reading this series and am kinda sad that the series will be over for me, but I will keep them on my book shelf for rainy day reading :)

Up next for me will be The Cupcake Bakery Mystery Series by Jenn McKinlay. She currently has two books out in the series which are; Sprinkled with Murder (Book # 1) and Butter Cream Bump Off (Book # 2).

After that I would like to try The Tattoo Shop Mystery Series by Karen Olson. And then its just a few other randoms of my list of "To Read's" :)