Dying for Devil’s Food (Cupcake Bakery Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
11th in Series
Setting – Arizona
Berkley (May 7, 2019)
Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
ISBN-10: 0451492633
ISBN-13: 978-0451492630
Digital ASIN: B07GD4DZ5N
As the New York Times bestselling series continues, it’s going to take every recipe the Fairy Tale Cupcake crew has to whip up a quick defense for Mel Cooper when her high school reunion goes from a cake walk to a car wreck…
Melanie Cooper has zero interest in catering her fifteen-year high school reunion, but Angie insists it’s only right that they bask in the success of Fairy Tale Cupcakes–and Mel’s engagement to the delicious Joe DeLaura is the cherry on top!
Everything is going better than expected until Cassidy Havers, resident mean girl and Mel’s high school nemesis, picks a fight. No longer willing to put up with Cassidy’s bullying, Mel is ready to tell the former homecoming queen to shut her piehole and call it a night. But as Mel and Joe prepare to depart, Cassidy is found dead in the girl’s bathroom, next to a note written in lipstick that points right to Mel–making her the prime suspect.
Now, Mel must follow the clues to find the real killer and keep her reputation from being frosted for a crime she didn’t commit.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Class reunions can be murder! In this case, Melanie Cooper, cupcake baker extraordinaire finds the girl who bullied her all through high school dead in the bathroom. With their past and Mel’s name scrawled in lipstick on the wall, she becomes the prime suspect. She didn’t want to go to the reunion in the first place, but Angie convinced her they could attend and show off the success to all their classmates. Plus with the hunky Joe DeLaura by her side, all the women would be green with envy. Well, that didn’t happen. Now, to save her business and herself she has to find who sent the *itch from her past to the great beyond.
It is always good to catch up with Mel, Angie and the gang. The Fairy Tale Cupcake crew is baking up 500 cupcakes for the girl’s reunion and when the party ends with murder everyone is there to support Mel.
Cassidy Havers was just downright nasty and to think even 15 years past high school the woman has gotten even worse. The author really takes on the issue of bullying and it doesn’t just affect kids, bullies can carry their abusive behavior into their adult life. I enjoyed the awakening Mel had. As an adult, with Joe and her friends by her side, she was able to take a step back and see the whole picture. These characters have all grown over the series but Mel’s growth just over the pages of this book was heartwarming and inspiring. Now if she could find the real killer.
Ms. McKinley’s story was fast paced with plenty of twists. The reunion brings together a room full of suspects. It was no surprise that Cassidy had made many enemies over the years. It was so much fun to tag along as she followed each clue, eliminating people and circling back around as new information came to light I was kept guessing right up to the very end.
This is such a fun series. One thing I have learned is that “Cupcakes always make everything better”.
These books are a real treat! Not only do we get a wonderful mystery, but we also get the recipes for the cupcakes that had our mouths while reading the book. The ingredients for Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes have been added to my grocery list. I can’t wait to try them.
I have a reunion coming up this summer. I know it won’t be as eventful as Mel and Angie’s. 🙂
Find out all about Jenn McKinlay and her books on her webpage here.
Cupcake Bakery Mysteries
The Hat Shop Mysteries
Check Out Her New Romance Series’
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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of this book. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Thank you for your review on “Dying for Devil’s Food” by Jenn McKinlay. Great cover! Sounds like a wonderful story and knowing this author I know it is. Can’t wait for the opportunity to read it.
2clowns at arkansas dot net
Love all of Jenn’s series, this one most of all. The characters are fun and yet complex, the bakery is somewhere I’d love to hang out. So glad to know we have a new mystery to solve.
Thanks for the chance!