Friday, June 4, 2010

Pepperoni Pizza Can be Murder-Chris Cavender

Pepperoni Pizza Can be Murder
Chris Cavender
Kensington, Aug 1 2010, $22.00
ISBN: 9780758229502

In Timber Ridge, North Carolina is home to the delicious A Slice of Delight pizza parlor owned by young widow Eleanor Swift. Although Eleanor misses her late husband and firmly believes there will never be another man for her, she loves her restaurant and those people who work there, her sister Maddy and students Gregg Hatcher and the son of the police chief Josh Hurley.

Gregg is the only one having problems at the moment. His grandparents left their entire estate to him and his older brother Wade; the siblings never got on as the older one was spoiled rotten by their parents while the younger was an ignored accidental afterthought. Wade demands Gregg sign over a part of his portion of the inheritance, but he refuses. They argue and fight in public. Soon afterward, Eleanor finds Wade’s body in the kitchen of the pizza parlor. Police Chief Kevin Hurley wants to talk with Gregg, but he goes underground hiding while trying to figure out who killed his brother. He pleads his innocence with his employer although the circumstantial evidence is overwhelming including his former girlfriend Kay coming between the battling brothers. Eleanor investigates and finds several other suspects with strong motives including Katy and an expert at flinging the dough and perhaps into A Slice of Murder.

Pepperoni Pizza Can be Murder is a saucy cozy in which A Slice of Delight comes across as another key character. The charming story line contains a fun whodunit thanks to the cast as a grateful Eleanor is protective of her crew. Although her inquiry is typical of the sub-genre in which the amateur sleuth follows clues like following a recipe (aside one is included), which enables her to uncover the killer while the expected cop with modern day support fails, fans will enjoy a slice with a topping of homicide.

Harriet Klausner

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