Mystery

⭐⭐⭐
An OK read, the mystery itself was just alright it seemed that Mel had a lot more to do in the book then investigate the murder. The ultimate solution The Doctor did it, is first introduced and resolved in one of the last chapters of the book. Mel solved it by almost getting murdered by the same guy. Then the ending when Joe walks away to protect Mel from a case he’s working on, while the entire book he’s always at her side doesn’t really make a lot of sense.
The love quadrangle was especially annoying, only worsened by the ending.


Cozies Reading Challenge ( )

Do the murders even matter anymore when the love lives of the Fairy Tale Cupcakes are so tumultuous?! ( )

Mel’s intern, Oz, helps his friend enter a beauty pageant, not for the glory of being called Miss Sweet Tiara, but for the college scholarship that comes with winning it. Mel and her crew are providing cupcakes for the affair, and they all are on board with doing everything they can to help Lupe win. But it’s not all sweetness and delight at the pageant. There is much back stabbing among the contestants and their mothers, and one judge takes it in the neck. Literally. Some evidence points to Lupe as a person of interest in the crime, even though no one believes she could have done it. There is more going on than just the pageant, though, and while some characters are busy falling in love, others are falling apart. And everyone is baking cupcakes, because the show, that is, the pageant must go on. This is a delightful cozy with some real substance and works as a standalone, but to get the most from series, you should really read it from the beginning to understand the backstories of the characters. ( )

Melanie Cooper and Angie DeLaura are doing a favor for Mel's mom by agreeing to provide cupcakes for the seventy-fifth annual Sweet Tiara Beauty Pageant. It's great publicity for Fairy Tale Cupcakes and when Oz's friend Lupe decides to enter the pageant, Mel’s mother decides to help Lupe prepare for the competition. Not everyone's thrilled with this new face on the pageant circuit, one of the judge's scores Lupe very low on the first day. When the judge ends up dead, fingers are very quickly pointed at Lupe so she becomes the police's prime suspect. The whole cupcake crew comes together to prove Lupe's innocence so that she can continue with the competition and strut here stuff before she ends up behind bars.

The characters are as strong as ever, and it's nice seeing how they're growing and their relationships are changing. The author blends a sense of humor nicely with a well plotted story line and a well, crafted mystery that will have you guessing about who the murderer is. ( )