chez_jae

A Roux of Revenge by Connie Archer

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


View all my reviews

Finished my work book at work today. Woo! It was A Roux of Revenge by Connie Archer, and it's the third book in the "Soup Lover's" mystery series. The main character is Lucky Jamieson, who owns and operates the 'By the Spoonful' soup shop.

Autumn in Snowflake VT brings the Fall Festival, along with some itinerant workers to run the fest. When one of them seems to take an interest in Lucky's young waitress, Janie, Lucky wonders if the man has something nefarious in mind. After a man is found murdered in a van along the road, the local police wonder if the travelers had anything to do with it. When Janie goes missing after an argument with her mother, Lucky turns to the travelers to help find her.

This went off-script, as far as cozy mysteries go, but I liked it. Lucky wasn't investigating the murder; rather she was trying to piece together what had gone wrong between Janie and her mother, and then she turned her attention to finding Janie. There was also a strong subplot that involved Lucky's boyfriend, Elias, and his wicked ex. It was almost as if the book had three plots: the murder (which the police were investigating), Janie's disappearance, and the romantic drama. While things melded together neatly, I didn't like that quite a bit of the book remained even after the murder had been solved and the killer apprehended. About 15-20% of the book followed what should have been the finale, and that portion dealt with tying up the other two subplots. Hm. At least Lucky didn't find the dead body. Bonus!

Favorite line: "They know less about horses than I do about nuclear physics."

Wishing I could award 3.5 stars. Since I can't, I'm giving it three; it was a good story, but not outstanding.

A Spoonful of Murder by Connie Archer

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I only had a few chapters left in my 'work' book, and I didn't want to leave it languishing for four days; therefore, I brought it home and finished it mid-morning today. It was A Spoonful of Murder by Connie Archer, and it's the first in her "Soup Lovers" mystery series. The main character is Lucky Jamieson.

After Lucky's parents die in an accident, she inherits their house and soup shop in Snowflake, VT. Not sure what she plans to do yet, Lucky spends her time cleaning out the house and helping her grandfather, Jack, at By the Spoonful. When she realizes that Jack may be having cognitive issues, Lucky realizes how much the shop means to him, and she decides to keep it open. Her plans go awry, however, when a tourist is found in the alley behind the shop, the victim of murder. Local police arrest Lucky's chef, Sage, for the crime. Lucky is sure Sage didn't do it, and with business dwindling, she sets out to do some investigating of her own. The questions she begins asking around town endanger her relationships and even her life, but she is determined to get to the bottom of the crime before her business goes bottoms up.

A good story, as cozies go. I thought Lucky took some foolish risks and was too abrasive in her questioning, but she did get results. I enjoyed her relationship with Jack and her budding relationship with Elias, one of the doctors at the local clinic. The soups and sandwiches on tap sounded amazing! Characters were portrayed well, and the plot progressed smoothly. I hate to say it, but if ever someone deserved to be murdered, it was the victim. She seemed to enjoy ruining people's lives out of sheer spite and malice. I also feel compelled to question how the soup shop's business tanked after the murder. For one thing, the woman wasn't killed in the shop; she was found in the alley. For another, tourists wouldn't know what happened. Finally, locals would show up for gossip and the lookey-loo factor.

Favorite lines:
♦ "Never drag the past into your future."
♦ "She asked for you too." // "I hope you told her I died three weeks ago!"

Enjoyable for the most part, four stars.

( Trope Test )