Criminal Confections

 

I am sure that some of you are thinking…FINALLY!! A a non-romance book! I am feeling your pain and know that I do in fact read a LOT of romance books. My only excuse is that I enjoy them and always have. However I also enjoy a little mystery and that is why I was certain that Criminal Confections was the book for me when I saw it on NetGalley.

About the Book

Hayden Mundy Moore is an expert on everything chocolate, helping clients develop new products and revamp recipes until they’re irresistible. But sometimes, a dash of murder finds its way into the mix. . .

Hayden Mundy Moore has bushwhacked through African jungles and haggled in exotic markets to find the finest cacao beans and the most flavorful blends. It’s thrilling work but rarely dangerous–until a colleague turns up dead at the exclusive chocolate-themed Lemaоtre resort spa in San Francisco.

Adrienne Dowling’s heart attack is blamed on an accidental overdose of the secret ingredient used in Lemaоtre Chocolates’ new line. Hayden can’t believe that conscientious Adrienne would make that mistake. And between chocolate body scrubs, cocoa mud baths, and a non-stop frenzy of chocolate-based treats, Hayden starts to suspect that she, not Adrienne, was the intended target. Finding a killer among the rival chocolatiers and potential suspects won’t just be satisfying–it might save her life. . .

My Thoughts

Okay this book had me from the get go because of the chocolate. I mean who doesn’t love chocolate, right? One thing that I did find interesting is that I actually learned a lot about chocolate and there were even recipes. This is a mystery and cookbook all rolled into one which just screamed to my inner food goddess.

Hayden is a great character who as a chocolate expert makes her money troubleshooting for companies. She attends a retreat that is being held by the company that she’s currently working for. Her friend Danny, who just happens to be a former con who now has his own security company, attends the retreat with her. Once at the retreat Hayden has an encounter with her employer, another with a chef that she is friends with and ends up with a business and sexual proposition from her employer’s competition. Sounds lie a lot right? Well then her friend, the chef, dies rather suddenly.

This death of course only leads to a boat load of questions:  Was it accidental, a suicide, or a murder? Who is the saboteur? Is there a saboteur and whom? Not to mention the all important who is sleeping with whom? Not to mention all of the others that were swimming around in my head. The biggest question that I want answered is will Hayden ever get her accountant/business manager ( and trustee of an estate left to Hayden by her now deceased uncle) Travis  to tell her what he’s wearing? She is attracted to his deep, sexy voice (who isn’t?) and determined to break through his seemingly rigid, narrow behavior.  I must say that I liked the fact that we never meet Travis, his scenes are all on the telephone, it really added something to the book. Although I am hoping that in future books we do get to meet him and that he is as sexy as his voice. 

There were a couple of things that left me hanging such as why the police didn’t investigate the sudden death and why the inheritance part wasn’t fully explained. However since this is the first book in the series I am hoping that at least the latter is explained more over time. All in all this was a great read and I can’t wait for the next book.

Purchase the Book

Amazon|Barnes and Noble