Death al Dente: A Food Lovers' Village Mystery (Food Lovers' Village Mystery, #1)

by Leslie Budewitz

FIRST IN THE NEW CULINARY MYSTERY SERIES!--WINNER OF THE AGATHA AWARD FOR BEST FIRST NOVEL

The town of Jewel Bay, Montana—known as a Food Lovers' Village—is obsessed with homegrown and homemade Montana fare. So when Erin Murphy takes over her family’s century-old general store, she turns it into a boutique market filled with local delicacies. But Erin’s freshly booming business might go rotten when a former employee turns up dead…

Murphy’s Mercantile, known as the Merc, has been a staple in Jewel Bay for over a hundred years. To celebrate their recent makeover as a gourmet food market, Erin has organized a town festival, Festa di Pasta, featuring the culinary goods of Jewel Bay’s finest—including her mother Fresca’s delicious Italian specialties.

But Erin’s sweet success is soured when the shop’s former manager, Claudette, is found dead behind the Merc on the Festa’s opening night. With rival chef James Angelo stirring up rumors that Fresca’s sauce recipes were stolen from Claudette, Erin’s mother is under close scrutiny. Now Erin will have to hunt down some new suspects, or both her family and her store might wind up in hot water…

INCLUDES FRESH, DELICIOUS RECIPES!

• ISBN10: 0425259544
• ISBN13: 9780425259542
• Publish Date: 6 August 2013
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: Berkley Publishing Corporation,U.S.
• Format: Paperback (US Mass Market)
• Pages: 304
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780425259542

Reviews

[MurderByDeath]

Not a bad first book in a series. I love the small town Montana setting and I love the idea of the Mercantile - a shop focussing on local, fresh produce and grocery.

I didn't connect immediately with the main characters, but there weren't any I disliked either. Two possible romantic interests have been introduced and I hope the author treads carefully; there's a serious backlash against love triangles and I for one am beyond over them. They are tiresome and irritating.

The plot was well crafted and adding rampant rumours to the mix muddies up the possibilities very effectively. Lots of suspects too.

Overall, a good, solid beginning. I'm not jumping up and down in excitement, but I'll definitely be adding this series to the list of those that I'm following. I look forward to the next book.