Devil's Food Cake: A Culinary Mystery, Book 3

I absolutely love this author and this series. But when the book came, it was supposed to be brand new. I paid for brand new and got a book that looked like it had gotten wet, well used and the covers were messed up.

Shipped super quickly and it's in very good condition too! The story itself is amazing - I read the first book (lemon tart) and then came on amazon and realized there were two more! Then, the real kicker, I just found out theres 13 in the whole series. You can read them in any order, but each book uses a little bit of detail from the previous ones as well, so I'm reading them in order. And yes! There are recipies in here too, I have not made one yet but they're at the end of the chapter with which you see the dessert. I would say 4-5 recipies throughout each book.

I'm basing my 5-star rating on Josi Kilpack's novel, as measured against her other books I have read. I think this one is, by far, my favorite. In this book, Sadie Hoffmiller, the retired school-teacher widow heroine of Ms Kilpack's books, seems like a more relatable character. She stands up for herself more, gets her feelings hurt (justifiably so) more, and starts thinking that maybe there's more to life than just having one boyfriend to boss her around. The mystery action is very compact--one whirlwind night, which keeps the plot moving very quickly. Despite the compact time element, the story is complex and fun to follow as Sadie and an ever-growing cast of tag-alongs unravel this delightful mystery. I enjoyed the book very much. I'm actually thinking about trying a couple of the recipes in this one, too!

I am writing this review as I hear my stomach screaming for Evil Chicken and Devil's Food Cake. Both recipes will be tried out soon.Oh my does our Sadie and son, Shawn Hoffmiller get into unbelievable danger, confusion, and murder just by Sadie attending a fund raiser for the Library. Garrison, Colorado is a quiet town with not much going on except around our Sadie. This time she was sitting next to her 'sometime, maybe, hopefully, boyfriend, Detective Pete Peterson. A Murder occurs on stage by the agent for the hometown author.Sadie can't even get out of the ballroom of the hotel, with her best friend and eyewitness, Gayle before being involved with a fake crime photographer, a cunning and self-serving news reporter from Denver, and angry policemen.I laughed, I sat in suspense and I heartily endorse this excellent book. Treat yourselves.

Who knew so much could happen to Sadie in 24 hours. This was a lot of fun to read. You've got to love how Sadie just happens to stumble upon interesting information that leads to solving murders. She is a delightful and quirky heroine with recipes that are a sweet and delicious bonus.

But it your asking about the book itself, well it's OK. I find the continual references to food irritating, although the recipes look good and will undoubtedly make delicious desserts, I bought a mystery that I thought might have a few recipes in it, not a cook book with a little mystery in it. I am also bothered by the character always talking about her inability to fit into her clothes, but in the next statement talk about eating a whole chocolate cake at one sitting. And the mention of food is not just making statements like "Oh that's good." Its accompanied with groans and moans.

The recipes are one of the best parts of the series. You should get the whole series just to make a cook book out of them! Josi also has a great way of creating a twist at the end. I like her characters, too.

I really liked this book. It was full of mystery and also was fun to read. I recommend this book to all ladies young to old.