Book Review (and a Giveaway!): Silence of the Jams by Gayle Leeson

In the latest Southern cozy from the author of The Calamity Café, small-town chef Amy Flowers can’t take her freedom for granted when she’s served up as a murder suspect…

It’s Independence Day in Winter Garden, Virginia, and the residents are gearing up for their annual celebration. The Down South Café is open and flourishing, and Amy Flowers is busy making pies and cakes for the holiday. The only thorn in her side is Chamber of Commerce director George Lincoln, who is trying to buy the café so he can tear it down and build a B&B on the site.

When George collapses while eating at the Down South, everybody assumes it’s a heart attack—until the autopsy declares it to be poisoning. Now, it’s up to Amy to prove her innocence before her liberty is lost.

Includes delicious Southern recipes!

SERIES: Down South Cafe Mystery #2
GENRE: Cozy Mystery
PUBLISHER: Berkley
RELEASE DATE: April 4, 2017
PAGES: 304

Other Books In This Series

MY REVIEW OF THE CALAMITY CAFE

I love the Down South Cafe series! It has endearingly quirky characters who feel like friends, a charming setting, hints of romance, mouthwatering food and a well-plotted mystery to keep you guessing. There’s even a PURSE-WHOMPING!! Which you know made my feisty heart happy haha!

In Silence of the Jams (love that title!), we also have a subplot involving addiction and the effect it has on families. These scenes were written with sensitivity as well as authenticity, and the emotions that Amy’s family went through over the addicted family member touched my heart.

The usual characters return in this second book, and both Homer and Aunt Bess continue to delight me. Aunt Bess with her “Lord Have Mercy” pinterest board makes me laugh out loud, and Homer with his hero-of-the-day is huggable in his sincerity and wisdom. Amy is a delightfully charming and relatable heroine! I was delighted to see more of her relationship with hunky (and sweet) deputy Ryan, too. Jackie is put through the emotional wringer in this book, but her bond with Amy continues to be a highlight of the series.

And did I mention the yummy recipes at the back? There’s a couple I’m dying to try. Hmmm…. on second thought, considering this is a murder mystery, ‘dying’ may not have been the right word choice 😉

Bottom Line: Silence of the Jams by Gayle Leeson is delightful on every level. It’s clean as well as being fun, meaningful and intriguing. Compelling (and quirky) characters combine with the charming town of Winter Garden, Virginia, to give the novel the right dose of southern small town flair. The mystery has enough twists and turns to stay intriguing, the solution just out of reach no matter how many times you think you’ve surely got it figured out this time. (I ended up being right with my early-on guess, but there were enough suspects in the mix that I second-guessed myself a lot.) Highly recommended for cozy mystery fans as well as my “clean-read” readers!

(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the publisher. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.)

My Rating: 4 stars / Love it!

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Gayle Leeson is a pseudonym for Gayle Trent. I also write as Amanda Lee. As Gayle Trent, I write the Daphne Martin Cake Mystery series and the Myrtle Crumb Mystery series. As Amanda Lee, I write the Embroidery Mystery series. I live in Virginia with my family, which includes her own “Angus” who is not an Irish wolfhound but a Great Pyrenees who provides plenty of inspiration for the character of Mr. O’Ruff. I’m having a blast writing this new series!

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