Book Review (and a Giveaway!): Mousse and Murder by Elizabeth Logan

Posted May 6, 2020 by meezcarrie in contemporary, cozy mystery, Elizabeth Logan, giveaway, mystery/suspense / 15 Comments

MOUSSE AND MURDER
SERIES: Alaskan Diner Mystery #1
GENRE: Cozy Mystery
PUBLISHER: Berkley Books
RELEASE DATE: May 5, 2020
PAGES: 304

A young chef might bite off more than she can chew when she returns to her Alaskan hometown to take over her parents’ diner in this charming first installment in a new cozy mystery series set in an Alaskan tourist town.
When Chef Charlie Cooke is offered the chance to leave San Francisco and return home to Elkview, Alaska, to take over her mother’s diner, she doesn’t even consider saying no. After all–her love life has recently become a Love Life Crumble, and a chance to reconnect with her roots may be just what she needs.
Determined to bring fresh life and flavors to the Bear Claw Diner, Charlie starts planning changes to the menu, which has grown stale over the years. But her plans are fried when her head cook Oliver turns up dead after a bitter and public fight over Charlie’s ideas–leaving Charlie as the only suspect in the case.
With her career, freedom, and life all on thin ice, Charlie must find out who the real killer is, before it’s too late.

Alaska is near the top of my travel bucket list, so I always love traveling there vicariously on the pages of a good book. There aren’t a ton of books set there, though, so whenever I find one that looks halfway interesting I snatch it up. Mousse and Murder did not disappoint, and I’m looking forward to more books in this series!

Along with spotlighting the beauty and quirks of Alaska & its residents, Mousse and Murder introduces an intriguing murder mystery and an equally intriguing cast of characters to match. I really liked Charlotte (“Charlie”) and the narrative from her perspective. Her cat-cam cracked me up, and Benny the cat lived up well to his role as the loyal pet. The romantic potential between Charlotte and Chris-the-reporter was light enough to not annoy readers who don’t want any lovey-dovey stuff in their cozy mysteries but present enough to appease readers like me who think any story is better with a little romance. Trooper steals the show, however, in my opinion. The somewhat-crusty-but-also-wryly-hilarious state police officer is definitely my fave recurring cast member so far.

The mystery itself seems to be fairly straightforward at first but in fact has many different layers once all is said and done. The more that Charlie & Chris uncover about Oliver, the more suspects come to light. And while I figured it out before they did, it was still well-plotted and cleverly-crafted.

Bottom Line: Cute and well-layered, Mousse and Murder is a great start to a new cozy mystery series! Trooper is hands down my favorite character but all of the main cast members are easily likable. Including Benny the wonder cat! The mystery gets more complicated at every turn, with new dimensions – and new suspects – and the barest hint of potential romance adds other layers too. Engaging & entertaining, Mousse and Murder belongs on every cozy mystery fan’s to read list!

(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 / loved it!

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Camille Minichino is turning every aspect of her life into a mystery series. A retired physicist, she’s the author of 28 mystery novels in 5 series, with different pen names. Her next book is “Mousse and Murder,” May 2020, by Elizabeth Logan. She’s also written many short stories and articles. She teaches science at Golden Gate U. in San Francisco and writing workshops around the SF Bay Area. Details are at www.minichino.com.

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