Thursday, October 13, 2011

Hickory Smoked Homicide-Riley Adams

Hickory Smoked Homicide


Riley Adams

Berkley, Nov 1 2011, $7.99

ISBN: 9780425244609



In Memphis, Widow Lulu Taylor owns popular Aunt Pat’s BBQ. Lulu hires teenager Steffi Pembroke as a waitress and gives her a room to stay in after her mother the odious pageant coach Tristan tossed her out of their home. Not long after that Lulu, her friend saucy Cherry Hayes, her daughter-in-law Sara and Steffi attend an auction at Tristan’s home. Sara and Tristan get into a heated argument over a portrait the former painted of the latter. Soon after the argument Lulu searches for Sara, but cannot find her; instead she finds the murdered body of Tristan; something the MPD notes is a regular part of her lifestyle (see Finger Lickin’ Dead and Delicious and Suspicious).



The prime suspect is Sara due to the public conflict and a series of bad luck at the wrong time. Sara’s husband Ben worries about his wife even as he arranges a blind date for his mom with popular food blogger Gordon. Lulu refuses to allow the mother of her grandchild to go to jail so with Cherry they begin to investigate who committed Hickory Smoked Homicide.



The third Memphis BBQ Mystery is an entertaining regional amateur sleuth starring a quirky neighborhood cast. Although the mischance that has Sara in peril is way too much of a coincidence, so much so fans will change Murphy’s Law to Sara’s Syndrome, fans will enjoy this fine cozy as Lulu and Cherry find more suspects than ingredients in Brunswick Stew but a final terrific twist adds just the right amount of source to Riley Adams’ fun whodunit.



Harriet Klausner



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