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Novel Idea #3
Books, Cooks, and Crooks
The national bestselling Novel Idea Mysteries are back, as Lila Wilkins—literary agent and sleuth—is setting up a delicious cookbook fair. But the tension in the kitchen is about to boil over...
Inspiration Valley, North Carolina, is bubbling with excitement for the Taste of the Town festival, and Lila is right in the middle of it all. Along with her coworkers at the Novel Idea Literary Agency, Lila is organizing a grand celebrity chef event, featuring food television's biggest stars, complete with cooking demonstrations, cookbook giveaways, and even a culinary writing contest.
But just as the celebration is about to start, the demo kitchen blows up, taking one of the star cooks with it. With all the explosive egos of the cook’s colleagues, it’s hard to find someone who didn’t have a motive to eliminate the competition. Now Lila will have to scramble to figure out which of her clients is a killer—before someone else gets burned.
Inspiration Valley, North Carolina, is bubbling with excitement for the Taste of the Town festival, and Lila is right in the middle of it all. Along with her coworkers at the Novel Idea Literary Agency, Lila is organizing a grand celebrity chef event, featuring food television's biggest stars, complete with cooking demonstrations, cookbook giveaways, and even a culinary writing contest.
But just as the celebration is about to start, the demo kitchen blows up, taking one of the star cooks with it. With all the explosive egos of the cook’s colleagues, it’s hard to find someone who didn’t have a motive to eliminate the competition. Now Lila will have to scramble to figure out which of her clients is a killer—before someone else gets burned.
278 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published February 4, 2014
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972 people want to read
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January 26, 2016
This review was originally posted on Backchatting Books
Lila Wilkins' literary agency is hosting the cooking aspect of the local Taste of the Town festival and she is hoping it will go off without a hitch. She didn't count on the inflated egos and general nastiness of all of the author chefs that have been invited to participate. When one of the chefs is unexpectedly killed, Lila gets involved.
According to the letter at the back of the book, 'Lucy Arlington' is actually Ellery Adams and Sylvia May. Given that this has been co-authored, it is quite likely that the unevenness I felt came from two authors trying to mesh their different styles. I actually wish that this series had been published under their respective names so that I knew what I was getting into rather than finding out after I had slogged my way through the book.
The not so good bits
The authors have clearly tried to create a warm and cozy vibe with lots of literary references and gosh darn it cute characters. Rather than enjoying the book, I felt smothered by the purple prose. I prefer to be shown rather than told so lines such as: "we could all meander around the farmers' market or browse the paintings and handmade pottery sold by the sidewalk vendors" (p. 233) felt over the top.
The characters were fairly stock standard with all the chefs being horrible and self centred while Lila and her friends were sweet, caring, honest etc. Many cozies suffer from this so I wasn't overly surprised. What did get me though was that the younger characters' voices felt off compared to the older ones. There is a scene where a guy in his 30s says, "You're the most beautiful person I've ever known Makayla. It's not just your green eyes, or glowing skin or supermodel body, either. It's your kindness, intelligence, your love of art and books, and the way you care about the people of this town that make you so exquisitely beautiful" (p. 248). Again, maybe young men that the authors have met talk like that but it seemed a little forced rather than natural.
Often a character will quote a book and then feel the need to explain where the quote came from e.g. "a line from Ella Newark's novel The Book of Unholy Mischief came to mind, 'Unrequited love does not die...'" (p. 243). This grated on my nerves as often a couple of words is enough to get the point across rather than the entire reference - I frequently quote favourite books and plays but I don't think I have ever had to explain the origin of them to people who have read as widely as me. As this is badged as a literary cozy, readers would be expected to have an above average knowledge of popular texts so the background to something like Tristan and Isolde shouldn't be necessary.
Lila isn't a very good detective. She and her police detective boyfriend forgot that the person who was murdered wasn't scheduled to use the oven that blew up. Common sense suggests that it would be worth while investigating who had a grudge against the person who was supposed to be cooking in that kitchen as well as the one who died. Lila doesn't actually solve the crime but rather the guilty person decides to spill all for no real reason. If you had got away with murder, why admit it? Having said that, the guilty person is very easy to identify and unfortunately the large cast of characters fail to conceal their identity. At one point Lila wonders if she was talking to a killer and then rather than dealing with them out in the open, she heads into her kitchen where there are no witnesses and lots of weapons. Seriously?? There is a sub-plot with a person who is leaving poetry for the barista Makayla as a way of expressing his love for her. Lila is tasked with finding out who they are and even when she sees a man with a poetry book, she doesn't join the dots. As a side point, I have no idea why the boyfriend encouraged Lila to go off investigating by herself as that was sort of his job. There is even a random hiking adventure that Lila plans in the hope that whoever the killer is will be so overwhelmed by the beauty of the place (or the bugs) that they confess.
Reminded me of...
Death on Demand series by Carolyn Hart - the literary references are packed in quite heavily but the ones in this book are quite random whereas those in Hart's series tend to be from mysteries.
Verdict
This book simply didn't work for me. I realise that my opinion contrasts widely with the majority of reviews on Goodreads & Amazon so I have given specific examples to explain why I felt the way I did. If the things that bugged me don't bother you, then you will probably enjoy the book.
Lila Wilkins' literary agency is hosting the cooking aspect of the local Taste of the Town festival and she is hoping it will go off without a hitch. She didn't count on the inflated egos and general nastiness of all of the author chefs that have been invited to participate. When one of the chefs is unexpectedly killed, Lila gets involved.
According to the letter at the back of the book, 'Lucy Arlington' is actually Ellery Adams and Sylvia May. Given that this has been co-authored, it is quite likely that the unevenness I felt came from two authors trying to mesh their different styles. I actually wish that this series had been published under their respective names so that I knew what I was getting into rather than finding out after I had slogged my way through the book.
The not so good bits
The authors have clearly tried to create a warm and cozy vibe with lots of literary references and gosh darn it cute characters. Rather than enjoying the book, I felt smothered by the purple prose. I prefer to be shown rather than told so lines such as: "we could all meander around the farmers' market or browse the paintings and handmade pottery sold by the sidewalk vendors" (p. 233) felt over the top.
The characters were fairly stock standard with all the chefs being horrible and self centred while Lila and her friends were sweet, caring, honest etc. Many cozies suffer from this so I wasn't overly surprised. What did get me though was that the younger characters' voices felt off compared to the older ones. There is a scene where a guy in his 30s says, "You're the most beautiful person I've ever known Makayla. It's not just your green eyes, or glowing skin or supermodel body, either. It's your kindness, intelligence, your love of art and books, and the way you care about the people of this town that make you so exquisitely beautiful" (p. 248). Again, maybe young men that the authors have met talk like that but it seemed a little forced rather than natural.
Often a character will quote a book and then feel the need to explain where the quote came from e.g. "a line from Ella Newark's novel The Book of Unholy Mischief came to mind, 'Unrequited love does not die...'" (p. 243). This grated on my nerves as often a couple of words is enough to get the point across rather than the entire reference - I frequently quote favourite books and plays but I don't think I have ever had to explain the origin of them to people who have read as widely as me. As this is badged as a literary cozy, readers would be expected to have an above average knowledge of popular texts so the background to something like Tristan and Isolde shouldn't be necessary.
Lila isn't a very good detective. She and her police detective boyfriend forgot that the person who was murdered wasn't scheduled to use the oven that blew up. Common sense suggests that it would be worth while investigating who had a grudge against the person who was supposed to be cooking in that kitchen as well as the one who died. Lila doesn't actually solve the crime but rather the guilty person decides to spill all for no real reason. If you had got away with murder, why admit it? Having said that, the guilty person is very easy to identify and unfortunately the large cast of characters fail to conceal their identity. At one point Lila wonders if she was talking to a killer and then rather than dealing with them out in the open, she heads into her kitchen where there are no witnesses and lots of weapons. Seriously?? There is a sub-plot with a person who is leaving poetry for the barista Makayla as a way of expressing his love for her. Lila is tasked with finding out who they are and even when she sees a man with a poetry book, she doesn't join the dots. As a side point, I have no idea why the boyfriend encouraged Lila to go off investigating by herself as that was sort of his job. There is even a random hiking adventure that Lila plans in the hope that whoever the killer is will be so overwhelmed by the beauty of the place (or the bugs) that they confess.
Reminded me of...
Death on Demand series by Carolyn Hart - the literary references are packed in quite heavily but the ones in this book are quite random whereas those in Hart's series tend to be from mysteries.
Verdict
This book simply didn't work for me. I realise that my opinion contrasts widely with the majority of reviews on Goodreads & Amazon so I have given specific examples to explain why I felt the way I did. If the things that bugged me don't bother you, then you will probably enjoy the book.
May 7, 2016
Books, Cooks and Crooks by Lucy Arlington is the 3rd book in A Novel Idea Mystery series. The Taste of the Town Festival is coming to Inspiration Valley, and the Novel Idea Literary agency is organizing events to promote the celebrity chefs and their cookbooks. When one of the chefs is murdered, literary agent Lila Wilkins once again becomes involved in the investigation. I enjoyed catching up with the various town characters and the agency and it was nice to see the various romances progress and develop. A nice well written and captivating cozy mystery. A perfect escape from everyday life.
January 13, 2015
Excitement is in the air at the Novel Idea Literary Agency. Lila and her co workers invited world famous TV chefs to Inspiration Valley to be a part of the Taste of the Town Festival filled with many book and food related events. The chefs are not all that they seem when their egos clash and get in the way. When an explosion in the kitchen oven suddenly kills chef Joel Lang and it soon comes to light that Joel's death was no accident, Lila along with her policeman boyfriend,Sean need to find the killer that damaged the Arts Centre and could possibly destroy the Taste of The Town Festival.
Chef Klara Patrick is a chef that has a lot to hide. She is not well liked by her employees and all of the other chefs seem to have in for her like a certain chefs had it in for Chef Joel.She puts on a show for all to see but behind her facade lies a deceitful person. Drinking a coffee from Lila's best friend, Makayla's "Expresso Yourself" Coffee Shop, she unknowingly drinks a coffee laced with arsonic and dies. With another death of a chef looming over the Novel Idea Literary Agency and The Taste of the Town Festival, Lila turns to her policeman boyfriend and some surprising characters to help her solve this murder and save The Novel Idea Literary Agency and the Taste of The Town Festival.
Perfect mystery for foodies. Food descriptions that have your mouth watering. The chefs were very dynamic and dramatic characters and kept this story alive wanting to know if any of them could have killed their fellow chefs in such brutal ways. As always the killer was someone you least expected but I had feelings of sorrow and heartbreak for. Romance is also in the air for a certain someone in Inspiration Valley and it had me literally in tears . This book was on my to be read list for awhile but so glad I finally took the time to read it, It is also a favorite series of mine so I'm working on reading them all so make it yours too.
May 21, 2018
Lila Wilkins, along with the rest of the agents at A Novel Idea literary agency, are planning the first Books and Cooks Festival and have several authors lined up to attend. But when they arrive, it's obvious that there's more brewing under the surface with them than there is in a coffee pot. They don't like each other, and the main attraction, as it were, Klara Patrick, has been making snide remarks to everyone about their cooking, which is making emotions run high.
After a particularly heated encounter, one of the chefs leaves in a huff, and then there is an explosion in the kitchen shortly after. When it is determined he's been killed, it doesn't take the police long to figure out that he was murdered. But discovering the reason why or the person responsible isn't going to be easy, and when another chef is also killed, it's obvious that whomever is doing this has some serious hatred toward the deceased. But figuring it out could be more complicated than anyone expects...
I really was hoping that the author(s) had improved this series by now, but in the first few pages Lila’s boyfriend cop almost sets the kitchen on fire because he doesn’t know not to add liquor to a pan that’s on high heat. Really? Also, he’s in his 50’s and he tells Lila that he can’t even scramble an egg. Oh, sure. A lifelong bachelor but he never learned to cook. Not. Even. An. Egg. Is he so stupid he can't figure it out? I sure hope he was joking, because how is he a cop if he’s this idiotic?
Also - and I've mentioned this before - where are the homicide detectives? Patrol officers do not investigate murders, and if there's none in town they would import one from the nearest city. I'm guessing he's a patrol cop, because not once has he been addressed as Detective Griffiths. Not. Once. Another reason he's not very good at his job: the person murdered wasn't supposed to be in the kitchen, and they never even looked for the real target; they just assumed someone wanted to kill that chef. A real detective never would have made that assumption.
What didn't make sense: (And some of it is hidden because it contains information regarding the murders - so if you don't want to know, please don't read it)
Sean is talking to all the agents and he asks Franklin a question, and Franklin responds with "There are some things that I'd rather remain confidential. Not everything about the private lives of my clients should be laid bare for all to see and judge." When Sean agrees, what does Lila do? In front of everyone, she points out that she gets the impression that Maurice and Joel were a couple at one time. Did she not just hear Franklin say that some things should remain confidential? Could she not have told Sean privately? This, my friends, is what a busybody sounds like. Butt into everyone's business and tell it for the world to know without thinking of ramifications.
Sean asks Lila to sit in while he's questioning suspects. Say what? Since when do the police allow private citizens - who have no connection to the case - to sit in on interviews?
Bentley states that Vicky is one of the agents, which she's not. She's the office manager, although she acts like she's the owner of the company. If I had an office manager like her, we'd have a bit of a talk about her attitude, as in giving one to Lila when she goes to lunch. Not to mention Vicky acts like she has a stick up her rear and is the least likable character in the book.
Speaking of book characters, every single resident of Inspiration Valley is so nice. There isn't a normal person around them; not one crabby soul, no one who is miserable once in a while; etc. They should rename the town Happy Valley. They're all so poetic and loving and sweet. I'm surprised the town's streets aren't covered in sugar while you wade through it, the people are so saccharine.
To top that off, I, for one, am getting really tired of nearly every character in the book quoting literary lines. Geez, you'd think even one of them would get tired of doing it. Not only that, they feel the need to tell us where the line derived from. I'm sure if the reader were curious enough, we could look it up ourself. Instead, we're given that information because it's assumed the reader is too stupid to figure things out in our own way, right?
At the last, why is Sean so willing to allow Lila to help investigate the crime - and now her mother, too? They aren't officers, and shouldn't be investigating. In fact, even when he says he doesn't want to talk about the case, he does anyway. Oh, right - there's no homicide detective so he has no real idea of what guidelines to follow. Never mind.
The ending felt forced - the killer just decided to tell Lila the truth out of the blue - no coercing, no questioning. Why on earth would this person think that Lila would just allow a killer to walk away? There wasn't even any suspense building up, and even though the police said they had enough evidence, we never found out what it was. There didn't seem to be any to this reader.
There is always the hope that the author will improve the series, but that hope is fast dimming as it continues. Sorry, but there seems to be very little intelligence in this town.
After a particularly heated encounter, one of the chefs leaves in a huff, and then there is an explosion in the kitchen shortly after. When it is determined he's been killed, it doesn't take the police long to figure out that he was murdered. But discovering the reason why or the person responsible isn't going to be easy, and when another chef is also killed, it's obvious that whomever is doing this has some serious hatred toward the deceased. But figuring it out could be more complicated than anyone expects...
I really was hoping that the author(s) had improved this series by now, but in the first few pages Lila’s boyfriend cop almost sets the kitchen on fire because he doesn’t know not to add liquor to a pan that’s on high heat. Really? Also, he’s in his 50’s and he tells Lila that he can’t even scramble an egg. Oh, sure. A lifelong bachelor but he never learned to cook. Not. Even. An. Egg. Is he so stupid he can't figure it out? I sure hope he was joking, because how is he a cop if he’s this idiotic?
Also - and I've mentioned this before - where are the homicide detectives? Patrol officers do not investigate murders, and if there's none in town they would import one from the nearest city. I'm guessing he's a patrol cop, because not once has he been addressed as Detective Griffiths. Not. Once. Another reason he's not very good at his job: the person murdered wasn't supposed to be in the kitchen, and they never even looked for the real target; they just assumed someone wanted to kill that chef. A real detective never would have made that assumption.
What didn't make sense: (And some of it is hidden because it contains information regarding the murders - so if you don't want to know, please don't read it)
Sean is talking to all the agents and he asks Franklin a question, and Franklin responds with "There are some things that I'd rather remain confidential. Not everything about the private lives of my clients should be laid bare for all to see and judge." When Sean agrees, what does Lila do? In front of everyone, she points out that she gets the impression that Maurice and Joel were a couple at one time. Did she not just hear Franklin say that some things should remain confidential? Could she not have told Sean privately? This, my friends, is what a busybody sounds like. Butt into everyone's business and tell it for the world to know without thinking of ramifications.
Sean asks Lila to sit in while he's questioning suspects. Say what? Since when do the police allow private citizens - who have no connection to the case - to sit in on interviews?
Bentley states that Vicky is one of the agents, which she's not. She's the office manager, although she acts like she's the owner of the company. If I had an office manager like her, we'd have a bit of a talk about her attitude, as in giving one to Lila when she goes to lunch. Not to mention Vicky acts like she has a stick up her rear and is the least likable character in the book.
Speaking of book characters, every single resident of Inspiration Valley is so nice. There isn't a normal person around them; not one crabby soul, no one who is miserable once in a while; etc. They should rename the town Happy Valley. They're all so poetic and loving and sweet. I'm surprised the town's streets aren't covered in sugar while you wade through it, the people are so saccharine.
To top that off, I, for one, am getting really tired of nearly every character in the book quoting literary lines. Geez, you'd think even one of them would get tired of doing it. Not only that, they feel the need to tell us where the line derived from. I'm sure if the reader were curious enough, we could look it up ourself. Instead, we're given that information because it's assumed the reader is too stupid to figure things out in our own way, right?
At the last, why is Sean so willing to allow Lila to help investigate the crime - and now her mother, too? They aren't officers, and shouldn't be investigating. In fact, even when he says he doesn't want to talk about the case, he does anyway. Oh, right - there's no homicide detective so he has no real idea of what guidelines to follow. Never mind.
The ending felt forced - the killer just decided to tell Lila the truth out of the blue - no coercing, no questioning. Why on earth would this person think that Lila would just allow a killer to walk away? There wasn't even any suspense building up, and even though the police said they had enough evidence, we never found out what it was. There didn't seem to be any to this reader.
There is always the hope that the author will improve the series, but that hope is fast dimming as it continues. Sorry, but there seems to be very little intelligence in this town.
May 8, 2015
Books, Cooks, And Crooks is the 3rd book in the A Novel Idea Mystery series.
Exciting time are on the horizon for the Novel Idea Literary Agency and Inspiration Valley as everyone is getting ready for the cookbook fair. Some of the top chefs from around the country. At the welcoming dinner for the participating chefs their huge ego's begin to shine and nerves get on edge. After the dinner, Joel Lang, Japanese fusion chef, heads for kitchen where the next days competition will be held. As he turns on the stove, there is an explosion in the kitchen that kills Lang. Lila has the utmost confidence in her boyfriend, Sean Griffths', investigating skills, but this hits to close for her not to get involved in the investigation. Then, when Chef Klara is poisoned, Lila knows she has to dig in with her sleuthing.
The staff at the Novel Idea Literary Agency, played a lesser role in this book than in previous ones, but the reader has a chance to get to know Makayla, owner of Expresso Yourself, Lila's first stop in the morning. Makayla's tip jar has recently been getting been getting romantic type poetry wrapped in a two dollar bill recently, but has never been able to see who has been leaving them. And in one of the more touching scenes in the book, Makayla meets her secret admirer. The reader is also introduced to Jay Coleman, the new owner of the Constant Reader bookstore. And Jay just might be the one to write the sequel to Marlette's exciting novel that made it possible for Inspiration Valley to have the Arts Center where the cooking competition is taking place. Trey, Lila's son is home from college and provides his mother were more reasons to be so proud of her son.
So looking forward to the next story from Inspiration Valley.
Exciting time are on the horizon for the Novel Idea Literary Agency and Inspiration Valley as everyone is getting ready for the cookbook fair. Some of the top chefs from around the country. At the welcoming dinner for the participating chefs their huge ego's begin to shine and nerves get on edge. After the dinner, Joel Lang, Japanese fusion chef, heads for kitchen where the next days competition will be held. As he turns on the stove, there is an explosion in the kitchen that kills Lang. Lila has the utmost confidence in her boyfriend, Sean Griffths', investigating skills, but this hits to close for her not to get involved in the investigation. Then, when Chef Klara is poisoned, Lila knows she has to dig in with her sleuthing.
The staff at the Novel Idea Literary Agency, played a lesser role in this book than in previous ones, but the reader has a chance to get to know Makayla, owner of Expresso Yourself, Lila's first stop in the morning. Makayla's tip jar has recently been getting been getting romantic type poetry wrapped in a two dollar bill recently, but has never been able to see who has been leaving them. And in one of the more touching scenes in the book, Makayla meets her secret admirer. The reader is also introduced to Jay Coleman, the new owner of the Constant Reader bookstore. And Jay just might be the one to write the sequel to Marlette's exciting novel that made it possible for Inspiration Valley to have the Arts Center where the cooking competition is taking place. Trey, Lila's son is home from college and provides his mother were more reasons to be so proud of her son.
So looking forward to the next story from Inspiration Valley.
February 14, 2014
Book three in the Novel Idea Series, finds literary agent, Lila, planning a cookbook festival in her town of Inspiration Valley, North Carolina. She and her other co-workers have their hands busy negotiating all the flamboyant famous chef's personalities. Friendly and sweet on the TV screen and restaurant floor, doesn't seem to be translating into even 'civil' at this festival. When one of the chef's gets blow up in a kitchen explosion, the trick becomes finding the murderer while keeping everything going as smoothly as possible. It helps that Lila's new love is a policeman for the town.
There are so many things that make this series fun and involved in literary clips. Shops and sandwiches are named after books and characters. Even the best ever romantic build up to a new dating couple is filled with poetry and music titles. Great timing, as I finished this book on. Valentine's Day. Then for a fun cozy, the themes of true and caring love are mixed in with evil obsessive love in great contrasting ways. Love of family traditions, parents, children and partners are cleverly woven around the motives that caused someone to bump off a couple of the Toast Of The Town's star chefs. Thoroughly enjoying this series!
There are so many things that make this series fun and involved in literary clips. Shops and sandwiches are named after books and characters. Even the best ever romantic build up to a new dating couple is filled with poetry and music titles. Great timing, as I finished this book on. Valentine's Day. Then for a fun cozy, the themes of true and caring love are mixed in with evil obsessive love in great contrasting ways. Love of family traditions, parents, children and partners are cleverly woven around the motives that caused someone to bump off a couple of the Toast Of The Town's star chefs. Thoroughly enjoying this series!
February 11, 2014
This is the third book in the Novel Idea Mystery series.
Lila Watkins and her coworkers have their hands full running the Taste of the Town Festival, with Celebrity Chefs in town to cook and sign books.
When one of the chefs ends up dead in an explosion jealously starts to show and tension arises.
A great mystery with food, murder and we get to see the relationship between Lila and Sean grow.
I am looking forward to Lila's next adventure!
Lila Watkins and her coworkers have their hands full running the Taste of the Town Festival, with Celebrity Chefs in town to cook and sign books.
When one of the chefs ends up dead in an explosion jealously starts to show and tension arises.
A great mystery with food, murder and we get to see the relationship between Lila and Sean grow.
I am looking forward to Lila's next adventure!
August 15, 2018
The new centre in Inspiration Valley is opening for business and the first thing on the agenda is the Taste of the Town Festival, Franklin (one of Lila's co-workers) has arranged for various celebrity chefs to be in attendance (Franklin mainly deals with cookbook deals) and they will be doing a cooking demonstration, as well as this there will be question and answer panels, with the chefs, food critics and food writers (including some from Lila's "stable" of Cozy Mystery writers, the start of the extravaganza is to be a meal with the chefs (and others), but before that there is a tour of the new facilities, as the Agents are showing the Chefs around they realise that herding cats would be easier that dealing with so many inflated egos in one place, it doesn't get much better over the dinner and one of the chefs storms out. The next thing is an explosion from the new catering wing (luckily at a distance from the dinner!) and everyone is rushed out. Then the firemen discover a body in the wreckage and that is just the start of a roller coaster of a time, with another death and people being arrested and then released.
With Trey home from college a week early and helping Makayla at the coffee shop (oh and she appears to have a secret admirer!), things hotting up with Sean and then vandalism it is another packed adventure for Lila.
Food and books, two of my all time favourites to read about and having Lucy Arlington putting them together like this is a winner, the pacing of the book hurtles along for a while and then allows you to catch your breath before the next installment, I love the fact that the other members of the town are gradually brought to the fore and we see their lives developing as much as Lila's does. Another 5 star outing!
With Trey home from college a week early and helping Makayla at the coffee shop (oh and she appears to have a secret admirer!), things hotting up with Sean and then vandalism it is another packed adventure for Lila.
Food and books, two of my all time favourites to read about and having Lucy Arlington putting them together like this is a winner, the pacing of the book hurtles along for a while and then allows you to catch your breath before the next installment, I love the fact that the other members of the town are gradually brought to the fore and we see their lives developing as much as Lila's does. Another 5 star outing!
October 4, 2021
This was much better than the last one. She didn't stick herself in as much as the last one. I figured out a bit of the mystery, but there was a part that I didn't see coming. The writing was great, and I love seeing the relationship between Lila and Sean growing. It's also nice to see her son Trey get a bit more mature as well.
May 26, 2020
This is the third installment in the Novel Idea series and better than Book 2. More characters with motive and little more action.
A nice consistency with the A and B characters that remained true. Our heroine, Lila, doesn't overly insert herself into the investigation this go around. She leaves it to her police officer boyfriend who plays better in this installment. Their relationship isn't overly cheesy.
This is still holding to a soft Hallmark Mystery movie style.
A nice consistency with the A and B characters that remained true. Our heroine, Lila, doesn't overly insert herself into the investigation this go around. She leaves it to her police officer boyfriend who plays better in this installment. Their relationship isn't overly cheesy.
This is still holding to a soft Hallmark Mystery movie style.
March 1, 2015
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Andra
http://openbooksociety.com/article/bo...
Review by OBS reviewer Jeanie
http://openbooksociety.com/article/bo...
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Andra
Some Spoilers. Read at your own risk.
This third book of the Novel Idea Mystery series is a very pleasant and endearing cozy mystery. The book was an easy read. I would have liked to start this series at book 1, but this 3rd book covered off introduction of characters well enough that I did not find it too great of a hindrance. I can honestly say one of the things I quite enjoyed about this story is the loving relationship Lila has with her boyfriend, Sean (one of the main policemen investigating the murder). Their relationship seems real and down to earth, sometimes a rarity in my view with the cozy mysteries. I enjoyed reading about this mature amateur sleuth who had full disclosure with the police.
I loved the opening scene where Lila comes home to find her kitchen on fire. Sean was preparing a romantic dinner for two when flames erupted….. An excerpt describing the scene brought to me the clumsily romantic side of Sean…
”I glanced from the lit candles, folded linen napkins, and the vase stuffed with bright pink roses to the handsome man wearing my apron. It was embroidered with the text All Great Chefs Drink While They Cook. Apparently, he had taken the motto to heart. Not only was there an open bottle of red wine on the table, but a cognac bottle had capsized on the counter….”
The subplot with Lila’s best friend, Makayla’s, and her secret admirer, was cute. The resolution of this particular mystery was very romantic. Who doesn’t like a secret admirer? Makes one believe romance is alive and well, even when a murderer is loose.
Lila was portrayed as a loving mother, daughter and girlfriend who enjoyed her job. For her, life was good, except being caught in the middle of yet another police investigation. Will Lila be able to keep the festival running in the midst of this mayhem? At times….I figured it would go either way.
Predictably, all the visiting chefs were suspects. If anything, the story was a tad tedious working through the BIG list of potential suspects. But in the end (and no, I won’t put in so much as to spoil that!), justice prevails and peace and harmony is restored to Inspiration Valley.
As enjoyable as it was, I may now have another series to follow, though I shall reserve that judgement until I have read book one and two first.
*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.*
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Review by OBS reviewer Jeanie
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Brought to you by OBS reviewer Andra
Some Spoilers. Read at your own risk.
This third book of the Novel Idea Mystery series is a very pleasant and endearing cozy mystery. The book was an easy read. I would have liked to start this series at book 1, but this 3rd book covered off introduction of characters well enough that I did not find it too great of a hindrance. I can honestly say one of the things I quite enjoyed about this story is the loving relationship Lila has with her boyfriend, Sean (one of the main policemen investigating the murder). Their relationship seems real and down to earth, sometimes a rarity in my view with the cozy mysteries. I enjoyed reading about this mature amateur sleuth who had full disclosure with the police.
I loved the opening scene where Lila comes home to find her kitchen on fire. Sean was preparing a romantic dinner for two when flames erupted….. An excerpt describing the scene brought to me the clumsily romantic side of Sean…
”I glanced from the lit candles, folded linen napkins, and the vase stuffed with bright pink roses to the handsome man wearing my apron. It was embroidered with the text All Great Chefs Drink While They Cook. Apparently, he had taken the motto to heart. Not only was there an open bottle of red wine on the table, but a cognac bottle had capsized on the counter….”
The subplot with Lila’s best friend, Makayla’s, and her secret admirer, was cute. The resolution of this particular mystery was very romantic. Who doesn’t like a secret admirer? Makes one believe romance is alive and well, even when a murderer is loose.
Lila was portrayed as a loving mother, daughter and girlfriend who enjoyed her job. For her, life was good, except being caught in the middle of yet another police investigation. Will Lila be able to keep the festival running in the midst of this mayhem? At times….I figured it would go either way.
Predictably, all the visiting chefs were suspects. If anything, the story was a tad tedious working through the BIG list of potential suspects. But in the end (and no, I won’t put in so much as to spoil that!), justice prevails and peace and harmony is restored to Inspiration Valley.
As enjoyable as it was, I may now have another series to follow, though I shall reserve that judgement until I have read book one and two first.
*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.*
January 16, 2016
The Taste of Town Festival has Inspiration Valley, North Carolina overflowing with people. The Novel Idea Literary Agency has its own event featuring Celebrity Chefs and their books. There are cooking demonstrations, cookbook giveaways, and even a culinary writing contest.
What happens what you get a group of Celebrity Chefs together? You find out they really don’t like each other very much but is one of them a murderer? We find out as an explosion rocks the demo kitchen and kills one of the chefs. Lila quickly finds herself in the middle of the investigation that has way too many suspects. Is one of her clients really a killer?
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Let’s face it, I want to be Lila, even with exploding kitchens and dead bodies! :)
This writing team continues to amaze me. Their characters jump off the pages. Even the new ones, these chefs, their families and their assistants are so credible and real. Some real crazy but still real.
There is a bit of romance for Lila’s friend Makayla, she has a secret admirer. Sean and Lila romance is heating up too in more ways than one. Lila’s son Trey comes home from college after hearing of all the trouble in Inspiration Valley. What a wonderful young man. I also appreciate the relationship Lila has with her mother.
Of course the mystery itself is complex and I completely devoured it. With the foodie theme came terrific description of several tasty treats too. This story keeps the reader fully engaged from the first word until the last. I was following the clues right along with Lila and we both had that “aha moment” together.
Inspiration Valley is a town everyone would love to visit, from Walden Woods Circle to the Expresso Yourself Coffee Shop to the Magnolia B & B and everywhere in between. Lucy Arlington has created the perfect setting for this cozy series. I look forward to returning soon.
*There is also a peek at Ellery Adams new cozy series. The first chapter of Murder in the Mystery Suite (A Book Retreat Mystery) has me very intrigued.
What happens what you get a group of Celebrity Chefs together? You find out they really don’t like each other very much but is one of them a murderer? We find out as an explosion rocks the demo kitchen and kills one of the chefs. Lila quickly finds herself in the middle of the investigation that has way too many suspects. Is one of her clients really a killer?
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Let’s face it, I want to be Lila, even with exploding kitchens and dead bodies! :)
This writing team continues to amaze me. Their characters jump off the pages. Even the new ones, these chefs, their families and their assistants are so credible and real. Some real crazy but still real.
There is a bit of romance for Lila’s friend Makayla, she has a secret admirer. Sean and Lila romance is heating up too in more ways than one. Lila’s son Trey comes home from college after hearing of all the trouble in Inspiration Valley. What a wonderful young man. I also appreciate the relationship Lila has with her mother.
Of course the mystery itself is complex and I completely devoured it. With the foodie theme came terrific description of several tasty treats too. This story keeps the reader fully engaged from the first word until the last. I was following the clues right along with Lila and we both had that “aha moment” together.
Inspiration Valley is a town everyone would love to visit, from Walden Woods Circle to the Expresso Yourself Coffee Shop to the Magnolia B & B and everywhere in between. Lucy Arlington has created the perfect setting for this cozy series. I look forward to returning soon.
*There is also a peek at Ellery Adams new cozy series. The first chapter of Murder in the Mystery Suite (A Book Retreat Mystery) has me very intrigued.
November 13, 2016
I really disliked the start of this book, the protagonist's boyfriend set her kitchen on fire trying to cook dinner (his second time ever cooking he tried to do chicken flambe...), and it was played as comedic and romantic. If the writers wanted to write terrible rom-coms inspired by 80s sitcoms they should have done THAT instead of a mystery.
After that the book trended towards mediocre; it was full of cliches, over-the-top romance and one-dimensional characters, and the direction of the plot was obvious. Two murders happened, but it never occurred to the protagonist OR her (chief of police) boyfriend that the first might have been aimed at a different victim. I wasn't impressed, but nothing really made me hate the book - until the end... The murders are finally "solved" by the murderer just blurting out that she was the murderer. The protagonist didn't figure out anything, trick her into a confession, out-wit her - NOTHING. The murderer just tells her, then decides to kill the "hero" to keep her quiet. There is a dull action scene that has no feeling of authentic suspense, and the protagonist's son shows up just in time and subdues the murderer - though THAT happens unseen and undescribed.
It is all unbearably lazy, and ultimately means that everything ELSE in the book was pointless. The main character could have been a duck for all she actually did to solve the case, as long as somebody heard the killer's confession the story would have ended the same. To top it off, we later find that the killer gave a full confession, AND "plenty of evidence." What evidence?? The readers are not actually told what this evidence is. It's like the writers decided, in the last two chapters, that writing mysteries was hard, so they'd just wrap it up with as little work as possible. I don't know what genre you'd call this, 'romantic-crime'? 'Romantic semi-suspense'? When the central mystery is resolved by the killer's blurting out the truth you certainly can't call it a 'mystery'!
After that the book trended towards mediocre; it was full of cliches, over-the-top romance and one-dimensional characters, and the direction of the plot was obvious. Two murders happened, but it never occurred to the protagonist OR her (chief of police) boyfriend that the first might have been aimed at a different victim. I wasn't impressed, but nothing really made me hate the book - until the end... The murders are finally "solved" by the murderer just blurting out that she was the murderer. The protagonist didn't figure out anything, trick her into a confession, out-wit her - NOTHING. The murderer just tells her, then decides to kill the "hero" to keep her quiet. There is a dull action scene that has no feeling of authentic suspense, and the protagonist's son shows up just in time and subdues the murderer - though THAT happens unseen and undescribed.
It is all unbearably lazy, and ultimately means that everything ELSE in the book was pointless. The main character could have been a duck for all she actually did to solve the case, as long as somebody heard the killer's confession the story would have ended the same. To top it off, we later find that the killer gave a full confession, AND "plenty of evidence." What evidence?? The readers are not actually told what this evidence is. It's like the writers decided, in the last two chapters, that writing mysteries was hard, so they'd just wrap it up with as little work as possible. I don't know what genre you'd call this, 'romantic-crime'? 'Romantic semi-suspense'? When the central mystery is resolved by the killer's blurting out the truth you certainly can't call it a 'mystery'!
February 7, 2014
Lila Wilkins is excited about the upcoming Taste of Town festival being hosted at Inspiration Valley. As part of the activities, she and her coworkers at Novel Idea Literary Agency have invited several of their clients, celebrity chefs and authors, to join in for coking demonstrations, live panels, and cookbook releases. As the festival gets underway, Lila discovers that hosting these temperamental celebs may be more of a trial than expected. And when one of the guests is killed in what initially was thought to be an accident but is quickly shown to be murder, Lila is once again thrown into the middle of a police investigation. Can she keep everything together while boyfriend police officer Sean searches for the murderer or will this ruin her agency's reputation. This is the third book in the Novel Idea Mystery series and as always is a fun and entertaining read. As a fan of not only cozy mysteries, but also the current rage of cooking shows, I especially enjoyed the characters in this book. I kept trying to put real faces to the individuals mentioned. I am looking forward to Lila''s next adventure. Disclosure: I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
February 13, 2014
Books Cooks and Crooks is the latest installment of Lucy Arlington's series. This time the there is a cooking festival set to happen. Some very famous cookbook authors have met to sign books and do cooking demonstrations. However, as it happens, nothing goes smoothly for Lila. None of the chefs are what they seem and when two of them are murdered, well, you just have to wonder which of the remaining chefs had had enough. Or was it someone else? To add to the excitement, Makayla the barista at Expresso Yourself has a secret admirer. Could he have been the murderer? Or was it the want to be author stalking Lila? There were so many twists and turns in this plot that I was left scratching my head until the very end as to who the actual killer was. To top it all off, there is an excerpt from Ellery Adams' new series The Book Lovers' Resort Mysteries in the back All I can say is I want to be one of the first to read it!!!! I also want to live in Storyton Hall.
March 26, 2017
Lila and the other agents at Novel Idea Literary Agency are knee deep in planning the Taste of the Town festival, which has brought celebrity chefs from all over to compete in cooking competitions. The town has gone all out, even springing for a totally new kitchen with an expensive gas stove at the request of one of the chefs. After a tense dinner one of the chefs runs off to work on his recipe for the competition the next day and ends up dead after the stove blows up. There is no shortage of suspects as all the chefs seem to be willing to do whatever it takes to climb up the culinary ladder. Lila and boyfriend Sean try to piece together clues to find the killer before they take out anyone else.
May 10, 2017
While the main characters are mostly likable, the plot was thin and transparent. The fact that the cops never suspected that the original murder victim wasn't the intended target is pitiful. That the so called citizen detective didn't either is lazy. Particularly when she'd just told the group which chef would be prepping first thing. Also I figured out the killer before the second murder. And the secret admirer? Obvious. I am undecided on if I'll read the next book, despite having it checked out from the library already.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 8, 2015
It's always fun visiting the little literary town of Inspiration Valley. I will say that while fun and enjoyable, this book contained a TON of characters. Apart from everyone working at the lit agency with Lila, there's her family and town friends, plus a whole bunch of visiting chefs and assistants, etc. it took away a bit from the easy flow of the book. Still, I'm looking forward to reading the next in the series, which is written by a new author under the same name.
January 31, 2016
This is the last book in the series that I have and I don't think I'll pursue any more of the titles...I think there may be a couple more following this title. Although this started out better than the previous books in the series, I don't find it holding my interest any better. I think the core of the mysteries are fine but they seem to me to be too long in detail...I find myself wishing I could read ahead, just to get done.
August 7, 2019
I wanted a book I could pick up and put down during this busy summer or just read while waiting. This was it. I figured out the murderer early on (though I often second guessed myself). I figured out the secret admirer immediately. So, although I finished it, it really was less than a great or even good mystery. Probably won’t pick up the rest of the series. The writing was simply OK, it didn’t draw me in or keep me riveted to the story. Lots of descriptions. Not my favorite.
April 7, 2014
A definite improvement over the last book, but still not as good as it could be. Or maybe it's just not to my taste.
Full review: http://jenn.booklikes.com/post/844956...
Full review: http://jenn.booklikes.com/post/844956...
April 24, 2014
This one had so many feels to it! I cried here and there and fell in love with several of the characters. Wish it came with recipes for some of the meals that Lila made in the book LOL!
November 21, 2015
Lucy Arlington has writing a book that brings all the emotions of being a Celebrate to light in amazing mystery book. I can't wait for number 4 to come out.
August 27, 2019
Book 3 in the Novel Idea series is charming. Our sleuth, Lila is up to her elbows in herding the
professional cooks through the promotional event sponsored by a Novel idea. The book opens with
Sean, now Lila's confirmed love interest, starting a grease fire in Lila's kitchen. Arlington uses this foreshadowing of the disaster the weekend becomes.
The chefs who bear some plausible similarities to well known television chefs, may be charismatic on television. Off the set however there is enough rivalry to make any chef's stew bitter. When a stove explodes, killing one of the chef's, Lila is determined to not be involved. Regardless, she is pulled into the mystery. Will she be able to solve the crime before another character eats a dirt sandwich?
I have enjoyed the previous two books in this series. The co-authors have provided some interesting background concerning a literary agency. However, this outing's characters do not seem as well fleshed out as in the earlier works. Hence 3 stars. Apparently the publisher agreed.
The series continued with a new author. I look forward to see their treatment of the setting and characters.
professional cooks through the promotional event sponsored by a Novel idea. The book opens with
Sean, now Lila's confirmed love interest, starting a grease fire in Lila's kitchen. Arlington uses this foreshadowing of the disaster the weekend becomes.
The chefs who bear some plausible similarities to well known television chefs, may be charismatic on television. Off the set however there is enough rivalry to make any chef's stew bitter. When a stove explodes, killing one of the chef's, Lila is determined to not be involved. Regardless, she is pulled into the mystery. Will she be able to solve the crime before another character eats a dirt sandwich?
I have enjoyed the previous two books in this series. The co-authors have provided some interesting background concerning a literary agency. However, this outing's characters do not seem as well fleshed out as in the earlier works. Hence 3 stars. Apparently the publisher agreed.
The series continued with a new author. I look forward to see their treatment of the setting and characters.
June 12, 2017
I love cozy mysteries! Even more, I love books that nod at other books. Books, Cooks, and Crooks namedrops famous novels and authors, and features setting locations such as Catcher in the Rye (the local sandwich shop), Voltaire's (an upscale restaurant), a nicely named Espresso Yourself (the local coffee shop), and more.
The book had me smiling at obvious foreshadowing:
"It's a good thing our Bertram's Hotel isn't like the one in the Agatha Christie story... If it was, we'd be sending those people straight into a group of criminals."
"Let's hope that these capricious cooks behave themselves. After all we've filled the Arts Center kitchen with an array of very sharp knives."
The book had me smiling at obvious foreshadowing:
"It's a good thing our Bertram's Hotel isn't like the one in the Agatha Christie story... If it was, we'd be sending those people straight into a group of criminals."
"Let's hope that these capricious cooks behave themselves. After all we've filled the Arts Center kitchen with an array of very sharp knives."
May 15, 2018
I read several books in this series a few years ago, and then moved on to other series. Searching my past favorites when I was looking for a familiar sure-thing read, I came back to this series and was not disappointed. This was one of the better editions to the series, and I wasn't surprised by the ending but I didn't guess it. I did like that the author has added some secondary story lines to keep the cozy mystery from focusing solely on the crimes committed, which often results in a lot of repetitive hand-wringing and circular reasoning by the protagonist but very little movement in the plot. This was an improvement over the johnny-one-note approach.
July 3, 2023
This book is mostly just really *fun*. Is is a bit cheesy at times? Definitely. Is the entire concept of Inpsiration Valley wild? Also, definitely. But in the end, Lila is a character that is fairly likeable, and this book actually achieves what very few mystery or who-dun-it books do for me-- the actual bad guy remained a mystery to me until the reveal, and this mystery was crafted in a way that feels so clear in hindsight but doesn't take any cheap shots to get there.
*some important context for this review: I recieved this book as a part of a mystery/blind book box. I have not read other entries in this series.
*some important context for this review: I recieved this book as a part of a mystery/blind book box. I have not read other entries in this series.
May 14, 2018
***This review contains spoilers***
This was a quick, enjoyable read. I liked all of the literary references. However, I guessed all of the twists very early on, including who the killer was. It also bugged me that when the first the first murder happened, the police began looking into who would want to kill Joel. It never occurred to them that Klara was supposed to be the first person to use that stove? I did like Althea though, and would read more in the series to see what she is up to.
This was a quick, enjoyable read. I liked all of the literary references. However, I guessed all of the twists very early on, including who the killer was. It also bugged me that when the first the first murder happened, the police began looking into who would want to kill Joel. It never occurred to them that Klara was supposed to be the first person to use that stove? I did like Althea though, and would read more in the series to see what she is up to.
August 24, 2019
Books, Cooks, and Crooks - Book #3 in Novel Idea Mystery Series by Lucy Arlington
I dearly love this book...it is so good. I love this Series as well. This is the only Series that Lucy ever wrote - A Novel Idea Mystery Series. There are two more books in this Series which I will be reading and than this Cozy Mystery Series will be finished. I am taking my time in reading this Series. It is my own copy of the E Books on my Kindle Fire Tablet.
I give this Book 5/5 Stars.
Happy Reading :)
I dearly love this book...it is so good. I love this Series as well. This is the only Series that Lucy ever wrote - A Novel Idea Mystery Series. There are two more books in this Series which I will be reading and than this Cozy Mystery Series will be finished. I am taking my time in reading this Series. It is my own copy of the E Books on my Kindle Fire Tablet.
I give this Book 5/5 Stars.
Happy Reading :)
November 4, 2023
Since I haven’t seen it mentioned elsewhere…
We are supposed to forget that, as told in the first book of the series, Marlette Robbins wrote a synopsis/outline in his journal for his second book (why would the ghost writer have to propose an entirely new one?) AND that Trey hates mushrooms (why would she cook a mushroom lasagna for him?)?
Even if the readers forget the fine details, the authors shouldn’t. It is irritating when there is a lack of consistency and authors are phoning it in.
And it is: Hear, Hear…
Get a better editor!
We are supposed to forget that, as told in the first book of the series, Marlette Robbins wrote a synopsis/outline in his journal for his second book (why would the ghost writer have to propose an entirely new one?) AND that Trey hates mushrooms (why would she cook a mushroom lasagna for him?)?
Even if the readers forget the fine details, the authors shouldn’t. It is irritating when there is a lack of consistency and authors are phoning it in.
And it is: Hear, Hear…
Get a better editor!
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