A Catered Valentine's Day

A Mystery with Recipes #4

by Isis Crawford

Bernie and Libby, owners of A Taste of Heaven, are partnering up with the Just Chocolate store for a Valentine's Day mega-event. When a client's mother dies, Bernie and Libby put their plans on hold to attend the funeral, only to become involved in a grisly mystery.

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Fiction, Holiday, Cozy, Cooking, Food

275 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Isis Crawford was born in Egypt to parents who were in the diplomatic corps. When she was five, her family returned to the States, where her mother opened a restaurant in Upper Westchester County and her father became a university professor. Since then Isis has combined her parents’ love of food and travel by running a catering service as well as penning numerous travel-related articles about places ranging from Omsk to Paraguay. Married, with twin boys, she presently resides in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, where she is working on the next Bernie and Libby culinary mystery.

A pseudonym used by Barbara Block

Reviews

[Ed · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a spiffy, fun cozy mystery. It offers a couple of new wrinkles to setting up the amateur sleuth protagonists. There are lots of mentions of chocolates if you're also a fan. The two sisters, although younger, remind me of Anne George's sister sleuths. The wintertime New York setting works fine. It's a great Valentine's Day read if you're in the right mood for one.

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the busy days leading up to Valentine's Day, caterers Bernie and Libby Simmons plus their ex-cop father investigate the murder of a prominent chocolate shop owner.

The mystery plot is unique and Crawford executes the story with much humor, flawed characters, clever twists and plenty of suspects. And there are recipes.

This is a fun, entertaining culinary cozy mystery.

[Leah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was more enjoyable than the previous books in the series. I liked that Valentine's Day was a minor part of the story. I also liked all of the chocolate in the story. The other foods and recipes, too. There was a bit of humor in this story. The mystery was different, and I liked the ending; who did it was a surprise. Also, I'm glad Rob is out and Brandon is in. Brandon is more likeable.

[Bridget · Rating 2 out of 5]

A fun Valentine's Day read, with a story that was interesting enough to make me want to finish the book. Bernie and Libby Simmons, owners of their late mother's bakery, A Little Taste of Heaven, are busy enough preparing for an upcoming Valentine's Day event, when Libby's boyfriend's father, an undertaker, asks for their help figuring out how the wrong body ended up in someone else's grave.

Things move along pretty quickly, and there are few amusing twists along the way.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw this culinary mystery series advertised as one that readers of Joanne Fluke and Diane Mott Davidson would also enjoy. Since I've enjoyed reading both those other authors' works, I decided to try this series. I did enjoy it, perhaps even more so than Joanne Fluke's. Maybe not so with the beginning of Joanne Fluke's series, but later on. It's been longer ago since I've read Diane Mott Davidson's works, so it would be harder for me to compare them.

I chose this particular book in the series, "A Catered Valentine's Day," for the current holiday, even though it's further along in the series. So, I have only myself to blame that it took me awhile to keep the sisters' characters separated in my mind. I am glad, though, that author Isis Crawford gave them sufficiently different characters, and that they weren't carbon copies of each other.

I also enjoyed the references to Valentine's Day. It was not overt in the book, and it was not a mushy, romantic book. In fact, some of the characters break up. There were warning signals in that relationship before the breakup.

"A Catered Valentine's Day" made me want to go visit a small chocolate store here in town. But some of Bernie's ramblings on chocolate were not accurate. For someone who occasionally sounds like an encyclopedia, she had this one fact wrong. Mars did not come up with the milk chocolate solution to make chocolate cheaper for the average customer. I was sure that Hershey's did that, so I looked it up, and we were both wrong. It was Nestle.

I did not guess whodunit or the plot twists involved. The author did break one of Van Dine's rules for fair play for mystery writers, as far as making it possible for readers to solve, but the broken rule didn't directly have to do with the murderer. Still, it did make it more difficult.

It seemed odd to me that Marvin's dad didn't request a police investigation, but wanted these mostly-amateur detectives to solve the case, especially since such serious crimes had been committed: the wrong body in a grave, a deceased John Doe, a missing body. I realize that Martin's dad didn't want bad publicity for his funeral home, but that's withholding so much information from the police on serious crimes that I just can't imagine him risking jail over it - if his primary goal was to keep his funeral home out of trouble in the public eye. Anything regarding dead bodies should be reported to the police.

Although I did enjoy the character Sean, it also seemed odd to me that as the retired police chief with a serious illness, he would either pull his two daughter into this amateur detecting, or else encourage them and guide them in it. I realize I'm missing the back story on that, but I'm thinking that his fatherly instincts would be more protective than that, particularly as they'd had no training. And yes, he, of all people, should've realized that they really, really should've gone to the police. Later on, when one of his daughters rode around with a murder suspect in the car, they really, really should've gone to the police as well. His daughters were far too trusting of various characters. One of them, in particular, wanted to take one of the daughters to an abandoned house at night, not using headlights so that no one would notice them going there. And that didn't send off any warning signals in that daughter's mind?

I thought it was funny that I've just read two books recently, both of which have characters reading Gibbon's "Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire." Some of Charles Dickens characters in "Our Mutual Friend" read it, and I'd thought it was an imaginary work that Dickens had created for his characters to consider, but here I found it referenced again, as being read in a completely different genre.

The Libby character reminded me more of Laura Levine's Jaine Austen character than any of Joanne Fluke's and Diane Mott Davidson's in that Ms. Levine's Jaine character doesn't often describe what she's eating, she usually just crams it in her mouth - and gluttony is not pretty for anyone to watch, even for those of us who are probably gluttons. Libby kept chocolates and cookies and whatnot in her purse and backpack, and ate them throughout the day as she'd get stressed. But for some reason, this didn't irritate me as much as when Levine's Jaine did it. I think that was because the rest of the character development and plot went better, and yes, because it was offset by better descriptions of food than just of Libby shoving it in her mouth.

A couple other reviewers commented that they were disappointed that the recipes were not prominent ones from the story. I agree. I'd rather have had the perfect butterscotch cookie recipe or the orange muffin recipe.

Favorite quotes:

"I'm sure they had a good reason in their own mind. Over the years, he'd learned that people could and did rationalize anything they wanted to do into something that they needed to do. The girlfriend or the wife always had it coming. The convenience store owner was just asking to be robbed." Not good motives, I'm sure, but a good reminder that some people do think that way, and that we all can be guilty of rationalizing, hopefully most of us to a lesser extent.

"Style is a capitalistic notion." An interesting concept. I suppose that ever-new styles do encourage capitalism, greed, the buying and selling of things people don't really need but have a felt need for. I'd never really thought about style that way, but I'm afraid I'm usually more interested in comfort than style. Or just whatever I think is pretty, myself. Of course, comfort and beauty can also spur on capitalism with the desire to buy comfortable or beautiful things. Well, unless the comfortable things are the things one already owns.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun story with some nice twists at the end.

[quinnster · Rating 2 out of 5]

Everyone spends so much of this book arguing it's a wonder they get anything done.

[Angustia⋆Cósmica · Rating 5 out of 5]

What to do when the revengeful ghost of a late person shows up? You call your local caterers to lend you a hand, of course.
Dip your fingers in chocolate and a new murder mystery featuring everything we love: Faulty ovens, parrot ladies, a possible exorcism, all the good stuff.

Delightfully plot twisty, we find out some upsetting things (Or maybe I'm just too trusting. Perhaps I should make a vote of celibacy myself.) and for once in the series the climax of the book is different than before!

Already looking forward to the next book. And maybe a new ship if I'm lucky.

[☆☆Hannah☆☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was another enjoyable read in the series. Yet again I didn't know who did until the end. I was surprised by some of the things that played out in the story. I look forward to reading more of this series.

[Emily Degnitz · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good story, in spite of several proofreading errors by the publisher (e.g. missing words, incorrect pronouns, incorrect character names).

[Dian Burns · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have to be honest, I had a hard time completing this book. I used it as part of a book club event in my library back in February 2017. The other members enjoyed it enormously and we completed the recipes in the back which were good. I on the other hand couldn't get into it. I decided to attempt to finish it just to get the guilt of not finishing it off my mind and out of my Kindle. I just it could be summed up by saying I just didn't care. I didn't care about the characters or the victim or the storyline at all. Not boring in anyway just not interesting either. Club members who are fans of this author suggested other books I'm thinking of trying to see if it was just a "one off" but can't really say anything other than the book and everything about the story seemed pointless.

[Christel Reynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second one ☝️ for me in this series and I liked it even better than the last. I was so happy 😁 to see the author use her book 📖 as a platform to educate about chocolate 🍫 slavery. That was the absolute most annoying thing about the chocolate murder series that the author of those never mentioned anything about it even though she had the most perfect 👌🏻 opportunity! It is something everyone should be aware of! Fair trade is real and should absolutely be supported. Education is transformation.

[Marsha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Complete with sleazy adulterers, poisonings, long-lost twins, a dotty old lady who's a little too fond of birds, two assaults with frying pans, ghost sightings and a garrulous sister who rambles on about history at the drop of a hat, there is plenty to chuckle over, leaving the puzzle to take a back seat to the various shenanigans. With a secondary title like a Gilbert & Sullivan operetta, this isn't a mystery so much as a small-town farce.

One almost expects pies in the face. However, even though there are pastries, sweets and confections galore (making this reader wonder why everyone isn't suffering from type 2 diabetes), the author mercifully stops short of vaudevillian slapstick.

In the end, the crime isn't solved so much as exploded as the guilty parties come together in a final clash of comic proportions and recriminations. If you like your mysteries with a liberal leavening of random factoids and a sprinkling of humor, take a bite of A Catered Valentine's Day or, as I like to call it, The Wrong Funeral.

[Lori Wilen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely love this series and the two sisters are a complete riot. I had to give this 4 stars when I was expecting yet another 5 star read in this series. It was as always a great Isis Crawford book but there were several sentences I had to read over several times because of editing errors and for me that slowed me down and took away from the flow. This book. like the others before it in this series features a host of amazing characters. Besides the sisters, we have Marvin, Libby's boyfriend who is the chauffeur but not of choice for the sisters' father, Sean. There are so many laugh out loud moments in this book that at one point my husband asked me to read it aloud. You had to read what went before for it to make sense. If you have not read a previous book in this series I suggest that you might like to but even if you don't I highly recommend this book and I am sure once you've read it you will go back for the others. Thank you Isis Crawford for another visit to Westchester County, New York.

[Cozy Reader Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

"A Catered Valentine's Day (A Mystery with Recipes #4)" by Isis Crawford starts out strong with Libby and Bernie getting ready for a busy Valentine's Day season and a dinner they're helping with. They've even got to deal with a bunch of remodeling that has to happen because of a new stove they bought. However these all kind of stop getting mentioned towards the end if the book when all of a sudden they're back at work helping to get things done.

The mystery that distracts them is when Libby's boyfriend and his dad ask them to investigate why a man who supposedly was cremated after being unrecognizable at death is found in a grave for someone else and is very recognizable. Libby, Bernie and their dad do their usual investigating. In the end there was a plot twist I wasn't expecting but worked.

[Belinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was not the book for me. I failed to connect with the characters and there were lots of repeated phrases that I thought were overdone, such as twisting the ring around her finger and nibbled her cuticles. For a person who works in a bakery, that is just gross. I did not see any relatable father/daughter relationship between the girls and their father. This is totally just my opinion and I have never written a book, so take it for what it's worth.. The real shame is that there is not a good romantic relationship in the whole book which is centered on Valentine's Day. The Valentine's affair that the town was planning never came to fruition in this book. Sadly, I would not be tempted to read another book in this series.

[Margaret Klein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good mystery set in Westchester county, NY. Bernie and Libby own the Taste of Heaven bakery which their mother started. Their father is the former now retired police chief. They are catering a Valentine's Day gala together with local homemade chocolate shop, Just Chocolate. But the owner Ted Gorman has been killed (and buried) in a tragic car crash. But with whom? What grave is he buried in? Can his widow continue the business or the gala?
Just the book to read on the cold days leading up to Valentine's Day. Maybe grab some homemade hot chocolate and a scone of some sort.

[Melissa Arenson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have read several of the books in this series and generally enjoy them. Not sure at all what happened to this book. Firstly, the editing is so horrible that it's actually difficult to read and understand some sections. Secondly, the first half of the novel is filled with random facts that Bernie gives. In previous novels this has been a cute trope to get cool trivia. In this one, it seemed to take the place of plot.

[Anne Wi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a genre that I normally read but I really enjoyed this book. I feel A Catered Valentine's Day was well written and kept my attention through most of it (for me the beginning had moments where I was having a hard time getting through it). I will most definitely read other books in this series. Oh and I absolutely love that there are recipes from the book at the end.

[Sherry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cozy mystery involving 2 sisters who run a bakery and get involved in a mysterious death when someone who was thought to have been buried after a fiery car crash turns up dead but not scarred in another grave. Murphy's law of If something can go wrong, it will follows Bernie and Libby, but their retired policeman father helps along the way. A fun read with quirky characters.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the perfect cozy murder mystery! There was delicious baked goods, a great murder plot and cover up, some good and bad romance and some awesome humor!! You learn more about Bernie and Libby and their dad. More about the town. More about Marvin and his dad, who owns the funeral home. Really really enjoyed this!

[Pea · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume is better than the first 3 only because it didn't start slow. It's a good read book. Only thing I was slightly dissappointed was the ending. It's a simple case solved ending.

[Alisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.85

[Soc Page]

Carm's chocolate rice torte
Sarah's chocolate orange poppyseed cake
Margaret's cchocolate mocha sour cream cake
Mary's fudge brownies with symphony bars

[Nancy Bradford · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fun read. Love this series.

[Patricia]

Interesting, surprise ending, altogether good read.

[Beverly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple but a great story of the twisted minds in this world.

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was ok. I've read some better and some worse. I liked the ending, but it lacked excitement in the middle. I used this book for the prompt read a book that involves a death (hpootp 2025)

[Lisa Velda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Normally I love cozies, but I just couldn’t get into this one

[Sue]

In their fourth adventure, sisters Libby and Bernie Simmons, owners of “A Little Taste of Heaven,” join forces with Just Chocolate, provider of hand-dipped chocolates, for a Valentine’s Day fundraiser. While planning the menu for the fundraiser and dealing with a troublesome new oven, the sisters get involved in sorting out a mystery when Ted Gorman, who supposedly died unrecognizable in a fiery car crash, is found in the wrong grave and is easily identified by Bernie and Libby. The two investigate, along with their former police chief father and Libby’s mortician boyfriend Marvin, untangling multiple motives and suspects. The relationship between the two very different sisters, quirky characters, humor, and recipes add to this culinary mystery that will appeal to fans of Joanne Fluke’s Hannah Swensen mysteries.