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Death by Food Truck: 4 Cozy Culinary Mysteries
Food Trucks Can Be Murderously Good
Get a taste of murder and mayhem in four cozy mysteries.
Birch Tree, Maine, is experiencing a rash of deaths, all mysteriously linked to food trucks that frequent the Birch Point Lake Park. Mey’s noodle truck was her ticket to a new life, until her ex-boyfriend threatens to take it away. Angel’s new donut truck was doing great, until deathly rumors started. Shanice thought she had customer support when taking over her grandpa’s potato truck, until one started complaining. Marisol’s taco truck is a fixture in the park, until linked to a food judge’s death. Could competition between vendors have led to this murder and mayhem?
Get a taste of murder and mayhem in four cozy mysteries.
Birch Tree, Maine, is experiencing a rash of deaths, all mysteriously linked to food trucks that frequent the Birch Point Lake Park. Mey’s noodle truck was her ticket to a new life, until her ex-boyfriend threatens to take it away. Angel’s new donut truck was doing great, until deathly rumors started. Shanice thought she had customer support when taking over her grandpa’s potato truck, until one started complaining. Marisol’s taco truck is a fixture in the park, until linked to a food judge’s death. Could competition between vendors have led to this murder and mayhem?
412 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2023
40 people are currently reading
241 people want to read
About the author
Joi Copeland
173 books108 followersJoi Copeland is a wife, mom of three wonderful boys, and Christian novelist. Her husband and their three sons make their home in Galway, Ireland.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 97 reviews
April 12, 2023
#DeathbyFoodTruck #NetGalley is a compilation of stories all involving murders at food trucks.
The description states it's a Christian cozy mystery, but only the first story had a lot of religious views.
I see nothing wrong with characters that have a strong religious background, that's what makes each story unique.
I liked that all the food trucks were mentioned in each story, it was well done and the characters were quite good.
The stories blended well and showed the interaction among all of the food truck owners.
Overall I would say this book is a solid 4 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of this book.
The description states it's a Christian cozy mystery, but only the first story had a lot of religious views.
I see nothing wrong with characters that have a strong religious background, that's what makes each story unique.
I liked that all the food trucks were mentioned in each story, it was well done and the characters were quite good.
The stories blended well and showed the interaction among all of the food truck owners.
Overall I would say this book is a solid 4 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of this book.
June 23, 2023
Story Enjoyment Rating: 8/10 Christian Faith Rating: 2/3
Death by Food Truck is a collection of four Christian cosy mystery novellas based around a group of food truck owners.
I requested an advanced copy through NetGalley, and Barbour Publishing was kind enough to let me have a free ebook copy to review. I requested this book because I enjoy cosy mysteries and read a lot of Christian fiction. Also, I thought this would be a good summer read.
Unlucky Noodles by Joi Copeland –– This book follows Mey, who runs a noodle truck with her friend. They moved to the area because Mey’s ex-boyfriend was abusive. One day he turns up at her truck, and then is found dead, and Mey becomes a suspect.
This story was romantic suspense. It has a good, strong Christian element to it. Novellas are pretty short, so there isn’t room for everything you would get in a full-length novel. This one had a bit more focus on the character development and less on the plot. I gave it 7/10 for story enjoyment and 3/3 for Christian faith content. It deals with the heavy subject of domestic abuse.
Dead as Donut by Cynthia Hickey — This story follows Angel. Some construction workers come over every day to her truck. She likes one of them called Jack. Then another guy from the construction team dies, and Angel becomes a suspect. She and Jack team up to try to solve the mystery.
This story is romantic suspense with some mystery in it. It had more going on in the plot and less in the character development. There wasn’t as much Christian content, so I gave it 7/10 for story enjoyment and 1/3 for Christian faith content.
Lethal Spuds by Linda Baten Johnson — This story follows Shanice, who was an ICU nurse who got burnt out. Now she helps her granddad in his spud truck. She finds out that he and his best friend have been arguing, and his best friend has made accusations against her granddad’s business. Then someone ends up dying from eating a jacket potato.
This story is more of a whodunnit mystery. It had a convoluted plot, and there were more suspects, which I enjoyed. There was a good amount of faith in this one. I gave it 9/10 for story enjoyment and 2.5/3 for Christian faith content.
Taco Tragedy by Teresa Ives Lilly — This novella follows Marissa, who inherited her taco truck from her grandmother. She is left looking after her teenage brother, who is interested in Sherlock Holmes. There is a food competition which Marissa has won three times before. Now her competition doesn’t want her to win again. Someone dies, and everyone is a suspect.
This story is another whodunnit mystery. I enjoyed the mystery. I did guess who it was, so the ending wasn’t quite as satisfying. I liked that we followed a sister and brother team solving the mystery. Marissa is a new Christian, so she tries to bring her faith into everything. I gave this story 8/10 for story enjoyment and 3/3 for Christian faith content.
Overall, I thought this collection was enjoyable to read. I liked being able to get through each story fairly quickly.
All the stories contained some Christian content. There was a mixture of romantic suspense and whodunnit types of mysteries. Because they are novellas, each author had to limit the scope of their story in order to fit the page count. Some writers focused more on the mystery, and some on character development and relationships.
Death by Food Truck is a collection of four Christian cosy mystery novellas based around a group of food truck owners.
I requested an advanced copy through NetGalley, and Barbour Publishing was kind enough to let me have a free ebook copy to review. I requested this book because I enjoy cosy mysteries and read a lot of Christian fiction. Also, I thought this would be a good summer read.
Unlucky Noodles by Joi Copeland –– This book follows Mey, who runs a noodle truck with her friend. They moved to the area because Mey’s ex-boyfriend was abusive. One day he turns up at her truck, and then is found dead, and Mey becomes a suspect.
This story was romantic suspense. It has a good, strong Christian element to it. Novellas are pretty short, so there isn’t room for everything you would get in a full-length novel. This one had a bit more focus on the character development and less on the plot. I gave it 7/10 for story enjoyment and 3/3 for Christian faith content. It deals with the heavy subject of domestic abuse.
Dead as Donut by Cynthia Hickey — This story follows Angel. Some construction workers come over every day to her truck. She likes one of them called Jack. Then another guy from the construction team dies, and Angel becomes a suspect. She and Jack team up to try to solve the mystery.
This story is romantic suspense with some mystery in it. It had more going on in the plot and less in the character development. There wasn’t as much Christian content, so I gave it 7/10 for story enjoyment and 1/3 for Christian faith content.
Lethal Spuds by Linda Baten Johnson — This story follows Shanice, who was an ICU nurse who got burnt out. Now she helps her granddad in his spud truck. She finds out that he and his best friend have been arguing, and his best friend has made accusations against her granddad’s business. Then someone ends up dying from eating a jacket potato.
This story is more of a whodunnit mystery. It had a convoluted plot, and there were more suspects, which I enjoyed. There was a good amount of faith in this one. I gave it 9/10 for story enjoyment and 2.5/3 for Christian faith content.
Taco Tragedy by Teresa Ives Lilly — This novella follows Marissa, who inherited her taco truck from her grandmother. She is left looking after her teenage brother, who is interested in Sherlock Holmes. There is a food competition which Marissa has won three times before. Now her competition doesn’t want her to win again. Someone dies, and everyone is a suspect.
This story is another whodunnit mystery. I enjoyed the mystery. I did guess who it was, so the ending wasn’t quite as satisfying. I liked that we followed a sister and brother team solving the mystery. Marissa is a new Christian, so she tries to bring her faith into everything. I gave this story 8/10 for story enjoyment and 3/3 for Christian faith content.
Overall, I thought this collection was enjoyable to read. I liked being able to get through each story fairly quickly.
All the stories contained some Christian content. There was a mixture of romantic suspense and whodunnit types of mysteries. Because they are novellas, each author had to limit the scope of their story in order to fit the page count. Some writers focused more on the mystery, and some on character development and relationships.
July 25, 2023
I like the concept of this collection of stories but a few things made this difficult for me to get through: 1) the stories were very short so I didn’t really connect with the characters; 2) the stories themselves were very simplistic and had a heavy romance element to it (more so than mystery); 3) while I don’t mind Christian fiction, some of the religious aspects felt thrown in and were a little awkward, particularly in the end of the first story. This just wasn’t for me and I ended up stopping halfway through the second story.
I received a copy from #NetGalley for an honest review.
I received a copy from #NetGalley for an honest review.
April 9, 2023
I didn’t like this book, especially the first story. It was really pushing the religion in it, the character stated twice in 2 pages that she was Christian and it was all about God and Jesus. Most cozy mysteries I read are clean but this one is super religious. I don’t like having religion in my face. #DeathbyFoodTruck #NetGalley
May 7, 2023
Thank you NetGalley, Joi Copeland, Cynthia Hickey, Linda Baten Johnson , Teresa Ives Lilly and Barbour fiction for allowing me to read an advanced readers copy of Death by Food Truck due to be published July 1, 2023.
This is a book with four intriguing stories surrounding four different food trucks in Birch Tree, Maine, where four suspicious murders have occurred, all related to a food truck.
The first was The Lucky Noodle which was Mey's new start in a new city and state. She moved from Texas to get away from her abusive boyfriend. She and her best friend Mei are doing a great business with their delicious Japanese food until the former boyfriend tracks her down and the very next day he is found dead right outside their food truck. Mey is the obvious suspect. This story brought me to tears.
Dream Donuts is most popular in the morning and doing a great business as the long line of customers line up to get the best homemade donuts around. Angel partnered with her Grandma Ida and their great reputation for homemade donuts is suddenly questioned when it seems some are laced with hemlock, resulting in the death of a customer, found laying on the ground behind the truck. Will they be able to solve the mystery on their own and clear their names?
Spudmobile is a former school bus that Tater, Shanice's grandpa converted to a food truck. It is painted green with several pictures of baked potatoes displayed on the outside. Shanice took over the food truck from her grandpa which continued to thrive until a take-out order was delivered to a local garage that somehow had enough crushed sleeping pills to send someone into eternal sleep, which it did. Tater became the prime suspect in his best friends death.
Finally the Crunchy Taco owned and ran by Marisa after her grandmother passed away a year ago. One of the judges died after eating a holy guacamole taco from the food truck. Marissa and her brother Jose start doing their own detective work to try to clear there names so they can reopen their food truck quickly.
Out of all of the stories I liked the Crunchy Taco the best. I just really didn’t like all of the talk about religion it felt so overbearing.
This is a book with four intriguing stories surrounding four different food trucks in Birch Tree, Maine, where four suspicious murders have occurred, all related to a food truck.
The first was The Lucky Noodle which was Mey's new start in a new city and state. She moved from Texas to get away from her abusive boyfriend. She and her best friend Mei are doing a great business with their delicious Japanese food until the former boyfriend tracks her down and the very next day he is found dead right outside their food truck. Mey is the obvious suspect. This story brought me to tears.
Dream Donuts is most popular in the morning and doing a great business as the long line of customers line up to get the best homemade donuts around. Angel partnered with her Grandma Ida and their great reputation for homemade donuts is suddenly questioned when it seems some are laced with hemlock, resulting in the death of a customer, found laying on the ground behind the truck. Will they be able to solve the mystery on their own and clear their names?
Spudmobile is a former school bus that Tater, Shanice's grandpa converted to a food truck. It is painted green with several pictures of baked potatoes displayed on the outside. Shanice took over the food truck from her grandpa which continued to thrive until a take-out order was delivered to a local garage that somehow had enough crushed sleeping pills to send someone into eternal sleep, which it did. Tater became the prime suspect in his best friends death.
Finally the Crunchy Taco owned and ran by Marisa after her grandmother passed away a year ago. One of the judges died after eating a holy guacamole taco from the food truck. Marissa and her brother Jose start doing their own detective work to try to clear there names so they can reopen their food truck quickly.
Out of all of the stories I liked the Crunchy Taco the best. I just really didn’t like all of the talk about religion it felt so overbearing.
April 23, 2023
This series was a great balance of suspense and excitement. Each book in the series had an interesting plot twist and enough drama to keep me turning pages long past bedtime. With the stories being based around food trucks I found myself craving the different foods. I absolutely recommend this for anyone who enjoys suspense and needs a more lighthearted read.
My appreciation to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to early review this piece.
My appreciation to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to early review this piece.
July 23, 2023
I love food themed cozy mysteries. And a book with four short stories is a great way to get to know four new authors.
The first story is about Mey, who was in an abusive relationship for four years until she became a Christian and that gave her the insights to leave. And she left good. Moved all the way to Maine from Texas. But now, her ex has found her and he wants her back.
She agrees to meet him for a talk the next morning, but the ex doesn’t show up. So she and her friend go to work at their food truck, where about an hour later a cop knocks on the door and points out a man - her ex - sitting at one of the tables outside her food truck. Dead.
You’d think they would have noticed him sitting there when they arrived. Hard to believe that they didn’t.
The story is just one hot mess of police behaving like total idiots. The cop at the food truck wastes no time to arrest Mey. The dead guy hasn’t even been moved to a stretcher yet. (I don’t think there’s even a forensic examiner at the scene. Mey wasn’t seen poking a big knife into her ex, so to arrest her seems rather premature.)
The detective on the scene has only slightly more sense. He say Mey is not under arrest, but before he starts taking statements, he lets Mey and Wei - his most likely eye-witnesses / persons of interest - bundle into a car to get their stories straight. Then leaves his crime scene to join the eye-witnesses / persons of interest for coffee and some snacks.
The detective asks a few questions then, mainly about how abusive the ex was. Then a week later returns to get a statement from Mey about the night the ex showed up. Never mind that the detective takes his prime suspect (for lack of other suspects, I am sure. The evidence against Mey is wafer thin.) with him to the motel the victim was staying.
I kept on reading because I had high hopes the story would be short. It is short. And bad, very, very bad. In lieu of an actual personality, Mey has her faith and her abuse stories. The cop and the detective are idiots. The murderer has a personality disorder (“He never lied to me.” “He lied to me all the time.”), and the wrap up - after the murderer has been caught - takes way, way too long. There was no mystery (other than how did this get published?) Not a good story to open a four story book with.
The second story features Angel, owner of Dream Donuts. Her second day of work starts badly: there’s a dead man behind her food truck and he’s holding a donut. The detective on duty is quick to make the connection between a dead donut eater and the donut vendor next to it. He is not so quick in securing his crime scene and collecting the evidence. Angel does a quick sweep of the perimeter and finds a knife that may have been used to frost the dead man’s donut.
I don’t frost, I glaze, she points out to the detective. To which the detective does not reply: the frosting knife is in front of you. He doesn’t even point out that any evidence she found can’t be used in her defence, or arrest her for tampering with evidence.
The detective sort of believes Angel that the frosted donut is not hers. At least, she’s not brought in for questioning. A lot of people around the food truck site think she had something to do with the death of the construction worker. When another construction worker (a guy Angel gets flutters around her heart from) is brought in for questioning, he and Angel decide to team up and find out what’s going on.
At first I thought the story was rushed, but that it held promise.
Then Angel and Jack decide to start breaking the law to dig up the dirt on his employer. And a whole bunch of other cozy clichés get thrown at them (and the reader). By that time, I wanted to rush through the story, ’cause every day and every scene started to look alike.
As a side note: it would have been nice if there had been some interaction between the characters of the different food trucks. In this story that didn’t go further than getting food from one of the trucks. And that didn’t always go right. At one point Angel is eating chow mein (a Chinese dish) which she supposedly got from the Lucky Noodle food truck, a food truck that serves Japanese food.
The third story features Shanice Williams, who started working at her grandfather’s food truck four months earlier. Lately, there have been rumours and complaints about the quality and hygiene of the food from his food truck. Her grandfather, Tater, suspects his best friend since childhood (Lyman) from starting this. The two men set up a meeting to talk it over, but after some bad news from the owner of the food truck plot, Tater decides to go walk-about and sends Shanice over in his place.
Shanice finds the body of Lyman. The next morning a police detective (yet another one than in the other food truck stories) informs her that Lyman was killed. His stomach contains a large amount of sleeping pills, mixed with the mash potatoes from his take-away. Naturally, Shanice and Tater are suspects.
This one has a pretty good mystery and many secrets are revealed during Shanice’s investigation. There are a few things that don’t add up, such as: why does Shanice have the same last name as her maternal grandfather? And if the police searched Lyman’s house, why did they not take the tape marked “my death sentence”?
Story four features Marissa Valdez, who runs the Crunchy Taco Food Truck after the death of her grandmother. Marissa has a lot on her plate: running the food truck, dealing with her grumpy cook, taking care of her younger brother (he’s a minor), preparing to be judged for a food competition and now the piece of land her grandmother wanted to buy to open up a restaurant has come up for sale.
The owner of the land likes Marissa’s plan for a restaurant and wants to sell her the property. This upsets the other interested party - who wanted to build a hotel - and also all the owners of Mexican themed restaurants. Now, they might have a point that Birch Tree is too small for four Mexican themed restaurants, but apparently it is not too small for three Mexican themed restaurants and a Mexican themed food truck. And rather than gloat that they are established restaurants and Marissa would be just starting out and do you know 50 percent of all businesses close again within five years, these restaurant owners make threats to Marissa to not even get started.
They’re a bit too caricatural for my taste.
Then the judge from the food contest dies after swallowing the first bite from the taco Marissa served her. Marissa is interviewed, but not arrested. Her food truck is deemed a crime scene, though, and this gives Marissa time to do her own investigation.
Strangely though, she does not go after the person that has been behaving the most suspiciously. As if that wasn’t eye-rolling enough, Marissa and her brother José decide to eavesdrop on their suspects because she “could not find any faults in his plan”. Completely missing the obvious one: you can wait a long time before people say anything of interest (without being prodded).
For a short story, this one took too long to get to the murder (actually, any mystery where it takes 40% of the story to get to the murder is off balance). And since I already knew who the murderer was going to be, it then also took too long to get to the resolve. Though in most cozies the murderer is someone the sleuth did not consider, it works better for the story if there aren’t any obvious reasons to suspect them.
As a side note, Marissa has a Mexican heritage. Unless I’m told otherwise I’m going to imagine her as catholic. She mentioned praying often, yet she never mentioned making the sign of the cross. She didn’t even mention making the sign of the cross when she kneeled next to the judge and realised that she was dead. A devout catholic would have made the sign of the cross.
In short: I liked only one of these stories. It is that story that saved this book from a one star rating from me.
I read an ARC through NetGalley.
The first story is about Mey, who was in an abusive relationship for four years until she became a Christian and that gave her the insights to leave. And she left good. Moved all the way to Maine from Texas. But now, her ex has found her and he wants her back.
She agrees to meet him for a talk the next morning, but the ex doesn’t show up. So she and her friend go to work at their food truck, where about an hour later a cop knocks on the door and points out a man - her ex - sitting at one of the tables outside her food truck. Dead.
You’d think they would have noticed him sitting there when they arrived. Hard to believe that they didn’t.
The story is just one hot mess of police behaving like total idiots. The cop at the food truck wastes no time to arrest Mey. The dead guy hasn’t even been moved to a stretcher yet. (I don’t think there’s even a forensic examiner at the scene. Mey wasn’t seen poking a big knife into her ex, so to arrest her seems rather premature.)
The detective on the scene has only slightly more sense. He say Mey is not under arrest, but before he starts taking statements, he lets Mey and Wei - his most likely eye-witnesses / persons of interest - bundle into a car to get their stories straight. Then leaves his crime scene to join the eye-witnesses / persons of interest for coffee and some snacks.
The detective asks a few questions then, mainly about how abusive the ex was. Then a week later returns to get a statement from Mey about the night the ex showed up. Never mind that the detective takes his prime suspect (for lack of other suspects, I am sure. The evidence against Mey is wafer thin.) with him to the motel the victim was staying.
I kept on reading because I had high hopes the story would be short. It is short. And bad, very, very bad. In lieu of an actual personality, Mey has her faith and her abuse stories. The cop and the detective are idiots. The murderer has a personality disorder (“He never lied to me.” “He lied to me all the time.”), and the wrap up - after the murderer has been caught - takes way, way too long. There was no mystery (other than how did this get published?) Not a good story to open a four story book with.
The second story features Angel, owner of Dream Donuts. Her second day of work starts badly: there’s a dead man behind her food truck and he’s holding a donut. The detective on duty is quick to make the connection between a dead donut eater and the donut vendor next to it. He is not so quick in securing his crime scene and collecting the evidence. Angel does a quick sweep of the perimeter and finds a knife that may have been used to frost the dead man’s donut.
I don’t frost, I glaze, she points out to the detective. To which the detective does not reply: the frosting knife is in front of you. He doesn’t even point out that any evidence she found can’t be used in her defence, or arrest her for tampering with evidence.
The detective sort of believes Angel that the frosted donut is not hers. At least, she’s not brought in for questioning. A lot of people around the food truck site think she had something to do with the death of the construction worker. When another construction worker (a guy Angel gets flutters around her heart from) is brought in for questioning, he and Angel decide to team up and find out what’s going on.
At first I thought the story was rushed, but that it held promise.
Then Angel and Jack decide to start breaking the law to dig up the dirt on his employer. And a whole bunch of other cozy clichés get thrown at them (and the reader). By that time, I wanted to rush through the story, ’cause every day and every scene started to look alike.
As a side note: it would have been nice if there had been some interaction between the characters of the different food trucks. In this story that didn’t go further than getting food from one of the trucks. And that didn’t always go right. At one point Angel is eating chow mein (a Chinese dish) which she supposedly got from the Lucky Noodle food truck, a food truck that serves Japanese food.
The third story features Shanice Williams, who started working at her grandfather’s food truck four months earlier. Lately, there have been rumours and complaints about the quality and hygiene of the food from his food truck. Her grandfather, Tater, suspects his best friend since childhood (Lyman) from starting this. The two men set up a meeting to talk it over, but after some bad news from the owner of the food truck plot, Tater decides to go walk-about and sends Shanice over in his place.
Shanice finds the body of Lyman. The next morning a police detective (yet another one than in the other food truck stories) informs her that Lyman was killed. His stomach contains a large amount of sleeping pills, mixed with the mash potatoes from his take-away. Naturally, Shanice and Tater are suspects.
This one has a pretty good mystery and many secrets are revealed during Shanice’s investigation. There are a few things that don’t add up, such as: why does Shanice have the same last name as her maternal grandfather? And if the police searched Lyman’s house, why did they not take the tape marked “my death sentence”?
Story four features Marissa Valdez, who runs the Crunchy Taco Food Truck after the death of her grandmother. Marissa has a lot on her plate: running the food truck, dealing with her grumpy cook, taking care of her younger brother (he’s a minor), preparing to be judged for a food competition and now the piece of land her grandmother wanted to buy to open up a restaurant has come up for sale.
The owner of the land likes Marissa’s plan for a restaurant and wants to sell her the property. This upsets the other interested party - who wanted to build a hotel - and also all the owners of Mexican themed restaurants. Now, they might have a point that Birch Tree is too small for four Mexican themed restaurants, but apparently it is not too small for three Mexican themed restaurants and a Mexican themed food truck. And rather than gloat that they are established restaurants and Marissa would be just starting out and do you know 50 percent of all businesses close again within five years, these restaurant owners make threats to Marissa to not even get started.
They’re a bit too caricatural for my taste.
Then the judge from the food contest dies after swallowing the first bite from the taco Marissa served her. Marissa is interviewed, but not arrested. Her food truck is deemed a crime scene, though, and this gives Marissa time to do her own investigation.
Strangely though, she does not go after the person that has been behaving the most suspiciously. As if that wasn’t eye-rolling enough, Marissa and her brother José decide to eavesdrop on their suspects because she “could not find any faults in his plan”. Completely missing the obvious one: you can wait a long time before people say anything of interest (without being prodded).
For a short story, this one took too long to get to the murder (actually, any mystery where it takes 40% of the story to get to the murder is off balance). And since I already knew who the murderer was going to be, it then also took too long to get to the resolve. Though in most cozies the murderer is someone the sleuth did not consider, it works better for the story if there aren’t any obvious reasons to suspect them.
As a side note, Marissa has a Mexican heritage. Unless I’m told otherwise I’m going to imagine her as catholic. She mentioned praying often, yet she never mentioned making the sign of the cross. She didn’t even mention making the sign of the cross when she kneeled next to the judge and realised that she was dead. A devout catholic would have made the sign of the cross.
In short: I liked only one of these stories. It is that story that saved this book from a one star rating from me.
I read an ARC through NetGalley.
July 28, 2023
I'd like to thank NetGalley and Barbour Publishing for approving my request to read Death by Food Truck: 4 Cozy Culinary Mysteries by Joi Copeland, Cynthia Hickey, Linda Baten Johnson, and Teresa Ives Lilly. I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for my honest review. When I requested to read this book, I didn't realize that the stories had religion in them. Had I known this, I wouldn't have requested it.
Overall, I would have enjoyed the stories much more had they not been religious, especially the first novella. I felt like the first author was cramming religion down my throat. The other three novellas were a little less religious. There's nothing wrong with Christian books, but they're just not for me.
The culprit in all four stories were very obvious to me from the beginning despite the authors trying to throw suspicion elsewhere. Each novella also had a strong romantic element to it, which didn't bother me in the least bit. The reason I chose to read these stories were because of the food themes, which I did end up enjoying immensely.
Three out of five stars is what I rated Death by Food Truck: 4 Cozy Culinary Mysteries by Joi Copeland, Cynthia Hickey, Linda Baten Johnson, and Teresa Ives Lilly. If you like Christian Fiction, then you'd likely enjoy these stories, but as I said before, they weren't really for me because of the religious elements.
Overall, I would have enjoyed the stories much more had they not been religious, especially the first novella. I felt like the first author was cramming religion down my throat. The other three novellas were a little less religious. There's nothing wrong with Christian books, but they're just not for me.
The culprit in all four stories were very obvious to me from the beginning despite the authors trying to throw suspicion elsewhere. Each novella also had a strong romantic element to it, which didn't bother me in the least bit. The reason I chose to read these stories were because of the food themes, which I did end up enjoying immensely.
Three out of five stars is what I rated Death by Food Truck: 4 Cozy Culinary Mysteries by Joi Copeland, Cynthia Hickey, Linda Baten Johnson, and Teresa Ives Lilly. If you like Christian Fiction, then you'd likely enjoy these stories, but as I said before, they weren't really for me because of the religious elements.
July 9, 2023
This collections sounds like so much fun! A cozy mystery collection centering around different food trucks and their little found community! I admittedly don’t read a lot of cozy mystery novels, but the concept was intriguing. I will say that despite my best efforts I could not bring myself to enjoy this collection. I’m several of the books the main characters were just hard to like and I struggled to connect with them as a reader. I’m not someone who likes mean or rude girls and this seemed to be a common trend for the heroines in this collection. I also was constantly distracted by the absolute lack of authenticity in police procedures that took place in these stories. From murder suspects rifling through victims belongings in the presence of detectives to wild assumptions on cause of death based on appearances alone, it was hard to believe. I also found no interest in solving a crime where the reader was not invested in the victim in any way. All in all I expected a fun, who dun-nit style cozy mystery collection with a cast of fun quirky characters, but it definitely did not deliver.
April 6, 2023
I did like this one well enough. I will say I liked a couple of stories more than others, a couple of them didn't particularly hold my interest. Death involving food trucks is unique to me, I haven't read a cozy mystery with that premise before. Overall, this was just okay.
April 2, 2025
I should have loved this book (cozy mysteries being solved by women of faith!), but it was a miss for me. The potato story was strong, but the others were just okay.
June 25, 2023
What's better than one culinary cozy mystery, four stories in one book.
Each of the stories has relatable characters and you are drawn into the story from the first chapter.
If you enjoy Christian fiction, cozy mysteries, and talking about food, this book is a treat.
Thank you, NetGalley, Barbour Publishing, and the authors for this advance read. All opinions are my own.
#DeathbyFoodTruck #NetGalley
Each of the stories has relatable characters and you are drawn into the story from the first chapter.
If you enjoy Christian fiction, cozy mysteries, and talking about food, this book is a treat.
Thank you, NetGalley, Barbour Publishing, and the authors for this advance read. All opinions are my own.
#DeathbyFoodTruck #NetGalley
June 29, 2023
** “For now, remember God has not given you a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind. And God’s perfect love casts out fear.” **
Authors Joi Copeland, Cynthia Hickey, Linda Baten Johnson and Teresa Ives Lilley join forces to deliver “Death by Food Truck,” a scrumptious telling of four cozy culinary mysteries — all stemming around food truck owners in small town Maine.
In “Un-Lucky Noodles” by Joi Copeland, Mey Hirano is running a Japanese noodles food truck with her best friend. She’s loving her life, until the day her abusive ex-boyfriend Paul shows up. And when he ends up dead the next day, Mey rises to the top of the suspect list.
When the hunky Detective Grayson Lang takes over the case, can Mey convince him of her innocence? And will they be able to deny the sparks flying between them?
Copeland’s story is a cute mystery that reminds us that God can heal every scar; He can help us conquer our fears; and we are worth love.
In “Dead as a Donut” by Cynthia Hickey, when a man ends up dead behind her Dream Donuts truck, Angel Stirling must prove that she did not poison Bruce Whitton with one of her donuts. With the help of hunky Jack Lowery, who works on the same construction team as the victim, they must both work to clear their names as each is framed.
With the help of Angel’s spunky grandmother Ida, can they work together, all while ignoring feelings for each other, to solve the crime and learn who the actual murderer is?
Hickey does a great job of developing fun and quirky characters, while also providing some good lessons, like angels watch over us; don’t give up; follow what you believe; and the impact of revenge.
In “Lethal Spuds” by Linda Baten Johnson, when Shanice Williams takes a leave from her ICU nursing job to help her Grandpa Tater run his Spudmobile food truck in Birch Tree, trouble quickly begins. Someone seems to be sabotaging the business, her grandfather mysteriously disappears, and his lifelong friend ends up dead.
Shanice must work quickly to figure out what’s going on, where did her grandfather go, and who killed “Uncle” Lyman.
Johnson does a great job of developing a deeper story than just a simple cozy mystery, keeping the reader guessing until the very end. She also fills “Lethal Spuds” with some great themes, like the healing power of music; ties that bind us together; God’s in charge, not us; the importance of endings and beginnings; and the power of blessings.
In the final installment, “Taco Tragedy” by Teresa Ives Lilly, as the Crusty Taco truck’s owner Marissa prepares to enter the towns’s food contest, after winning four years in a row, she wonders why her employee Elena is so crusty acting. But when on the day of the judging a tragic event occurs that might be tied to Marissa’s truck, she looks into whodunnit with her Sherlock-obsessed brother Jose.
Will she be able to solve the mystery, clear her name, and continue with her culinary dreams?
Lilly does a great job of creating a plot with twists and turns, all while filling “Taco Tragedy” with some good lessons, like put your trust in God, not in your feelings; focus on God’s goodness; and trust that God has a plan.
“Death by Food Truck” is a fun read for fans of all things food, mysteries, especially cozy mysteries, as well as stories with plucky female characters.
Five stars out of five.
Barbour Fiction provided this complimentary copy through NetGalley for my honest, unbiased review.
Authors Joi Copeland, Cynthia Hickey, Linda Baten Johnson and Teresa Ives Lilley join forces to deliver “Death by Food Truck,” a scrumptious telling of four cozy culinary mysteries — all stemming around food truck owners in small town Maine.
In “Un-Lucky Noodles” by Joi Copeland, Mey Hirano is running a Japanese noodles food truck with her best friend. She’s loving her life, until the day her abusive ex-boyfriend Paul shows up. And when he ends up dead the next day, Mey rises to the top of the suspect list.
When the hunky Detective Grayson Lang takes over the case, can Mey convince him of her innocence? And will they be able to deny the sparks flying between them?
Copeland’s story is a cute mystery that reminds us that God can heal every scar; He can help us conquer our fears; and we are worth love.
In “Dead as a Donut” by Cynthia Hickey, when a man ends up dead behind her Dream Donuts truck, Angel Stirling must prove that she did not poison Bruce Whitton with one of her donuts. With the help of hunky Jack Lowery, who works on the same construction team as the victim, they must both work to clear their names as each is framed.
With the help of Angel’s spunky grandmother Ida, can they work together, all while ignoring feelings for each other, to solve the crime and learn who the actual murderer is?
Hickey does a great job of developing fun and quirky characters, while also providing some good lessons, like angels watch over us; don’t give up; follow what you believe; and the impact of revenge.
In “Lethal Spuds” by Linda Baten Johnson, when Shanice Williams takes a leave from her ICU nursing job to help her Grandpa Tater run his Spudmobile food truck in Birch Tree, trouble quickly begins. Someone seems to be sabotaging the business, her grandfather mysteriously disappears, and his lifelong friend ends up dead.
Shanice must work quickly to figure out what’s going on, where did her grandfather go, and who killed “Uncle” Lyman.
Johnson does a great job of developing a deeper story than just a simple cozy mystery, keeping the reader guessing until the very end. She also fills “Lethal Spuds” with some great themes, like the healing power of music; ties that bind us together; God’s in charge, not us; the importance of endings and beginnings; and the power of blessings.
In the final installment, “Taco Tragedy” by Teresa Ives Lilly, as the Crusty Taco truck’s owner Marissa prepares to enter the towns’s food contest, after winning four years in a row, she wonders why her employee Elena is so crusty acting. But when on the day of the judging a tragic event occurs that might be tied to Marissa’s truck, she looks into whodunnit with her Sherlock-obsessed brother Jose.
Will she be able to solve the mystery, clear her name, and continue with her culinary dreams?
Lilly does a great job of creating a plot with twists and turns, all while filling “Taco Tragedy” with some good lessons, like put your trust in God, not in your feelings; focus on God’s goodness; and trust that God has a plan.
“Death by Food Truck” is a fun read for fans of all things food, mysteries, especially cozy mysteries, as well as stories with plucky female characters.
Five stars out of five.
Barbour Fiction provided this complimentary copy through NetGalley for my honest, unbiased review.
April 15, 2023
Overall review: 3 stars
This book is a collection of "cozy Christian mystery" novellas. As a whole, I found each one a delightful quick read, and I loved how they all tied together as they are all about food trucks that are at the same location in the same small town. I do find it a little odd though that they all have murders happen at the food truck and none of them are mentioned in the other books or that people are a bit weary of eating at any of these food trucks after other murders have happened in such a small town (each one only mentions people being weary of just eating at the current murder's location, but I would think it would mention the other murders too). I just know that I would be! But since they were all written separately and then put together later, I'm guessing, you'll just have to overlook it. Some of the mysteries were a bit obvious in who the culprit was, but they still were interesting.
Unlucky Noodles: 2 stars
This story is about a woman named Mey who ran away from her abusive ex-boyfriend to Maine, where Mey and her friends run a food truck. One day, her ex shows up and then dies and Mey is the #1 suspect. This novella was a short mystery with a small bit of romance. I liked the friendships Mey had, and how they worked together to solve the mystery. However, the constant reminder of her Christianity was redundant and unnecessary. I can know a character is a Christian without constantly being reminded they are a Christian. I also thought it was odd to constantly be calling her male friend a "brother". Without that, it was a good quick mystery.
Dead as Donut: 3 stars
Angel runs a donut food truck with her grandma-like friend Ida, when suddenly one of her customers is found dead with a donut in his hand. Angel and her new handsome acquaintance Jack have to prove their innocence and find out who killed Jack's coworker Bruce. I enjoyed this one better. It was also a quick easy mystery with a little bit of romance/friendship.
Lethal Spuds: 3.5 stars
Shanice is an ER nurse who decides to take time off after her mom dies in the ER and helps her grandpa "Tater" with his food truck business. For some strange reason, her grandpa and his best friend who are Vietnam veterans are suddenly acting like enemies. Soon after, his friend dies the day Tater disappears. He becomes a suspect. This novella talks a bit about Vietnam and has a bit of suspense in what could've happened to Tater. I also got a bit of "Grumpy Old Men" vibes (although there were no funny pranks involved in this story) only because the granddaughter thought their quarrel might have been over Helen, a woman who attracted both men. It was another quick mystery to read.
Taco Tragedy: 2 stars
Since Marissa's abuela passed away, she's been taking care of her teenage brother Jose and "The Crunchy Taco" food truck. When she gets an opportunity to buy land to have her own restaurant, other Mexican restaurant owners in town seem furious. Then, her food truck gets broken into the day of a food judging contest, and one of the judges dies after eating her family's famous "Holy Guacamole" taco. This mystery was very obvious, but it was interesting to follow Marissa and Jose as they tried to solve the case.
Thank you Netgalley for ebook! This review is my own opinion.
This book is a collection of "cozy Christian mystery" novellas. As a whole, I found each one a delightful quick read, and I loved how they all tied together as they are all about food trucks that are at the same location in the same small town. I do find it a little odd though that they all have murders happen at the food truck and none of them are mentioned in the other books or that people are a bit weary of eating at any of these food trucks after other murders have happened in such a small town (each one only mentions people being weary of just eating at the current murder's location, but I would think it would mention the other murders too). I just know that I would be! But since they were all written separately and then put together later, I'm guessing, you'll just have to overlook it. Some of the mysteries were a bit obvious in who the culprit was, but they still were interesting.
Unlucky Noodles: 2 stars
This story is about a woman named Mey who ran away from her abusive ex-boyfriend to Maine, where Mey and her friends run a food truck. One day, her ex shows up and then dies and Mey is the #1 suspect. This novella was a short mystery with a small bit of romance. I liked the friendships Mey had, and how they worked together to solve the mystery. However, the constant reminder of her Christianity was redundant and unnecessary. I can know a character is a Christian without constantly being reminded they are a Christian. I also thought it was odd to constantly be calling her male friend a "brother". Without that, it was a good quick mystery.
Dead as Donut: 3 stars
Angel runs a donut food truck with her grandma-like friend Ida, when suddenly one of her customers is found dead with a donut in his hand. Angel and her new handsome acquaintance Jack have to prove their innocence and find out who killed Jack's coworker Bruce. I enjoyed this one better. It was also a quick easy mystery with a little bit of romance/friendship.
Lethal Spuds: 3.5 stars
Shanice is an ER nurse who decides to take time off after her mom dies in the ER and helps her grandpa "Tater" with his food truck business. For some strange reason, her grandpa and his best friend who are Vietnam veterans are suddenly acting like enemies. Soon after, his friend dies the day Tater disappears. He becomes a suspect. This novella talks a bit about Vietnam and has a bit of suspense in what could've happened to Tater. I also got a bit of "Grumpy Old Men" vibes (although there were no funny pranks involved in this story) only because the granddaughter thought their quarrel might have been over Helen, a woman who attracted both men. It was another quick mystery to read.
Taco Tragedy: 2 stars
Since Marissa's abuela passed away, she's been taking care of her teenage brother Jose and "The Crunchy Taco" food truck. When she gets an opportunity to buy land to have her own restaurant, other Mexican restaurant owners in town seem furious. Then, her food truck gets broken into the day of a food judging contest, and one of the judges dies after eating her family's famous "Holy Guacamole" taco. This mystery was very obvious, but it was interesting to follow Marissa and Jose as they tried to solve the case.
Thank you Netgalley for ebook! This review is my own opinion.
June 28, 2023
Welcome to Birch Tree Maine and its Food Truck Court where we find Lucky Noodles, Dream Donuts, Spudmobile and Cruncy Taco. These are cozy mysteries written by four Christian fiction authors. They all get their own story in this compilation but do sometimes make cameos in the other stories, which I enjoyed.
Un-Lucky Noodles by Joi Copeland is the story Of Mey who is escaping an abusive relationship and moves from Texas to Maine with her best friend Wei and husband, Scott. They have a noodle food truck. He ex, Paul, has located her and he winds up dead leaving Mei as the prime suspect. You got to know the characters really well and the story moved quickly, due to being a novella. You see Mey become stronger with the help of her faith. I enjoyed the mystery component in the story too.
Dream Donuts by Cynthia Hickey. Angel Stirling runs a donut food truck with her grandmother, Ida. Her truck attracts some of the local construction crew who come by in the mornings to purchase her donuts. One morning Jack, one of the construction crew, comes to her window and she is instantly attracted to the handsome Jack. The next morning one of the construction bosses is found dead behind her truck with a chocolate donut. Angel and Jack become suspects and they work together to the solve the mystery. I thought this one was ok. I just didn't feel much about the main characters, Angel & Jack. I did like the relationship with Angel and her grandma Ida.
Lethal Spuds by Linda Baten Johnson. Shanice is an ICU nurse who has burned out and temporarily relocated to Birch Tree to help her grandfather, Tater, run his Spudmobile food truck that specializes in baked potato variations. Tater is apparently feuding with his life-long best friend, Lyman, who owns the service garage in town. Shanice is not quite sure what caused the spat between them but would like them to repair their friendship. Before that can happen, Lyman is found poisoned and Tater becomes the prime suspect. Tater disappears and Shanice is trying to hold the Spudmobile open, find Tater and solve Lyman's murder. She gets help from her two friends from church, Winnie & Iris. This one, for me, had the complete package; good character development and a great mystery with lots of suspects. My only complaint is that it left some questions regarding the relationships. I am hoping we get visit these characters again with the author.
Taco Tragedy by Teresa Ives Lilly. Marissa runs the Crunchy Taco food truck left to her by her grandmother and also takes care of her teenage brother, Jose who has a Sherlock Holmes Obsession. Marissa and her grandmother had the dream of opening a restaurant and had been saving for that. Marissa's friend Rick, who is a real estate agent, let her know that some property is becoming available that she was interested in purchasing. This happens at the same time she is preparing for a food competition. A judge ends up dead after eating Marissa's taco and Marissa becomes the suspect. She and Jose will need to work together to find the real culprit.
Thank you #NetGalley and #Barbour for the opportunity to read these stories.
Un-Lucky Noodles by Joi Copeland is the story Of Mey who is escaping an abusive relationship and moves from Texas to Maine with her best friend Wei and husband, Scott. They have a noodle food truck. He ex, Paul, has located her and he winds up dead leaving Mei as the prime suspect. You got to know the characters really well and the story moved quickly, due to being a novella. You see Mey become stronger with the help of her faith. I enjoyed the mystery component in the story too.
Dream Donuts by Cynthia Hickey. Angel Stirling runs a donut food truck with her grandmother, Ida. Her truck attracts some of the local construction crew who come by in the mornings to purchase her donuts. One morning Jack, one of the construction crew, comes to her window and she is instantly attracted to the handsome Jack. The next morning one of the construction bosses is found dead behind her truck with a chocolate donut. Angel and Jack become suspects and they work together to the solve the mystery. I thought this one was ok. I just didn't feel much about the main characters, Angel & Jack. I did like the relationship with Angel and her grandma Ida.
Lethal Spuds by Linda Baten Johnson. Shanice is an ICU nurse who has burned out and temporarily relocated to Birch Tree to help her grandfather, Tater, run his Spudmobile food truck that specializes in baked potato variations. Tater is apparently feuding with his life-long best friend, Lyman, who owns the service garage in town. Shanice is not quite sure what caused the spat between them but would like them to repair their friendship. Before that can happen, Lyman is found poisoned and Tater becomes the prime suspect. Tater disappears and Shanice is trying to hold the Spudmobile open, find Tater and solve Lyman's murder. She gets help from her two friends from church, Winnie & Iris. This one, for me, had the complete package; good character development and a great mystery with lots of suspects. My only complaint is that it left some questions regarding the relationships. I am hoping we get visit these characters again with the author.
Taco Tragedy by Teresa Ives Lilly. Marissa runs the Crunchy Taco food truck left to her by her grandmother and also takes care of her teenage brother, Jose who has a Sherlock Holmes Obsession. Marissa and her grandmother had the dream of opening a restaurant and had been saving for that. Marissa's friend Rick, who is a real estate agent, let her know that some property is becoming available that she was interested in purchasing. This happens at the same time she is preparing for a food competition. A judge ends up dead after eating Marissa's taco and Marissa becomes the suspect. She and Jose will need to work together to find the real culprit.
Thank you #NetGalley and #Barbour for the opportunity to read these stories.
May 26, 2023
Cozy mysteries and Christian fiction have long been two of my favorite genres, and I'm thrilled that publishers are finally starting to combine these two in more recent releases. I've now read a few of these novella collections from Barbour, and each one has been a wonderful collection of cozies. I wasn't expecting this one to be any different, and I ended up enjoying it just as much.
In Death by Food Truck, the reader travels to a food truck court in Birch Tree, Maine where murder seems to keep being added to the menu. Each individual story focuses around one food truck and it's corresponding murder, and I thought the food truck setting added an air of originality to this genre, and it was unlike any cozy I'd ever truly read before.
The first story was Unlucky Noodles, and it ended up being one of my favorite of the four. The main character had a wonderful friendship with her co-worker and her husband, and I also loved how strong the faith element was. The murder mystery kept me guessing, and it also touches on some deeper themes like domestic abuse. Overall, 4/5.
Next was Dead as Donut, and this one ended up being my least favorite of the three. While there were certain elements I enjoyed, like Ida and her hilarious group of gardening club friends, overall I felt it wasn't quite as good as the others. The story seemed a tad more on the juvenile side, and the mystery wasn't as well put together as I was hoping for. Overall, 2.5/5
Next was Lethal Spuds, which ended up being my other favorite. The story was touching and tragic, and I loved the amazing relationship that the main character had with her grandfather. This one touches on after effects that soldiers experience after serving in the military, and the murder mystery was well put together, and continued to keep me guessing. Overall, 4/5.
Lastly was Taco Tragedy, and this one would have ended up being probably my favorite of the entire collection if the culprit hadn't been beyond belief obvious. I liked the characters, the setting, and the writing style, but I was disappointed in how easily solvable the mystery was. Overall, 3.5/5
I think this is another wonderful collection of cozies from Barbour, and it's one I would definitely recommend if you enjoy clean cozy mysteries and/or Christian fiction.
My only real complaint was that I wish there had been a bit more continuity between the stories. It seemed kind of implausible that a small town food truck court would have a different murder connected to each food truck without the owners of the corresponding trucks ever talking about it with each other, and/or encouraging or providing support through the process. It wasn't enough to make me dislike the collection, but it did seem a tad strange that the authors chose to write it this way. It probably would have been a five star read for me if that hadn't been the case.
Final Rating: 4/5.
Thanks so much to Barbour Fiction for allowing me to advance read and review this one!
I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher (Barbour) via NetGalley. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own, and this is my honest review.
In Death by Food Truck, the reader travels to a food truck court in Birch Tree, Maine where murder seems to keep being added to the menu. Each individual story focuses around one food truck and it's corresponding murder, and I thought the food truck setting added an air of originality to this genre, and it was unlike any cozy I'd ever truly read before.
The first story was Unlucky Noodles, and it ended up being one of my favorite of the four. The main character had a wonderful friendship with her co-worker and her husband, and I also loved how strong the faith element was. The murder mystery kept me guessing, and it also touches on some deeper themes like domestic abuse. Overall, 4/5.
Next was Dead as Donut, and this one ended up being my least favorite of the three. While there were certain elements I enjoyed, like Ida and her hilarious group of gardening club friends, overall I felt it wasn't quite as good as the others. The story seemed a tad more on the juvenile side, and the mystery wasn't as well put together as I was hoping for. Overall, 2.5/5
Next was Lethal Spuds, which ended up being my other favorite. The story was touching and tragic, and I loved the amazing relationship that the main character had with her grandfather. This one touches on after effects that soldiers experience after serving in the military, and the murder mystery was well put together, and continued to keep me guessing. Overall, 4/5.
Lastly was Taco Tragedy, and this one would have ended up being probably my favorite of the entire collection if the culprit hadn't been beyond belief obvious. I liked the characters, the setting, and the writing style, but I was disappointed in how easily solvable the mystery was. Overall, 3.5/5
I think this is another wonderful collection of cozies from Barbour, and it's one I would definitely recommend if you enjoy clean cozy mysteries and/or Christian fiction.
My only real complaint was that I wish there had been a bit more continuity between the stories. It seemed kind of implausible that a small town food truck court would have a different murder connected to each food truck without the owners of the corresponding trucks ever talking about it with each other, and/or encouraging or providing support through the process. It wasn't enough to make me dislike the collection, but it did seem a tad strange that the authors chose to write it this way. It probably would have been a five star read for me if that hadn't been the case.
Final Rating: 4/5.
Thanks so much to Barbour Fiction for allowing me to advance read and review this one!
I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher (Barbour) via NetGalley. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own, and this is my honest review.
July 8, 2023
Unlucky Noodles by Joi Copeland
When someone hurts you and refuses to face the fact that they are shamelessly cruel, how is it possible to get rid of them? This is the problem facing Mey. Paul, an ex boyfriend has followed her to Maine from Texas. He has the nerve to use the Lord's name. This is a Christian Mystery. It is good to hear Mey and her friends so easily and openly speak of prayer.
Dead as Donut by Cynthia Hickey A poisoned chocolate donut might have caused the death of Bruce Whitton. A fishing tournament on Saturday is the perfect time to snoop. Angel Stirling cannot wait to get some questions answered. After all, it is her pink pretty boxed donuts that are under suspicion. I have eaten two donuts, chocolate glazed and lemon, while reading this delicious mystery. Should I repent? I do not think so. Besides, I really feel badly about that fishing hook in Jack's thumb. Plus, I am worried about the pet cat in Bruce Whitton's house. Angel ? Why the name Angel? Guess.
Lethal Spuds by Linda Baten Johnson Shanice Williams is the owner of the Spudmobile. Her life changes pretty quickly. It happens after Lyman Ernst behavior changes.Of course, this will affect Tater, Lyman's best friend. It is so strange to learn that Lyman Ernst is going around complaining about the taters sold from the Spudmobile. All of a sudden he loses his nice guy image. Pretty soon Shanice Williams' nursing skills are needed unexpectedly and immediately. She is prepared. She has worked in the ICU of a hospital. She went through the hard experience of seeing her mother die there. Shanice is taking a break from the hospital. However, the break is anything but a break. Anywa Lyman Ernst has led quite a life. He is one of the men who willingly sacrificed his time and life in Vietnam. It seems trouble and sorrow are in Maine to stay. There is a beautiful description of the church and the singing of "Blessed Assurance." All is not lost in this inspiring Christian Mystery.
Taco Tragedy by Teresa Ives Lilly After Abuelita went home to Heaven, Marissa, her granddaughter, took over Crunchy Taco. Marissa and her brother, Jose, only have each other. The business is doing well. Marissa only wishes her helper, Elena, were friendlier. Marissa keeps an upbeat attitude by doing her devotionals, singing praise songs and praying over difficulties. Jose's hero at the moment is Sherlock Holmes. He watches the movies. Meanwhile Marissa is dealing with hateful people. More hate than love is stirring through the air. You will not want to put this story down. It burns with excitement and always praiseworthy words.
When someone hurts you and refuses to face the fact that they are shamelessly cruel, how is it possible to get rid of them? This is the problem facing Mey. Paul, an ex boyfriend has followed her to Maine from Texas. He has the nerve to use the Lord's name. This is a Christian Mystery. It is good to hear Mey and her friends so easily and openly speak of prayer.
Dead as Donut by Cynthia Hickey A poisoned chocolate donut might have caused the death of Bruce Whitton. A fishing tournament on Saturday is the perfect time to snoop. Angel Stirling cannot wait to get some questions answered. After all, it is her pink pretty boxed donuts that are under suspicion. I have eaten two donuts, chocolate glazed and lemon, while reading this delicious mystery. Should I repent? I do not think so. Besides, I really feel badly about that fishing hook in Jack's thumb. Plus, I am worried about the pet cat in Bruce Whitton's house. Angel ? Why the name Angel? Guess.
Lethal Spuds by Linda Baten Johnson Shanice Williams is the owner of the Spudmobile. Her life changes pretty quickly. It happens after Lyman Ernst behavior changes.Of course, this will affect Tater, Lyman's best friend. It is so strange to learn that Lyman Ernst is going around complaining about the taters sold from the Spudmobile. All of a sudden he loses his nice guy image. Pretty soon Shanice Williams' nursing skills are needed unexpectedly and immediately. She is prepared. She has worked in the ICU of a hospital. She went through the hard experience of seeing her mother die there. Shanice is taking a break from the hospital. However, the break is anything but a break. Anywa Lyman Ernst has led quite a life. He is one of the men who willingly sacrificed his time and life in Vietnam. It seems trouble and sorrow are in Maine to stay. There is a beautiful description of the church and the singing of "Blessed Assurance." All is not lost in this inspiring Christian Mystery.
Taco Tragedy by Teresa Ives Lilly After Abuelita went home to Heaven, Marissa, her granddaughter, took over Crunchy Taco. Marissa and her brother, Jose, only have each other. The business is doing well. Marissa only wishes her helper, Elena, were friendlier. Marissa keeps an upbeat attitude by doing her devotionals, singing praise songs and praying over difficulties. Jose's hero at the moment is Sherlock Holmes. He watches the movies. Meanwhile Marissa is dealing with hateful people. More hate than love is stirring through the air. You will not want to put this story down. It burns with excitement and always praiseworthy words.
April 27, 2023
This is a book with four intriguing stories surrounding four different food trucks in Birch Tree, Maine, where four suspicious murders have occurred, all related to a food truck.
Lucky Noodles was Mey’s new start in a new city and state. She moved from Texas to get away from her abusive boyfriend. She and her best friend Mei are doing a great business with their delicious Japanese food until the former boyfriend tracks her down and the very next day he is found dead right outside their food truck. Mey is the obvious suspect.
Dream Donuts is most popular in the morning and doing a great business as the long line of customers line up to get the best homemade donuts around. Angel partnered with her Grandma Ida and their great reputation for homemade donuts is suddenly questioned when it seems some are laced with hemlock, resulting in the death of a customer, found laying on the ground behind the truck.
Spudmobile is a former school bus that Tater, Shanice’s grandpa converted to a food truck. It is painted green with several pictures of baked potatoes displayed on the outside. Shanice took over the food truck from her grandpa which continued to thrive until a take-out order was delivered to a local garage that somehow had enough crushed sleeping pills to send someone into eternal sleep, which it did.
Crunchy Taco is well known for their secret sauce and has a thriving business, despite competition. Holy Guacamole tacos, with the favored sauce, are a favorite among the judges when there is a competition among the other vendors. The most recent competition left one judge dead with the suspicion that it was the beloved secret sauce that was poisoned.
Each one of these stories captured my attention right at the beginning. The characters are all relatable and their love their trust in God is heartwarming. Appropriate scriptures to the circumstances are used throughout each story.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
Lucky Noodles was Mey’s new start in a new city and state. She moved from Texas to get away from her abusive boyfriend. She and her best friend Mei are doing a great business with their delicious Japanese food until the former boyfriend tracks her down and the very next day he is found dead right outside their food truck. Mey is the obvious suspect.
Dream Donuts is most popular in the morning and doing a great business as the long line of customers line up to get the best homemade donuts around. Angel partnered with her Grandma Ida and their great reputation for homemade donuts is suddenly questioned when it seems some are laced with hemlock, resulting in the death of a customer, found laying on the ground behind the truck.
Spudmobile is a former school bus that Tater, Shanice’s grandpa converted to a food truck. It is painted green with several pictures of baked potatoes displayed on the outside. Shanice took over the food truck from her grandpa which continued to thrive until a take-out order was delivered to a local garage that somehow had enough crushed sleeping pills to send someone into eternal sleep, which it did.
Crunchy Taco is well known for their secret sauce and has a thriving business, despite competition. Holy Guacamole tacos, with the favored sauce, are a favorite among the judges when there is a competition among the other vendors. The most recent competition left one judge dead with the suspicion that it was the beloved secret sauce that was poisoned.
Each one of these stories captured my attention right at the beginning. The characters are all relatable and their love their trust in God is heartwarming. Appropriate scriptures to the circumstances are used throughout each story.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
July 24, 2023
Birch Point Lake Park is the perfect place in Maine to enjoy your favorite food truck and a day playing in the sun. Unfortunately, a rash of murders overwhelm the beloved trucks upending the lives of families now desperately determined to clear their names while clinging to their faith.
Death by Food Truck mixes, bakes, and serves four faith-based cozy mysteries as the perfect palate cleanser for your next night curled on the couch.
In “Un-lucky Noodles”, Mei and her best friend Wei have poured their lives into their popular food truck, slowly rebuilding after Mei runs away from an abusive relationship. But suddenly her ex turns up threatening to bring her world down one more time.
In “Dead as Donut”, Angel, with the support of her grandmother Ida, has finally opened the donut truck of her dreams. Her sugary sweet concoctions are popular with the construction crews until one of their own turns up dead behind her truck.
In “Lethal Spuds”, Shanice is helping her grandfather run the Spudmobile for the summer when accusations of poisoning abound from an unlikely source.
Finally, in “Taco Tragedy”, Marissa is dreaming of expanding her award-winning fare to a lakefront building when a food judge mysteriously chokes in front of her truck.
Death by Food Truck is a predictable, diverse cozy mystery collection that brings humor and grace to each story. They are reminders of faith through trials and God’s overarching love and forgiveness.
“Un-lucky Noodles” may contain triggers for those with a history of emotional and/or physical abuse. “Lethal Spuds” may contain triggers for war refugees or members of the military, particularly from the Vietnam era.
I enjoyed each one of these easy, quick reads perfectly suited for my bedtime routine. I highly recommend it for young adult and adult readers who enjoy faith based books or cozy mysteries. These stories would make an enjoyable adult book club discussion or teaching moments for young adults.
Death by Food Truck mixes, bakes, and serves four faith-based cozy mysteries as the perfect palate cleanser for your next night curled on the couch.
In “Un-lucky Noodles”, Mei and her best friend Wei have poured their lives into their popular food truck, slowly rebuilding after Mei runs away from an abusive relationship. But suddenly her ex turns up threatening to bring her world down one more time.
In “Dead as Donut”, Angel, with the support of her grandmother Ida, has finally opened the donut truck of her dreams. Her sugary sweet concoctions are popular with the construction crews until one of their own turns up dead behind her truck.
In “Lethal Spuds”, Shanice is helping her grandfather run the Spudmobile for the summer when accusations of poisoning abound from an unlikely source.
Finally, in “Taco Tragedy”, Marissa is dreaming of expanding her award-winning fare to a lakefront building when a food judge mysteriously chokes in front of her truck.
Death by Food Truck is a predictable, diverse cozy mystery collection that brings humor and grace to each story. They are reminders of faith through trials and God’s overarching love and forgiveness.
“Un-lucky Noodles” may contain triggers for those with a history of emotional and/or physical abuse. “Lethal Spuds” may contain triggers for war refugees or members of the military, particularly from the Vietnam era.
I enjoyed each one of these easy, quick reads perfectly suited for my bedtime routine. I highly recommend it for young adult and adult readers who enjoy faith based books or cozy mysteries. These stories would make an enjoyable adult book club discussion or teaching moments for young adults.
September 7, 2023
I will be rating the books separately
Unlucky noodles , 2 stars
When i first tried to read this short story, i quit after less than 5 pages because of the number of times God was mentioned in those first few pages. This threw me off. I do support religion and religious people, everyone should do and believe what they want. However, this was quite a lot to start with in the book. I later went back to give the story another chance and read through it. I think the fact that the other stories also slightly mentioned religion, helped me ease into this one. I do like the general story line, however, the religion felt more like the main storyline than the side story. The mystery however was good!
Dead as donut, 4 stars
I really liked this story, the mystery in this one was super exciting, and surprising. I also really liked the characters, and the romance was also really cute. I also really love when main characters do their own detective work.
Lethal spuds, 4 stars
This story was also really fun, and the mystery was again quite surprising, although i figured this one out a bit sooner than dead as donut. The part i thought was especially well worked out was the not knowing who to trust really because anyone could have done it. I did really like the characters, and i adored tater and helen.
Taco tragedy, 4 stars
I did enjoy this story most out of all of them when i think back. I really liked the main characters and the story line was really good as well. However, i do think that the mystery wasnt very difficult to solve. I knew who the killer was and how they did it before anyone even died. I originally planned to give this 3 stars but i really enjoyed it too much for that!
This places the collection book at a 3.5!
Thank you to netgalley and the authors for sending me this arc in exchange for an honest review
Unlucky noodles , 2 stars
When i first tried to read this short story, i quit after less than 5 pages because of the number of times God was mentioned in those first few pages. This threw me off. I do support religion and religious people, everyone should do and believe what they want. However, this was quite a lot to start with in the book. I later went back to give the story another chance and read through it. I think the fact that the other stories also slightly mentioned religion, helped me ease into this one. I do like the general story line, however, the religion felt more like the main storyline than the side story. The mystery however was good!
Dead as donut, 4 stars
I really liked this story, the mystery in this one was super exciting, and surprising. I also really liked the characters, and the romance was also really cute. I also really love when main characters do their own detective work.
Lethal spuds, 4 stars
This story was also really fun, and the mystery was again quite surprising, although i figured this one out a bit sooner than dead as donut. The part i thought was especially well worked out was the not knowing who to trust really because anyone could have done it. I did really like the characters, and i adored tater and helen.
Taco tragedy, 4 stars
I did enjoy this story most out of all of them when i think back. I really liked the main characters and the story line was really good as well. However, i do think that the mystery wasnt very difficult to solve. I knew who the killer was and how they did it before anyone even died. I originally planned to give this 3 stars but i really enjoyed it too much for that!
This places the collection book at a 3.5!
Thank you to netgalley and the authors for sending me this arc in exchange for an honest review
June 16, 2023
Many thanks to the authors, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced read. These are my honest thoughts:
If you are a fan of cozy mysteries, faith-based characters, and simple reads, these stories are for you.
At Birch Point Lake Park, food trucks service the wholesome community. But suddenly, a string of mysterious murders plagues the once revered food trucks. Each story focuses on a different food truck that is somehow linked to a recent murder:
- Mei thought she had escaped her abusive ex, only for him to track her down. After agreeing to meet him, he's suddenly found dead, slumped over a picnic table.
- Angel's donut truck was doing incredibly well, until a construction worker was found dead, with one of her donuts in his hands.
- Shanice was helping out with her grandpa's potato truck when rumors of illness stemming from the food began to circulate. It's only coincidence that the man that started the rumors, her grandpa's best friend, was found dead and her grandfather is nowhere to be found, right?
- Lastly, Marisol's taco truck has won best in show in a food competition, for the last four years. But this year, not only did Marisol lose her win, but her food also poisoned and killed one of the judges.
As mentioned, the stories are quick, simple reads. I was not aware there was a faith angle to these stories, but it was not overbearing, and it added to the depth of the characters. I do wish the stories could have fleshed out a bit more. And the endings were predictable. But they were fun and entertaining. I definitely recommend for anyone that prefers weekend thrillers.
If you are a fan of cozy mysteries, faith-based characters, and simple reads, these stories are for you.
At Birch Point Lake Park, food trucks service the wholesome community. But suddenly, a string of mysterious murders plagues the once revered food trucks. Each story focuses on a different food truck that is somehow linked to a recent murder:
- Mei thought she had escaped her abusive ex, only for him to track her down. After agreeing to meet him, he's suddenly found dead, slumped over a picnic table.
- Angel's donut truck was doing incredibly well, until a construction worker was found dead, with one of her donuts in his hands.
- Shanice was helping out with her grandpa's potato truck when rumors of illness stemming from the food began to circulate. It's only coincidence that the man that started the rumors, her grandpa's best friend, was found dead and her grandfather is nowhere to be found, right?
- Lastly, Marisol's taco truck has won best in show in a food competition, for the last four years. But this year, not only did Marisol lose her win, but her food also poisoned and killed one of the judges.
As mentioned, the stories are quick, simple reads. I was not aware there was a faith angle to these stories, but it was not overbearing, and it added to the depth of the characters. I do wish the stories could have fleshed out a bit more. And the endings were predictable. But they were fun and entertaining. I definitely recommend for anyone that prefers weekend thrillers.
July 3, 2023
Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for this ARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
🍩🥔🌮🍜
This book is a collection of four cozy mysteries written by different authors and consists of different main characters. All of the Novellas are set in Birch Lake, Maine. The reason I requested this book was because it consists of two of my favorite things; food(I love reading about food) and amateur sleuths.
🥔🌮🍜🍩
The only change I could have made was that I wanted the characters to be featured in all of the novellas, their lives should be intertwined. The only thing that featured was just the names of the food trucks, and the owners didn't know themselves.
🍜🍜
I liked UNLUCKY NOODLES(3.5 stars), it was okay. Although it was short, there was a lot of meaningful lessons I learned. I also liked Mey's support system.
🍩🍩
DEAD AS DONUTS(2 stars) was my least favorite. It was slow even though it was a novella, I just couldn't connect with any of the characters.
🥔🥔
When I started LETHAL SPUDS(4 stars), it was kinda boring, but after the first few chapters, I started enjoying it, and it was very good. I loved the aspect of the Vietnamese war and its complications. I liked all of the characters
🌮🌮
My favorite is TRAGEDY TACOS(4.5 stars), it was the best! I got the hang of the novella very fast, and I wasn't bored at all. I read it in one sitting
🍩🥔🌮🍜
This book is a collection of four cozy mysteries written by different authors and consists of different main characters. All of the Novellas are set in Birch Lake, Maine. The reason I requested this book was because it consists of two of my favorite things; food(I love reading about food) and amateur sleuths.
🥔🌮🍜🍩
The only change I could have made was that I wanted the characters to be featured in all of the novellas, their lives should be intertwined. The only thing that featured was just the names of the food trucks, and the owners didn't know themselves.
🍜🍜
I liked UNLUCKY NOODLES(3.5 stars), it was okay. Although it was short, there was a lot of meaningful lessons I learned. I also liked Mey's support system.
🍩🍩
DEAD AS DONUTS(2 stars) was my least favorite. It was slow even though it was a novella, I just couldn't connect with any of the characters.
🥔🥔
When I started LETHAL SPUDS(4 stars), it was kinda boring, but after the first few chapters, I started enjoying it, and it was very good. I loved the aspect of the Vietnamese war and its complications. I liked all of the characters
🌮🌮
My favorite is TRAGEDY TACOS(4.5 stars), it was the best! I got the hang of the novella very fast, and I wasn't bored at all. I read it in one sitting
May 13, 2023
Death by Food Truck is a collection of related Christian mysteries concerning 4 separate food trucks in Birch Tree, Maine. Each story is separate with the characters knowing the other food truck owners.
The four books in this collection are:
Un-Lucky Noodles by Joi Copeland
Dead as Donut by Cynthia Hickey
Lethal Spuds by Linda Baten Johnson
Taco Tragedy by Teresa Ives Lilly
As a total review, I found theses stories okay. Some held my interest more than others and the first really pushed the religious aspect. I don’t need it in my face the entire story.
Un-Lucky Noodle deals with domestic abuse, relocation, and starting over. This story is the most religious based of the four. I could feel for Mey and feel her terror when Paul appeared at her food truck a year after she had Texas.
I found Lethal Spuds by Linda Baten Johnson the most compelling read. It deals with lifelong friends, loyalty to each other and community, depression, and healthcare professions having a hard time dealing with the last few years in that industry. I loved the sense of community in the town of Birch Tree. The author did a great job incorporating the issues in a mystery. I loved the twist we learn near the end. Bravo to a well written story.
I was given an advanced readers' copy and am not required to leave a positive review.
The four books in this collection are:
Un-Lucky Noodles by Joi Copeland
Dead as Donut by Cynthia Hickey
Lethal Spuds by Linda Baten Johnson
Taco Tragedy by Teresa Ives Lilly
As a total review, I found theses stories okay. Some held my interest more than others and the first really pushed the religious aspect. I don’t need it in my face the entire story.
Un-Lucky Noodle deals with domestic abuse, relocation, and starting over. This story is the most religious based of the four. I could feel for Mey and feel her terror when Paul appeared at her food truck a year after she had Texas.
I found Lethal Spuds by Linda Baten Johnson the most compelling read. It deals with lifelong friends, loyalty to each other and community, depression, and healthcare professions having a hard time dealing with the last few years in that industry. I loved the sense of community in the town of Birch Tree. The author did a great job incorporating the issues in a mystery. I loved the twist we learn near the end. Bravo to a well written story.
I was given an advanced readers' copy and am not required to leave a positive review.
September 18, 2023
Overall I enjoyed the cozy mystery aspect to these mysteries. I am not a Christian (I'm a Catholic); but Christian fiction has generally been a calming genre for me. They are slower and gentler stores - I loved the idea of pushing into a cozy mystery nook. It allowed for the exploration of community, forgiveness and God's larger plan a way to play out organically.
The last 3 stories were fabulous for cozies with a good Christian aspect that was present but not overwhelming - a great way to increase people to the genre.
It was the first story (Joi Copeland) that put me off. And I think some people may be put off by it. The Christian aspect to the story was more mentioning "I'm Christian" and using the term "Christian" every page. The other stories incorporated it more elegantly with using the church, choir, bible verses or prayer within the story in ways that would occur. It alone brought my score from a 4/5 stars to 3/5 stars. It felt too overbearing and strong. While I expect that Christian fiction would be a main part of the story - it has to be a part of the story, woven in and utiliized in a way that builds the story. Hickey, Johnson and Lilly did this much more elegantly..
Thank you to Barbour Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy.
The last 3 stories were fabulous for cozies with a good Christian aspect that was present but not overwhelming - a great way to increase people to the genre.
It was the first story (Joi Copeland) that put me off. And I think some people may be put off by it. The Christian aspect to the story was more mentioning "I'm Christian" and using the term "Christian" every page. The other stories incorporated it more elegantly with using the church, choir, bible verses or prayer within the story in ways that would occur. It alone brought my score from a 4/5 stars to 3/5 stars. It felt too overbearing and strong. While I expect that Christian fiction would be a main part of the story - it has to be a part of the story, woven in and utiliized in a way that builds the story. Hickey, Johnson and Lilly did this much more elegantly..
Thank you to Barbour Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy.
July 2, 2023
This is a good collection of novella length cozy mysteries centered around four food trucks. Each novella involves a murder that must be solved by the food truck owner to keep from being arrested. It was interesting to read how each amateur sleuth worked to ultimately identify the villain. I was a little surprised that one of them did some illegal acts. That just didn't feel right.
It is sometimes the case with fiction collections that the quality of the writing varies greatly. These authors were consistent in their good quality of writing. Characters were crafted well as were the plots. There is a good faith message in each one but not overwhelming. Two of the food trucks are ethnic (Asian, Mexican) and I would have liked to know a bit more about the food such as spices or unique ingredients.
Reading a collection of novellas like this one is a good way to be introduced to new authors. Each of these authors writes well enough that I will be looking for full length novels by them.
I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.
It is sometimes the case with fiction collections that the quality of the writing varies greatly. These authors were consistent in their good quality of writing. Characters were crafted well as were the plots. There is a good faith message in each one but not overwhelming. Two of the food trucks are ethnic (Asian, Mexican) and I would have liked to know a bit more about the food such as spices or unique ingredients.
Reading a collection of novellas like this one is a good way to be introduced to new authors. Each of these authors writes well enough that I will be looking for full length novels by them.
I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.
July 3, 2023
A fun, fast-paced collection of mysteries set in the small town of Birch Tree, Maine. The food truck court near a peaceful lake is the host to four suspicious deaths, pointing the finger at the truck owners. Amateur sleuths find the truth out with some antics and mishaps along the way.
The stories were easy to read, with some bits of humor, faith and a hint of romance. The heroines bravely face their fears, using Scripture and prayer to bolster their courage, with the help of loyal friends. I liked the cultural aspects to the stories, especially the last one, with Marissa and her brother Jose. The side characters added a bit of spark to some, like the grandma's garden club who helped to solve the mystery in one tale. The sad backstory of overcoming abuse in the first story may be helpful for someone facing that.
Readers who enjoy a lighter mystery with faith may enjoy this book. It would be a good beach read.
(An ebook was provided by the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.)
The stories were easy to read, with some bits of humor, faith and a hint of romance. The heroines bravely face their fears, using Scripture and prayer to bolster their courage, with the help of loyal friends. I liked the cultural aspects to the stories, especially the last one, with Marissa and her brother Jose. The side characters added a bit of spark to some, like the grandma's garden club who helped to solve the mystery in one tale. The sad backstory of overcoming abuse in the first story may be helpful for someone facing that.
Readers who enjoy a lighter mystery with faith may enjoy this book. It would be a good beach read.
(An ebook was provided by the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.)
June 18, 2025
This flavorful little collection of culinary cozy mysteries serves up four bite-sized tales of sabotage, sass, and savory scandal. From noodles to donuts, tacos to tots, every story has its own spice level—but they all share one thing in common: someone’s using food trucks as a front for foul play. Rude.
Each heroine brings her own flavor to the table: Mey's got noodles and drama (extra spicy ex included), Angel’s slinging donuts and dodging rumors, Shanice is out here trying to honor Grandpa and ends up fending off cranky customers, and Marisol? She’s got tacos and trouble on the menu.
Are these trucks cursed, or is someone out there hungry for more than just a snack?
This collection is a fun, fast-paced read—perfect with a cozy blanket and snacks (seriously, bring snacks). The mysteries are light, the stakes are just high enough to keep you flipping pages, and the characters? Delightfully quirky. Think murder with a side of sass and sweet tea.
Each heroine brings her own flavor to the table: Mey's got noodles and drama (extra spicy ex included), Angel’s slinging donuts and dodging rumors, Shanice is out here trying to honor Grandpa and ends up fending off cranky customers, and Marisol? She’s got tacos and trouble on the menu.
Are these trucks cursed, or is someone out there hungry for more than just a snack?
This collection is a fun, fast-paced read—perfect with a cozy blanket and snacks (seriously, bring snacks). The mysteries are light, the stakes are just high enough to keep you flipping pages, and the characters? Delightfully quirky. Think murder with a side of sass and sweet tea.
April 7, 2023
Mey fled Texas and her abusive ex-boyfriend, Paul for Maine where she started her food truck business, Lucky Noodles 🍜 with her best friend, Wei.
Somehow, Paul manages to track Mey down and tries to talk her into moving back to Texas with him. But she refuses. He then insists they meet at the lake near her food truck 🛻 the next day. Mey eventually relents.
But when Mey shows up at the lake, Paul isn’t there. She then heads back to her food truck where she learns from a policeman that Paul was found slumped over one of the tables reserved for her customers just right outside her food truck.
A collection of four cozy culinarily mysteries. The characters are engaging and the storyline kept me guessing. Would recommend this fun read.
Thank you to the authors, NetGalley and Barbour Publishing – Barbour Fiction for the arc of this book
Somehow, Paul manages to track Mey down and tries to talk her into moving back to Texas with him. But she refuses. He then insists they meet at the lake near her food truck 🛻 the next day. Mey eventually relents.
But when Mey shows up at the lake, Paul isn’t there. She then heads back to her food truck where she learns from a policeman that Paul was found slumped over one of the tables reserved for her customers just right outside her food truck.
A collection of four cozy culinarily mysteries. The characters are engaging and the storyline kept me guessing. Would recommend this fun read.
Thank you to the authors, NetGalley and Barbour Publishing – Barbour Fiction for the arc of this book
May 29, 2023
The mysteries were engaging, but felt like they were also trying to sell me on Christianity. I love spirituality, many different forms of it ,and it’s a popular genre for me. This book was like an infomercial for evangelical Christianity. It was overkill and distracted me from the excellent writing of the actual stories. This is my personal opinion, but at the same time if the Christian faith is important to you or you’re curious, I would definitely recommend this book. Four starts because as I said the book was excellent, but I don’t feel there was enough of a disclaimer as to how indoctrinating the religious piece was. It’s an excellent concept though for Christian’s. I saw it listed on a couple Christian book websites and I gage no doubt it will be a huge hit with their audience. Also, have to add I LOVED the setting.
July 4, 2023
4 short cozy christian stories all set in the same food truck court. It's hard to give a review on a collection of stories as you always like one more than the others. All books were connected to each other by mention of each other's food trucks and a couple of name drops here and there however each book seemed like there had never been another murder with the food trucks. You would expect that by the 3rd or 4th murder there would be mentions of previous crime in the direct vicinity.
Overcoming that. I enjoyed that each books main characters were completely different to each other except the common theme of them all being Christians. They were easy to read and enjoyable. I would have liked them to be a bit more gutsy and not so easy to figure out. I would definitely recommend especially if your in search if a short quick read.
Overcoming that. I enjoyed that each books main characters were completely different to each other except the common theme of them all being Christians. They were easy to read and enjoyable. I would have liked them to be a bit more gutsy and not so easy to figure out. I would definitely recommend especially if your in search if a short quick read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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