Lori C. (dollycas) reviewed A Clue in the Crumbs (Key West Food Critic, Bk 13) on + 648 more book reviews
Dollycas's Thoughts
Violet and Bettina Booth, aka the Scottish Scone Sisters, have come to Key West to visit Hayley and Miss Gloria and to host the UK Bakes!âKey West Edition. Due to a fire at the B&B where they were supposed to stay the sisters end up staying on Miss Gloria's houseboat, right next door to Hayley.
They all arrive on the set where the cooking show will be filmed to meet the three local bakers. One is Rayna, she and her husband own the B&B that had the fire. The other contestants are Harry Sweeting and Martina Bevis. Rayna's husband storms the set to get Rayna to drop out and come home and the next night he is found dead with evidence that lands Scottish Scone Sisters at the top of the suspect list.
Do the sisters have a recipe to get them out of trouble? While UK Bakes!âKey West Edition continues, Violet, Bettina, Gloria, and Hayley keep their eyes peeled for any clues. They report everything they learn to Haley's police detective husband, Nathan, but the murderer is right on their tail. Can the killer be caught or will UK Bakes! lose its hosts and two of its biggest fans?
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These characters are so much fun. I love the relationship that Miss Gloria and Hayley have, it feels so real and true to life. Hayley and Nathan's relationship is so comfortable. Nathan is so patient and kind with Miss Gloria and in this story with Bettina, and Violet. Having Hayley's mom and Sam nearby enables them to participate in everything Hayley gets wrapped up in. I also like Lorenzo, Hayley's Tarot Card reading friend. Sometimes he is very involved in the story, sometimes she only visits him once. This time he was actually invited to dinner on her houseboat and that let him know and us readers too how important he is to Hayley. I loved that Bettina and Violet were able to visit Key West, they are just so much fun. Miss Burdette has created such strong characters and they continue to grow and be relevant. That is not easy to do in a long-running series.
The author has put forth a complicated mystery starting first with the fire that was clearly arson, then the murder which led to other events, including a missing agent. All kept the pages turning quickly. It is always fun when Miss Gloria tags along with Hayley in a quest to get answers but adding the Scone Sisters was marvelous. They were up for everything and anything and took to snooping like pros. Ms. Burdette threw some nice twists to shake things up and misdirect. I had discounted the actual guilty party completely. The exciting showdown and reveal surprised me. And what a showdown it was!
As always Ms. Burdette's descriptive style sets each scene wonderfully. I was able to visualize every place from Williams Hall where the baking show was filmed to Miss Gloria's and Hayley's houseboats to all the places around Key West where the characters traveled. She also had me drooling over the food descriptions too. Yes, there are recipes at the back of the book. It was like a little virtual vacation.
A Crumb in the Clues was such an entertaining read! Fabulous characters and a divinely plotted mystery with plenty of humor make it A Perfect Escape. I hope this isn't the last we see of Betina and Violet. Until next year, Ms. Burdette. I can hardly wait.
Violet and Bettina Booth, aka the Scottish Scone Sisters, have come to Key West to visit Hayley and Miss Gloria and to host the UK Bakes!âKey West Edition. Due to a fire at the B&B where they were supposed to stay the sisters end up staying on Miss Gloria's houseboat, right next door to Hayley.
They all arrive on the set where the cooking show will be filmed to meet the three local bakers. One is Rayna, she and her husband own the B&B that had the fire. The other contestants are Harry Sweeting and Martina Bevis. Rayna's husband storms the set to get Rayna to drop out and come home and the next night he is found dead with evidence that lands Scottish Scone Sisters at the top of the suspect list.
Do the sisters have a recipe to get them out of trouble? While UK Bakes!âKey West Edition continues, Violet, Bettina, Gloria, and Hayley keep their eyes peeled for any clues. They report everything they learn to Haley's police detective husband, Nathan, but the murderer is right on their tail. Can the killer be caught or will UK Bakes! lose its hosts and two of its biggest fans?
___
These characters are so much fun. I love the relationship that Miss Gloria and Hayley have, it feels so real and true to life. Hayley and Nathan's relationship is so comfortable. Nathan is so patient and kind with Miss Gloria and in this story with Bettina, and Violet. Having Hayley's mom and Sam nearby enables them to participate in everything Hayley gets wrapped up in. I also like Lorenzo, Hayley's Tarot Card reading friend. Sometimes he is very involved in the story, sometimes she only visits him once. This time he was actually invited to dinner on her houseboat and that let him know and us readers too how important he is to Hayley. I loved that Bettina and Violet were able to visit Key West, they are just so much fun. Miss Burdette has created such strong characters and they continue to grow and be relevant. That is not easy to do in a long-running series.
The author has put forth a complicated mystery starting first with the fire that was clearly arson, then the murder which led to other events, including a missing agent. All kept the pages turning quickly. It is always fun when Miss Gloria tags along with Hayley in a quest to get answers but adding the Scone Sisters was marvelous. They were up for everything and anything and took to snooping like pros. Ms. Burdette threw some nice twists to shake things up and misdirect. I had discounted the actual guilty party completely. The exciting showdown and reveal surprised me. And what a showdown it was!
As always Ms. Burdette's descriptive style sets each scene wonderfully. I was able to visualize every place from Williams Hall where the baking show was filmed to Miss Gloria's and Hayley's houseboats to all the places around Key West where the characters traveled. She also had me drooling over the food descriptions too. Yes, there are recipes at the back of the book. It was like a little virtual vacation.
A Crumb in the Clues was such an entertaining read! Fabulous characters and a divinely plotted mystery with plenty of humor make it A Perfect Escape. I hope this isn't the last we see of Betina and Violet. Until next year, Ms. Burdette. I can hardly wait.
