Lori C. (dollycas) reviewed Coconut Drop Dead (Spice Isle Bakery Mysteries, 3) on + 649 more book reviews
Dollycas's Thoughts
The Murrays have been going to the Caribbean American Heritage Festival for years. This year with the opening of their Spice Isle Bakery they are excited to be one of the event's food vendors. Lyndsay Murray had the dream of working with her family and opening a bakery featuring West Indian foods. While they have had a few bumps along the way, they have built a solid following. She hopes the festival will bring even more customers their way.
The bakery's booth was busy and people were enjoying the live music until the lead singer of an up-and-coming reggae band had a fatal fall. Lyndsay's cousin Manny knew the singer and while the police think her death was an accident, he believes someone pushed her. After Lyndsay's success in solving other murders, he asks her to help find the person responsible for his friend's death. She knows Detective Bryce Jackson won't be happy with her butting into his case but she believes he isn't taking her concerns seriously, so she has no choice but to do some investigating on her own. The killer isn't going to be happy she is investigating either.
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You can't help but get behind the Murray family. They are a close family who come together every day to realize Lyndsay's dream. Her parents and grandmother do most of the baking but Lyndsay's baking skills are improving under her grandmother's tutelage. When not in the kitchen Granny holds court at a table between the kitchen and the customer area of the restaurant. Her brother Dev, has left his stressful law career for now to help at the bakery. Everyone, in this family, is dedicated to their heritage and just plain nice and willing to help anyone.
We are getting to know Detective Detective Bryce Jackson and Detective Stanley Milner better as well. Lyndsay had a crush on Bryce in high school and now he seems interested in her but with him putting her and her family on his suspect list whenever there is a murder her brain has no desire to date the man. Her heart may be a different story. I am so pleased by the way these characters continue to develop in realistic ways.
I enjoyed that the theme of this story is the Caribbean American Heritage Festival. I love learning about different cultures and their traditions. The Murray family is immersed in their culture and shares their love of their Grenadian roots through their food and the music played at the bakery. The descriptions of the food will truly make your mouth water and the music can be uplifting. Two pudding recipes can be found at the end of the book.
I was really surprised that Bryce asked for Lyndsay's help with the case. He has finally realized that people in her community would open up to her better than talking to the "bo-bo". Plus he knows she is not going to stop investigating and the best thing would be working together. Lyndsay accompanying Bryce when he interviewed persons of interest and suspects was a nice twist. She asked great questions and picked up on things he may have missed.
I did have my own lists of suspects and enjoyed following along with Lyndsay as she worked through all the clues. I can happily report that I had the correct person at the top and wasn't exactly surprised by the killer's justification of their crime. They hurt a lot of people and need to be locked up and are in need of counseling too. I really enjoyed the takedown and the way the case was discussed to tie up any loose ends. I loved the final paragraphs as well. I can't wait for the next Spice Isle Bakery Mystery.
Coconut Drop Dead is a top-notch addition to this series. The core characters are so genuine and draw readers into this story and their lives so easily. I am invested in them and excited to see what Ms. Matthews has planned for them next. I highly recommend all three books in this series.
The Murrays have been going to the Caribbean American Heritage Festival for years. This year with the opening of their Spice Isle Bakery they are excited to be one of the event's food vendors. Lyndsay Murray had the dream of working with her family and opening a bakery featuring West Indian foods. While they have had a few bumps along the way, they have built a solid following. She hopes the festival will bring even more customers their way.
The bakery's booth was busy and people were enjoying the live music until the lead singer of an up-and-coming reggae band had a fatal fall. Lyndsay's cousin Manny knew the singer and while the police think her death was an accident, he believes someone pushed her. After Lyndsay's success in solving other murders, he asks her to help find the person responsible for his friend's death. She knows Detective Bryce Jackson won't be happy with her butting into his case but she believes he isn't taking her concerns seriously, so she has no choice but to do some investigating on her own. The killer isn't going to be happy she is investigating either.
_____
You can't help but get behind the Murray family. They are a close family who come together every day to realize Lyndsay's dream. Her parents and grandmother do most of the baking but Lyndsay's baking skills are improving under her grandmother's tutelage. When not in the kitchen Granny holds court at a table between the kitchen and the customer area of the restaurant. Her brother Dev, has left his stressful law career for now to help at the bakery. Everyone, in this family, is dedicated to their heritage and just plain nice and willing to help anyone.
We are getting to know Detective Detective Bryce Jackson and Detective Stanley Milner better as well. Lyndsay had a crush on Bryce in high school and now he seems interested in her but with him putting her and her family on his suspect list whenever there is a murder her brain has no desire to date the man. Her heart may be a different story. I am so pleased by the way these characters continue to develop in realistic ways.
I enjoyed that the theme of this story is the Caribbean American Heritage Festival. I love learning about different cultures and their traditions. The Murray family is immersed in their culture and shares their love of their Grenadian roots through their food and the music played at the bakery. The descriptions of the food will truly make your mouth water and the music can be uplifting. Two pudding recipes can be found at the end of the book.
I was really surprised that Bryce asked for Lyndsay's help with the case. He has finally realized that people in her community would open up to her better than talking to the "bo-bo". Plus he knows she is not going to stop investigating and the best thing would be working together. Lyndsay accompanying Bryce when he interviewed persons of interest and suspects was a nice twist. She asked great questions and picked up on things he may have missed.
I did have my own lists of suspects and enjoyed following along with Lyndsay as she worked through all the clues. I can happily report that I had the correct person at the top and wasn't exactly surprised by the killer's justification of their crime. They hurt a lot of people and need to be locked up and are in need of counseling too. I really enjoyed the takedown and the way the case was discussed to tie up any loose ends. I loved the final paragraphs as well. I can't wait for the next Spice Isle Bakery Mystery.
Coconut Drop Dead is a top-notch addition to this series. The core characters are so genuine and draw readers into this story and their lives so easily. I am invested in them and excited to see what Ms. Matthews has planned for them next. I highly recommend all three books in this series.
