Finished 8-21-09, rating 4.5/5, mystery, pub. 2008
Book 1 in the Della Cooks Mysteries
I muttered ruefully, “So now I’m the ‘killer chocolate woman.’ “
NDM chuckled. “Worse nicknames have been pinned on me.”
I’m not surprised, I thought.
Chapter 8
Della Carmichael owns her own cooking school in Santa Monica and is the new host of her own cable cooking show. Her first show is being taped live with an audience and when she calls for a volunteer to try her Killer Mousse, Mimi, the woman she replaced jumps up, intending to humiliate her. Mimi takes one bite of the mousse and dies on live television.
Della is horrified, but the higher ups see a jump in viewership and they are less sympathetic. Della decides to do a little investigating since the police seem to be focused on her. With the help of a hunky reporter,and an old detective friend she manages to avoid being hurt by her snooping, but someone else is not as lucky.
I loved this book. My favorite thing? Della rocks. She is a 47 year old widower who is not afraid to tell the world her age even though everyone around her seems to think she should be hiding it. She has a standard poodle, Tuffy, and a cat who she names after a Jane Austen character (you’ll have to read it to find out which one!). She has good friends and a newly active romantic life. She is genuine and someone I would love to share some Killer Mousse with.
This book was warm an inviting with a great mystery and lots of good characters and suspects. And if you own a dog you might fel a little tug on your heartstrings. There are 10 yummy looking recipes included in the back of the book.
If you like mysteries, especially cozy ones, I think you’ll like this one. I was halfway through reading it and I emailed Melinda Wells (Linda Palmer) and asked her to stop by for one of my 9 in ’09 interviews. Not only will she be stopping by tomorrow, she will also be giving away this book to one lucky reader.
Stacy's Books 
Great review, Stacy. Della sounds like a wonderful character!
I was excited about the book just reading the first couple of paragraphs. I was thinking – I hope there is a recipe for the mousse and other goodies. And there is! Perfect. I look forward to her interview.
I was hooked as soon as I saw the dog on the cover. I do like cozy mysteries and this one sounds good because I think I could really relate to Della.
Hello!! Yeah, football season is quite interesting, but ever since we got together the RIGHT team has won all but the first year. 🙂 My dad is an OSU grad so we have season tickets and he unfortunately moved to the state up north after graduation, hence how I came to be married to a U of M fan. I will also be at the USC game! I am really excited!
Oh boy – that’s exactly what would happen if anyone ever tried my cooking. For the world’s safety I leave that up to Andy.
Sounds funny. It is so easy to visualize someone trying to show somebody else up and instead making an ass out of themselves, or in this case, a corpse.
The book sounds entertaining. I definitely want to read it. I look forward to the interview. Your blog is so much fun to read.
How cool Stacy!!! And the mystery sounds like a very fun read!!! I’m putting this down on my list of cozies that I would like to read this winter!!
What an interesting story! Cute title/cover too. I haven’t read anything by this author and would love to one day.
I love these types of mysteries. Sign me up for the giveaway. Thanks!
I love a cozy, food and dogs! Count me in for the giveaway!
I love mysteries, and I enjoy cooking shows. Great combination for what looks like a super novel.
I enjoyed this one a lot when I read it. Della is a great character.
It sounds like an interesting story. Thanks for the great review!
I love mysteries, especially cozy ones! Thanks for your awesome review!
I do own a dog and I love a good “tug at your heartstrings” story so I’m sure I would enjoy this book.
wandanamgreb (at) gmail (dot) com
Sounds like a fun read!
I adore cozy mysteries and this one sounds delightful! I like the fact the main character is in her 40s and she named her cat after an Austen character and likes food, what is not to love? I will be adding this one to my TBR and gift list.
My first love was mystery books and this sounds great, thanks for bringing this to my attention!
Great review! Mysteries are my favorite.
Good review and it certainly looks like a lot of fun! Loved the teaser.
Sassy dot Brit @ gmail dot com
Awesome review. Never heard of this series, I love a good mystery. Thanks for reviewing these books.
As a “mature” woman I love it when the story is about us.
Theresa N
weceno(at)yahoo(dot)com