Chocolate Quake

If you are looking for a serious mystery, this is not one. However if you are looking for something light then this would be it. It was funny to have your MIL arrested, but the way the son acted like he didn't care drove me insane. The husband/wife did not have a good relationship and that bothered me too. I did however like the PI and their adventures. I was disappointed in the battering wife theme going on too. I am not going to comment on that topic, but I am not sure it should be in a fiction book either of this sort. Especially when Mr Faulk is confronted and then they just leave her? Again, this was an entertaining book. However, like I think most fiction isn't to be taken seriously, this sure isn't either! Have fun with it!

Carolyn and Jason Blue are off to San Francisco. Jason will be attending a conference on environmental chemistry and toxicology in their hotel the Stanford Court. Carolyn calls her mother-in-law only to get a message on her answering machine that she has been arrested for first-degree murder. At first Jason doesn't believe her, but then he hears the message too. Since Jason is tied up in his conference, Carolyn goes to visit her. Vera Blue, her mother-in-law, tells her not to investigate. She says the police will figure out their mistake. Once Carolyn meets with Vera's lawyer Margaret Hanrahan and Inspector Harry Yu, she realizes she'd better start looking into things because no one else is. The police feel they have the murderer. Carolyn and Jason move over to Vera's sublet so that it will be easier for Vera to get messages to them. In the process, Carolyn meets Bruno Valetti who lives on the second floor. He is totally smitten with Vera and ends up helping Carolyn with part of her investigation.Jason contacts his dad, Vera's ex-husband, and he flies into town and hires private detective Sam Flamboise, a gay former football player turned private eye. Sam and Carolyn do a lot of the detecting together. There are so many potential suspects. They quite often end up in seedy locations. Plus Jason is not too excited to find out they have been riding on Sam's motorcycle.This was the first book I've read in this series. I like Carolyn a lot. This was a very enjoyable story. I thought she blended some great characters together and I found the story to be quite believable.My only frustration was with the fact that a chapter can be written from a different character's perspective. She lists at the beginning of each chapter who is speaking, but I read in small bursts and found myself forgetting who was talking. I can see in other books (I've since read another in this series) this really helps the story. I just didn't find it as helpful in this one. I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading more in this series.

The Carolyn Blue culinary-travelogue mysteries are, I'll admit, one of my favourites. And while the multiple point-of view narratives were unnecessary, in my opinion, and a bit distracting, (in "Chocolate Quake" we're not only privy to Carolyn's and her husband, Jason's, thoughts but also those of San Francisco private detective, Sam Flamboise's thoughts as well), the mystery was so interesting and intriguing that it captured my attention completely.Carolyn and Jason are in San Francisco -- he to attend a conference, while Carolyn has tagged along so that she can sample (and write about) the sights and foods of that unique city. But first business before pleasure: San Francisco is also the current home of Carolyn's critical feminist mother-in-law, Vera. But when Carolyn makes the curtesy call to Vera to inform her of their arrival, the last thing she expects is to be greeted with the news that Vera has been arrested for murder. Vera, who has been working at the Union Street Women's Center, has been accused of stabbing to death Denise Faulks, the center's accountant. The evidence against Vera is circumstantial at best, unfortunately the police believing that they have their murderer have stopped investigating the crime completely; while neither Vera, nor Jason for that matter, seem to be taking this crisis seriously. And it's beginning to dawn upon Carolyn that she will have to discover who the real murderer is and solve this crime herself! Now, if she can also figure out how to cope with all the tremors as well as fit in a couple of restaurant stopovers and some sight-seeing as well...What made this book a fun read was Nancy Fairbanks's descriptions and sights and foods of San Francisco. Her character portrayals were very well done as well. And while I didn't really think all those multiple narratives were all that essential, they didn't in any way interfere with the smooth unfolding of the plot. Mystery-wise, however, I'll have to admit it was fairly easy to figure out who the culprit(s) actually was/were. Still, "Chocolate Quake" was a rather fun read and one that was well worth the money spent.

Food columnist Carolyn Blue accompanies her husband Jason to San Francisco where he is going to attend a scientific convention on toxins. She, being a dutiful daughter-in-law, gives Jason's mother a courtesy call, but only gets her answering machine stating that she is in the San Francisco Jail on a charge of first degree murder. When she tells Jason about it, he doesn't take it seriously since his mother, a radical feminist, has been in jail plenty of times due to the protest marches that got out of hand.Exasperated with her husband, Carolyn takes matters into her own hands and visits Vera Blue in jail where she learns that her opinionated mother-in-law antagonizes the guards and her fellow inmates. Carolyn gets really upset when she hears her mother-in-law isn't taking the charges very seriously. With the police convinced they got the right person in custody, Carolyn decides to start her own investigation and winds up getting shot at by an unknown person who objects to her snooping.CHOCOLATE QUAKE is a scrumptious mystery that takes the reader on a tour of some of the most popular restaurants of San Francisco. The heroine is a gutsy woman who takes matters into her own hands when she realizes her husband and his mother refuse to deal seriously with the situation. There is a surplus of suspects who wanted the victim dead so Carolyn has her work cut out for her if she wants her mother-in-law out of jail before they head home to Texas.Harriet Klausner

Carolyn Blue and San Francisco are meant for each other. When the travelling food writer arrives, she learns that her indomitable mother-in-law is under arrest -- for murder. Carolyn dives into the hunt for the real murderer by investigating staff members of the women's center where the murder occurred, with the assistance of a gay biker private eye. Eating and shopping are not ignored as Carolyn has a marvelous time. So does the reader.