The Chocolate Mouse Trap (Chocoholic Mysteries, No. 5)

If you're a Food Mystery junkie like me, this is one series that you can't pass up. Even though I love the tidbits on chocolate, the mystery is the main focus. I nice read, not too much violence, and it really keeps you guessing. I highly recommend to add to your library.

This title is fifth in the Chocoholic Mysteries series. I was very pleased with the twist and turns in this book that kept you guessing as to who the murder was and why they committed the murder. I happily sat and read this book in one sitting. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

I read the sixth book first and then purchased the first five and I highly recommend this "cozy mystery" series as engaging, fun and even poignant and touching at times. I tend to guess the outcome fairly early with this series, but it really doesn't detract at all from the reading experience and finding out the details of how it all fits together is always enjoyable. This wasn't my favorite book in the series, but I was certainly glad to have read it and think the series is so enjoyable that even my least favorite would be a 5!

Lee McKinney has recently joined the Seventh Major Food Group. No, the FDA hasn't added another level to the pyramid; it's a group of local merchants who are involved in fancy food and parties. Organized by Julie Singletree, a woman trying to get a party planning business going, the group exchanges tips via e-mail. Julie also uses their e-mail list to forward inspirational messages several times a day. Lee has had enough of the spam when the news breaks - Julie has been murdered and her computer stolen. Lee fully intends to stay out of this investigation. After all, Julie lived in a neighboring town. But the morning after the funeral, several members of the group are hit by a computer virus. Another has her shop broken into and her computer's memory erased. As things continue to escalate, Lee can't keep her curiosity to herself and begins nosing around. As if all this weren't enough, Joe and Lee are trying to work out the details of their upcoming wedding. Joe wants a big fancy affair and Lee just wants a few family members and close friends. Meanwhile, Aunt Nettie's sister-in-law contacts the shop hoping to find a job for her son, making Lee feel very insecure. This series always entertains, and this book was no exception. The plot was a study in contrast. Some things jumped out and were obvious before the characters saw them; others were smack-your-head-how-could-I-miss-that moments. By the end there were lots of clues pointing to the killer, so chances are the reader will miss some if not all of them. Lee's "tong tangles" are kept to a minimum, mostly sprinkled into a few tense scenes. The chocolate chats this go around were quotes about chocolate. It might be about time to drop the trivia and focus on the mystery. While it was a fun gimmick, it won't be missed. Like candy, you can't read just one. I'm already hungry for the next volume.

In Warner Pier, Michigan, Lee McKinney manages her Aunt Nettie's chocolate shop, Tenhuis Chocolate. Currently the emails from wannabe party planner Julie Singletree is driving Lee crazy with her Victorian sweetness in every message; approximately six arrive every day to Lee and five other people that Julie has anointed as the seventh major food group, "fancy foods". Lee eats the sugary electronic memos because she cannot afford to alienate the granddaughter of wealthy customer Rachel Shraeder of Shraeder Labs. On local TV news is the report someone murdered Julie. Lee feels bad and a bit guilty that she recently badmouthed the woman, but goes on with her life. That changes when assaults on the fancy food group occurs. Julie wonders if one of the other five is a killer or could an outsider have a grudge against them. Julie plans to find out before she or her aunt become victims. The latest chocolate animal amateur sleuth novel is a fine tale as Lee changes from detesting the victim to guilt and sorrow over her death to fear and courage for the safety of her aunt and her. The heroine's transformation happens quite smoothly as she hated the sugary emails, but never wished Julie dead nor willing to allow herself or her aunt to join the deceased by idly waiting for the cops to solve the caper. Once Lee knows that she has a different deadly rodent than the chocolate mice she made for a Shraeder Labs gala, she begins her investigation into who wants to murder the fancy food group. Harriet Klausner