Butter Off Dead
Food Lovers’ Village Mystery, Book #3
By Leslie Budewitz
ISBN: 9780425259566
Author website: www.lesliebudewitz.com/
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Kayt
Synopsis:
As the national bestselling Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries continue, the merchants of Jewel Bay, Montana, try to heat up chilly winter business with a new film festival. But their plans are sent reeling when a dangerous killer dims the lights on a local vendor…
In an attempt to woo tourists to Jewel Bay and cheer up the townies, Erin Murphy, manager of the specialty local foods market known as the Merc, is organizing the First Annual Food Lovers’ Film Festival, filled with classic foodie flicks and local twists on favorite movie treats. But when her partner in planning, painter Christine Vandeberg, is found dead only days before the curtain rises, Erin suspects someone is attempting to stop the films from rolling.
To make matters worse, Nick—Erin’s brother and Christine’s beau—has top billing on the suspect list. Convinced her brother is innocent and determined that the show must go on, Erin has to find who’s really to blame before Nick gets arrested or the festival gets shut down. But the closer she gets to the killer, the more likely it becomes that she’ll be the next person cut from the program…
INCLUDES DELICIOUS RECIPES!
Review:
I love the characters in Leslie Budewitz’s Food Lovers’ Village Mystery series and they are just as amazing in her third installment Butter Off Dead. The wonderful town of Jewel Bay, Montana is hosting its first annual Food Lovers’ Film Festival. Everything is going as planned, the food has been arranged with local spin on movie favorites. They have the classic movies ordered. The local film class is going to be assisting and even showing a movie they made. Main character, Erin Murphy is working with her brother, Nick’s girlfriend local artist Christine Vanedburg to get all the last minute work done. Just when it looks like things will go off without a hitch, it looks like someone is sabotaging the festival. Then her partner Christine is found dead. The worst part is Erin’s brother is the prime suspect.
I love how Erin cares so much not just for her brother, but for her town as well. She tries to find the answers, the killer, the motive, all of it in order to not only save her brother, but the festival. The characters are fun, well developed and their interaction is wonderful. At times humor washes over the story, while at others deep sadness penetrates the scenes. Several other suspects pop up on Erin’s radar and lead her down mysterious paths. With stellar writing that twists and turns and pulls the reader in deeper and deeper, Budewitz has again written a fabulous cozy mystery. The intrigue and adventure is entertaining and amusing. Little clues are dropped here and there with little or no fanfare to tease the reader so they sneak in and sit in the back of your mind. The mystery is well written and keeps you guessing not only as to who the killer may be, but also why.
The setting of this series is enticing, making me want to move to this Jewel of a town. The characters are entertaining and have become friends that I love visiting with as often as possible. Intelligent writing throughout with descriptive prose that carries the story through twists and turns a plenty. Is the murder related to the film festival, the inheritance Christine received, or something totally unrelated to any of it? Several wrong paths lead the reader to different conclusions. Great red herrings. You really do not need to have read the first two in this wonderful series to enjoy Butter Off Dead, but I recommend reading them as they are truly enjoyable as well. This is an intriguing cozy mystery full of fabulous characters and suspenseful mystery. Grab the popcorn and the boxes of candies and sit back enjoy this great story spun by author Leslie Budewitz.
