White Colander Crime
A Vintage Kitchen Mystery, Book #5
By Victoria Hamilton
ISBN 9780425271407
Author Website: www.victoriahamiltonmysteries.com
Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Jeanie
Synopsis:
In the new Vintage Kitchen Mystery from the author of No Mallets Intended, the Heritage Society is re-creating a perfect Victorian Christmas—until good tidings go bad…
Queensville has great expectations for their Dickens Days festival. A tourist-trade boon boom means a big turnout for the opening of Queensville Historic Manor and for Jaymie Leighton, food columnist and vintage cookware collector, a chance to promote the manor and give away homemade goodies. At the end of a long day of festival fun, Jaymie discovers the battered body of local woman Shelby Fretter.
Shelby predicted her own murder in journal entries—and all clues point to Cody Wainwright, the troubled son of Jaymie’s beleaguered newspaper editor. But considering the entire Fretter family had its share of dirty secrets, Jaymie’s not convinced by the case against Cody. With twists all over, she’s going to have to work like the Dickens to wrap up this investigation before Christmas—especially with the real killer ready to kill again. (From Goodreads)
Review:
‘White Colander Crime’ blends a variety of ingredients to result in an amazing new release: mystery, suspense, the fresh bloom of romance, stirred together and sweetened with the setting of the historic Great Lakes area and the beauty of early winter. I truly enjoyed this fifth offering in the Vintage Kitchen Mystery series that can be read as a standalone as easily as part of the series. It was fun to recognize the links from the previous novel, and for those who haven’t yet read it, I feel it sufficiently whets the appetite for one to read that one also, just as I want to pull the first of the series from my own TBR stacks to enjoy..
Jaymie was the first one who happened to find the scene of the crime. Police Chief Ledbetter doesn’t want citizens rooting around the clues, but he does appreciate any information he gets from Jaymie as her ideas and findings are mostly spot on. Jaymie is the food columnist at Howler, the local newspaper that Nan Goodenough edited and co-owned with her husband so Nan is very aware of how intuitively Jaymie has followed clues in the past to find out whodunit. Nan’s son is the only suspect in the murder of the young woman, but she believes he was railroaded without adequate police investigation, and asks Jaymie to help find the truth.
The characters are very well portrayed through their conversations and behaviors. Those who are returning are an eclectic mix; Valetta is Jaymie’s close friend, co-worker at the Pharmacy, and confidant. Jakob and Jocie bring delightful old world charm that compliments Jaymie’s love of all things vintage. Some of the things I admire about Jaymie are her ability to make beautiful use of so many things that others would toss out, her flexibility and delight in holding several part-time jobs, her courage, and her knack of talking with or asking questions of others to get to the truth – or simply to be a caring friend. Any woman who has a three-legged pup and a crabby cat rates very highly with me!
The author’s descriptions of this quaint setting sounds so inviting! Christmas is coming soon, as is the start of winter in Queensville, Michigan, across the St. Clair River from Johnsonville, Ontario. Dickens Days, the Christmas sailboat regatta, and the opening of the Queensville Historic Manor are fascinating events, and central to the plot.
The plot was excellent, nestling mysteries within the main mystery, including a missing woman and less than savory business ventures. This seasoned author included more than one red herring that I followed, thinking they provided valuable clues. Oopsie. The real bad guy, who I had once considered and discarded when I couldn’t identify a motive, was a surprise. I thoroughly enjoyed this story, feeling as if I were part of the setting and at times was startled to realize that I was not in the midst of this early winter tale. I highly recommend ‘White Colander Crime’ to everyone who appreciates a well-written mystery with gorgeous regional charm, a bit of history (such as where brownies originated among other interesting facts), and the excitement of young romance. It is one of the best Christmas-themed cozy mysteries of the season, in my opinion, and a worthy read any time of year.
