Murder of a Chocolate-Covered Cherry by Denise Swanson

Genre: Cozy Mystery


School psychologist, Skye Denison, cannot believe it when she learns he has been entered into the Grandma Sal’s Soup-to-Nuts Cooking Challenge. Skye’s mother, May, is the true cook in the family, but she is only entitled to one entry. With four entries to submit, May enters one recipe with Skye’s name on it. There’s no way her mother would let her out of the contest, so Skye finds herself stuck as one of the contestants.

Trouble brews when malicious pranks sabotage the contestants’ entries, Grandma Sal’s family is at odds, one of her teenage students is missing and one of the more obnoxious contestants is found dead in a chocolate fountain. Not to mention Skye’s boyfriend’s father shows up in Scumble River and it’s clear he has a hidden agenda. All of this, as Skye desperately tries to make her cooking entry a success. She can’t let her mother down, but she also has to assist the police in finding the killer before more contestants end up dead.

This is the 10th book in the Scumble River Mystery series and I’ve truly grown to love Skye Denison. I always feel like I’m visiting with an old friend when I read one of these books. There is only more book in the series left, but I’m sure Denise Swanson will have more released soon.

If you like a fast-paced mystery with charming characters, give this series a try. Each book can be read as a stand-alone, but I would start at the beginning so you can see how Skye’s relationships develop and how she grows as a person.

For reading challenges:

2009 Suspense & Thriller Reading Challenge
Amateur Sleuth Reading Challenge
Mysteryreadercafe Reading Challenge
Themed Reading Challenge – With this book, I completed the challenge!

Dirty Deeds by Suzanne Price

Genre: Cozy Mystery

It’s Christmastime in Pigeon Cove and Sky Taylor has her hands filled with cleaning jobs at several different holiday parties. After the Art Association’s annual holiday celebration, Sky finds more than just dirty dishes that need to be cleared away. Kyle Fipps, a local real estate developer, is found dead. It’s not the first time Sky has discovered a dead body, but she sure didn’t want this to become a habit.

Sky tries to stay out of the investigation, but instead finds herself right in the middle of it. She gets a lucrative cleaning job at City Hall and immediately finds herself in danger at every corner. It doesn’t help when the former lover of one of the suspects moves in to stay with Sky for a few days. To top it all off, Sky’s mother is in town for a visit which tends to complicate things further, especially when it comes to Sky’s boyfriend, Mike.

This story has it all – mystery, suspense and a romantic triangle tossed into the mix. Sky has her work cut out for her, trying to solve the mystery of both the murder and her own heart.

Pigeon Cove is a town filled with wacky personalities and an intriguing plot to keep readers on their toes. There are also a few cleaning tips tossed in that readers will find quite useful. This is a fast-paced story that can be enjoyed in a short period of time. There’s already a third book in the series, which I will get to eventually.

I’m always happy to discover “new” or “new-to-me” cozy mystery series. I love the small town feel they all have to them and re-visiting these characters always makes me feel as if I’m meeting up with old friends. This series is no different.

For reading challenges: Amateur Sleuth Challenge, TBR Challenge Lite, The Themed Reading Challenge

Murder of a Botoxed Blonde by Denise Swanson

Genre: Cozy Mystery

The last place Skye Denison wants or expects to spend her Thanksgiving weekend is at a health spa. However, her close friend Trixie convinces her to accept the complimentary weekend, but they are more than surprised to find their Thanksgiving meal consists of tofu.

Things only manage to get worse when her mother and her ex-boyfriend’s mother decide to join them for the long holiday weekend. The spa’s owner informs them that the only food available to them is the healthy kind, so they have to resort to smuggling in their own calorie laden food or they’d pass out from starvation. To top things off, a group of protestors stir up all kinds of mischief in an attempt to close down the spa. They are against the spa’s message that only the beautiful and thin deserve a place in this world.

To make matters worse, the newspaper publishes a report that there is buried treasure somewhere in the spa. When a beautiful and wealthy woman turns up dead in her mud bath, everyone wonders could the killer be a treasure hunter or a protestor?

The spa’s owner pleads with Skye to work undercover for her and try to figure out this mess. Skye agrees and the race is on before another spa guest is found dead.

This was a fun book where we also saw the return of Skye’s new boyfriend, Wally, and things heat up. Then, Skye learns the true reason behind the breakup with her last boyfriend which could possibly jeopardize her new relationship.

Skye is a down-to-earth type of heroine. She’s someone we can all identify with, especially when she smuggles in her junk food. She faces all the same problems any everyday woman might face – not being thin, men trouble and an overprotective mom. This series is one of a few that makes me feel as if I’m part of Scumble River.


For reading challenges: Amateur Sleuth Reading Challenge, Read Your Own Book Reading Challenge, Themed Reading Challenge, Cozy Mystery Challenge

Murder of a Real Bad Boy by Denise Swanson

Genre: Cozy Mystery

School psychologist, Skye Denison, is having her newly inherited house renovated. She hires the sexy contractor, Beau Hamilton, to do the job. Not that she’s interested in the handsome man. She recently broke up with her boyfriend and has no need to get involved in another relationship. However, it doesn’t hurt to look.

When Beau’s work proves to be much less than adequate, Skye realized she has to look behind the sexiness and fire him. She’s given him umpteen chances, but the work is simply not being done. Unfortunately, before she can fire him someone kills him and she stumbles upon the dead body. The Sheriff quickly makes her the number one and only suspect.

Things get really crazy for Skye when the local police chief takes a romantic interes in her, her ex-boyfriend wants her back, her cat is missing, her brother has a deep dark secret and Beau’s sister turns up on her doorstep begging for help in finding her brother’s murderer. Skye always finds herself the center of murder investigations in Scumble River and has sworn to stay out of them, but how can she refuse getting involved in this one? Especially when she’s the prime suspect.

This is one of my favorite cozy mystery series. I always love re-visiting Scumble River and seeing what Skye is up to. Denise Swanson gives us a wide array of characters to fall in love with and some that will drive you crazy. Each character takes on a life of its own. This is the 8th book in the series and it never gets old. Each one is better than the previous one. I’m looking forward to reading #9.

For Reading Challenges: Amateur Sleuth Reading Challenge, Cozy Mystery Reading Challenge, Themed Reading Challenge.

Back To School Murder by Leslie Meier

Genre: Cozy Mystery

It’s another adventure for Leslie Meier’s Lucy Stone. Lucy’s children go back to school in the quaint town of Tinker’s Cove in Maine, where nothing exciting ever happens. This year, however, the elementary school staff and students are shocked when they get a bomb scare. The school is quickly evacuated when the assistant principal, Carol Crane discovers one of the students is still in the building. She races against the clock and saves the child just before the bomb goes off. Carol is Tinker’s Cove’s new heroine and the toast of the town.

The town is stunned when days later Carol is murdered. Lucy Stone is determined to discover who would want to murder a selfless woman such as Carol Crane. As she delves deeper and deeper into Carol’s history, Lucy realizes the woman wasn’t all that she seemed. Lucy’s own life is threatened as she gets closer and closer to the truth. Obviously someone wants Lucy’s mouth to be permanently shut.

I love this series! It’s a fast-paced read with characters you watch grow from book to book. Lucy Stone is a wonderfully strong heroine raising four children and taking care of her husband, who believes a woman should not be working but staying at home with the family. Despite her husband’s feelings, Lucy works part-time at the local newspaper. Readers will find themselves cheering for her and wanting to see her succeed. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this delightful series.

For Reading Challenges: Amateur Sleuth Reading Challenge, Themed Reading Challenge, A to Z Reading Challenge, Read Your Own Book Challenge

The Themed Reading Challenge

Okay, one more readinng challenge for 2009. Caribousmom is hosting this one. To join, click the button above.

Here's what this one is about...

February 1, 2009 - July 31, 2009

The Themed Reading Challenge is a six month challenge designed to help readers clear books from their to-be-read stacks which center around a common theme or themes. Here are the “rules”:

1. Books should be chosen from the reader’s TBR pile (this may be an actual physical pile or a
virtual pile).

2. The goal is to read 4 to 6 books linked by theme.
3. Overlaps with other challenges are allowed.
4. Readers may change their list of books at any time.
5. Readers may choose three different levels of participation:
Read at least 4 books with the same theme.
Read at least 5 books that share at least TWO themes.
Read at least 6 books that share MORE than two themes.

Themes can be geographic, genre, author, subject matter, or anything in between! Last year’s themes were wonderfully creative and varied and included such things as: books about books, books set in New England, books with a color in the title, books about vampires, books with the word ‘lady’ in the title, Gothic classics, fairy tales retold for adults, highschool classics, Asian culture, feathered friends, WWII, Canada, books in translation, and Beverly Cleary. There were many others I have not listed here!

The only thing limiting your choices is your imagination - so have fun!

Sign-ups for this challenge will close on March 30th.

My theme is going to be cozy mysteries and I'm going to do the second level.

1. Dirty Deeds by Suzanne Price Click for review
2. Back To School Murder by Leslie Meier Click here for review
3. Murder of a Real Bad Boy by Denise Swanson Click here for review
4. Murder of a Botoxed Blonde by Denise Swanson Click here for review
5. Murder of a Chocolate Covered Cherry by Denise Swanson Click here for review