Colette London

When I saw the title of this cozy mystery, I just had to read it! Peppermint Mocha. My all time favorite flavored coffee drink. I wait every year for the holiday season just so I can get it at Starbucks! Coffee of the Gods!

I love foodie cozies....so this series is right up my alley. The main character, Hayden Munday Moore, is a chocolate expert. She lends her expertise to companies wanting to develop the best chocolate dishes. Restaurants, bakeries, candy makers, special events.....her services are in high demand all over the world. This time Hayden is travelling to Sproutes, MA to help with a premiere party at the request of her financial advisor, Travis Turner. Unfortunately, as usual, Hayden finds a dead body. She doesn't even get to spend one relaxing evening in her lovely, decorated for Christmas, B&B room. Wandering downstairs, unable to sleep, she discovers a dead woman on the floor, covered in spilled Wassail. So much for a relaxing trip to Massachusetts!

I like this series! The background theme of chocolate and baking doesn't overpower the mystery plots. In this newest addition to the series (book 5), the murder mystery moves along at a nice pace, accented by a Christmas theme this time. There are plenty of suspects and some nice twists. About the only thing I didn't like is a developing love triangle sort of situation. This is such an overused trope in cozy mysteries. Ugh. Not another relationship confusion/love triangle trope! Bleck!

All in all, a nice Christmas and chocolate themed cozy! Made for enjoyable reading! I will definitely continue reading this series. The cover art is colorful and festive. Cozies have the most wonderful covers!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Kensington via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own. Warning: May cause chocolate and peppermint cravings! :) **… (mer)

Wealthy heiress Hayden Munday Moore is an expert on chocolate. She terms herself a "chocolate whisperer'' as she travels the world, helping improve chocolate in all its forms. In this 3rd Chocolate Whisperer Mystery, Hayden travels to London to help improve chocolate pastries at Primrose, a posh pastry shop. Phoebe Wright, owner of Primrose, is married to a famous television chef. Hayden assures her friends, and herself, that this time she will be doing nothing but tasting chocolate and training kitchen staff. She does not plan to get involved in anything that isn't chocolate-related. Just as she is settling into the Wrights' guesthouse, plans go awry (as usual). Hayden returns from a shopping trip to discover Chef Jeremy Wright dead on the floor of the guesthouse. He has been bludgeoned to death with a stone metlapil. Suddenly Hayden is a murder suspect, along with a disgruntled former assistant, a rival chef and an overzealous agent. So much for her sticking to chocolate only while in London! Once again, Hayden is on the trail of a killer. She has to discover the murderer's identity to clear her own name.

This was a fun mystery to read! All the different facts and information about cacao beans, chocolate and cooking tips for baking with chocolate were very interesting! There are some yummy chocolate recipes at the end of the book as well! The mystery portion of the plot was well-written with multiple suspects, a few red herrings and some great twists and turns before the ending. I had to suspend reality a little bit to buy into Hayden's back-story, but that wasn't too hard to do. Although I seriously doubt there is a wealthy heiress in the world who travels constantly as a chocolate advisor, it made for a fun cozy mystery! Hayden is a strong, intelligent main character. It was nice to read a cozy that wasn't centered around a bookshop, library or cupcakes.

At times the author explained some British terms as an aside, which I thought was unnecessary. Most American readers know that "sacked'' means to be fired from a job or that a "desktop diary'' is a planner.

All in all, this is an enjoyable, light mystery with a great chocolate theme! Semi-Sweet Hereafter releases September 27th! Pick up a copy for a sweet, chocolately escape! :)

Colette London is a pseudonym used by best-selling romance author Lisa Plumley. Find out more about the Chocolate Whisperer Mystery series at www.colettelondon.com.


… (mer)

This is the second book in the Chocolate Whisperer series. Hayden Mundy Moore is the main character. She goes to different places to help trouble shoot chocolate problems. She is single, loves to travel and has the money to do it which she inherited from a rich uncle. Travis Turner is her financial advisor/helper. He books her gigs, travel etc. In order to have access to the money she must travel the world 6 months every year. There seems to be a mild love interest here as she often talks about Travis' sexy voice etc, but she has never met him. Danny is Hayden's friend and bodyguard at times. He has met Travis and doesn't like him. Danny is hot a ex-con, who also seems to be a mild love interest for Hayden.

Hayden is in Portland, OR to attend a bridal weekend with a old college friend Carissa Jenkins. Carissa owns a food truck. She sells ice-cream made with Nitrogen that is all the rage. It resides at Cartorama. Cartorama is a group of food trucks that only sell food with chocolate in it. Carissa sells only chocolate ice cream flavors. When Hayden meets Carissa and goes into her cart she finds her fiance Declan dead and they almost die too.

Hayden is convinced that Declan was murdered and she sets out to find out who did it. As you read this book, you like the characters less and less. Carissa is self-centered, Declan is mean and backstabbing as well as a Casanova who fools around on Carissa and the others are not much better.

I did not realize how many different foods have chocolate in them. Hayden ends ups leading the Dangerously Dark tour in a van that is slightly pornographic, but she does an amazing job. I love chocolate and would love to go on a tour like that just once. You might get hungry for chocolate reading this book. There are some recipes in the back of the book for you to try.

I had mixed reactions to this book. Some sections had me not wanting to put the book down, and others almost had me close it. I might try one more in the series before I make a final decision about it.

I received a copy of this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
… (mer)

Hayden Mundy Moore is a "chocolate whisperer", AKA an expert on all things chocolate. She works as a consultant, with chocolate businesses that are having problems whether it is recipes, techniques or staff training. Hayden is in London helping The Honorable Phoebe Wright at her chocolaterie-pâtisserie, Primrose. Phoebe has put Hayden up at her guest house while she is there. When Hayden comes home one night shortly after her arrival in London, she finds sexy star chef Jeremy, who also happens to be Phoebe's husband, dead on the kitchen floor in the guesthouse. She immediately calls the police, but as this is not the first murder she has been involved in, she becomes a suspect. She calls her friend and bodyguard Danny, who hotfoots it to London to watch over her. He knows, Hayden is going to try and figure out who the murderer is.

I was really looking forward to reading this one, I mean chocolate with a mystery? Alas, it did not hold my attention like I had hoped. I am not sure why, it was a fun read and off course Hayden bumbles through and eventually figures out who the murderer is, but for some reason I kept falling asleep whenever I tried to read it. I am not sure if I will continue with this series or not.

… (mer)