A Dash of Death (A Cocktails and Catering Mystery)
by Michelle Hillen Klump
About A Dash of Death
A Dash of Death (A Cocktails and Catering Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Setting - Texas
Crooked Lane Books (February 8, 2022)
Hardcover : 304 pages
ISBN-10 : 1643859374
ISBN-13 : 978-1643859378
Digital ASIN : B094GN846Y
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A Houston reporter-turned-mixologist mixes it up with murder in this series debut from Michelle Hillen Klump, superbly catering to fans of Diane Mott Davidson and Lee Hollis.
Bad news for Samantha Warren: The plucky Houston, Texas, reporter lost her job and her fiancĂ© in rapid succession. But Sam has a way of making lemonade out of the bitterest of lemons. At a meeting of the local historical-homes council, she serves up the homemade bitters that she made as gifts for her wedding party. She intends to use that as her “in” to become an in-demand party mixologist. But the party’s over for one of the council members, who keels over dead soon after he sips the bereft bride’s bitter brew.
It turns out that the victim, Mark, was poisoned—his drink spiked with oleander. Since Sam mixed the drink that Mark imbibed right before his demise, she finds herself at the front of the suspect line. Now, she’ll have to use all of her reporter’s wisdom and wiles to clear her name.
Who could have wanted Mark dead? His wife, Gabby? His girlfriend, Darcy? Someone who wanted his seat on the council? Or another citizen of this sweet Texas town that holds some seedy secrets?
Job hunting, building her mixology business, and fending off late-night phone calls from her nearly betrothed don’t leave much time for sleuthing. But if Sam can’t “pour” over the clues to find the killer, it may soon be last call for her.
What I Thought:
This is the first in the Cocktails and Catering Mystery Series and the first book I have ever read by this author. This was the first time I have read a cozy in which the protagonist makes "bitters", and I am still a little confused about what they really are. In this one, Samantha has been jilted by her fiancé, and has lost her job as an investigative reporter. Her friends encourage her to start selling her "bitters". When Samantha steps in to serve her bitters at a Historic Commision Benefit meeting, a member is found dead with an oleander blossom in his cup of bitters. Of course, his wife decides to sue Samantha, so Samantha becomes the main suspect. Samantha uses her skills as an investigative reporter to prove her innocence. I thought this was a fast-paced mystery that kept me turning the pages. The plot was well thought out and I liked the protagonist and her friends that were introduced in this book. There were many twists in this book that kept me guessing. Again, the protagonist had a hobby that she made into a career that was new to me, even though there are books out there about breweries, I had never heard of "bitters" before. And it is refreshing to see new hobbies/careers in a book. I was left guessing until the very end of this one. I look forward to more in this series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book.
About Michelle Hillen Klump
Michelle Hillen Klump is a former newspaper reporter who covered government, courts and crime throughout Arkansas and Central Texas. Still a working journalist, she is also a member of Sisters in Crime. Her short fiction has appeared in Crimson Streets and Tales of Texas, volume 2, a Houston short story anthology.
Author Links My webpage: https://michelleklump.com/ Facebook Author page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorMichelleKlump Twitter: https://twitter.com/mh_klump Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21600853.Michelle_Hillen_Klump Purchase Links - Amazon - PenguinRandomHouse - Barnes & Noble - IndieBound - Kobo -

