resolution fell apart

A Pie to Die For by Gretchen Rue
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I do enjoy cozy mysteries. The premise and setting for this one had me hooked.

Initially I pretty much knew where the murderer was from (basically you're looking at locals or tourists) and thus I focused on certain characters.

The issue though was even though I was essentially right, the character involved didn't make much sense. The reasoning for the crime didn't add up (as earlier aspects of their values etc wouldn't have allowed this person to murder for the motive provided, despite any perceived harm being done to them..and by the way those earlier aspects are all at the end as the person essentially confesses to Este) So, the murder mystery really fell apart for me at the end.

Another thing that irked me, was the detail of what she prepared. Pages were devoted to her prep work and making of various pies. One feature of many cozy series involves recipes, especially if the protagonist owns a unique coffee shop, ice-cream shop or diner, as Este does in this series. However, usually the meal or dessert etc would be briefly mentioned in a mouth watering way, and then the recipe would be provided at the end, as an addtional perk for the reader. At times I thought I was reading a cookbook, because there was too much detail in the pie recipes. And yes, there are actual recipes at the end of the book, which do look good. However, I would have preferred more sleuthing than those descriptions, and defintely wanted a resolution that made a bit more sense than this one did.

Having said all of that, I would be tempted to read the 2nd, and hope that mystery revolves more around the lucky pies, and perhaps a recpient not liking the results or something.

So, overall this was an ok read for me.

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