Cozy Review: Kill 'Em with Cayenne: A Spice Shop Mystery (Spice Shop Mystery Series)

I've finished "Kill 'Em with Cayenne" the 2nd book in her Spice Shop Mystery series by Gail Oust.

Kill 'Em with Cayenne, a brand new finger-lickin’ good mystery from Gail Oust, featuring small-town Georgia spice shop owner Piper Prescott, a smart and spunky amateur sleuth.

Spices are flying off the shelves of Spice It Up!, and Piper Prescott couldn’t be happier. It’s that time of year again — time for the annual Brandywine Creek Barbecue Festival. Soon contestants and BBQ aficionados from all over the Southeast will converge on the town. Many of Brandywine Creek’s citizens plan to participate in the week-long festivities and are busily concocting savory rubs and sassy sauces. Among the locals vying for the grand prize are Becca Dapkins and Maybelle Humphries. The women have been arch enemies ever since Buzz Oliver dumped Maybelle after a thirteen-year courtship and started seeing Becca.

When Becca’s body is found near one of the festival booths, bludgeoned by a brisket, Maybelle becomes one of Chief Wyatt McBride’s top suspects. Determined to help clear her friend’s name, Piper begins her own investigation, much to McBride’s consternation. As the festival draws closer, will Piper and Reba Mae be able to find the real killer and clear Maybelle’s name? Will Piper make it to the annual shag contest with Doug Winters, the mild-mannered vet she’s been seeing? And, who will win the BBQ cook-off?

About the Author

The author of the Bunco Babes mystery series, GAIL OUST is often accused of flunking retirement. Hearing the words "maybe it's a dead body" while golfing fired her imagination for writing a cozy. Ever since then, she has spent more time on a computer than at a golf course. Kill ‘Em with Cayenne is the second novel in her Spice Shop mystery series. She lives with her husband in McCormick, South Carolina.

Product Details
Series: Spice Shop Mystery Series (Book 2)
Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Minotaur Books (December 16, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1250011051
ISBN-13: 978-1250011053

My Review:

I really enjoyed the animosity between Becca and Maybelle because the writing was so witty and funny.  Glad that Buzz still cares enough about Maybelle to check up on her at night by driving by her house.

I really love the interaction between Chief Wyatt McBride and Piper because it's funny and you can feel the attraction between them even though she is dating Doug.

Love the recipes at the end and I definitely will try them out!

4/5

Cozy Review: Rosemary and Crime Hardcover

I've finished "Rosemary and Crime" by Gail Oust.

Murder comes well-seasoned in this charming mystery featuring a smart and spunky new amateur sleuth, small-town Georgia spice shop owner Piper Prescott

Piper Prescott, a transplanted Yankee living in the South, has got her sass back. She might be down, but don’t count her out. “Change of life?” she asks. Bring it on. Recently divorced, Piper decides to pursue a dream she’s secretly harbored: owning her own business, Spice it Up!, a spice shop in her adopted hometown, Brandywine Creek, Georgia. But Piper’s grand opening goes awry when the local chef who’s agreed to do a cooking demo is found stabbed. Not only did Piper find the body, she handled the murder weapon and doesn’t have a witness to her alibi, making the case look like a slam dunk to brand new police Chief Wyatt McBride. Desperate to uncover the truth — and prove her innocence — Piper enlists the help of her outspoken BFF Reba Mae Johnson to help track down the real culprit. The pair compile a lengthy list of suspects and work to eliminate them using their own creative brand of sleuthing techniques including stakeouts, breaking and entering, and one very unorthodox chocolate pie. When Piper narrowly avoids being a victim of a hit-and-run, she knows she’s getting closer to the truth, but can she catch the killer and clear her name before she becomes the next victim?

About the Author

The author of the Bunco Babes mystery series, GAIL OUST is often accused of flunking retirement. Hearing the words "maybe it's a dead body" while golfing fired her imagination for writing a cozy. Ever since then, she has spent more time on a computer than at a golf course. She lives with her husband in McCormick, South Carolina.

Product Details
Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Minotaur Books (December 17, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1250011043
ISBN-13: 978-1250011046

My Review:

Piper Prescott ex-husband has left her for a younger former beauty queen and she has saved up enough money to open Spice It Up a small spice gourmet shop.  She finds the dead body of a local chef the evening of the grand opening and she's the main suspect.

I really enjoyed the exploration of her relationship with her ex-husband and teenage daughter.  This was a fast paced cozy with some quirky characters and southern charm.

3/5

Thanks St. Martin's Press for sending me this book to review, greatly appreciated!