A knockoff of a popular TV show turns deadly.
While she’s working on preparations for opening her Cape May B&B, Poppy McAllister continues to bake delicious gluten-free treats for the coffee shop owned by Gia, one of two men she cannot decide between. But she drops everything to serve as pastry chef to the other one, Chef Tim, her former fiance, at the local community college’s Restaurant Week event. Inspired by the popular show Chopped, local chefs compete for bragging rights and $10,000 by cooking a three-course meal from a basket of unusual items plus whatever they need from the pantry and fridge. Each team consists of the head chef and two helpers who work together for a week. When a water main breaks at the B&B where the judges are booked, Poppy offers her not-yet-opened place as a substitute. Several of the chefs are already at loggerheads. Adrian Baxter, who finished second in the class to Tim at the Culinary Institute, accuses Tim of cheating to beat him out. Tim’s assistant, Gigi, who constantly belittles Poppy because she didn’t attend culinary school, must eat her words when Poppy saves them from disaster by noticing that someone has mislabeled many of the pantry items. The judges are enduring their own dramas at the B&B. The most annoying and downright nasty is Bess Jodice, who has little good to say about her cohort. The second day begins with appliances that won’t work correctly, and another day ends when Bess, poisoned, drops dead in Poppy’s dish of cannoli. With some help from her Aunt Ginny and her zany gang of oldster friends, Poppy (Midnight Snacks Are Murder, 2018, etc.) looks into the pasts and presents of the judges and contestants to see if she can find a motive for murder.
Fans of Chopped will have fun juggling the complicated set of suspects and following a romantic triangle that has yet to be resolved.
Restaurant Weeks Are Murder
(A Poppy McAllister Mystery)
by Libby Klein
There is a cast of quirky characters that liven up the storyline and of course, we can’t forget Aunt Ginny and her antics along with the rest of her Senior friends. She knows how to liven up this book with her shenanigans.
~Storeybook Reviews
I absolutely adore this series and each book is better than the last…but this book, well it was SO good! The storyline was so well written and entertaining.
~The Montana Bookaholic
Ms. Klein has found the perfect recipe for a marvelous cozy mystery. Wonderful characters mixed in a sensational story with a dash a romance and sprinkled liberally with humor. A delectable treat for every cozy lover.
~Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book
Poppy’s family and friends are funny and unpredictable and you never know what they are going to do next, which is great as a reader, but not so great for Poppy.
~MJB Reviewers
Restaurant Weeks Are Murder by Libby Klein combines this splendid mystery with real to life character that stole my heart . . .
~Baroness’ Book Trove
Filled with sparkling humor and rich characterization, this story captured my interest from the first and moves at a steady pace throughout.
~The Power of Words
Poppy is such a delight . . . Aunt Ginny with her peppered comments. Gia, Poppy’s delicious male love interest. And a cat that weaves a sparkly trail throughout the book, popping up in the most unusual places. It was good clean fun . . .
~ FUONLYKNEW
Another fun, funny and interesting mystery with Poppy McAllister and friends.
~Laura’s Interests
Libby Klein has crafted a book and series with the same skill as a top chef crafts their signature dish.
~A Wytch’s Book Review Blog
Author Libby Klein truly has the gift for transporting readers into her stories as though we are living them ourselves.
~Lisa Ks Book Reviews
If I was not already a fan of Cozy Mysteries Libby Klein, Poppy and Aunt Ginny would win me over.
I have to say this is my favorite series.
~My Reading Journeys
This one was another well-written book by Libby Klein. I love her writing style because the stories flow so well and I feel like I actually know the characters.
~Melina Book Blog
Praise for Midnight Snacks are Murder (A Poppy McAllister Mystery)
by Libby Klein
This book has a lot of humor along with the mystery. I had a hard time putting the book down . . .
~Storeybook Reviews
Midnight Snacks are Murder will have you laughing the whole way through with Aunt Ginny and Georgina’s antics.
~The Avid Reader
A tightly-written narrative, strong supporting cast, and tons of humor combine to make Midnight Snacks Are Murder a thoroughly entertaining read.
~The Power of Words
You might just be cracking up while you ride along with Poppy as she tries to rein in her eccentric Aunt Ginny.
~My Reading Journeys
I absolutely adore the character of Poppy, a smart and sassy forty-something that loves desserts and coffee and has a nose for sleuthing.
~The Montana Bookaholic
A widow’s return to Cape May, New Jersey, has been murder in more ways than one.
Poppy McAllister’s already been mistakenly arrested for murder upon her return for a high school reunion (Class Reunions Are Murder, 2018). Now her eccentric Aunt Ginny is in trouble. Poppy, who’d never planned to stay around, has invested time and money in a scheme to turn Ginny’s Queen Anne Victorian into a B&B using her considerable baking skills to help finance the project by selling her yummy gluten-free items at a local coffee shop. Her contractor, Itty Bitty Smitty, whose war cry is “I can fix that,” is behind schedule for their grand opening, and his running battle with Poppy’s controlling mother-in-law, Georgina, who’s invested just enough to have a say, frays everyone’s nerves. Then suddenly Aunt Ginny, who’s taking some new pills, starts sleepwalking and bringing home odd objects she’s pinched from neighbors’ homes while helping herself to desserts. So when Brody Brandt, one of the neighbors, is found murdered, the police arrest Ginny, aka the “Snack Bandit.” Poppy, who’s certain that Ginny is innocent, sets out to find the guilty party while she juggles two boyfriends, her former high school sweetheart Tim, a chef, and handsome Gia, who owns the coffee shop where she plies her goods. Unhappy with her body image, she can’t convince herself that either really desires her. As she digs into Brandt’s background, she discovers a number of possible motives. Now if she can only keep Ginny out of trouble while she tracks down the real killer.
Lots of comical characters keep the chuckles coming as the determined Poppy solves a surprisingly difficult puzzle.
I so enjoyed this story. Libby Klein writes the character of Poppy with wonderfully warm, funny, and charming characteristics.
~The Girl with Book Lungs
Everything about this book appealed to me. I love it when stories make me laugh out loud and the characters seem like people I would want to be friends with. Ms. Klein has written a superb story and scores my first Paradise Rating, (deserves more than 5 stars) of 2018.
~Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book
To say that Class Reunions Are Murder is a great cozy mystery really doesn’t do it justice, for this story is refreshingly different and stands out in its genre.
~The Power of Words
The way the author describes things that many people go through like the weight issue really makes this book relate-able to many people. I think this is part of what makes this such a good book.
~A. Holland Reads
Amazing start to a brand new series. . . I was unable to put down I was laughing so hard. It was absolutely wonderful and I consider it a must-read for fans of the genre.
~Books a Plenty Book Reviews
Several interwoven storylines add depth to the main characters, and Poppy’s attempts at self-improvement give Class Reunions Are Murder plenty of laugh out loud dialog and scenes.
~Book Club Librarian
This, the first book in the Poppy McAllister series, was a five star read for me. Maybe even 6. . . A well-thought-out mystery to top it all off kept me engrossed enough to finish this book in a single sitting.
~The Book’s the Thing
I was totally shocked by the ending which is what I like in a cozy, to be left guessing till the very end.
~Melina’s Book Blog
WOW, this book was awesome! Really, well done Libby Klein, on writing an outstanding book right out of the gate and knocking it out of the park with the first book in a new series!
~The Montana Bookaholic
Oh my gosh…I loved this book…LOVED IT! Poppy is the cozy mystery character I’ve been waiting for. She is smart and so funny.
~Brooke Blogs
This book had the feel of chick lit meets cozy mystery. It’s funny, heartwarming, romantic and mysterious. All blended together in one exciting story.
~Socrates’ Book Reviews…