Hello! On Tuesday, September 12 there are some new book releases. They include Doom with a View by Kate Kingsbury, All the Secret Places by Anna Carlisle, Body on Baker Street by Vicki Delaney, Cat Got Your Secrets by Julie Chase, Asking for Truffle by Dorothy St. James, and An Amish Christmas Love by Amy Clipston, Beth Wiseman, Ruth Reid, and Kelly Irvin. I hope you find some delightful new books to read!
Asking for Truffle by Dorothy St. James is the first story in A Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery series. Charity Penn lives in Madison, Wisconsin with
Granny Mae Stoughton who helped raise her. Penn has won a trip to Camellia Beach, South
Carolina along with cooking lessons, but she never entered a contest. She is
suspicious (fears it is a scam or someone trying to get her money) and asks her
best friend, Skinny McGee to check it out for her. Skinny leaves her a message stating he knows
why she won the contest and will contact her the next morning to share what he
uncovered. Unfortunately, Skinny is drowned
in a vat of chocolate at the Chocolate Box during the night. Penn along with her dog, Stella (a barker and
a biter) heads to Camellia Beach to find out what happened to her friend. Penn visits the Chocolate Box and starts
taking chocolate making lessons from Mabel Maybank and her partner, Bertie
Bays. But it is not all sunshine and
rainbows in this small, island town. Another
death occurs and Penn is dropped into the middle of a controversy. Penn
needs to find the guilty party before she becomes the next casualty.
Asking for Truffle had such an
interesting premise. I liked the
Chocolate Box, Mabel, Bertie, Althea, and the luscious sounding
chocolates. Penn, on the other hand, is
very unlikeable. She is prickly as a
porcupine, standoffish and a whiner.
Penn complains constantly about her family (I admit they leave a lot to
be desired, but I tired of hearing about them), her trust issues, people
wanting her families’ money, her lack of cooking skills, her grandmother
dislike of her, her aversion of anything related to magic, ghosts, crystals,
and such. The same details are repeated
frequently throughout the story (I’m surprised someone had not tried to kill
her prior to this). Penn states she has learned from her past mistakes, but she
keeps making the same ones. Her dog,
Stella (a gift from Erik, the Cheese King—we never learn his full name) is a
horror (bites everyone and barks constantly—though it does seem like a smart
dog). It might help if Penn actually
tried to train Stella or showed her love.
Asking for Truffle would have been a better story if the author had made
Mabel and Bertie the main characters. I felt Asking for Truffle was too long. If all the repetition had been left out, it
would have been a better length (along with cutting down on the numerous
cooking scenes). There are actually two
mysteries (the murder and a burglary).
Neither are difficult to solve. Most readers will be able to identify the
guilty parties early in the story. Penn is lacking as a sleuth. She comes to town and spends more time
learning to make chocolate than investigating Skinny’s murder. She receives an envelope from the detective
with paperwork that Skinny received prior to his death, and Penn does not open
it. These are just two examples. The conclusion was very unsatisfying. The author should have included an epilogue
to tie up the loose ends. What is the
Cheese King doing that is angering Penn’s family? Why did Mabel change her will a month before
Penn arrived in town? Who is Penn’s
mother? These are just a couple of
unanswered questions (very frustrating).
I am rating Asking for Truffle 2 out of 5 stars (I did not like the final
product). If you are looking for a good
escape book, then I do not recommend Asking for Truffle (it is frustrating and
depressing). There are some scrumptious chocolate
recipes at the end of the novel.
I appreciate you visiting today. I will be reviewing An Amish Christmas Love by Amy Clipston, Beth Wiseman, Ruth Reid and Kelly Irvin on Tuesday (if I have electricity and wifi connection). I hope each of you have a pleasant (and safe) Monday. Take care and Happy Reading!
Kris
The Avid Reader
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