Book Review: Criminal Confections

Criminal Confections is the first book in a series. It is about “the chocolate whisperer” Hayden Mundy Moore. She works with various chocolate companies to help them work on their recipes and make them even better.  This book is set at a chocolate retreat at a spa.

When one of the guests ends up having a heart attack and dying – now they think that a murderer might be on the loose.  I was a bit surprised that everyone had a “show must go on” mentality and the retreat continued – despite there having been a death.  When a second person is found dead – well, everything still keeps going on.  And there seems to be a complete lack of police present.

Ignoring logic – it was fun to try and figure out “who done it” with all of the characters and their different personalities that we come across in the book.  I had 3 different ideas of who I thought had done it – and all of them turned out to be wrong. Maybe I just wasn’t paying enough attention to the clues?

I’m not sure that I was into this book enough to read more from this series – but a murder mystery revolving around chocolate is always a great escape.

I received a free e-copy of this book in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.

About the Book

Hayden Mundy Moore is an expert on everything chocolate, helping clients develop new products and revamp recipes until they’re irresistible. But sometimes, a dash of murder finds its way into the mix. . .

Hayden Mundy Moore has bushwhacked through African jungles and haggled in exotic markets to find the finest cacao beans and the most flavorful blends. It’s thrilling work but rarely dangerous–until a colleague turns up dead at the exclusive chocolate-themed Lemaоtre resort spa in San Francisco.

Adrienne Dowling’s heart attack is blamed on an accidental overdose of the secret ingredient used in Lemaоtre Chocolates’ new line. Hayden can’t believe that conscientious Adrienne would make that mistake. And between chocolate body scrubs, cocoa mud baths, and a non-stop frenzy of chocolate-based treats, Hayden starts to suspect that she, not Adrienne, was the intended target. Finding a killer among the rival chocolatiers and potential suspects won’t just be satisfying–it might save her life. . .