Published by: Ingrid King. Last Updated on: February 2, 2023 by Crystal Uys
Cats, a tropical setting, mouth-watering food (with some recipes included), and did I mention cats? Lucy Burdette’s Key West Food Critic mystery series has all the right ingredients for some fun summer reading.
In this latest installment in the series, Death on the Menu, food critic Haley Snow gets drawn into a murder investigation after a man is killed during a high profile three day conference at the Harry Truman Little White House on Key West.
From the publisher:
Even though Haley will be working the event helping her mother’s fledgling catering business, there’s plenty of spicy gossip to go around. But just before her mother’s decadent flan is put to the test, Key West’s most prized possession, Hemingway’s Nobel prize gold medal for The Old Man and the Sea, is discovered stolen from its case. Unsavory suspicions point to Gabriel, a family friend and one of the new busboys working the event, who mysteriously goes missing moments later. Anxious to clear his name, Gabriel’s family enlists Hayley to help find him, but right as they begin their search, his body is found stabbed to death in the storeroom. Hayley has no shortage of suspects to interrogate and very little time before the killer adds another victim to the menu.
My favorite part of the series is the vivid descriptions of Key West and its inhabitants. I’ve only been to Key West once, in the 1980’s, but I still have fond memories of the visit and this series always takes me back to that simpler time. The cats in the book, including Haley’s cats Evinrude and Sparky, are not central to the mystery, but they make frequent appearances, as do the cats at the Hemingway House.
The story is fast-paced, with an immensely likable protagonist and an assortment of quirky secondary characters. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The setting, the cats, and the guilt-free pleasure of reading about amazing food make this one of my favorite mystery series.
Death on the Menu is available from Amazon.
About the author
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
I would love to see my little black cat, Sunshine, as a character in a book.
Currently I don’t have any cats, but I love cats. My last two cats Princess and Tigger would make wonderful companions. Thank you for the review of Death On The Menu
My cat Lucky who passed away last year. He was such a loving cat!!
I have a black & white tuxedo cat. She’d be perfect to star in the next book.
I LOVE reading anything and everything about cats. I’ve had cats my whole life, and wouldn’t have it any other way. This book looks like a great read. Once I start reading a good book, I can’t put it down until I finish it. I would love an autographed cooy!
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I would love to see my cat, Hamilton, featured in one of Lucy’s mysteries. He’s a beautiful gray and white tabby with a big personality and he is into everything. He loves people and would make a great helper for any sleuth.
I want my cat, Saphira, in a murder mystery. She likes to watch the tv show Criminal Minds.
“Tell me which of your cats you’d like to see immortalized in one of Lucy Burdette’s mysteries!” Our cat Kitty. She started life as someone’s domestic kitten, then her rambunctious nature drove her to seek the life of the streets, then two years later we adopted her from an animal shelter. Now she likes being indoors and is scared of going outside and losing her comfortable home. She used to swat at me with her paw far too often, but she’s grown more patient with me, and I’ve grown more insightful about knowing her moods and what she wants!
I would like to see my Tripawed kitty Trillian, (Trilly for short) immortalized in a book because I had to have her put to sleep 2 days ago because she had cancer spread all inside her belly. I miss her terribly
She lost her little foot as a newborn but never ever let it slow her down. She amazed me how she could climb to the most incredible high places. As a disabled person myself, she put me to shame with her energy and fearlessness.
Sounds like a very interesting read.
I don’t currently have a cat but black cats with green eyes are my favorite ☘️
My granddaughter and her cat Charlotte live with us. Charlotte has quite the personality.
My cat Paw-some is a Polydactyl (Hemingway Cat) so he’d fit right in.
All I keep imagining is my crazy at Simba.. he refuses to walk through our cat door now to go to the basement where his litter box, food and water is.. he meows at the door until one of us gets tired of hearing him and then we open the door… He is such a diva! Not to mention he has now taught our other cat Boo to drink from the toilet You haven’t seen anything until you go upstairs to the bathroom and see Boo with both front paws holding on to the seat as her face is buried in the toilet bowl and her booty is sticking straight in the air.. it’s quite a treat to see
I would love to have my cat Charlotte included in a book . She is very adventurous!!
I would love to win this book. A good book to add to my reading library. Sounds like a great book. Oh I hope I win. I really want to win this book. I think Daisy Mae would be a fantastic character in your book. This book would be great to win just to have my cat in the book. I hope I win so my cat Daisy Mae can be in the book and the book looks fantastic. I really want to win
I would love to win this book. A good book to add to my reading library. Sounds like a great book. Oh I hope I win. I really want to win this book.
Spot and Skitz, Spot passed away a few years ago but, he was the investigative one and Skitz, who is 19 now, was the mouser when she was younger and aggressive one. I think they would make a great team in a book, investigator and powerhouse.
Miss Kiki would be a fantastic character in a book. She has quite the personality. But I think she would have to play a thief since she is best at stealing and not solving mysteries.
My kitty, Katie, is such an adventurous little gal and she’s not afraid of anything. I know she would have a ball in Key West helping to so solve this mystery. (I would love to go along with her as I love Key West!)
Looks like a great book.