Guilty as Cinnamon by Leslie Budewitz

Guilty as Cinnamon by Leslie Budewitz ISBN-13: 9780425271797 Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages Publisher: Berkley Prime Crime Released: Dec. 1, 2015

Source: Review copy from the publisher.

Book Description, Modified from Back Cover:
Springtime in Seattle’s Pike Place Market means tasty foods and wide-eyed tourists, and Pepper’s Spice Shop is ready for the crowds. With flavorful combinations and a fresh approach, she’s sure to win over the public. Even better, she’s working with several local restaurants as their chief herb and spice supplier.

Business is cooking, until one of Pepper’s potential clients, a young chef named Tamara Langston, is found dead, her life extinguished by the dangerously hot ghost chili—a spice Pepper carries in her shop. Pepper must use all her senses to find out who wanted to keep Tamara’s new café from opening—before someone else gets burned…


My Review:
Guilty as Cinnamon is a cozy mystery. It's the second book in the series. You don't need to read the previous novel to understand this one, and this story didn't spoil the previous whodunits.

The mystery was clue-based, and it was complex enough to make putting the clues together more challenging. The heroine asked good questions and did a good job of following up on leads. The main characters were interesting and likable. But I'm getting a little tired of ghosts showing up in cozies even in a "maybe it was, maybe it wasn't" capacity. Then again, I never was a paranormal fan.

There was a minor amount of bad language. There was no sex. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


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