I enjoyed this book. The use of the "Me too" movement was nicely added, but I had a bit of a problem with the depiction of depression and mental health. Overall, it was an intriguing story with fun characters and an interesting mystery and reveal.

I had to jump right into these series as this is book 9 and i haven't read any of the previous books, which kind of sucks because the main character is planning a wedding and i never got the chance to see the romance between them and their So come about, so i was kind of lacking in the connections to their love because of that. i did enjoy that it was close to thanksgiving in the book since i am reading this in November, kind of got me more into the season :D my only issue with the book is that it seem to focused too much on Nathan's case rather than our main characters Hayley's, which is kind of fine on one hand because you still have a mystery going on, but you only get a few clues to it and then are left rather lost on the "main" mystery

I fully admit that I am a fan of this series but this was still one of the best books from it so far. We get to meet more characters (and family) and see the dynamics in stressful and happy situations. Delicious recipes make a sweet ending even sweeter. I really enjoyed the ever-deepening relationships the regulars have. The action in this one came a bit later but was so worth the wait. All in all, I was immensely pleased to have spent my day reading this story.

Thank you to NetGalley, Lucy Burdette, and Crooked Lane Books for giving me a chance to read this story and share my honest thoughts and opinions with others.

Hayley and Nathan are to be married on Thanksgiving weekend. If a wedding and Thanksgiving in one week weren't enough, Kayley has to deal with her dad coming to town, continued construction delays on their new home, Nathan's super-secret case and a couple of dead bodies. A great read!

Haley Snow's wedding is less than a week away when she finds herself being drawn into investigating the sudden death of a tourist on a Key West foodie tour she was attending on behalf of Key Zest Magazine. Haley wants to refuse because she already has way too much on her plate, but she can't not help a friend in need, can she?

Once again I found myself immersed in the culture of Key West, a destination definitely on my bucket list because of this series. Haley's friends and family have become old friends to me and make me really wish I had a Miss Gloria in my life! The food described in this book had my mouth watering, and many recipes were included! This series is wonderful and entertaining and I recommend it without reservation.

Thanksgiving is just a few days away and Hayley is writing her last assignment before she can celebrate with family and friends. Besides Thanksgiving Hayley and Nathan’s wedding is just around the corner. You’d think Hayley has enough to keep her busy but when her friend calls for help Hayley is right there. Can Hayley solve the mystery before the turkey needs to be served?

This is book nine in the series but can be enjoyed as a stand-alone mystery. Hayley is a smart strong protagonist. The secondary characters are interesting too. The mystery is well-plotted and at a steady pace. There are plenty of suspects and red-herrings. For the foodie cozy fans, there are plenty of recipes included.

I voluntarily agreed to read a copy of this book supplied by Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own and in no way have been influenced by anyone.

This was a fun, cute cozy mystery! I love the theme throughout, and I will definitely be continuing with the series.

Princess Fuzzypants here: Hayley and Nathan are gearing up for their Thanksgiving wedding. They need to keep two households a bit longer now that the kittens have arrived but once they are married, and if they can get a contractor to finish the boat renovations, they plan a long life of wedded bliss together. Unfortunately a murder and then a second one keeps Nathan awol for much of the time. It is the life of a woman married to a cop but Hayley has good reason to think there is something sinister threatening her happiness. Can she prevent a further tragedy from sabotaging her future?
Key West is a super cool spot and I have enjoyed this series. Plus, how can you not love a relationship built on kitties. I mean- really. The characters from Hayley and Nathan to her mother and her new hubby and her father and his wife, her elderly room-mate and assorted other characters, it is an entertaining mix of character based suspense and romance. Hayley gets herself into dangerous spots but she is never foolish or stupid. She has good instincts but knows when to call in the cavalry.
This is a great beach or vacation read and deserves five purrs and two paws up.

I received this book via Netgalley in return for an honest review. I really enjoyed the story and the characters relationships were really well developed. There was humor in the right places, and I loved the description of the Keys in Florida as I have never been there. Really fun book.

Lucy Burdette.
A deadly feast
I really enjoyed this book not having read any of this series before.
Kept you entertained, intriguing mystery with all the drama, wedding and thanksgiving going on .
Loved Hayley Nathan mum and all the extended family.
Plenty of twists and most of all fun to read.
Will definitely look forward to the next book.

This cozy mystery is entertaining and fun to read. The storyline is about food critic Hayley Snow preparing for her wedding and Thanksgiving at the same time in Key West, Florida. For someone who has traveled to Key West, I can attest to the fact that the scenery was on point. The characters were also well developed and easy to follow.

In the story Hayley thinks the seafood tasting tour she is covering for Zest Magazine is going to be a breeze, but of course mayhem ensues. At the end of the tour a couple is chatting away when the wife becomes ill and they have to call an ambulance. Matters get worse when she dies and it looks like it’s foul play.

Annalise, Hayley’s friend desperate to save her tasting tour asks her to look into what really happened and if it was indeed foul play or what could have caused this woman to die.

It did take a bit to get going, but overall this is a great cozy read. I especially enjoyed the recipes at the end of the book.

I was provided this book for free in exchange for my honest opinion.

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book for anyone who loves a good cozy mystery. 📕👍🏼

I GIVE IT A 5 STAR: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

It’s nearly Thanksgiving in Key West and for food critic Hayley Snow, that can only mean one thing—lobster macaroni, key lime pie, and murder! We find Hayley preparing for not only Thanksgiving, but for her wedding to fiancé Nathan Bransford, when a dead body threatens to put a stop to the whole thing. With yummy food descriptions, vibrant settings, and a great cast of characters, the latest installment in the Key West Food Critic mysteries A Deadly Feast is a fun cozy mystery!

About the Book

Hayley Snow is a bit frantic as this book opens, but she is doing her best to take it in stride. Her wedding is only days away (not to mention, so is Thanksgiving), and her father, stepmother, and stepbrother are arriving soon. In addition to the expected tension between her father and her mother’s beau, Hayley also finds herself without a contractor to fix the houseboat she and Nathan were set to move into following their wedding.

But all of those worries may become obsolete when a seafood tasting tour she is covering for her job as a food critic for Key Zest magazine ends up with a death. Even worst, her friend Analise’s business running the seafood tasting may go under. As Hayley puts wedding planning partly on hold to look into the murder, her fiancé Nathan is tied up on a dangerous and mysterious case of his own.

Will Hayley and Nathan be able to come together in time for their wedding? Will Hayley be able to discover who was responsible for murder? Time is ticking and Hayley has a LOT on her plate—pun intended!

Reflection

This was my first book from the Key West Food Critic mysteries, and I can see why they are so beloved! Hayley is a really great protagonist—she has strong instincts and a big heart, though she certainly is a bit impulsive and prone to worrying, relative to her fiancé Nathan! It was interesting because Nathan was sort of absent working on his own case. When we saw them together, it was nice to hear about them working out the challenges of being married to a police detective. I’d imagine the spouses and loved ones of police detectives have quite a hard time not getting worried when their loved one can’t call in.

I did think that this one got a bit too focused on the details of Hayley’s life (which, in fairness, were interesting and she was QUITE busy at the time of this mystery), and it took awhile for the mystery to really pick up. Even after it picked up, we were more focused on finding out what Nathan’s case was than on following leads Hayley was pursuing.

This balance is always the key to how a cozy mystery is read. I think long-time fans of the series probably didn’t mind the mystery being secondary. But for me, I wanted a bit more of the mystery to be front and center. Hayley seemed a bit reluctant to investigate it, which though I just met her did feel a bit out of character! I definitely want to revisit a few of the earlier books. I wonder if Hayley wasn’t as invested in this case because of how much was going on in her life, or because she wasn’t as close to the murder (not someone she knew nor that she discovered)?

Regardless, though the mystery didn’t pick up until the end of the book, it was so entertaining when it did hit! Plus we got a sweet ending to the book and some fantastic recipes (hello, lobster macaroni and cheese) that made my mouth water just reading about!

All in all this was a fun virtual getaway to Key West, and I loved the vivid descriptions of the scenery, food, and characters! I’ll definitely try another from this series. Thank you to Crooked Lane Books for my copy. Opinions are my own.

"A Deadly Feast" was an intriguing cozy murder mystery. Relaxing and fun to read, it was an enjoyable and very entertaining story.

Highly recommended, this book was well worth reading. Fans of the genre will enjoy this one.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my own request, from Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

I enjoyed this book in the Key West Food Critic series. In fact, I enjoyed the book enough that I will probably go back and read the first 8 books.

The author does a great job of developing the characters and the mystery. You are immediately drawn into the story and follow Hayley Snow along as she prepares for her wedding, celebrating Thanksgiving with her family, and attempts to solve a murder...against her fiancé's better judgment.

The food described had me salivating and wanting to make a trip to Key West to enjoy the delicious seafood and delightful people.

Thank you for NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

It's Thanksgiving, and in Key West, food critic Hayley Snow is working and getting ready to marry her police officer fiancé, Nathan Bransford. But before then she has to cover a food tour, which takes tourists to local restaurants to taste their fare.

On the last stop, though, one of the tour members dies. Hayley's friend Analise runs the tour, and she calls Hayley for help, because this could potentially ruin her business. Hayley agrees to help, even though she has the wedding and Thanksgiving to prepare for. Add on top of that the fact that Nathan is working undercover and is unable to tell Hayley what is going on.

That makes for a chaotic time. Can Hayley figure out why the tourist died, serve Thanksgiving dinner, and get married? She can if she can find Nathan.

It's on my bucket list to visit Key West, and every time I read one of Lucy Burdette's food critic mysteries I feel like I am there. Ms. Burdette's descriptions are wonderful, and they draw me into the story and make me feel as if I'm following along and taking part in the action.

I love the fact that Lucy and Nathan, whom I now think of as friends, are getting married. The intrigue that surrounded the wedding make it that much more enjoyable. The mystery took a back seat for me in this one, since I was more interested in the wedding, seeing Miss Gloria interact with her new friend, and watching Hayley's parents and their perfect Thanksgiving.

This is one of my favorite series, and whenever I see one advertised, I immediately wonder when I can get my hands on it. A Deadly Feast is a meal for the senses. If you have not read this series you should, and you should start from the beginning to follow Hayley and her cohorts on their wonderful journey.

A Deadly Feast is book #9 in the Key West Food Critic Mystery series, but the first one I’ve had the pleasure to read. I really liked Hayley and Analise, as well as the supporting characters and the setting. There was a lot going on between Hayley’s personal commitments and the murder investigation though, so if you haven’t started the series yet, I think this is one that might be more fun to read in order (or at least one or two earlier installments) to understand everyone better. It was still a fun mystery jumping in at this point though, and I will definitely be reading more of this series.

The long-awaited wedding of Nathan and Hayley has a pretty exciting few days prior to it. Hayley was worried sick about Nathan who was on a secret sting operation along with most of the police force in town. A woman on a foodie tour she'd attended ended up dying from a stroke, and a local chef named Martha was hiding a huge secret and feeling guilty as well. Hayley had to rely on her intuition once again, and this time it was for something even more important. Topping all of that off was the fact that their houseboat contractor had basically bailed on them, and now Hayley and Nathan wouldn't be able to move in until it was finished once she found another contractor.

These characters are like old friends to me now even though I've not read most of the beginning books--I'm still intending to do that though. Probably my favorite characters aside from Nathan and Hayley themselves would be Miss Gloria (what a hoot! I want to be like her when I'm 80!) and Steve, Nathan's fellow officer who is also an ordained minister. He always seems to have just the right thing to say to make the situation better. There are some awesome-sounding recipes at the end of the book, lots of them! Of course, I'm always partial to how the desserts sound!

I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this book provided by the publisher via NetGalley, and my opinions are my own.

So much festivity in this new book in the series. The long awaited wedding of Hayley and Nathan, Thanksgiving, all this and she trying to find the soon to be wed couple a place to live since their contractor is giving them the run around. Hayley is an entertaining sleuth, she is smart and very resourceful. I think she reminds me of Nancy Drew and it is what draws me to this series, well, that and the food!. Love this series and look forward to reading many more in this series. .

It was a fun and delightful read, not to be read on an empty stomach, there are so many delicious foods that your mouth is constantly watering.
Hayley Snow is a food critic and is about to marry Detective Nathan Bransford. They need a place to live to wait while they finish the work in their future home, she has to manage the preparations for the wedding and also she is in charge of investigating a strange death occurred at a seafood tasting in which she has participated.
All the characters are well developed. Hayley is an intelligent person, very helpful and generous, always helping everyone, she can't say no.
I love Key West and its restaurants, its descriptions are so vivid that it feels like being there.
Even if it is the ninth book of the series, all the information necessary to read it as a standalone is provided.
A pleasant reading with many subplots, an enchanting setting and appreciable final recipes.
Highly recommended for those who love cozy mysteries

This was my first foray into the world of Lucy and her Key West adventures. I am HOOKED! So much so I have already requested the first book in the series from my local library and have checked daily on its progress to my anticipating hands.

Even though I entered at book 9, I was never lost. The author did a great job in explaining the characters but it never felt like she was overdoing for those readers who have been reading since book one.

The story kept me riveted to the end and the description of the food made me rush to the store to make her Mojito Cookies this past weekend. They have been a hit. Next, I will try her pecan bars.

This is the perfect book to read outside, with a glass of sweet tea and some form of sparkling water in front of you.

I received a complimentary copy from Crooked Lane Books through NetGalley. Any and all opinions expressed in the above review are entirely my own.