4 ⭐️ for Bayou Book Thief by @ellenbyronmariadirico

Huge thank you to @netgalley, @berkleypub, @letstalkbookspromo, & @ellenbyronmariadirico for the opportunity to read this one!

Bayou Book Thief is the first in a new series by @ellenbyronmariadirico & it set up the series & stories to come very nicely. Rare cookbook finder, Miracle, Ricki, James left LA after the sudden passing of her husband & moved back to New Orleans where she was born & left for adoption. The cast of characters that are featured were just as fun as Ricki, but Ricki was a true strong female lead. I loved the history I learned about NOLA & I loved the recipes at the end. I am definitely looking forward to the next installment of this series. If you’re a comfy, cozy fan, I would definitely recommend this one!

Ricki James-Diaz joins the New Orleans Charbonnet Family as she’s hired to organize and run “Miss Vee’s Vintage Cookbook & Kitchenware Shop” in the Historic Bon Vee Culinary House Museum located in the Garden District. Ricki is surrounded by an eclectic group of people, plus two peacocks! Eugenia Charbonnet Felice is President of the Bon Vee Foundation Board; a lovely person; and she has the last word on all decision making. When murder strikes close to the Bon Vee Museum, a thief is revealed, and the employees and volunteers are left wondering who the killer could be…

This is such a great cozy mystery debut! Realistic characters; the fun and colorful New Orleans setting; tons of yummy food and drinks; interesting vintage cookbooks and kitchen antiques mentioned; and a sensational plot to pull the whole whodunnit together! There are *multiple* mysteries and murders in the story and they’re all fascinating.

I feel like the main characters are already my friends, and I want to visit with them again, soon. They like books, dogs, children, great food and fellowship, good friends, and are hard workers. I thought the characterization was awesome and that’s why I took to the characters so quickly. I’m looking forward to seeing romance develop between Ricki and Virgil. I also adored German and Noisett. And, the murderer? They’re right there, in plain sight, but I didn’t catch on until Ricki did. The ending is very memorable. I’m eagerly anticipating the next story. I highly recommend this cozy mystery to readers.

I honestly reviewed a digital arc provided by NetGalley and Berkley Publishing. All opinions are my own. Thank you.

Bayou Book Thief by Ellen Byron
The First Vintage Cookbook Mystery

After spending most of her life in California, Ricki James decides to return to New Orleans, the city of her birth, after the death of her husband. A lover of vintage cookbooks and kitchen accoutrements, Ricki has a great idea to open a culinary themed gift shop in Bon Vee, a Garden District mansion turned museum. Fortunately, the grande dame of the estate loves the idea and Ricki is soon selling wares and making friends. While going through boxes of donations, she makes a grisly discovery, the body of the cantankerous tour guide who was recently fired for stealing books! When the police appear to shrug off the clues Ricki's found, she decides to stop sharing and start sleuthing.

The elegance as well as the attempts to hide fading glory and the gritty realness that is New Orleans imbue the first Vintage Cookbook Mystery with a real sense of this wonderful city. That reality also reminds us not to judge a book by its cover! Miracle James-Diaz has a tendency to jump to conclusions. As a book lover she should remember the adage to never judge a book by its cover and readers would be wise to keep that in mind.

The characters truly make BAYOU BOOK THIEF stand out. A young widow with loving and fun parents who nonetheless would like to discover more about her birth, a hot chef with a damaged heart, a lost soul, a rowdy senior, and more intriguing people inhabit the pages and not only make me want to learn more about them, but make me start to care for them. I like Zellah and Kitty while I'm not a fan of Cookie, and I absolutely adore German and want to learn more about Mordant. I'm also a huge fan of Gumbo and Jambalaya.

The murder was intriguing leading to several additional mysteries. I like that while the murder is solved, there are lots of other questions still raised and I'm eager to see developments as the series progresses.

BAYOU BOOK THIEF brings together quirky characters and an engaging mystery in a wonderful setting. Vintage cookbooks, memorable characters, and the intoxicating setting that is New Orleans make this a fantastic start to a new series. Just remember, looks can be deceiving.

Ellen’s Cajun Country Mysteries were a delight, and the series wrapped up satisfyingly. Happily, Ellen takes us back to Louisiana with a new series. Bayou Book Thief, the first installment of the new Vintage Cookbook mystery series, transports us to the heat, humidity, and hustle of New Orleans.

I love the way Ellen plays with the cozy mystery tropes we all know and love: Ricki (short for Miracle) James, a newly-widowed Los Angeles transplant, starts up a vintage cookbook – themed gift shop in the Bon Vee Culinary House Museum, in a historic mansion in the Garden District. Instead of big-city girl in the small town, our protagonist relocates to another big city (arguably, one with more personality and pizazz than Los Angeles). The circumstances of her widowhood are tragic, but at the same time darkly comical. Ricki’s mother is not the nagging matchmaker we know from other popular cozy series; Ricki’s parents are happily retired and too busy taking dance lessons to meddle with her life. And is this a book shop mystery, a culinary mystery, or an antique shop mystery? Why not all three at once?

One element that was satisfyingly to expectation was the murder: The discovery of the body is shocking but not gruesome, and the victim (mild spoiler here) will not be much missed. A mystery featuring an amateur sleuth needs to provide a good reason for the protagonist to get involved and not simply leave it to the police, and this is done deftly in Bayou Book Thief. Enough is at stake, including Ricki’s own livelihood, that she is inevitably drawn in to investigating the murder.

Bayou Book Thief is an enjoyable and well-plotted mystery with plenty of well-researched local detail and a satisfying conclusion. Warning: you may finish the book and find you have an irresistible craving for a Po’Boy. I’m looking forward to the next installment of the Vintage Cookbook Mystery Series, which is scheduled for release in February.

A gorgeous historical Garden District home - with a sassy peacock, is the site of a murder. Ricki's vintage can opener is the weapon. The victim - a curmudgeon tour guide. But who is the killer?
Ricki along with the other staff at the Bon Vee Culinary House.
These characters are characters! A great start to a new series.

Ricki James has returned to her birthplace, New Orleans, to start a new life and open a gift shop in a local museum. The collaboration is perfect. Her stock of vintage cookbooks and kitchenware is just what the museum visitors find themselves wanting. Things are going splendidly, until she opens a box that should be filled with donated books but actually holds the body of a particularly unpleasant tour guide. I loved everything about this one -- the mystery, the characters, the setting... It couldn't be more different from my day to day life and that's what made it such a pleasant escape.

Bayou Book Thief is the first book in the Vintage Cookbook Mystery series by Ellen Byron, and I can’t wait to return to New Orleans and these quirky characters!

We get to know the characters a little at a time—Ricki, her new best friend Zellah, many of the people who work or give tours at the museum, Ricki’s landlord, neighbor, and those at the Bayou Backyard. There are many other characters, and Ms. Byron has created a Cast of Characters at the front of the book to keep track of them all.

Ricki, whose real name is Miracle, runs The Bon Vee Culinary House Museum’s gift shop, Miss Vee’s Vintage Cookbooks and Kitchenware. This opportunity fits her to a T. It was fun to hear about Ricki’s collections and how she acquires and sells them even if she doesn’t cook. I loved that at the end of the book, there were recipes from some of the cookbooks.

Ricki always has her nose where it doesn’t belong, whether she thinks seniors are getting ripped off by an HVAC company owner or trying to help find a murderer whose crime was too close to home—especially when she and a coworker find the body. When there’s a second murder, the police have their hands full, but Ricki knows the two crimes are connected. Will she prove to be right?

Many stories are told, and they are artfully woven together. There are many twists and turns and clues galore in solving the whodunnit. The flavor, sights, and sounds of New Orleans are interlaced throughout, making me feel like I was there.

There are dead ends and backtracking, but through it all, Ricki is persistent in keeping the police in the loop of her findings. There are some chuckles along the way with both heartbreaking and heartwarming moments. There are likable characters and some that are totally unlikable who may show a different side to them at some point. Others are hard to have around.

There is closure in solving the case, and the epilogue hints at what’s to come in Wined and Died in New Orleans.

With fun and quirky characters, fantastic visual depictions, and narratives appealing to your culinary senses, Bayou Book Thief is a fabulous start to the Vintage Cookbook Mystery series.

I was so sad when the Cajun Country series ended, so I was thrilled to see a new series set in Louisiana so I could revisit those memories, locations, and people. This first book did not disappoint! There are a LOT of characters, but the author gives you a list at the beginning and a brief description. I admit I didn't read all of the characters so I wasn't biased going into the book.

The protagonist is Rickie (short for Miracle) that was born in New Orleans but spent most of her life in Los Angeles and moved back here after her husband died. She is quite a young widow and we do learn the circumstances behind his death, and her desire to keep his memory pure to the best of her ability. She apparently also fell in with a Ponzi schemer much to her surprise and was afraid that it would follow her back to Louisiana. Luckily, she has many people on her side and willing to give her a chance despite her insecurity in herself.

The victim is one that needed to go. He was not a pleasant person and there were some other aspects to his personality that made him unlikable. It was amazing how many people he pissed off and it went back further than just the immediate people that surrounded him in the present. There are many red herrings set out for us while trying to pick through the clues to figure out the killer. I know that I wasn't sure who to suspect and had a couple of ideas but wasn't right which is the sign of a good mystery to me, that the clues aren't obvious.

There are many characters that I did like but I really got a kick out of Madame, one of the tour guides. She is a feisty woman that has done a lot in her life much to the chagrin of her son. I won't spoil the surprise so read the book. I loved that she wore the color purple for everything since it was her signature color as she stated. Plus she wasn't going to put up with the stuffiness of her son or grandson.

I have a strong suspicion that I am really going to enjoy this series from the characters to the theme (vintage cookbooks) and the setting. I look forward to Rickie's next adventure.

We give this book 5 paws up.

4.5 stars

Oooo y’all! This series is gonna be good! The mystique of New Orleans. A culinary house museum honoring a late socialite celebrity chef. A vintage cookbooks & kitchenware gift shop. Quirky staff. A bit of romance potential. Several mystery threads to solve. And a winsome protagonist who draws readers into her own personal story right away and keeps us invested in her for the long haul.

After a troubled marriage and her promising career both end tragically, 28-year-old Ricki James-Diaz has returned to the city of her birth (New Orleans) in hopes of starting a new life and finally figuring out where she came from. Adopted by a NICU nurse after her teenage mother disappeared from the hospital, Ricki has a lot of questions about her biological family and while this isn’t the focus of the story it’s definitely in the background enough to keep me eager for the possibility of some answers in the next book! Including one particular twist near the end that has my reader mind all awhirl with anticipation.

I loved the concept of Ricki’s gift shop in the Bon Vee Culinary House Museum – it gives the story some built-in layers with the history of Genevieve “Vee” Charbonnet, the quirky tour guides, staff dynamics, and the ins and outs of store management. It was slightly and pleasantly different from the usual gift shop cozy motif, and I found myself wanting to buy out her inventory of vintage cookbooks! Like Ricki, I don’t really cook but the idea of these cookbooks really intrigues me.

The mystery itself is very well written and has several threads that kept me guessing as to how they were related – if at all. This always makes me happy as a mystery reader – when my mind stays solidly engaged in the case from beginning to end. I was caught totally off guard by the culprit (not easy to do, as many mysteries as I read) and I had lots of fun solving it alongside Ricki!

Bottom Line: Bayou Book Thief by Ellen Byron is a highly engaging read, with interesting characters and intriguing plot threads. Ricki delights as the series protagonists, and readers will become thoroughly invested in her story, along with the mysteries she’s trying to solve in this first book. The supporting players anchor the plot – and Ricki, for that matter – and add a lot of entertainment value. A hint of possible romance in future books has my full support, and I’m already eager for book two!

(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book)

Dollycas’s Thoughts

Born in New Orleans and abandoned immediately by her teenage mother Miracle “Ricki” Fleur di Lis James was adopted by the NICU nurse who took care of her. She now packs up her life in Los Angeles after her husband dies while trying to do an internet challenge and returns to New Orleans to start over.

That new start happens in a big way when she can combine her love for vintage cookbooks with her new job at the Bon Vee Culinary House Museum, the home of the city’s legendary restaurateur, Genevieve “Vee” Charbonnet. Ricki will be opening the museum’s new gift shop, Miss Vee’s Vintage Cookbooks, and Kitchenware.

After being open just a few days she discovers an employee of the museum is stealing books and they are fired for the crime.

Trying to put the matter behind her she is excited to learn she has received a steamer trunk and two oversize boxes of donated books. Worried about keeping the shop fully stocked the donation arrives at the perfect time. Ricki along with a couple of employees set out to sort through the donations before the museum opens but the trunk didn’t contain any books. Inside was the very dead body of Franklin Finbloch . . . the recently fired . . . book thief.

Being a fan of Ellen Byron’s Cajun County Mysteries I was sad to see that series end so I was ecstatic to learn of this new series again set in Louisiana.

Readers are introduced to a wonderful quirky cast of characters led by Miracle “Ricki” Fleur di Lis James who has a very interesting backstory that just starts to unfold within the pages of this story. She comes across already as a very strong protagonist with some great sleuthing skills.

We also meet several members of the staff at the Bon Vee Culinary House Museum including Eugenia Charbonnet Felice who is the president of the Bon Vee Foundation Board. She oversees everything at the museum. She works hand in hand with the Executive Director, Lyla Brandt. We also meet Cookie Yanover, the Education Program Director. She and Ricki become fast friends. In fact, all of the employees for the most part get along very well and welcomed Ricki with open arms.

Away from the museum we meet Ricki’s landlord, Kitty Kat Rousseau and she is a hoot. Ricki’s AC has been out for days in the steamy New Orleans heat and Kitty is trying to get it fixed but Ricki believes something shady is going on.

Speaking of the heat, Ms. Byron’s detailed descriptions will have you sticky and sweating, wait, this takes place in the south, perspiring and glistening, and turning on your own air conditioners. She also paints a clear picture of Miss Vee’s Vintage Cookbooks, and Kitchenware and places in and around the museum including the staff’s favorite hangout, the Bayou Backyard. It was easy to visualize every scene and this author does it without getting overly wordy.

The mystery that Ms. Byron put forth was plotted with intricate precision. It flitted in and out with varied subplots perfectly. Filled with clever twists and a red herring or two it wasn’t hard to get completely engaged by everything happening in the story. I did find it hard to truly pin down the killer. I was astonished when the guilty party started to be revealed. The ending was exciting and a bit comical as Ricki gets some awesome assistance from an unlikely duo.

Bayou Book Thief has set this series off to an excellent start. Diverse characters, a fun location, and a puzzling mystery have me declaring this book A Perfect Escape. And the cliffhanger introduced in the Epilogue has me excited and intrigued about Ricki’s future. Wined and Died in New Orleans is set to be released on February 7, 2023.

Whether she’s writing under her own name or under the nom de plume Maria diRico, I love Ellen Byron’s culinary cozies. With her latest mystery series, she takes us back to her beloved Louisiana with our heroine, the New Orleans-born but Los Angeles-raised Miracle “Ricki” Jones-Diaz.

Ricki was abandoned shortly after birth, but was swiftly adopted by a hospital nurse who later married and moved to LA. After a series of life-changing events, including but not limited to her parents’ decision to move to Puerto Vallarta after their retirement, Ricki decided to leave LA as well. New Orleans seemed a natural destination for someone still curious about her birth parents, whom decades of searching had turned up little information on. Perhaps being closer to the place where she was born would help her eventually solve that mystery.

But first Ricki needs to successfully launch her latest project, opening a vintage cookbook and notions store on the grounds of the historic Bon Vee Culinary House Museum. New Orleans has a history of both culinary excellence and appreciation, as evidenced by the very existence of the museum, in the home of the late, legendary restaurateur Genevieve “Vee” Charbonnet. Vee’s niece Eugenia now runs the Bon Vee Foundation board, and is interested in Ricki’s idea for a gift shop, which the museum has until now lacked.

Of course, not everyone is as enthused. Eugenia’s nephew Theo considers the whole idea a boondoggle, and that’s even before Ricki has less than pleasant run-ins with several other members of the museum’s staff. Ricki tries to take everything in stride, but even her laidback California ways are sorely tested when one of the tour guides, Franklin Finbloch, is caught stealing from her store and by extension the museum.

When Ricki finds Franklin dead soon after, stabbed to death with an antique can opener from her shop, she immediately feels responsible. Not because she killed the man, but because her own unusual past makes it difficult for her to turn a blind eye when she could be helping to bring criminals to justice. Despite the wry treatment she gets from the homicide detective in charge, Ricki decides she needs to investigate as best she can, and perhaps solve a few other mysteries in the process. But how willing is she to risk her own life while chasing down the truth in a still unfamiliar town?

The writing throughout this book is so lively and engrossing: I did the reading equivalent of gulping this down like the most refreshing drink as I followed Ricki’s entirely lived-in exploits. Ms Byron’s ability to weave together several different plot threads is consistently excellent, with wonderfully colorful characters, and situations that were suspenseful and humorous in turn. This was an outstanding series debut and I’m eager to read more, especially with the revelation provided in that epilogue!

Befitting a novel revolving around vintage cookbooks, there were six recipes included, inspired by the author’s personal collection. It took me a while to figure out which one I wanted to try, but I finally decided on this one, adapted from 1975’s Country Fair Cookbook: Every Recipe a Blue Ribbon Winner:

QUOTE
Old-Fashioned Gingerbread

2 ½ cups flour
1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup shortening
½ cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup dark molasses
½ cup hot water
½ cup diced crystallized ginger (author’s addition, optional)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 9-inch square baking pan.

Sift or stir the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and salt together.

In another bowl, cream the shortening and sugar together until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat well, then beat in the molasses.

Add the dry ingredients to the shortening mixture, alternating with the hot water. Beat the batter well after each addition to combine the ingredients.

Pour the batter into the greased 9-inch square baking pan and bake for 45 minutes or until the cake is done, which you can determine by either pressing the top to see if it bounces back or inserting a toothpick that comes out clean.
END QUOTE

I wasn’t sure when exactly to add the crystallized ginger, but figured that mixing it in to the batter last before pouring it all into the greased pan would work out best. That done, this came out almost exactly as I expected an old-fashioned gingerbread to! It does feel a little heavy by modern standards, so I’d recommend serving this with copious amounts of whipped cream to lighten the mouth feel. While this cake serves nine, cutting it into smaller slices helps make it feel even less vintage than contemporary, especially with the whipped cream.

Next week, we travel northeast to make a savory seafood appetizer while looking into the death of another famed restaurateur. Do join me!

I'll start by saying I'm a huge fan of this author and I was thrilled to get to read this book. As with all new series there are a lot of characters to get to know. I found them to be quirky and likable. The mystery is well written, and I spent a lot of time hungry with all the descriptions of fantastic food from New Orleans. A bonus for me was the setting of New Orleans, I love it. A book thief, a body in a trunk, New Orleans and did I mention vintage cookbooks? It's all a yes please for this reader! And I don't want to forget the recipes at the end, all from vintage cookbooks. Please bring me book 2 in this fabulous new series!

Ricki James-Diaz is a young widow who has moved to New Orleans for a new start in life. She lands her dream job, managing a museum gift shop that specializes in vintage cookbooks and cookware. When a pesky docent shows up dead - and books he owned (many stolen) are sent to her - she becomes involved in solving the murder mystery.

I wanted to read Bayou Book Thief because I have enjoyed Ellen Byron's Cajun Country Mystery series so much. I love New Orleans. And most important - I collect and sell vintage cookbooks.

This is my favorite start to a new cozy mystery series in ages. Ricki is a smart and likable protagonist. She really knows her vintage cookbooks, and her knowledge about cookbooks - and cooking history - is interspersed through the novel in fascinating tidbits.

I loved the delightfully captured New Orleans atmosphere, and the beauty and quirkiness of the museum as well. I liked Ricki's friends on the staff, and her potential romantic interest as well.

The mystery was well plotted and kept me guessing. It was well paced and so engrossing that I didn't want to take "life breaks" from reading.

I highly recommend Bayou Book Thief for fans of cozy mysteries, especially anyone who loves vintage cookbooks or New Orleans settings.

I was so sad when this authors last series ended so I was so excited to see a new series also set in the south. This was a great story. I really enjoyed the main character and her interactions with the supporting characters. The mystery was very well done and kept me guessing. Overall this is a great new cozy mystery series and I would certainly recommend it.

Miracle “Ricki” Fleur de Lis James-Diaz hasn’t had an easy life. Her birth mother abandoned her, but she was quickly adopted. Then her husband was killed doing an internet stunt. Ricki decides it’s time for a change so she leaves Los Angels to start over in New Orleans.

She applies for a job at the Bon Vee Culinary House Museum where she opens the museum’s gift shop featuring vintage cookbooks. Everyone is thrilled with the idea and she receives many book donations. Imagine her shock when one of the trunks filled with books isn’t filled with books at all. Instead, there is a dead body. The body of a former museum employee who had been fired for theft.

With almost all of the museum employees, including Ricki, under suspicion of murder, she fears the museum and her shop are in danger of being shut down. She decides to lend the police an unwanted hand in investigating the crime. Ricki finds herself stumbling over quite a number of potential suspects.

I’ve been wanting to read Ellen Byron’s books for a long time. When I saw she had a new series, I wanted to jump right in on the ground floor. I’m so glad I did. What a delightful book! I felt as if I were transported to New Orleans. It’s filled with the flavor and excitement of the city.

There were many characters to get to know, since this is the first introduction to these characters. I loved Ricki right from the start. She is surrounded by a quirky crew of supporting characters who will make you laugh.

The murder mystery is intriguing and kept me guessing to the end. It surprised me, but it all fit together perfectly. The plot also has a couple of side storylines going on and kept me interested. The main mystery is wrapped up in this book, but there is a hint of a continuing thread.

This is an exciting new cozy mystery series that is quite entertaining. It has humor, mystery and a touch of romance all blended together for a fun filled adventure. Bayou Book Thief is on my "best of 2022" list.






FTC Disclosure: I voluntarily reviewed a free Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Ricki (Miracle Fleur di Lis James-Diaz) has returned to New Orleans where she was born after suffering the loss of her husband and a scandalous end to a job in LA.

She landed a position with the Bon Vee Culinary House Museum where she creates a gift shop containing vintage cookbooks and kitchenware. Unfortunately, a trunk containing a donation of vintage cookbooks turns out to contain the body instead of a former Bon Vee employee fired for being a book thief.

Ricki is a smart woman, although not exactly confident after her recent losses. There are wonderfully diverse support characters introduced as well.

Little sub-plots or threads take the story in different directions and introduce the reader to some interesting practices in the book world. Lyla becomes a suspect along with several lesser characters and it’s difficult to nail down who among them has the greater reason for offing not one, but two victims. Ricki’s imagination tends to go wild with motives most of which are tossed immediately.

The red herrings are narrowed and fed into the conclusion which settled most of any loose threads remaining, and I must admit I was surprised by the culprit. As in most cozy mysteries, there is a fostering romance and one big surprise thread that will be carried forward.

Also, as in many cozy mysteries, appropriate recipes, in this case vintage southern recipes are shared after the epilogue with this note:

“Onions, celery, and peppers are affectionately known as the “holy trinity” in Cajun and Creole cooking.”

This book was like a visit to New Orleans. As most of you know we essentially lived in New Orleans for four months prior to the pandemic and honestly if I had my way entirely we would pack up and move to the area. Until that happens or until our next visit I have this series to get me through. There are so many tidbits that are so truly New Orleans - the conversation about pronunciations had me dying laughing as it is so true.

Ricki is an interesting lead for the series. She was born in the city but grew up in Los Angeles so she is both a local and an outsider at the same time. She's a bit flaky and never met a conclusion she couldn't jump at or a potential suspect that she doesn't become convinced was the murder if only for a paragraph or two. She has an interesting backstory and I think the dynamic of her becoming used to her new community was really interesting even if I did want to shake her a time or two. I also enjoyed all the vintage cooking talk and would love to shop at Ricki's store.

The mystery was an interesting one. I do love when EVERYONE wanted to murder the victim. It definitely kept me guessing and wondering just which motive was strong enough to end in murder. Because this is the first book in the series there is some setup and introductions which slowed the pace a bit but overall this was an enjoyable and entertaining read. I'm looking forward to the next book already.

Bayou Book Thief is a fantastic start to the new Vintage Cookbook Mystery series by Ellen Byron!

At only 28, Ricki is a widow and needs a fresh start in life. She moves from LA to her birthplace of New Orleans, where she opens Miss Vee's Vintage Cookbooks and Kitchenware, a gift shop in the Bon Vee Culinary House Museum. When she receives a box of donated vintage cookbooks, she is beyond horrified to discover it contains the dead body of a former museum employee. Will Ricki be able to figure out the killer’s identity before it’s too late?

I have come to realize that I shouldn’t read cozy mysteries when I’m hungry because there are so many mouthwatering food descriptions! I was excited to find recipes in the back of this book, so I might have to make a few of them! The focus on NOLA cuisine, the descriptions of the vintage cookbooks and cookware, and the culinary museum added a unique and interesting aspect to this fun book! I enjoyed being transported to New Orleans and getting to know the quirky and charming characters, but Ricki was my favorite! With her friendly, outgoing, and sweet personality, she was instantly likable! Of course, there was also a murder mystery to solve, and Ricki had a knack for sleuthing in addition to her flair for finding thrifty treasures! There were plenty of suspects to throw me off and keep me guessing! I loved this delightful, engaging, and twisty cozy, and I am anxiously awaiting the next book in this series - especially after that ending!

This descriptive character-driven novel has so many good points! I loved reading about the vintage cookbooks, old recipes, and kitchen gadgets! Ricki’s shop, with everything from romance novels featuring recipes to coloring cookbooks, sounds like one I could find myself browsing through for quite awhile! In fact, I was so drawn in by the descriptions of the New Orleans food and culture, I totally forgot to choose a suspect, so I was surprised when the identity of the murderer was revealed! I enjoyed the engaging characters and storyline in this book so much, I will definitely be reading the next books in the series when they are released! This book is a must-read if you love cozy mysteries!

My sincere thanks to @letstalkbookspromo and @berkleypub for my digital copy. My thoughts are my own.

I enjoyed this cozy mystery and I look forward to the rest of this series. Set in New Orleans, the characters are lively and as decadent as the city itself. The author did an amazing job of transporting me back to Louisiana and I enjoyed the character development. Definitely recommend this book.