Cyanide and Sensibility
by Katie Oliver
Pub Date: 12 Dec 2023

While Phaedra Brighton might not have a Mr. Darcy (yet), she's quite content with her loving family and loyal cat. Phaedra's sister Hannah is the Jane to her Elizabeth, and Phaedra is ecstatic that Hannah has decided to move home for her next adventure—opening a business.

All of Laurel Springs is out in full force to celebrate the grand unveiling of Hannah's new patisserie, Tout de Sweet, including local celebrity Rachel Brandon. Hannah is a master of her craft, with confections so divine, one bite will make you think you've died and gone to heaven.

Of course, you never want that to happen literally.

When one of Hannah's famous dark chocolate cupcakes sends Rachel's assistant to the hospital with poisoning, Hannah begs for Phaedra's help to save her reputation and budding business. But Phaedra has more questions than answers: Who was the cupcake actually meant for? And how far is the culprit willing to go to take their target off the menu—permanently?

Thank you so much for an advanced copy of this book! I was very excited to dive into another iteration of this mystery series.

Cyanide and Sensibility is definitely a cozy mystery (as are the other books in the series), and I like these characters a lot. They're funny and quirky, and they inspire all the warm fuzzies about my favorite Austen-esque characters. I love that you can feel the inspiration in the characters, yet each character really stands on his (or her) own in this series as well. I particularly like the main character, Phaedra. I think she's understated and at times, undersold, in this series because she has some spunk and some backbone that doesn't always translate to the page well!

While I liked the characters, the story itself in this one just fell a little flat for me. The mystery was just meh for me, and I wasn't blown away by the ending, either. I would still love to read more from this series; this particular installment just wasn't my favorite. Good, not great, and kept me entertained (albeit barely) while I read!

Star Rating: 3⭐️