This is the absolute perfect mystery to recommend to anyone who loves Christmas and loves cozy mysteries! Lots of appeal, with great characters and a picturesque coastal Maine setting in a storybook winter. Hayley is super busy getting things ready for the holidays when there is a murder during the gingerbread house making contest. She springs into action to solve the case, but is hampered by the unexpected arrival of her long-estranged father. Great fun!

I love Christmas themed cozies. And when its one of my favorite series, its even better. Its Christmas in Bar Harbor, Maine, and Hayley's mother and boyfriend are in town for the holidays. What she didn't plan on was her estranged father who she hasn't seen since she was a child showing up in Maine. What she expects even less is a murder being committed and the victim being an old rival of her fathers. Hayley wants to believe the best in him and sets out to prove he is no killer.

I love the characters in this series and the growth they have shown throughout the books. Hayley food and wine column is always a favorite of mine. I really enjoyed seeing Hayleys father in this book. It added something different to the story to see Hayley with both her parents.

Death of a Gingerbread Man is book #17 in the Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery series by Lee Hollis.

I can’t believe this is book17 in the series. I love following the characters through the series and see how they grow and change. Hayley always has a lot going on the encounter with the father that abandoned her didn’t help. There wasn’t as much humor in this one but I still really enjoyed it

Thank you to the author, Kensington, and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) copy of this book and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Death of a Gingerbread Man by Lee Hollis is a return to Maine and the return of Hayley’s long lost father, Dwight. Not great timing as her mother, Sheila, and her boyfriend, Carl, were coming for Florida for the holidays. Keeping them apart was not going to be easy. To say Sheila held a grudge who be an understatement. But Dwight sailed in as if everyone should be happy to see him. A few were. Hayley arranged for him to stay with her brother, Randy, and his husband, Sergio, who was the police chief. Certainly the police chief could keep Dwight on the straight and narrow. Alas, that was not to be. There was even a murder and, of course, Dwight was the primary suspect. It turned out he was innocent, but still. Hayley nearly got herself killed cornering the real killer but that came after a lot of to and fro with Dwight and his cronies. It looked like someone wanted Dwight dead, and there was no shortage of suspects.

Hayley is married to Bruce, who is the perfect husband for her. He doesn’t get riled up easily. He is the crime reporter for the local paper, which is still managing to publish five days a week despite the internet. Hayley writes a couple of articles a week about food. They have a good life, Hayley’s children are grown and out of the house. Her restaurant is going well and she has good friends. As in any small town, there are plenty of characters and Hollis uses them in her book to good effect, sometime hilarious, always interesting. This is a decent murder mystery. One, not just anyone could solve. There are twists and turns aplenty, what with Dwight’s antics. She didn’t spend much time in the restaurant, but then again, it is Christmas. Sheila adjusted, not well, but Carl helped. Good story. Intriguing characters and situation; one with ramifications. I loved every minute of it.

I was invited to read Death of a Gingerbread Man by Kensington Publishing. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley #KensingtonPublishing #LeeHollis #DeathOfAGingerbreadMan

An engaging cozy mystery. A wide variety of characters. Not a fan of con men so I had no sympathy or empathy for one of the main characters. Carl was a favorite. Several surprises. Interesting movie references. Yummy sounding recipes. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

This is the 17th release in this loved cozy foodie series by cozy author Lee Hollis. I have been devoted to this series since book one. Haley is a smart savvy protagnist and adds humor as well as fine tuned investigation skills to each book. The supporting characters are richly drawn to each book and delightful. I highly recommend this series to all cozy readers.

Thank you to the publisher, the author and Net Galley for the opportunity. In this Christmas theme release Haley is busy planning for a bake off when her long lost Father shows up just in time for her Mother and her boyfriend to arrive. After not having her Father in her life Haley is very forgiving and welcomes him into her life. Antics arise with problems when his rival is murdered and he is suspect number one. Between the bake off, parents not getting along and Haley stuck in the middle trying to develop her receipes while she investigates its a suspense building hilarious story. The Christmas theme receipes are wonderful. A enjoyable fun read that I highly recommend.

Hayley gets a surprise when her long lost father shows up in town. With her mother already there for the holidays, it makes for some uncomfortable moments. When her dad becomes the prime suspect in a murder investigation, Hayley has no choice but to get involved. A fun read, good plot and great stories in the newspaper columns. It was fun to have the Dads featured in this story. Looking forward to the next adventure!

"Death of a Gingerbread Man (Hayley Powell Food & Cocktail Mystery #17)" by Lee Hollis is set around the Christmas and New Year's season. Hayley's mom and mom's boyfriend are coming to stay the month-ish with her since her kids aren't going to be home. Then, Hayley's long lost father is suddenly part of all the holiday events after she catches him in his annual visit to his friends/the dads of her friends. Gee, he could make time to see them but hasn't seen her in several decades/her early childhood.

This is part of the story that really kind of annoyed me. Hayley was pretty quick accept her father into her life like she'd been talking to him off and on for years rather than this is the first time since before she was 10. She and her brother are also quick to defend him whenever he proves he really hasn't changed and only thinks of himself. I really don't get the impression he's there because he feels he should be there to make up with them rather that he's there because he's lonely and wants to force his company on them.

The mystery took a long time to build up. Once it got there it ended up being less about the first victim and all about the second, attempted victim. We get some Hitchcock inspiration with the mystery as well.

This is one of those cozy mysteries that likes to put recipes in between chapters. There's also little news articles that the main character writes to put a story with the recipes. I personally would prefer the recipes tied into the mystery part of the books rather than be tied to side stories that don't feel completely connected to the particular part of the story they're inserted into. I tend to skip this part of these book. They'd be great as a separate, series based cookbook though.

I might’ve been hoping for too much humor this time around because even though I loved spending Christmas with Hayley and the gang, I was really disappointed there wasn’t much in the line of hilarious moments going on, especially my favorite Sergio-isms! I really missed those a lot and I hate to admit it but he was boring this time. Earl was the only person just slightly funny and Mona was kinda off her game too. We got a good dose of her usual craziness in the beginning but that was pretty much all. There was a humorous scene at a cooking lesson that Hayley gave but it didn’t involve any regulars.

I’m sure it had to do with the nature of this story though and wanting to make sure Hayley’s father, Dwight got a decent backstory and mystery which was the highlight of this book and of course a returning father would make for a more serious subject. I liked it as much as previous books, but I really didn’t have as much fun reading it.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book provided by Kensington Cozies via NetGalley, and my opinions are my own.

I love this series, but feel like this book is not the best of them. There is so much emotional drama that the murder is basically lost. All the focus is on Dwight. #DeathofaGingerbreadMan #NetGalley

I have read all the books in the Hayley Powell series and this one was good but just didn't match some of the others.

Hayley is going to have a full house for Christmas with her mother and her boyfriend coming to visit from Florida. Hayley has closed her restaurant for the season and is looking forward to time with family (mostly, since she has a strained relationship with mom). When she agrees to go with her friend Mona to drop off her father's left behind blood pressure medication, Hayley gets the surprise of the season to find her long-lost father, Dwight, at the fishing cabin with Mona's and their other BFF's dad. Needless to say, Hayley is stunned since she has not seen this man since she was in elementary school when he up and abandoned their family.

When said father says he wants to spend the holidays in Bar Harbor, Hayley knows the town isn't big enough to contain him and her mother's anger. What sets off the tumultuous holiday season is Dwight's reappearance in town causing a lot of hurt feelings to resurface and the amount of enemies he faces. When Dwight is challenged by a former rival to bake in the gingerbread contest, he thinks it's a good-natured competition, until the rival appears to suffer a heart attack during the judging.

The reason I enjoy cozies is because of the small-town, tight knit friend groups in the stories. While this one was set at Christmas, it felt like the holiday was the enemy rather than a backdrop and it made everything that followed seem less than cozy. I missed a lot of character rapport since Hayley's ne'er-do-well father and her relationship with her mother overshadowed the usual banter and fun I enjoy in these books.

I will eagerly await the next in the series but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed with this one just a little bit.

My thanks to Netgalley and Kensington Cozies for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It was enough that Hayley's estranged father Dwight showed up out of thin air but then, then, he's accused of murder and well, she's got to find the real villain. This latest in the series sees a lot of family drama (understandable) mixed into the mystery. Luckily, Hayley's got good friends and her family to help her out. Dwight's a real mixer for sure - will he stick around? The mystery here is nicely twisty but it's the family dynamics are the highlight. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good cozy read.

Another wacky adventure with Hayley Powell, but this time her dad is part of the ride. Hayley's ne'r-do-well father has come to town at the worst time of the year - the same time her mom is there to celebrate Christmas with Hayley and Bruce! Hayley has to play peacemaker between her father and, it seems, most of Bar Harbor especially once he enters himself in the gingerbread house contest and once of the contestants bites the cookie crumbs. With holiday food and drink recipes and columns by Hayley, Death of a Gingerbread Man is a fun, light read to help your holiday season great.

Great addition to the series with all of the great characters we have come to expect from Lee Hollis. Loaded with Christmas touches- it’s a great holiday mystery.

I have to say I just love this series. It always means a laugh and smile, something we all need. This one definitely provided that plus a mystery of course.

It's Christmas season - see the title - and poor Haley is not going to have any peace or quiet has she deals with family and some surprises! No spoilers here.

I love when she does stuff with Mona and that is how we start the story. No offense to Liddy but Mona is fun! They are off on a little adventure and it leads into the story of the holidays.

We have all the usual characters of course with Randy and Sergio, and Bruce. In this story we learn more of Haley's history and Randy's so that made it interesting and fun.

As I said, there is a mystery and it is a good one with some twists and I did not fully guess it until near the end. Fans will enjoy. To those new, I'm sure you can jump in but it's so much fun to know the backstory.

Felt a bit long with a lot going on, but it definitely gives off the Christmas vibes. I liked the twist of who the killer was at the end.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Lee Hollis for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for Death of a Gingerbread Man coming out September 24, 2024. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author. I didn’t realize there were so many books in the series. I love Christmastime murder mysteries. I thought the recipes throughout the book was interesting. I think I was slightly lost in the mystery. I loved the Christmas activities, but it felt like the mystery took a backseat to other things. But I love cozy mysteries. I would definitely check out more books by this author.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Christmastime cozy mysteries!

It's Christmas time in Bar Harbor! The snow is falling and the air is filled with the warm scents of woodsmoke and fresh-baked gingerbread. Hayley has her hands full as always, running Hayley's Kitchen, writing her weekly column for the newspaper, and trying not to lose her temper with her mother, who's visiting for the holidays with her boyfriend Carl. Just when you think things can't get much crazier when Hayley's long-lost father returns to town, immediately dredging up old grudges.

This is one of my favorite series. I love Hayley and her fun stories and delicious recipes. Though I do miss the days when she was working at the newspaper, sparring with Bruce, and wrangling teenagers, it's been fun to see the kids grow up and to see Hayley find love and follow her passion. One thing that never came up much was the fact that Hayley's father abandoned her family when she was about seven years old. It's been interesting to have him return and I admire Hayley's willingness to open her life to him despite his long absence.

The mystery in this book was very interesting! There are so many little clues dropped here and there but it's not until near the very end that the one clue sends Hayley down the right path, where all the pieces fall together. I love how it all came together and everyone got their bit of satisfaction at the end.

Lots of bombs dropped in this book and hopefully there will be many more to come!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

Loved reading this book and series. I look forward to reading this series everything it comes. I suggest reading it. But do it in order. I had a hard time putting the book done.

This was my first book by Lee Hollis but the 17th in this series. I’m curious to read more books in the series to hear more tales of the characters within Bar Harbor!
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Spend the holidays in Bar Harbor, Maine with Hayley, a food and cocktail columnist and restauranteur. She’s already having to deal with her stubborn as a mule mother and lo and behold her estranged father shows up! During a gingerbread house contest, tragedy hits the event and Hayley must figure out who did it before more trouble ensues. A fun, laugh out loud cozy mystery!
Thank you, Kensington Publishing, for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.