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66th out of 293 books
—
981 voters
Candy Apple Dead (A Candy Shop Mystery #1)
by
Sammi Carter
Abby Shaw has returned to her hometown of Paradise, Colorado--leaving behind a career in corporate law and a cheating husband--to take over her aunt's candy shop, Divinity. But her sweet new life quickly turns sour when a fellow merchant dies in a fire. With all clues pointing to arson--and Abby's brother as the number one suspect--she must sink her teeth into finding the...more
Paperback, 222 pages
Published
September 6th 2005
by Berkley Prime Crime
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Recently divorced Abby Shaw returns to Paradise, Colorado to run the Divinity Candy Shop, which she inherited from her Aunt Grace. Though some of the people living in Paradise are a bit cool towards Abby until she proves herself; men's clothing storeowner Brandon Mills seems attracted to her. Since he has quite the reputation as a ladies man, Abby's not sure about his true feelings but never has a chance to find out when he is murdered. Brandon's death is a shock for Abby in many ways - she disc...more
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What could be more delish than a mystery series that takes place in a candy shop? Adding pizza, cheese & baked goods is the only thing that comes to mine. Oh, talk about sheer deliciousness.
Sammi Carter's Abby Shaw is the latest amateur sleuth to join the ranks in the cozy mystery genre.
Candy Apple Dead is a luscious read.
I enjoyed getting to know Abby in this tempting debut. I loved the small town feel of life in Paradise, Colorado.
Carter created a likable heroine who has chutzpah. Abby see...more
Sammi Carter's Abby Shaw is the latest amateur sleuth to join the ranks in the cozy mystery genre.
Candy Apple Dead is a luscious read.
I enjoyed getting to know Abby in this tempting debut. I loved the small town feel of life in Paradise, Colorado.
Carter created a likable heroine who has chutzpah. Abby see...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Dec 03, 2009
Rebecca
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
mystery lovers
Recommended to Rebecca by:
my mother
Shelves:
rmr-project
Candy Apple Dead by Sammi Carter revolves around Abby, a corporate lawyer who returned to her hometown after her marriage failed and took over her great aunt's candy shop. When a friend's store burns down and his body is found in the rubble, her brother is the townspeople's main suspect. Assuming, of course, that the man didn't burn the shop down himself and get caught in the blaze. Abby can't believe either could be thought guilty, but soon finds out many things about both of them that she didn...more
Candy Apple Dead is the first book in Sammi Carter's "Candy Shop Mysteries" and I absolutely love it! I read the whole book in about 2 1/2 days! I probably could have read the whole thing from start to finish in one afternoon but... ya know... pesky priorities get in the way lol. Seriously though, I couldn't put it down. It was such a page turner and Sammi kept me guessing and in suspense with every character!... soon everyone became a suspect and I was just itching to find out who did it! I als...more
I enjoyed most of this "first in a series" book. The Abby, main character, is very likable and has strong passions for her family, friends and neighbors. When a fellow businessman is found dead in a fire and her brother Wyatt is the prime suspect she can't leave it to the police. So, she is off investigating, despite repeated warnings from the police and from family to leave it to the police. It is this behavior that bothered me, she repeatedly puts herself in danger and just seemed to ignore th...more
The title had absolutely nothing to do with what happened in the story. No one choked on a candy apple, no one was given a poison apple a' la Snow White. I get that Abby Shaw owns a candy shop and this is the Candy Shop Mystery series but come on! Yeah, someone dies in the book and yeah, at one point I think candy apples are made but how the two have anything to do with each other is beyond me. Moving on.
At first I didn't get it. In the beginning there are references to a town council meeting ab...more
At first I didn't get it. In the beginning there are references to a town council meeting ab...more
Abby Shaw now owns Divinity candy shop when her aunt passed away she left it to Abby. Making sweets and selling them eases her heartache, but having Brandon MIlls sweett on her helps it even more. Brandon invites Abby to go to dinner with him after they attend the town meeting . But when he fails to show up for the meeting or the dinner date , and his store burns down. Abby fears something has happened to him and when she see,s her brothers truck near the scene before the fire and a body is fou...more
My first cozy mystery and first mystery in a very long time with a short history. I loved the idea of combining candy with murder (I'm a bit of a sweet tooth), but this book was bad. The title had nothing to do with the plot. The main character is an idiot and is constantly doing things a former corporate lawyer or anyone who studies law should know not to do. So much of it was her sheer stupidity in ticking everyone off asking stupid questions and saying stupid things. I found her character not...more
Interesting and fun start to a new mystery series. Abby's involvement in the murder investigation seemed realistic. Feeling the police were focusing on her brother as the perpetrator, she began questioning townspeople in order to clear his name. Abby herself was likable. There weren't any clues that would lead a reader to the identity of the killer on his/her own, so the mystery resolution only came about by reading it as events happened rather than putting together hidden significant events. St...more
This is the first in the candy shop mystery series, and despite the sugary title, I found I really enjoyed this book. Abby Shaw has survived a recent divorce and has moved to a small town in Colorado to run her Aunt’s candy shop. Small town politics become the center of the novel as many shop owners oppose a new proposal. Soon the instigator of the new proposal, an acquaintance of Abby’s, is found dead in his shop. Abby knows that he was murdered and sets out to prove it—in between making batche...more
Abby Shaw is trying to readjust to life in Paradise, Colorado after years away. Part of that adjustment is running Divinity Candy Shop, which she just inherited from her aunt.
But adjusting to life in a small town also means adjusting to local politics. The Downtown Merchants Alliance is currently debating the merits of moving the local Arts Festival to the downtown area. The issue is hotly contested. Brandon Mills is spearheading the effort to move it, so when he doesn't show up at a meeting ab...more
But adjusting to life in a small town also means adjusting to local politics. The Downtown Merchants Alliance is currently debating the merits of moving the local Arts Festival to the downtown area. The issue is hotly contested. Brandon Mills is spearheading the effort to move it, so when he doesn't show up at a meeting ab...more
I wanted to like this book, but found it only just ok. It's the typical cozy scenario - a single woman in a cute job finds herself in the middle of a murder that she feels compelled to solve herself. It felt too predictable, too similar to many other small town women sleuth cozies. Plus, all the talk about candy made me so hungry!! I'm hoping this series develops a little more depth and personality. I'd like to see more of te small town characters fleshed out a bit more too.
Apr 11, 2012
Versel Rush
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Versel by:
Amazon
I finally gave in after seeing this pop up every time I opened my Amazon recommendations (and, lately, on my Goodread recommendations as well). I hope that this is the last I will see of this series on any recommendations list.
The book was boring--no other way to put it. Abby, the new owner of Divinity Candy Shop, was wishy washy and, frankly, not too bright. By the end of the book I was seriously tired of hearing about her cheating ex-husband and the dysfunctional relationship she has with her...more
The book was boring--no other way to put it. Abby, the new owner of Divinity Candy Shop, was wishy washy and, frankly, not too bright. By the end of the book I was seriously tired of hearing about her cheating ex-husband and the dysfunctional relationship she has with her...more
A run of the mill cozy mystery. Here, the hook is that the amateur detective owns a candy store and the book features candy recipes. The story itself is well plotted and not easily parsed...the author doesn't give away the real culprit too early and I found myself interested in the romantic byplay between the heroine and the cop trying to get her to stop asking questions.
I thought this was a fun read because it takes place in Colorado.
When Abby's friend Brandon is found murdered and his store is burned down around him, she is shocked to learn that her brother Wyatt is the prime suspect. She is questioning people to try and clear her brother to the dismay of the local police, it could place her in danger.
When Abby's friend Brandon is found murdered and his store is burned down around him, she is shocked to learn that her brother Wyatt is the prime suspect. She is questioning people to try and clear her brother to the dismay of the local police, it could place her in danger.
I struggled with this cozy. The story it self was very good, but I didnt like the main character. The story was told through her first person which made it all that much worse. She was suppose to be an ex-lawyer, yet when it came to legal things she was very naive. Several times I wished I could reach in smack her, lol.
Cute concept, but Abby is a bit iffy as a character. I wanted to smack her a couple times for being so naive. And why wouldn't her building already have security? Especially if they rent out the meeting room. Small town, I guess.
A quick fluff read to pass the time.
A quick fluff read to pass the time.
I hate to put 2 negative reviews up in a row but this book was not good. The main character was super annoying and self-righteous. I am officially done with mysteries where the main character has NO reason to be investigating. All it does is make me angry.
Picked up on one of my days off when I felt like reading something light. I enjoyed it enough that I'd look out for others in the series.. cozy mysteries would be a guilty pleasure if I actually felt guilty about reading them.
I read this one after reading some of the others in the series...I like the writing style and of course I love the Colorado mountain setting. Reading about the cold and weather is great...rather than living in it still!
A new author, but sometimes I feel like I could write these cozies. Except for the whole coming up with a plot, characters, setting and dialogue thing. I think I need to expand my horizons outside the mystery cozy realm though.
I liked this series. It was a little slow in some places but that is normal for the first book in a new series. There are characters to build as well as the town. I'll be reading the rest of the series soon. The candy detail is yummy also.
I was surprised by this book. The writing was more detailed and the story more interesting than I had expected. I am looking forward to seeing if the next book in the series will prove to be as entertaining.
This book didn't have much depth, but that's part of why I chose to read it. I enjoyed the characters, I enjoyed the ending (I enjoy a good, quirky hook-up), but I did feel that it wrapped up quite quickly and out of the blue. I would read more books in this series. Definitely a fun and enjoyable read.
Jul 28, 2011
Mary Newcomb
added it
Paradise, Colorado certainly has its fair share of characters. Solving a murder is only part of the deal for our intrepid candy maker, Abby Shaw. I plan to try the next book in this series.
#19 02/12/06 CANDY APPLE DEAD by Sammi Carter
RATING: 3/C
GENRE/PUB DATE/# OF PGS: Mystery, 2005, 217 pgs
TIME/PLACE: Present, Paradise, Colorado
CHARACTERS: Abby Shaw/candy shop owner
COMMENTS: 1st in the Candy Shop cozy mystery series. Abby was a corporate attorney who inherits her Aunt Grace's Candy Shop Divinity. She's recovering from a divorce and is set to go out w/ Brandon another local shop owner. Brandon doesn't show up for the date because he dies in the fire that burns his store down. Abby...more
RATING: 3/C
GENRE/PUB DATE/# OF PGS: Mystery, 2005, 217 pgs
TIME/PLACE: Present, Paradise, Colorado
CHARACTERS: Abby Shaw/candy shop owner
COMMENTS: 1st in the Candy Shop cozy mystery series. Abby was a corporate attorney who inherits her Aunt Grace's Candy Shop Divinity. She's recovering from a divorce and is set to go out w/ Brandon another local shop owner. Brandon doesn't show up for the date because he dies in the fire that burns his store down. Abby...more
If it’s a Colorado setting you’re after, you might try the Candy Shop Mysteries. The author also includes candy recipes in each book. This is the first in the series.
Yummy Candy recipes but not as much fun as Joanne Flukes, I guess becasue I have a history with the others, I will read another in the series as not to judge to poorly.
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Sammi Carter is the multi-published, award-winning author of the popular Candy Shop mystery series featuring amateur sleuth Abby Shaw. Sammi Carter is the pseudonym of Sherry Lewis.
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Apr 08, 2011 09:27pm