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An Appetite for Murder
(Key West Food Critic Mystery #1)
by
Hayley Snow's life always revolved around food. But when she applies to be a food critic for a Key West style magazine, she discovers that her new boss would be Kristen Faulkner-the woman Hayley caught in bed with her boyfriend! Hayley thinks things are as bad as they can get-until the police pull her in as a suspect in Kristen's murder. Kristen was killed by a poisoned ke
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Mass Market Paperback, 310 pages
Published
January 3rd 2012
by NAL
(first published January 1st 2012)
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Start your review of An Appetite for Murder (Key West Food Critic Mystery, #1)

This is the first in a series that takes place in Key West. Beautiful tropical setting and one would expect that there would be more details about that Oceanside vibe. Our main character does live on a boat with her girlfriend at a marina where Haley had to move after being dumped by her boyfriend shortly after arriving in Key West from New Jersey. Haley is hoping to get her dream job as a food critic at a new magazine that is called Key Zest. Unfortunate for Haley, the co-owner of said publica
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Great setting, interesting plot with nice twist. But the characters all needed work, in my opinion. The main character, Hayley, was portrayed as such a ditz, and so dysfunctional it was off-putting to me, although the scenes with her involving food showed her in a much more competent light. Her friends were portrayed as a bit insincere, though the author did a divine job portraying the ex as an ass. The detective never shows Hayley an ounce of kindness throughout the book, but at the end we're t
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I loved Lucy Burdette's An Appetite for Murder. Its ingredients are among my favorite things--Key West, food, cats and a book that sets its terms and meets them perfectly. Burdette knows exactly what she's about in this genre. She creates an appealing, somewhat ditzy (but not too) protagonist in Haley Snow, whose life, despite getting stirred up by an accusation of murder, seems believable, sympathetic, and multi-dimensional. She's young, trying to make her way, a good soul and a spunky spirit.
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Where have I been for so long? I just read the first book in Lucy Burdette’s Key West Food Critic Mystery series and loved it. While Key West or any of the keys for that matter are somewhere I have never visited, I could feel the Florida air and smell the ocean. This series is sure to be one of my favorites for the simple fact I love food. Lucy writes in a way that you can experience what she is telling you. You kind of feel for the main character because she has nothing but bad luck in this fir
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This was a great book. It was so good I took extra time at lunch so I could finish it. This is the first book in the Key West Food Critic Mystery and I can't wait to read the next book. Hayley moved to Key West to be with her boyfriend Chad until he decided after a couple months to move on so when his new girlfriend gets killed Hayley is the number one suspect. Not only did he kick her out of his apartment with no where to go he also didn't give her back all of her belongings like her grandmothe
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I've been reading and reviewing the ARCs of this series as they came out, but I finally took time to go back to the first book and read it. It was good to get Hayley's background story and meet all her friends for the first time, or how it would have been the first time meeting them.
While trying to land a food critic job, Hayley was determined to prove herself innocent of her ex-boyfriend's current girlfriend's murder. It was definitely a tangled path of red herrings with a little danger thrown ...more
While trying to land a food critic job, Hayley was determined to prove herself innocent of her ex-boyfriend's current girlfriend's murder. It was definitely a tangled path of red herrings with a little danger thrown ...more

This book was a successful read for me, I’m glad I read it, like a lot of books I preferred the ending to the beginning/middle. I gave it three stars and three stars, for me, is a good rating: it means I liked the book and enjoyed it (four being REALLY liked and five being adored!) There are reasons I haven’t given a higher rating: I had both positive and negative thoughts about this book.
This book at various points focused a lot on reviewing which I enjoyed because that is, essentially, one of ...more
This book at various points focused a lot on reviewing which I enjoyed because that is, essentially, one of ...more

This is the very cute beginning to a cozy mystery series. The main character, Hayley, is pretty flighty in many ways, living a loosey-goosey lifestyle (and by that I mean that she's bumming a room from a friend, borrows another friend's car, and seems to need a lot of personal handholding--actually she's pretty high maintenance), but she's talented in cooking, eating, and food reviewing. Only a few months ago she moved from NJ to Key West to live with her boyfriend, and though some reference is
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Best tour guide to Key West yet. This is a mystery, but it provided a scooter-eye view of the streets, piers, and especially the eateries of Key West.
Reads quickly. I like the main character and wish her all the happiness in the world. She has a lot of growing up to do, but she's a good egg. The plot had holes I could drive that scooter through. But, I got the motive and got the evil-doer on the second try. ...more
Reads quickly. I like the main character and wish her all the happiness in the world. She has a lot of growing up to do, but she's a good egg. The plot had holes I could drive that scooter through. But, I got the motive and got the evil-doer on the second try. ...more

I am going to give it a 3, for personal peeves that bother me about main character otherwise it is a 4 book.
Problems with Haley, on a whim she decides to relocate to Key West where she follows a boyfriend of a few weeks. It doesnt work out as he is a cheater. So she is homeless and jobless. She does stupid things that could get her seriously hurt. She is needy and whiny. That is the 3 rating.
Haley is living on her college friend's boat and competing to be a writer for a new magazine that is la ...more
Problems with Haley, on a whim she decides to relocate to Key West where she follows a boyfriend of a few weeks. It doesnt work out as he is a cheater. So she is homeless and jobless. She does stupid things that could get her seriously hurt. She is needy and whiny. That is the 3 rating.
Haley is living on her college friend's boat and competing to be a writer for a new magazine that is la ...more

Number one in a new series starring Hayley Snow, food critic wannabe in Key West, Florida. She’s moved there to be with her new love, only to find him in bed with another woman. When the position of food critic for a new magazine, Key Zest, opens up she applies. Then Hayley discovers that her potential new boss is Kristin Faulkner, the woman who stole her boyfriend. Bad luck turns to worse when Kristin dies under suspicious circumstances, and the police turn to Hayley as their prime suspect.
Sou ...more
Sou ...more

A cozy, foodie, mystery set in Key West. What better way to spend time in Key West?! I'll definitely read another in the series.
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Hayley Snow leaves New Jersey to follow the man of her dreams to Key West, Florida. Things don’t go as planned when Hayley learns she’s not the only woman in his life. She is determined to stay in Key West and since her entire life has revolved around food, cooking it, eating it, and writing about it, she decides to apply to be the food critic for a brand new magazine. Sounds good until Hayley learns her new boss would be the other woman in her ex-boyfriend’s life. Things get crazy when the poli
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Lucy Burdette's debut novel in the Key West series gives us a delightful picture of Key West and its food, alongside a puzzling murder and the protagonist who is accused of the killing. Burdette obviously knows Key West well, including its geography and its food,though here she mostly avoids high-end places and gives us what everyday folk eat. She is also frank about tourists, the homeless, and the privileged--Key West is a multilayered society.
Hayley Snow follows Chad Lutz there--a case of shee ...more
Hayley Snow follows Chad Lutz there--a case of shee ...more

Normally when I read cozy mysteries, if the characters are well written and I enjoy them, I will stay with the series even if the mystery is on the weak side. In the case of this book, the mystery was very well written, but I didn't love the characters as much. While the book was enjoyable, I found the heroine to be on the annoying side and her sidekick characters not to be very interesting, except Jerry the homeless guy. Because I enjoyed the setting, and her career choice as a food critic and
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Another great series by Roberta Isleib who is writing this series under the name Lucy Burdette. Haley Snow is a very appealing main character in this series. The series takes place in Key West which adds interest to this book. I didn't have the plot figured out in the first 50 pages which is typical for me when I read cozies. I'll be ready and waiting for the next book in this new series.
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Since cozy mysteries are my books of choice, this one would seem to be just another in a long line of light, enjoyable summer reading. However, An Appetite for Murder, the first of a new series set in Key West by Lucy Burdette is exceptional in that it is just a bit better than most of the others I've read recently. Highly recommended.
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Hayley Snow followed a man to Key West. In a very short time she discovers him in bed with another woman, and Hayley finds herself living on a houseboat with her college roommate. She is an aspiring food critic and is hoping to be hired by Key Zest magazine. Sadly, the magazine’s co-owner is “the other woman,” Kristin Faulkner. When she thinks her life is a bad is at can get, Hayley is a suspect in a murder. The police don’t believe her, her lawyer doesn’t believe her, and her friends quickly be
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A cozy mystery is just that. Cozy. A nice ‘curl up with a good book’ that will challenge you to solve a puzzle without assaulting your senses. Void of torrid, foul-mouthed, wanton, licentious behavior. No gory blood-gushing details you’d lose your lunch over.
Which is a good thing while reading a book stuffed with devilishly-delicious to-die-for decadently heavenly food. Lucy Burdette’s Key West Food Critic series is a dieter’s nightmare. Toss out calorie counting.
What I like best about cozies a ...more
Which is a good thing while reading a book stuffed with devilishly-delicious to-die-for decadently heavenly food. Lucy Burdette’s Key West Food Critic series is a dieter’s nightmare. Toss out calorie counting.
What I like best about cozies a ...more

3.5 stars
Haley Snow follows Chad, someone she had not known long, from NJ to Key West. It isn't long before she gets dumped after she finds Chad in bed with another woman. And, you guessed it, that other woman finds herself murdered...and Haley is suspect numero uno.
So what did I like about this book. The descriptions of Key West were vibrant. The whole food critic thing was interesting and well done (Haley is applying for a food critic position at a new magazine, which uh oh, our dead gal was c ...more
Haley Snow follows Chad, someone she had not known long, from NJ to Key West. It isn't long before she gets dumped after she finds Chad in bed with another woman. And, you guessed it, that other woman finds herself murdered...and Haley is suspect numero uno.
So what did I like about this book. The descriptions of Key West were vibrant. The whole food critic thing was interesting and well done (Haley is applying for a food critic position at a new magazine, which uh oh, our dead gal was c ...more

Hayley has just uprooted her life and moved to the Florida keys to be with her new love. Unfortunately, when that doesn't work our, she's left without a job or a place to live. She's just starting to get back on track when a rival turns up dead and guess who the chief suspect is? Since no one else seems to believe in her innocence, she becomes a reluctant detective. I enjoyed the characters and the mystery. The description of Key West has me planning my next vacation and I'll be sure to take alo
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This was a relatively fast and easy read. I was not 100% about the plot or lead character, but as far as cozies go, it's about par.
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Fun reading especially following a trip to Key West. Even if you don't like the book her restaurant descriptions will be of value should you ever make it down there.
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Too slow for me....didn't finish.
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I'm being generous with three stars -- it's more like 2.5. I am not above the cozy mystery genre, clearly, but my protagonist needs to be smart. Such was not the case with Haley. Gosh, she does a lot of mind-blowingly dumb things. I didn't enjoy being in her head at all, and I'm not compelled to read another one in the series. (The mystery was also pretty lame. Bonus points for the yummy food throughout, though!)
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