Old Fashioned Crooks

Donut Shop Mysteries #17

by Jessica Beck

From New York Times Bestselling Author Jessica Beck! Donut 17, Old Fashioned Crooks. When donut shop assistant Emma’s bad boyfriend is found dead in the middle of a freshly lit bonfire during the Spirit Night celebration, Suzanne and Grace must dig into the case, with Jake adding his own special skills to the investigation. The team soon gets into trouble when the search turns even more sinister, and the abilities of all three sleuths are required if they are going to have any chance of solving the murder and clearing Emma’s name. Praise for the Donut Mysteries by New York Times Bestselling Author Jessica Beck “A delight. Suzanne Hart is a lovable amateur sleuth who has a hilariously protective mother and great donut recipes! Readers will have a blast with this book.” —Diane Mott Davidson, New York Times bestselling author of Fatally Flaky “If you like donuts—and who doesn’t?—you’ll love this mystery. It’s like a trip to your favorite coffee shop, but without the calories!” —Leslie Meier, author of the Lucy Stone mysteries New Year’s Eve Murder and Wedding Day Murder “The perfect comfort a delicious murder, a likeable heroine, quirky Southern characters—and donut recipes!” —Rhys Bowen, Agatha and Anthony award–winning author of the Molly Murphy and Royal Spyness mysteries “A tribute to comfort food and to the comfort of small town life. With great donut recipes!”—JoAnna Carl, author of The Chocolate Cupid Killings “A yummy new treat in the culinary mystery genre. Skillfully weaving donut recipes throughout a well-plotted story, the author proves that life after divorce can be sweet; all you need are good friends, your own business, and comfort food. Delicious!”—Tamar Myers, author of Death of a Rug Lord and The Cane Mutiny “A cleverly plotted cozy mystery with a wonderful small Southern town…Fatally Frosted is a great follow-up to Glazed Murder. Suzanne is a great heroine, Ms. Beck has a sure-fire winner!”—Fresh Fiction “Along with the hilarious plot, author Jessica Beck treats the readers to a few recipes strategically placed within the novel. Sinister Sprinkles will keep you guessing until the very end.”—The Mystery Librarian “A sugary concoction that provides readers a glimpse through the donut hole of living in a small town.”—Harriet Klausner, Genre Go Round Reviews

Genres: Cozy Mystery, Mystery, Cozy, Romance

195 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 5, 2014

About the author

Jessica Beck is a pseudonym used by
Tim Myers.
Jessica Beck is the penname of an author who has been nominated for the Agatha Award and named an Independent Mystery Booksellers Association national bestseller nearly a dozen times.

Jessica Beck loves donuts, and has the figure to prove it. It's amazing what people can convince themselves is all in the name of research! For each recipe featured in the donut mysteries, a dozen more are tried and tested.

When not concocting delicious treats, Beck enjoys the rare snowfalls near her home in the foothills of North Carolina.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/jessic...

Reviews

[Anastasia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Old fashioned Crooks by Jessica Beck is book 17 in the Donut Mysteries series. Emma's boyfriend is killed during the Spirit night celebrations in April Springs and she asks Suzanne to investigate. Suzanne's fiance Jake has now retired from the state police and helps in the investigation. A nice cozy mystery with quite a few changes occurring in the town with the police chief retiring and a new one about to start. The donuts are the main attraction for me and I'm sure I put on weight just reading about them.

[Moondance · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was originally meant to be a fun event that the entire community could enjoy, a pleasant way to spend an evening and help raise money for a good cause.

This is the seventeenth book in the Donut Shop series. Suzanne's assistant, Emma, discovers her boyfriend dead during Spirit Night. Chief Martin is filling in briefly before the new police chief takes over. Knowing that the new chief will not tolerate interference, Suzanne and Grace jump into the investigation immediately.

I have skipped around a bit in this series. It never ceases to amaze me that Suzanne and Grace get away with so much. I have not read one of these in a while so it was nice to visit April Springs and see what the two sleuths get into.

The doughnut recipes are always a treat. I tried a few early on in the series and they were quite good.

I figured out the culprit before it was revealed. It did not distract terribly from the storyline.

[Gale Penton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series. I love Suzanne and Jake.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful book!

Really enjoyed reading this book! Everyone in it was interesting, and the storyline was great. My only complaint was that it wasn’t longer!

[Jennifer Oberth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't believe the author skipped something we've been waiting for forever. Book after book after book - and he makes this huge thing something tiny and inconsequential. Why would an author do that to his readers? The story itself is the same annoying read with the same annoying writing style (as in not edited, not tight, and sometimes downright hard to read).

[Jenni Schell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet another great book in this series. I started reading and didn't stop until it was finished. Is it me or does this set of books just keep getting better and better. Onto #18

[Alabama Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fundraiser is held in the town square in the early evening to raise money for the local school.
Local shops are staying open late and as the bonfire is starting to be lit a grisly murder is discovered.
It’s the kind of thing that makes people want to quit their jobs, and several do just that.
It looks like it is up to Suzanne and Grace to solve this case but can they do it in just 24 hours?

[Nancy H · Rating 3 out of 5]

This entry is another good one in the Donut Shop Mystery series. In this one, the donut shop assistant Emma finds her current boyfriend murdered and stuffed into a bonfire that the mayor is in the process of lighting. Of course it is all hands on deck to find the murderer.

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emma gets to deal with this one, in a way. Suzanne is supposed to help Emma find a killer and she gets thwarted by the new chief of police. She and her friends find a way around it.
Enjoy!

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

They always get out of their mess, but at times it drives me crazy that Suzanne can be so stubborn & get caught that they have to get out of their mess or have someone rescue them at the right time.

[Larry Anderson]

Enjoyed - follows series in order. Still need to try donut recipes.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Back to reading just for fun after the summer bingo challenge is over so I wanted to start with a nice easy read that I knew I would enjoy. These books may be cheesy, but I enjoy them!

[Deb Sharp · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always love reading the books in this series!

I want to work at the Donut Shop! I'm sure I could help solve a Mystery or two. It is a good thing Suzanne has Grace to help her.

[Sara Reber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! Couldn't put it down.

Another great mystery by Jessica Beck. I really enjoyed Old Fashioned Crooks. Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down. It's always hard to finish these books. The characters are written so well that when you are finished reading, you feel that you are leaving your friends.

It's Spirit Night. Suzanne and Emily are selling donuts to the townspeople. Emily leaves Suzanne so she can meet up with her boyfriend. Suzanne's best friend, Grace, donates a large amount of money to Donut Harts. Suzanne decides that she can give away the donuts and join in the fun. All of a sudden, Suzanne and Grace hear a scream. The next thing you know, Suzanne and her mystery solving friends, have a murder to help solve.

We also meet the new police chief in this book. He seems to be a nasty guy, who is going to run the town by the book (at least his own book). I'm not sure if he will be a nice guy or not. Personally, the little that he interacted with Suzanne and George, makes me not care for him.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the seventeenth book in the donut shop series. Jake is finishing his last case with the state police before coming to live in April Springs permantly. Suzanne and Emma are selling donuts at the annual Spirit Night celebration when Emma sees her boyfriend, Rick’s, body in the bonfire. It soon becomes clear that he is dead. As a favor to Emma, Suzanne and her best friend, Grace, start investigating who put him in the bonfire. They are working on limited time because the former police chief is stepping down and as of the following morning a new chief will be in power that will not tolerate the girls’ investigting the murder.

[Paula]

I really love this series. I love the characters and I love how events unfold in the storyline. I love that these are quick reads with the perfect match of suspense, humor, and romance. However, the writing style is getting on my nerves. There is no reason to state every other page that Jake is Suzanne's fiance', and that Grace is her best friend. It's fine to establish it in the beginning for those not as invested in the series, however, throughout the rest of the story it is NOT necessary. Maybe it's just my quirk, but it's annoying.

[Georgiann Hennelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emma works at Donut Hearts as a Bakery Assistant when her older Boyfriend fails to meet her at Donut Hearts Susanne tells her she can leave and go look for him after all it is spirit night and business is slow. When he is found dead in the middle of a newly lit bonfire during the spirit night celebration Suzanne and Grace decide to dig into the case with Jake adding his own special skills to the case. They soon get into trouble when the search turns even more sinister and the abilities of all three of them are required to solve the murder and to clear Emma's name.

[Jennifer Widmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun As Always

I always enjoy the donuts shop mysteries. They're not very long or involved but the characters are fun and likeable. I have to say, I prefer when the characters accidentally get roped into solving a mystery instead of deciding to solve it but that's splitting hairs. It's a fun, quick, mindless read and I enjoyed it.

[Gretchen · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Emma's boyfriend is murdered, Suzanne and Grace try to solve the crime. Also along for the ride is Jake, who has quit his job as a state police investigator. The chief retires, and a new guy is ready to take over.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

was a little disappointed in Suzanne & Jake's nuptials-I had expected some hoopla, At Least! This story-line seemed a bit mild...kinda boring. I am curious as to how long the author will keep Jake unemployed.

[Jaimie O'Dell · Rating 4 out of 5]

oh the cliff hanger!

[ROBINGee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love

love her who done it's n donuts..keeps you guessing till the end. wish I had friends like hers. but not as much murders

[Tammy Trecartin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this author

I always enjoy her books and recipes. Can't wait for the next one. Can't wait to try some more recipes.

[Gwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great ending!

[Johanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a good story. Strong characters. Loved it.