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This is the second book of the 'Kylie Berry Mysteries'. This is a cozy mystery with the pov from the protagonist. She owns a restaurant, yet she is not able to cook hardly any edible food. Cousin Sarah had presented the penniless Kylie with an agreement to purchase the restaurant, Sarah's Eatery, along with ownership of the entire block. Unfortunately, the chef quit as soon as Kylie took over and yet, Kylie is not able to cook hardly any edible food. She has a generous patron, a police detective and possible love interest, that is providing her with lessons on how to cook eggs. He generously makes the coffee every morning for the early patrons. So, to bring in some income and not waste her efforts, she created an 'Ooops board' for meals that were not worthy of the full price, at a discount. Yet, she somehow has regular patrons that pay to eat these unappealing meals. Patrons regularly test out the food, especially on the Oops Menu, just for kicks. Her ex-Aunt-in-law hates her profusely and has spread ugly rumors to keep people away from her newly acquired restaurant. This aspect baffles me beyond belief. Why would people that obviously have the ability to cook their own meals, take a chance on this woman's horrific attempts at making an edible dish?
The mystery begins when Zoey has an altercation with an overzealous man, whom she had zap with a stun gun, to defend herself from his amorous advances. He staggered away on his own but was found outside the restaurant doors the next morning dead. Zoey was the main suspect for this murder. Kylie and Zoey team up together again to investigate.
I decided I want to complete this light series, even though I was undecided about the decision after completing the first installment. I liked it, but just didn't love it I enjoy humor tremendously and really hoped to find that in this series. It lacks the depth of humor and wit I crave. The biggest deterrent is a restaurant owner that cannot cook, though she does work tirelessly to make sure there is something to serve. Another offense is the grammatical errors creeping in. However, the quirky characters, the twist, and turns in the plot, the interactions between the members of the community, and the camaraderie within the restaurant enticed me to get better acquainted this anycast more fully. True to cozy mystery formula, the heroine and her trusty side-kick, Zoey, are investigating the case in order to clear Zoey's name this time. Will they succeed? With all her duties at the restaurant, it makes you wonder where she finds the time they pour into their questioning for other means, motives, and/or opportunities to have committed the murder.
All in all, this is a CLEAN mystery, that is able to stand on its own, and concludes with an H.E.A. regarding solving the murder mystery. However, it will make more sense if the series is read in order.