Chicken Murder Soup

Sunny Side Up #3

by Rosie A. Point

What’s worse than cold chicken noodle soup? A dead ex-husband…

When Sunny Charles opens her aunt’s café on a sunny Monday morning in small town Parfait, Florida, she’s looking forward to a day of challenging work cooking and serving customers. The last thing she expects is to find her ex-husband lying dead on the floor, right between the coffee bar and the cake stand.

Distraught, confused, and definitely a prime suspect, Sunny has to figure out why her ex-husband is even in Parfait in the first place, let alone murdered. But with so few suspects, all clues seem to point back to her. Sunny has to figure out whodunit and how before she takes the fall for a murder she most definitely didn’t commit.

Can she solve the case before the shrewd detective in town locks her up? Or will her past come back to haunt her? Find out in the third book of the Sunny Side Up Cozy Mystery Series

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Cozy, Audiobook

310 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 19, 2021

About the author

Rosie A. Point is a USA Today Bestselling cozy mystery author who loves writing about food, small towns, and cats. Her favorite books are ones you can snuggle up with under a cozy blanket on a winter's day. Born and raised in South Africa, her books are all set in small towns in the United States. She dreams of visiting the places she writes about in her books.

Rosie wants to hear from you. Whether it’s about a recipe or one of her books, you can contact her on her website. Join her reader club today!

https://www.rosiepointbooks.com/

Reviews

[Emmalynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Urghhhhh

[Emily Pennington · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Murder Too Close to Home !!

Sunny Charles is excited that today she would be baking cookies for the Parfait Animal Shelter fundraiser bake sale. She was still working on her culinary skills, but had firmly mastered cooking eggs over easy and burned toast! That’s progress, right? Nick, the Chef at Sunny Side Up, lived next door. But she didn’t want to ask for help. She needed to master this herself! But when she got to the Café, the front doors were wide open! She and Nick were the only ones with keys, and the alarm company didn’t call her. Inside, a man was face-down on the floor, a bloody cricket bat, shattered plate, and crumbled cookies beside his non-breathing body. Reaching to check his pulse, she quickly backed away from her ex-husband, Damon Stokes, dead on the floor of her aunt’s café!

Detective Garcia sat across from Sunny in the interrogation room. He showed her a letter that was in her ex’s pocket wanting to get back together. But knowing Damon, there was some underhanded motive at play. She still had no idea how he had gotten inside!

All clues unfortunately keep pointing back at Sunny. But if Sunny can’t figure this one out, she is the one who will be locked up for a murder she most definitely didn’t commit. Can she find the answer before Detective Garcia arrives with the handcuffs?

[Dee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sunny Charles, having been thrown out of her life as a woman of leisure, has dealt with one catastrophe after another since moving to Parfait, a sunny little beach town in Florida, where she is managing the Sunny Side Cafe while her aunt is off on a month long cruise. With her growing affection for her neighbor/cafe chef Nick, Sunny decides to try to learn to bake on her own so that she might one day be accepted into the local "baking biddies" club and be taken seriously. While Nick is the obvious choice to learn from, she is concerned with rumors swirling around town that they are involved, since Nick is still going through his divorce. So Sunny decides to go in to the cafe to practice "baking" early, only to find the cafe doors open, and her ex, mob-involved, husband lying dead inside the cafe doors. And, again, Detective Garcia, obviously looks at Sunny as the first choice for murderer. Sunny sets off to discover who did the deed before Garcia throws her in jail, a task not made an easier as she seems to keep having run-ins with Vanessa, her ex-husband's mistress who he left high and dry in the Bahamas with no money, and Nick's ex-wife Jasmine, who is convinced Sunny is the reason for her divorce. Does Sunny have the time to solve the murder before she ends up in jail, or Aunt Rita returns.

[Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sunny is still on her own while Aunt Rita is on her cruise. This time around, Sunny’s ex-husband was murdered in the café and she could be a suspect. Will she solve the case before her aunt returns or before she ends up in jail? So many pieces to the puzzle as she tries to solve this crime. The investigation is filled with pitfalls, unexpected twists, multiple motives and surprises that keep you glued right to the end. Will the café survive the lack of customers? The characters are well rounded and well developed. All of the friends have lived through heartache. I highly recommend not only this book but also the whole series.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and an ARC copy and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Bev · Rating 5 out of 5]

All Sunny wanted to do was make homemade cookies for the fundraiser for the Parfait Animal Shelter. When she goes to Sunny Side Up Cafe, she finds the door open a someone laying face down on the floor. As she reaches for a pulse, she recognizes who it is...her ex-husband!!!! What is HE doing here?! Did the Russian Criminals catch up with him? But that doesn't explain why he is where she lives. Of course, she is the number one suspect, add Vanessa Clark, his mistress into the mix and you have all kinds of problems. There are murder and sabotage that takes place at the cafe. Sunny has a terrible time trying to figure this one out. Has she met her match on playing detective this time? I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 3 of the Sunny Side Up Cozy Mystery series.

Once again Sunny comes across a dead body in the cafe. This time it's her ex-husband. Sunny is of course seen as the prime suspect. She even gets accuse of being a homewrecker by the ex's girlfriend the Sunny was left for. That was a good one.

In an effort to clear her name Sunny goes into detective mode to clear her name.

When is her aunt coming home? How many boyfriends did Frances have. and really two of them are police officers that are partners, oh my. Who threw the eggs at the Sunny Side Cafe? And really if you wanted to learn to cook cookies why wouldn't you have asked for help from the chef who just got back from the pastry course? And the cat and dog are best friends?

[Judy Gittleson Hendrickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Detective Garcia questions Sunny about how her ex showed up dead in the cafe that only she and her cook have a key to. It was a nasty divorce and he had mafia problems, so it could be anyone. The detective is looking at only her right now so that leaves it up to Sunny to find the killer herself.

What a wonderful creative mystery, that grabs you from the beginning and does not let go. The twists and surprises keep you re-guessing who it might be. The characters and storyline were terrific. Can not wait for the next mystery as this author has me hooked.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Tari · Rating 5 out of 5]

The body that Sunny found in her aunt's cafe was surprisingly eventually able to bring Sunny some closure to a lot of things in her life. But once again, she was a suspect and scrambling (honest, no egg pun was really intended!) to sleuth this one out before it was too late. Aunt Rita was coming home soon too, so she wanted to be sure the cafe was in top shape.

With her good sidekick Didi's help and the unexpected help of town grump Frances, Sunny nailed the perp once again. We got to see a side of Frances no one knew was there too. It was a good showdown worthy of cheering. And it was great to welcome Aunt Rita back! I can't wait to borrow the next book in KU!

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sunny is determined to finally learn how to bake chocolate chip cookies for a fundraiser for the animal shelter.

What awaited her at the restaurant was not baking delight, but one final appearance from her ex.

Dangers, deceptions, and confused affections can be deadly

Can Sunny sort things through before Aunt Rita returns from her extended vacation?

Small town strong and crazy community

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Krystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t know how Sunny keeps ending up in these predicaments but she’s always up to her eye balls. I laughed about the first attempt to make chocolate chip cookies. Who hasn’t made them hard as a rock at least once! Maybe not hard enough to chip a tooth but still!

I was surprised that her ex was killed off in this book and I wonder what that means for his former mafioso connections. I mean the whole reason Sunny is there is because of him!

Nicks ex wife is a piece of work and I hope she’s gone from the series after this book. There are a lot of mean spirited women in this small town!

[Amary Chapman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sunny Charles is making a new life for herself after a nasty divorce, not only did the slime ball cheat on her, he also robbed her and left her at the mercy of his 'mob connections'. Running the diner for her aunt is her salvation until she goes to open the diner and finds her ex dead inside. Uncomfortable with the looks she's getting, she sets out to solve it herself when she feels the police aren't working fast enough.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poor Sunny all she wants to do is learn to bake chocolate chip cookies but she finds her ex instead. I am really enjoying this series so far and to see Sunny and the rest of the characters really evolving into really strong characters and the stories are amazing so far and I can't wait for more. I am recommending this book along with the others to all my friends.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Jodi Sweet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Did not see this outcome! But it was a suggestion for why Sunny’s ex was killed in a town he wasn’t known in. Guess talking it through with people actually helps! I had fun reading this. The steps Sunny had to go through, just to find out who opened the cafe at 4 am, were incredible. I don’t know how, but she did it, she figured it out!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Doreen Fernandes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chaos at the cafe

Sunny is shocked to find the cafe open and even more shocked to find the body of her ex husband inside. She is the chief suspect. Who else could have opened the cafe besides Nick and her? Why was her ex husband in the cafe? The fast paced turn of events and the twists in the story had me hooked. Another amazing murder mystery with a lot of humour and wholesome characters.

[Debi Paglia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great Sunny Side Up mystery! I have enjoyed “getting to know” Sunny. She’s a great main character. Her life was turned upside down and she is now building a new life in a small Florida beach town. This one had lots of red herrings and I didn’t guess the bad guy until it was revealed. I would suggest that you start this series with the first book, so you can understand how Sunny’s life is changing for the better. Looking forward to the next one!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Joyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an avid cozy reader, I thought I had it figured out, but the twist and turns will have you doubting yourself and reward you with an unexpected ending. Such an engaging read, I almost finished it in one sitting. Looking forward to the next edition with the return of Sunny's Aunt for some double trouble.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kristi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cozy mystery fans will love this one! The story line/plot pulls you in and you're swept up in the story without even realizing it. The right amount of suspense, mystery, danger and add in a murder, gives you a great read you'll be glad you added to your reading list.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Teri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sunny is ready for a great day but things go awry as soon as she walks in the doors. She is set on finding the killer before things get really bad for her and the shop.

Well written story and great characters. Setting is fun and the characters are great. It is great to see them evolve in the stories.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sandra Lopez · Rating 3 out of 5]

You wake up, head over to your aunt’s café and…find the dead body of your ex-husband on the floor. Oh no! Gee, guess who the prime suspect was going to be?

Kicks off well with the murder and then slows down with the bake sale at the animal shelter. Turns out all the evidence was pointing at Sunny, but the mystery just wasn’t moving fast enough.

An okay read.

[Janet L. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great entry in the sunny side up cozy series. Another murder happens in the diner and this time it’s Sunny’s ex-husband so of course, she’s a suspect in the eyes of Detective Garcia. Once again, she investigates and helps find the killer. Also, Aunt Rita gets home. Looking forward to the next adventure.

[Wendy Hodges · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous intricately woven tale full of twists and possible villains. Mysterious goings on and suspense, very few clues but somehow Sunny manages to stumble on bits and pieces, enough to figure out roughly Who-Dunit! Interesting, witty and quirky all centrered around the cafe. Great escape reading, fairly light and easy and a hint of romance.

[CJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great cozy mystery. The author pulls us in and never lets go with wonderful characters and lots of twists and turns that keep you turning the pages, trying to solve the murder before the characters do.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Rhonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witty and unexpected whodunit with interesting and entertaining characters. Twists and turns with plenty of drama thrown in. Keeps you guessing until the end. Good whodunit.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[E · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it

Another great book in this series. A break in, sabotage, murder and a chipped tooth. Sunny side has her hands full in this one. Now that Aunt Rita is back, I can't wait to see what happens.

[Crys · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun cozy series.

It seems as if Sunny and Sunny Side Up Café just cannot catch a break.

Sunny decides she wants to try her hand at baking, and when arrives to the café early one morning, she discovers someone has been murdered. But it's not just anyone - it's her ex-husband.

Sunny is at the top of the suspect list, and she has to prove her innocence. Who killed her ex-husband (there are a few suspects) and will Sunny be next?

Absolutely enjoying this mystery series.

[Richard Cowart · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sunny goes to open her aunt's cafe when she finds the door open and her dead ex husband on the floor murdered making her the number one suspect. The list of suspects change rapidly and she stays the number one suspect in the detectives eye. Great reading and interesting character interaction.

[Lizabeth Tarr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Phew!! I was beginning to think this murder might not get solved! Well done!! Now to see what it's like with the aunt in the picture!

[barbara church · Rating 5 out of 5]

You really got me going in this. AS usual, I loved it!

[Blue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great job

I love Sunny and the other characters. Definitely easy to stay awake much later then intended to see what twists and turns happen next.

[Susan Gail Larkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this series of books

Easy, escape from daily life, funny, and an ending that you just don't catch in reading previous chapters. Thank you Rosie A. Point