What do you think?
Rate this book
Pizza Lovers #2
Pepperoni Pizza Can Be Murder
For once, it seems, no one is trying to pin a murder on Eleanor Swift, owner of the scrumptious pizzeria 'A Slice of Delight' in the quiet little town of Timber Ridge, North Carolina. But someone has to answer for that body in her kitchen.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
77 people are currently reading
853 people want to read
About the author
Chris Cavender
7 books184 followersChris Cavender is the pseudonym used by Agatha Award nominated author Tim Myers.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 29 of 162 reviews
March 5, 2016
This is the book that set me on my way to solving mysteries. I never did or could. But after reading the third book in the series, something clicked and I could solve, potentially, any mystery. Here the story revolves around the body found in the pizzeria and the suspect being one of the employers who is also the victim's brother. I remember this book dimly but it made a great impression on me. Hence the score.
December 28, 2018
Eleanor is a young widow who runs a pizzeria in Timber Ridge, NC with the help of her sister, Maddy. Eleanor’s deliveryman, Greg, is in a heated battle with his brother Wade over their grandparent’s estate. Wade is found bludgeoned to death in the pizzeria not long after Eleanor was robbed at gunpoint there. Was Wade the robber and he came back for more and was caught and accidentally killed? Did Greg murder his brother for the inheritance? Did a jealous girlfriend do the heinous deed? The lists of suspects and motives grow but the local police don’t seem interested in looking at anyone but Greg, so Eleanor and Maddy decide to get to the bottom of it before danger knocks back on the pizza shop’s door. I enjoy A Pizza Lovers Mystery series. It’s light reading. I find it to be one of the most relaxing and engaging cozies out there. The writing flows, the characters are likable and well-fleshed out and the mystery slowly builds until the final reveal. I found a few typos in Pepperoni Pizza Can be Murder, but it didn’t detract from my reading enjoyment.
November 19, 2019
I enjoyed the first book in this series so much that I wanted to go back to Timber Ridge NC for a little while and see what the second book had sisters Eleanor and Maddy involved with. This time, their prized employee Greg was being looked at as the main suspect in his sleazy brother's murder. There were so many great red herrings along the way that I never guessed who did it. The showdown was exciting, and Eleanor held her own but was very glad when the police intervened.
Maddy is such a fun character and what a hoot as a sister. The girls got along most of the time and were fiercely protective of one another. I enjoy the banter between them when they're going to and from their little snooping expeditions. I know I'll be reading more in this series!
Maddy is such a fun character and what a hoot as a sister. The girls got along most of the time and were fiercely protective of one another. I enjoy the banter between them when they're going to and from their little snooping expeditions. I know I'll be reading more in this series!
February 21, 2012
I liked the first book in the series better than this one. Originally I really liked Eleanor and Maddy, and thought their relationship was one of the strong points of the novel. This go round, however, I found them slightly annoying, and I really didn't like Eleanor. I found her to be unnecessarily rude on many occasions and sometimes just TSTL. Not sure that I'll go on with this series.
February 28, 2015
I remember liking the first book in this series, but I found so many things in this second book that makes me doubtful that I will pursue the series. The main character was way too rude and opionated. She was often a smart mouth and caused problems that I felt unnecessary. Her relationships lack something that makes me feel disconnected with her and the story. When someone completely disregards others just to "find out themselves", it completely ruins the story.
What I would have liked to continue reading about is the small town atmosphere and the possible relationships that could have been developed.
What I would have liked to continue reading about is the small town atmosphere and the possible relationships that could have been developed.
December 30, 2014
This was a pretty good read. I love pizza so I decided to check it out. I enjoyed this mystery and will check out the rest of the pizza lover's mystery series later. If you love pizza and mysteries, check this book out.
December 20, 2024
A reread for me! Loved this just as much as the first time around. The two sisters and yummy food are the highlight of this series.
January 7, 2017
This is the second novel in the Pizza Lovers series, but the first book in the series that I have read. You don't have to read the first novel to understand the second novel. I didn't feel like I was missing anything by not reading the first novel.
Eleanor is running a pizza shop,with the help of her sister, after her husband has died. One of her employee's brother is found dead in the pizza shop. Eleanor's employee (Greg) is the one number suspect since there is a sizeable grandparent estate that is still being decided. Eleanor and her sister, Maddy, are trying to clear Greg's name by finding the real murderer.
I didn't fall in love with any of the characters. Like other reviewers have said Eleanor and Maddy were very pushy when talking/questioning possible suspects. I also found that there were some storylines that I could of done without.
Not sure if I will be continuing with the series.
Eleanor is running a pizza shop,with the help of her sister, after her husband has died. One of her employee's brother is found dead in the pizza shop. Eleanor's employee (Greg) is the one number suspect since there is a sizeable grandparent estate that is still being decided. Eleanor and her sister, Maddy, are trying to clear Greg's name by finding the real murderer.
I didn't fall in love with any of the characters. Like other reviewers have said Eleanor and Maddy were very pushy when talking/questioning possible suspects. I also found that there were some storylines that I could of done without.
Not sure if I will be continuing with the series.
March 23, 2021
Eleanor owns and works the Slice of Delight pizzaria. When she finds someone lying dead on the floor, she has no idea what the person is doing there or even how he got in. Eleanor has to protect the people that work in the place so she and her sister Maddy decide to "snoop" around. I really liked the story and Eleanor is more like a real person than most other characters - when under stress she bites. However, this stopped from being a 5 because of how she treated a friend of hers. She was way too prickly to call herself a friend. I don't think even real people act that badly - especially if they own and deal with customers all day long. All in all a good mystery but her witchiness was very distracting.
May 28, 2025
I really didn't like her in this one. She was such a bitch to everyone. She pushes David away because of her late husband, then complains when she thinks he'll take the job out of town, and when he comes to see her and talk with her about it, she is so obnoxiously rude to him, I wanted to slap her. She is rude to everyone, treats everyone like crap and then wonders why people aren't nicer. I hope this was just a fluke in the series.
June 4, 2023
It’s been awhile since I’ve read book 1 but it was easy to jump right in. I’m glad I had pizza planned for dinner tonight as this book will have you craving it. Good characters and a good mystery.
July 11, 2014
I have some problems with this book. How is it that neither the author nor editor realized that characters names are incorrect? Maddy, a main character, was called Mandy in one paragraph and Josh was written as Jason in one whole section. Are these books not edited? The main characters are not really fleshed out either. We know basic facts about them with no insight into their personalities. When Eleanor, the main character who narrates the story, finally cuts loose her sad sack pushy love interest, she is horribly cruel. She did not come off as a sympathetic character at all. I felt like I both didn't know her, nor did I like her. There are better mysteries out there to read.
January 16, 2022
So many points for the title. The book itself was fun, but definitely not how you should conduct a murder investigation.
February 24, 2019
It's a good tale, once I got rid of the brain fog and decided to concentrate on the book instead of everything else.
Eleanor Swift owns A Slice of Delight, a pizza shop in Timber Ridge, NC. She's a widow working with her sister, Maddy, and two young men (Greg, the delivey guy, and Josh, the high schooler & son of the police chief). Things are looking up for Eleanor--until she's robbed at gunpoint and then a dead body is found in her pizzeria's kitchen.
When Greg is suspected of murder, Eleanor and Maddy decide to do a little snooping to clear their good friend's name. In doing so, they come across a number of characters: a crazy mother, a harried accountant, a businessman known for shady dealings, a distraught ex-girlfriend, a bullying friend, and a wary girlfriend who's not saying much to any one.
Eleanor seemed a little bit on the Mary-Sue side, but was generally a good MC. I liked Maddy and her attitude toward everything. The police chief, Kevin Hurley, seemed to like being rude at times to Eleanor just because they'd dated in the past. Overall, it was nice to read a story where the owner(s) of a shop actually spend time in it, doing their job, as well as trying to solve a mystery (mostly during their off-hours); it's annoying when other MCs run off and leave their employees to pick up their slack.
Would love to read the others in this series, just to see if some of the suspects pop up again, if Maddy's love interest will stick around, and to see what other recipes will be included! Definitely want to create the pizza dough & sauce recipe in the back of this book.
Eleanor Swift owns A Slice of Delight, a pizza shop in Timber Ridge, NC. She's a widow working with her sister, Maddy, and two young men (Greg, the delivey guy, and Josh, the high schooler & son of the police chief). Things are looking up for Eleanor--until she's robbed at gunpoint and then a dead body is found in her pizzeria's kitchen.
When Greg is suspected of murder, Eleanor and Maddy decide to do a little snooping to clear their good friend's name. In doing so, they come across a number of characters: a crazy mother, a harried accountant, a businessman known for shady dealings, a distraught ex-girlfriend, a bullying friend, and a wary girlfriend who's not saying much to any one.
Eleanor seemed a little bit on the Mary-Sue side, but was generally a good MC. I liked Maddy and her attitude toward everything. The police chief, Kevin Hurley, seemed to like being rude at times to Eleanor just because they'd dated in the past. Overall, it was nice to read a story where the owner(s) of a shop actually spend time in it, doing their job, as well as trying to solve a mystery (mostly during their off-hours); it's annoying when other MCs run off and leave their employees to pick up their slack.
Would love to read the others in this series, just to see if some of the suspects pop up again, if Maddy's love interest will stick around, and to see what other recipes will be included! Definitely want to create the pizza dough & sauce recipe in the back of this book.
January 8, 2024
It was a lot better than the first book, with a better pacing and better scenery.
The one thing missing is scents. I notice that there's barely any mention of scents in this novel.
The one thing missing is scents. I notice that there's barely any mention of scents in this novel.
January 13, 2022
I got impatient about 2/3 the way through, but still the characters were fun and the mystery held up.
October 17, 2024
Excellent cozy. First book by this author. 2nd in series, but I was able to read it with no issues regarding back story.
December 2, 2025
Things are looking up for Eleanor, but a robbery and a dead body in her pizzeria seem to keep her down. Now she has to clear the name of her deliveryman.
September 23, 2021
Plot? What plot?
June 12, 2010
This is the second of the Pizza Lover's Mysteries. The protagonist, Eleanor Swift is the widowed owner and chef of A Slice of Delight, a small pizzeria in the small town of Timber Ridge, North Carolina.
Eleanor's only employees are her sister, Maddy and a young college student named Greg Hatcher. Greg's grandparents were killed in an explosion the previous year, and their will divided their estate between Greg and his spoiled older brother Wade. But Wade believes he should get 3/4 the$200,000 estate, and is planning a lawsuit to that effect.
Greg shows up at work one day with a bloody nose, received in an altercation with his brother. Late that night, she's awakened by a phone call from the police chief, who asks her to return to her restaurant. Wade's was found on the floor with a bloody rolling pin next to him, and Greg is the chief suspect.
Certain that the young man, whom Eleanor thinks of as family, is innocent, she and Maddy set out to figure out who the real killer is. Their quest is not aided by the fact that Eleanor dated Police Chief Kevin Hurley in high school, and things are still uncomfortable between them. Also, Greg and Wade's mother, learning of their quest, tries to stop Eleanor and Maddy by planting a cockroach in a meal she ordered at their restaurant.
The sisters' quest to clear the name of their employee and friend is very believable; they talk to residents of their town in plausible scenarios. The characters and the relationships between them are also well-drawn.
Chris Cavender is the pen-name for Tim Myers, who writes several other cozy mystery series under his own name and various others. I enjoyed this so much that I'm going to check out some of those other series.
Eleanor's only employees are her sister, Maddy and a young college student named Greg Hatcher. Greg's grandparents were killed in an explosion the previous year, and their will divided their estate between Greg and his spoiled older brother Wade. But Wade believes he should get 3/4 the$200,000 estate, and is planning a lawsuit to that effect.
Greg shows up at work one day with a bloody nose, received in an altercation with his brother. Late that night, she's awakened by a phone call from the police chief, who asks her to return to her restaurant. Wade's was found on the floor with a bloody rolling pin next to him, and Greg is the chief suspect.
Certain that the young man, whom Eleanor thinks of as family, is innocent, she and Maddy set out to figure out who the real killer is. Their quest is not aided by the fact that Eleanor dated Police Chief Kevin Hurley in high school, and things are still uncomfortable between them. Also, Greg and Wade's mother, learning of their quest, tries to stop Eleanor and Maddy by planting a cockroach in a meal she ordered at their restaurant.
The sisters' quest to clear the name of their employee and friend is very believable; they talk to residents of their town in plausible scenarios. The characters and the relationships between them are also well-drawn.
Chris Cavender is the pen-name for Tim Myers, who writes several other cozy mystery series under his own name and various others. I enjoyed this so much that I'm going to check out some of those other series.
November 3, 2022
There are so many problems with this book besides my opinion. First my opinions, the characters in this book are rude and hateful to everyone. And not in a love to hate them kind of way. The main character is nasty to absolutely everyone around her.
Now the problems:
No one questioned how the police knew there was a dead body in the pizzeria at 3:00 in the morning.
Later the next day the pizzeria was able to open back up. What? No deep cleaning in the kitchen where the dead body was found. They just stared at the spot while cooking.
Let’s talk about Eleanor’s magic car. Her sister picks her up in the mornings and they go off sleuthing. Then they go open the pizzeria. But come closing time every day, Eleanor’s car has teleported to the restaurant for her to drive home.
The chief of police doesn’t seem worried about people robbing (book2) or shooting at Eleanor’s window (book 1. He manages to excuse it somehow.
Names change. Josh became Jason.
Eleanor is grieving her husband she lost 2 years ago. She is now in her early to mid thirties but insists she must keep her husband’s spirit alive and never date again. I almost think the author has a problem with women from reading these books.
I will not be continuing or reading anything else by this author or his pseudonyms.
The 1 star is for the murder and the reason for it. That was great.
Now the problems:
No one questioned how the police knew there was a dead body in the pizzeria at 3:00 in the morning.
Later the next day the pizzeria was able to open back up. What? No deep cleaning in the kitchen where the dead body was found. They just stared at the spot while cooking.
Let’s talk about Eleanor’s magic car. Her sister picks her up in the mornings and they go off sleuthing. Then they go open the pizzeria. But come closing time every day, Eleanor’s car has teleported to the restaurant for her to drive home.
The chief of police doesn’t seem worried about people robbing (book2) or shooting at Eleanor’s window (book 1. He manages to excuse it somehow.
Names change. Josh became Jason.
Eleanor is grieving her husband she lost 2 years ago. She is now in her early to mid thirties but insists she must keep her husband’s spirit alive and never date again. I almost think the author has a problem with women from reading these books.
I will not be continuing or reading anything else by this author or his pseudonyms.
The 1 star is for the murder and the reason for it. That was great.
June 10, 2015
It's a 2.5 and I have to say I'm liking Maddy, Eleanor's sister more than Eleanor. Not great when you like the second banana better than the heroine. This time around in Timber Ridge, Eleanor's delivery boy/helper is in trouble after the murder of his conniving, greedy, ne'er do well brother. Worse yet, brother is found in the Slice, Eleanor's pizzeria.
Since it has to be closed, Eleanor and Maddy decide to solve the murder themselves and it puts them in the path of the police chief who was Eleanor's high school boyfriend. He now has a teenage son who works with and adores Eleanor.
Simplistic and obvious plot with easy to figure out murderer. We are constantly reminded that Eleanor's late husband Joe was everything to her. That apparently gives her license to be rude to a local guy who is crazy about her. She blows him off and then maybe regrets it. We're never sure.
No rush to read the next one in the series.
Since it has to be closed, Eleanor and Maddy decide to solve the murder themselves and it puts them in the path of the police chief who was Eleanor's high school boyfriend. He now has a teenage son who works with and adores Eleanor.
Simplistic and obvious plot with easy to figure out murderer. We are constantly reminded that Eleanor's late husband Joe was everything to her. That apparently gives her license to be rude to a local guy who is crazy about her. She blows him off and then maybe regrets it. We're never sure.
No rush to read the next one in the series.
May 17, 2015
I was not feeling this one. The first fifty pages were good, but everything after the murder went sour. I didn't like the way Eleanor and Maddy did their sleuthing. They were aggressive investigators, pretty much getting in everyone's face who they questioned. Their penchant for slithering into everyone's business made them rather annoying. Eleanor seemed like a protagonist I would enjoy, but over time her obsession with her dead husband and habit of losing her temper at innocent victims became tiring. I figured out the killer the moment they were introduced. And the killer also went on a long monologue on how and why they did it, which I absolutely hate. I don't plan on continuing with this series.
October 14, 2015
The story itself was good... a fair number of suspects, a believable motive, and an amateur sleuth who is extremely nosy & puts herself in bad situations. But I think this second book is as far as I'm going in this series. Maybe the first book wasn't so bad, but it seems in this book, Eleanor is unnecessarily snippy with pretty much everyone, friend or foe. Even rude or downright cruel at times. I have a hard time caring what happens to her, even though there are some really likeable characters around her. I find it even harder to believe her friends stick by her and tolerate her attitude. I just don't think I can take any more of her.
February 19, 2011
This is the second in the Pizza Lovers Mystery series. I read the first one, "A Slice of Murder" and liked it. This was pretty good as cozies go. It takes place in a fictitious town in North Carolina, Timber Ridge. This series has some likeable characters and the story was very readable. No high action, but an interesting story. It centers around a widow and her sister, who run a pizzeria in a small town with the help of a college student and a high school student and solve murder mysteries on the side.
September 5, 2012
I liked this one a little better than the first now that I've gotten used to the writing style and the face that it is a male writing as a female main character, but Eleanor is still rather unlikeable because she keeps mentioning her dead husband every other paragraph and she is a martyr when she rejects the advances of David. Also I did not like how repetitive it was when the killer revealed themselves by tricking her in to helping them escape the assumed murderer, just like in the first story. I really hope that's now how the reveal goes in the third or fourth as well.
August 11, 2016
I like this series. Pizza and murder. Fun.
August 19, 2018
Pepperoni Pizza Can Be Murder is the second book in the Pizza Lovers Cozy Mystery series, and although I wasn't crazy about the first book I tried the second.
Poor Eleanor, someone is found dead in her kitchen, and while she is suspected for a brief time, her best worker is ultimately the police's focus this book, and of course she has to step in.
Again I am hit with the police chief's refusal to do his job, I mean five minutes of police work - he didn't even realize the pizza came from somewhere else until Eleanor mentioned it. This stuff should have been common, it seems silly the way the police get focused on one person to the point they forget to investigate anything else.
I still can't get behind the character of Eleanor, I still think she is whiny and wallowing in her own life and refusing to move on and realize that she is young, alive and she needs to make the most of what she has in front of her.
I still don't like the police chief or his constant questioning of Eleanor, its almost like he is wanting to find something to blame on her so that he feels better about himself as a person.
Then there is my pet peeve - proofreading! OMG! On one page, the poor delivery boy goes from being Josh to Jason back to Josh again! Ugh!! Come on!! Names are on of those things that you just can't get wrong!!
Chris Cavender is a pen name for author Tim Myers - who has written a lot of cozy mysteries - some soap based, some candle based, even a minatures based series. Usually he develops characters so much better, I am just not happy with this series.
Poor Eleanor, someone is found dead in her kitchen, and while she is suspected for a brief time, her best worker is ultimately the police's focus this book, and of course she has to step in.
Again I am hit with the police chief's refusal to do his job, I mean five minutes of police work - he didn't even realize the pizza came from somewhere else until Eleanor mentioned it. This stuff should have been common, it seems silly the way the police get focused on one person to the point they forget to investigate anything else.
I still can't get behind the character of Eleanor, I still think she is whiny and wallowing in her own life and refusing to move on and realize that she is young, alive and she needs to make the most of what she has in front of her.
I still don't like the police chief or his constant questioning of Eleanor, its almost like he is wanting to find something to blame on her so that he feels better about himself as a person.
Then there is my pet peeve - proofreading! OMG! On one page, the poor delivery boy goes from being Josh to Jason back to Josh again! Ugh!! Come on!! Names are on of those things that you just can't get wrong!!
Chris Cavender is a pen name for author Tim Myers - who has written a lot of cozy mysteries - some soap based, some candle based, even a minatures based series. Usually he develops characters so much better, I am just not happy with this series.
February 25, 2020
I had the first in this series four years ago. I joined a cozy mystery book club at the local library some time after that. I recall stating this was a book I had read. I seem to recall that I liked the first book. After finishing this one, I went back and read the review I wrote for the first. I am not so certain I was as enamored with it as I thought I recalled.
This second book was whimsical. It's a cozy, so there's that. Nothing bad. Lord knows, I have read plenty of poorly written cozies. I do like the sisters. I remembered nothing from the first book. This book had a lot of suspects. I thought I had it figured out. I was wrong. The way this is structured, it is similar to the Clue movie from 1985 with multiple endings. The last chapter could be written a few different ways, each with a different suspect turning out to be the murderer.
Greg, one of the helpers at the pizzeria, and his brother Wade were embattled over a will. Wade thought he was entitled to more than half. Eleanor is ribbed at gunpoint. Soon after, Wade is found dead in the pizzeria with a pizza from another joint beside him. It sure looks like his brother Greg did it. But, of course, he did not.
Clara, Greg and Wade's mother is a piece of work. Totally unbelievable.
There is Art, the town crime boss. He was actually well-developed. I liked his interplay with Eleanor.
There was also Katy and Sandi, both connected to Wade in a jealous love triangle. There was Sandi's new boyfriend. There was Wade's boss. Plenty to go on.
It was a fun read.
This second book was whimsical. It's a cozy, so there's that. Nothing bad. Lord knows, I have read plenty of poorly written cozies. I do like the sisters. I remembered nothing from the first book. This book had a lot of suspects. I thought I had it figured out. I was wrong. The way this is structured, it is similar to the Clue movie from 1985 with multiple endings. The last chapter could be written a few different ways, each with a different suspect turning out to be the murderer.
Greg, one of the helpers at the pizzeria, and his brother Wade were embattled over a will. Wade thought he was entitled to more than half. Eleanor is ribbed at gunpoint. Soon after, Wade is found dead in the pizzeria with a pizza from another joint beside him. It sure looks like his brother Greg did it. But, of course, he did not.
Clara, Greg and Wade's mother is a piece of work. Totally unbelievable.
There is Art, the town crime boss. He was actually well-developed. I liked his interplay with Eleanor.
There was also Katy and Sandi, both connected to Wade in a jealous love triangle. There was Sandi's new boyfriend. There was Wade's boss. Plenty to go on.
It was a fun read.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 162 reviews