Review: Stirring the Plot (Cookbook Nook Mystery #3) by Daryl Wood Gerber

Stirring the Plot (Cookbook Nook Mystery #3) by Daryl Wood Gerber

Published  September 30th 2014 by Berkley

Paperback, 304 pages

Series: Cookbook Nook Mystery

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Source:  I got a copy of this book from the publisher  in exchange of an honest review.
Amazon | Goodreads

Summary from Goodreads

Halloween in Crystal Cove, California, is a big deal, involving a spooky soiree where the Winsome Witches, a fund-raising group, gather to open up their purse strings and trade superstitions. But party magicians, fortune-tellers, and herbalists are only the beginning of this recipe for disaster…

Jenna Hart has packed The Cookbook Nook chock-full of everything from ghostly texts to witchy potions in anticipation of the annual fund-raiser luncheon. But there’s one unexpected addition to the menu: murder.

When the Head Priestess of the Winsome Witches is found dead under mysterious circumstances, there’s no logical answer and plenty of blame to go around. With her aunt, Vera, unable to call on her ability to foresee the future, Jenna will have to use more than just sleight of hand and a few magic tricks to conjure up the truth…

It's Halloween in Crystal Cove and Jenna Hart is back in the latest installment of the Cookbook Nook Mystery.

With the town getting ready for Halloween and the Winsome Witches prepping for their annual fundraiser, everything seems witchier than normal especially when the Head Priestess of the Winsome Witches is suddenly found dead under mysterious circumstances and Jenna finds herself once again in the middle of everything. With plenty of blame to go around, it's amazing how quickly everyone in the group is willing to point fingers at each other. But when her own aunt becomes a suspect, Jenna finds it hard not to try to and get to the bottom of it. Especially since Aunt Vee won't stop acting as strange as this entire case.

I like this story for Halloween, it was a great read and I savored every bit of it. The story was exciting enough, the mystery kept me hooked and guessing  until the very end. The romance between Jenna and Rhett is headed at the right place. I love these two together, they are really adorable.

Gerber with her small town characters and writing really knows how to pull people in. Crystal Cove sounds like an exciting place to live along with it's colorful cast of characters and the little bookstore that Jenna owns. I love that she has incorporated so much into it, including cooking and cooking classes.

Did I enjoy it?

Absolutely.

I did have one small problem with the story. I was actually surprised and taken back by the amount of finger-pointing.. From my understanding these people are suppose to be good friend's, but it was amazing how quickly they kept turning on each other and blaming one another about the murder. The accusations, the assumptions, made my head swim. But I can get past that, because I enjoyed everything else.