Lemon Tart by Josi Kilpack

A recipe for murder!

5 families living on Peregrine Circle
1 flowered curtain tieback
1 missing child
1 body in the field

Mix with a long list of suspects and top with two very different detectives.

Increase heat until only the truth remains.

Award-winning author Josi S. Kilpack introduces a new series of culinary "cozies" that is sure to tantalize mystery lovers. In this debut volume, cooking aficionado-turned-amateur detective, Sadie Hoffmiller, tries to solve the murder of Anne Lemmon, her beautiful young neighbor - a single mother who was mysteriously killed while a lemon tart was baking in her oven. At the heart of Sadie's search is Anne's missing two-year-old son, Trevor. Whoever took the child must be the murderer, but Sadie is certain that the police are looking at all the wrong suspects - including her!

Armed with a handful of her very best culinary masterpieces, Sadie is determined to bake her way to proving her innocence, rescuing Trevor, and finding out exactly who had a motive for murder.

This was a fun book. I loved Sadie Hoffmiller because she seemed so real. She wasn't a blonde bombshell with a perfect body, she was a regular woman in her fifties. I thought Kilpack did an excellent job of sprinkling in Sadie's backstory and making her so realistic. I especially loved her obsession with all things domestic. Even during tense times in the story, Sadie's thoughts would go back to homemaking skills.

Kilpack kept me guessing through the whole book. Just when I thought I knew who did it, I didn't. I thought the clues were well placed, the tension was good, and the story arc made sense.

I also liked the hint of romance and the recipes throughout the book.

I recommend Lemon Tart. Add it to your summer reading list, you won't be disappointed!