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Eggs in Purgatory
Cackleberry Club Mystery # 1

by Laura Childs



      Suzanne Deitz starts the Cackleberry restaurant out of desperation. Her husband has passed away and she needs a secure financial future. Her friends Toni and Petra also need an income.  The ladies come up with some tasty recipes to keep the customers coming back. They also include a book and knitting nook for extra income. Cackleberry’s most memorable dish of late would be Eggs in Purgatory—mainly because the most recent order was found splattered all over the local attorney and the interior of his Ford truck, along with his blood.

Sheriff Doogie is the chubby, sexist law enforcer. Suzanne hates depending on him, but Doogie is the only one who can help her find the answers about her late husband’s involvement in murder and fraud. The whole situation has small town politics rearing its ugly head (and we all know how ugly that can get).  It’s a bitter-sweet situation as the ladies celebrate the success of their businesses and Suzanne suffers personal accusations against her late husband.

There is nothing tea-totaling about this series. Laura Childs followers will discover this is a far cry from her other series. The ladies are older, tougher, and a lot more colorful in personality. Suzanne has a strong, women’s lib attitude. And town Sheriff Doogie prefers his women traditional. It certainly leaves the door open for character development. The mystery holds up. Suzanne and Doogie take the lead, follow the twists and turns and try to survive the showdown... It’s another successful Laura Childs read.

Warning: reading this recipe-filled mystery will have you fantasying about these delicious dishes and searching your cupboards for the ingredients.

The Book

Berkley Prime Crime
December 2, 2008
Paperback
0425224953 / 978-0425224953
Cozy Mystery

The Reviewer

Brenda Weeaks
Reviewed 2009
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