Another good read. Jenny Starling is a likeable character. A cozy mystery.

Jenny Starling, a traveling cook, has moved on and will be cooking at a small farm for a handful of people during Christmas. Something is definitely awry at the Kelton Farm when it is discovered that a guest has been murdered.

Jenny is not only a brilliant cook, she is an excellent amateur sleuth who has a knack for solving murders. From the outset Jenny knew things were not right. Her employer, Stan Kelton, is as hateful as can be. His family detests him. Furthermore, they all act oddly as far as Jenny is concerned. Despite how unlikeable Stan is, when someone is murdered it is not him.

The police have no shortage of suspects and it takes them no time to develop a grudging respect for Jenny as she becomes instrumental in discovering the circumstances surrounding the murder.

If you love cozy mysteries, grab this and all the other books in this engaging series. Jenny is smart, beautiful and statuesque. I thoroughly enjoyed Jenny’s techniques and thought processes. The discussion of food was a boon too.

The next book in the series is The Riverboat Mystery.

Formerly published as A Fatal Fall of Snow under Faith Martin’s pseudonym, Joyce Cato.

Many thanks to Joffe Books and to NetGalley for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.

A great new food mystery series to follow. Great main character and interesting mystery, combined with descriptions of food and cooking - piece de la resistance.

This time Jenny Starling is hired to cook for a wealthy farmer over the Christmas period. Thee’s not a lot of festive spirit as the family seem to hate each other. Then a murder occurs on Christmas Eve and the police sent to investigate don’t seem to have a clue and when they realize that Jenny has past experience in solving crimes they begin to include her in their investigations.

This is a well written old fashioned murder mystery. Although it is the second in the series it reads well as a standalone. The plot follows the usual format with lots of suspects and many red herrings. I did guess who the murderer was this time, but it didn’t stop me from enjoying the book. The winter setting was perfect and Ms Martin’s description of the snowy landscape made me shiver, and her descriptions of the food made my stomach rumble. I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much as the Birthday Mystery but it is still an enjoyable Winter read.

Clever, clever, clever! Another cozy mystery that would warm your heart and tingle your grey cells in this holiday season.

This time Jenny is hired as a cook for the Christmas holidays. Her employer, the farmer Stan Kelton is despised by everyone, even his own family. He is rude, vulgar and domineering and as soon as Jenny arrives at the farm, she senses the tense atmosphere and the resentment emanating from each member of the family and realizes that this is going to be one of those Christmases! Gloomy and dispirited!
The only person, doing his best to keep the peace, is Stan’s older brother Sid, a kindhearted and gentle soul who is housebound due to illness.
Then the inevitable happens. Someone is murdered in the kitchen of the farmhouse. If you think the victim is the despicable Stan, guess again!
None of the family has an alibi for the time of the murder. The police is baffled and once again Jenny comes to the rescue. But she soon realizes that in order to unearth the identity of the killer, she should find an answer to this simple question: Why? Why would anyone want to kill the victim?

Thanks to Faith Martin, Joffe Books and the NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy.

It was a very clever whodunit set in an English farmhouse in the middle of Winter. The author does a good job of making the reader feel they are right there with her due to her descriptions of scenery and the characters. I kind of had this one figured out, but it was still a fun read.

It's Christmas Eve, the farm is snowed in and the newly hired cook discovers that the family she has been hired to cook for during the holiday season seem to hate each other. And they especially seem to hate one particular family member. Then after collecting eggs for cooking, the kindly uncle is found seated at the kitchen table stabbed to death. Yep, just another feel good Christmas story.