A SCONE OF CONTENTION

3.5 stars out of 5

Newly married to Nathan Bransford, a detective with the Key West, Florida, Police Department, Hayley Snow writes food-related articles for the island's Key Zest publication. When the couple gets a chance for a real honeymoon in Scotland to visit Nathan's sister Vera and her husband, William, she sees an opportunity to bring stories of Scottish fare back to tempt Key Westians. Then, because of their elderly but spunky houseboat neighbor Miss Gloria's family ties to the country - and that it might be her only chance to see it - they offer to take her along. Just before they leave, one of their local friends ends up in hot water with the police, making Hayley a little reluctant to leave.

Although Scotland is welcoming, Nathan's sister is far less so; to make matters worse, Hayley's brother-in-law insists on entering a golf tournament with Nathan as his partner - taking him away from her most of the days of their visit, sadly for her (and for readers, who see way too little of him as well). Vera, who's immersed in pulling together a soon-to-be-published book about the "thin places" of Scotland ("where the veil between heaven and earth is lifted"), spends a good bit of her time disagreeing with the production team about the direction the book is taking - a turn for the worse, in her opinion. When Nathan's rather standoffish mother, who has gained tentative acceptance by Hayley but isn't on the best of terms with Vera, shows up as well, she brings the potential for uncomfortable encounters. If I'm honest, I'll say that potential quickly turned into an unpleasant reality; the disagreements and sniping at each other - especially among the book production team - started to get annoying fairly early on. 

At an early-on dinner party for all of the above, one of the guests experiences severe stomach distress - a suspected poisoning. Later, as the group hops on the Falkirk Wheel on their way to their destination of the day, tragedy strikes: A man falls overboard and is killed. When he's identified by police, no one in Hayley's group acknowledges knowing him, but their furtive denials make her think there's more to that story - and the possibility that it was no accident rears its ugly head. Much of the book from this point on centers on descriptions of the group's destinations, detailed bickering among group members and, more pleasantly, Hayley's encounters with the traditional foods of Scotland (recipes for such treats as Shepherd's Pie and several varieties of scones are included at the end of the book).

The only near-edge-of-seat drama happens near the end, when one of member of the group faces a life-threatening situation; that's followed by the tying up of loose ends surrounding the death at Falkirk and publication of the book. Once Hayley and Nathan are back home, her friend's pre-trip tussle with police is sorted as well - but that situation had so little relevance to the rest of the plot that I had to wonder why it was included at all. Oh wait: Maybe it will be fodder for the next book in the series (for the record, this is the eleventh). While I wait for that one, I'll thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read and review a pre-release copy of this one.

A Scone of Contention by Lucy Burdette (Crooked Lane Books, August 2021); 336 pp.

THE KEY LIME CRIME

5 stars out of 5

I am not, as a rule, fond of cozy mysteries; give me plenty of blood, life-threatening action and bang-up endings any day of the week. But I'll also say this: There's nothing like a well-written cozy to take the edge off all that gore and angst and provide an enjoyable few hours of reading.

And this is just such a book. Admittedly, I'm new to the series; this is, I've read, the 10th featuring the personable and delightfully unobnoxious Hayley Snow, a food critic in Key West, Fla. I suppose my interest initially was piqued by the setting; honestly, I've never really wanted to visit anywhere in too-hot Florida except for one spot (you guessed it). Maybe it's the Hemingway connection (one of my retired English teacher husband's favorite authors); maybe it's the six-toed cats; maybe it's the chance to be Buffeted by some of my favorite music - I can't say for sure. And I can't discount being able to indulge in one of my favorite desserts, key lime pie. 

Of the latter, there's plenty to go around here (although I must admit that after reading the book I'm more enthralled by the key lime martini, for which the author provides a recipe - among others - at the end). For those wondering if they'll be lost starting with a book so far into a series, my answer is an unequivocal no; I had no trouble whatsoever understanding what is going on.

Hayley, newly married to Key West cop Nathan Bransford, is covering some of the food events being held on the island during the tourist-crowded week between Christmas and New Year's. While their houseboat is being renovated, she and Nathan are living with a somewhat kooky next-door neighbor. All that suddenly becomes complicated when Nathan's mother announces an unplanned visit - starting the very next day. She and Hayley have never met, this is Nathan's busiest time of the year and the houseboat is overcrowded as it is. Not the best time, then, for Hayley to witness a nasty incident involving one of the bakery-submitted key lime pies - and certainly not to find a dead body.

Hayley's innate curiosity kicks in, of course, aided and abetted by that of her mother-in-law and their elderly houseboat hostess. Nathan (also of course) doesn't take kindly to their intrusion into the investigation, but readers of cozies know that only serves as an incentive for the heroine to dig in her heels. Will she learn the murderer's identity without putting herself and her friends in mortal danger? Will Nathan forgive his bride for ignoring his advice? You'll just have to read the book to find out. All I'm willing to do at this point is say thank you to the publisher, via NetGalley, for letting me read and review this very entertaining book.

The Key Lime Crime by Lucy Burdette (Crooked Lane Books, August 2020); 320 pp.