Some Like It Fudgy: A Candy-Coated Mystery with Recipes by Nancy Coco

Thank you to the authors, publishers, and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. The recipe review and food pairing found on my Instagram feed are of my own doing. 

Some Like It Fudgy
A Candy-Coated Mystery with Recipes
By Nancy Coco
Kensington

Oh, my goodness but this one was a roller coaster ride. Book 14 of the Candy-Coated Mystery series starts off with a dead body and of course, Allie (newlywed) Manning finds it.  But wait, there's more, the victim and Allie had a contentious relationship, the victim was the ex-wife of Allie's husband, police officer Rex Manning. You don't have to be familiar with this series to enjoy the mystery, the characters, or the recipes, but it does make you shake your head at times regarding Rex's less than stellar performance. Speaking of recipes, I had to make the Black Forest Fudge, and it was amazing!

There are the usual characters such as the book club ladies, a mature set of sleuth sidekicks, they remind me a little of the Sherlock Holmes Irregulars and introducing...Rowan and Finn. Rowan is an island native who has been away for about 10 years, so she knows EVERYONE. Is she a suspect or is she a new gal pal. Fin is her adorable and highly trained rescue Dane, so she can't be bad, right? Looks like she has past and current history with Melanie and none of it is good.

Rex having been one of Melanie's ex-husbands is removed from investigating, and his temporary replacement is a joke and a blowhard. Officer Laird, who has held a grudge since police academy days is looking to blame Allie, making this an easy open and shut case.  Allie can't risk being tossed in jail for obstruction so she will need to change her usual routine and do something that no other sleuth has done...be unpredictable. 

There are just a few suspects, since Melanie was not the nicest of people. From a plumber to a mystery man named Oscar who sent poisonous flowers. Nope it wasn't the flowers that did her in, it was the ... nope not going to tell you. The one thing I can tell you is that fur baby Mal is sniffing out clues and dragging Allie with her. This one was a nail biter, ire-inducing, snort producing mystery so be sure to get plenty of snacks before you settle in. There are plenty of snack recipes to choose between the chapters.