Review: Let Them Eat Stake by Sarah Zettel

Let Them Eat Stake by Sarah Zettel
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars. It's a cozy mystery, it's fun if you like that sort of thing, and I do.  But it does have all of the failings of the typical cozy too. Chef Charlotte keeps saying that she knows that the situation is problematic and that she probably should walk away, but she doesn't because she doesn't let anyone lie to her and that she can handle any situation. Miss Attitude, even though she does keep referencing that she did almost die the last time she "played Nancy Drew," she barely considers that she might be in danger in this time or that she might get in over her head. Even though again she's involved with witches, warlocks and mind-controlling vampires who have reason to dislike her. And all she has is a spray bottle of garlic-infused holy water and her wits. I know chefs are arrogant, but come on. If she was more concerned with the money that she needs to keep her restaurant open or the fact that her getting the job was already in the press and that backing out would be a PR disaster, then it would have made more sense than just curiosity and ballsiness. But it's typical cozy behavior and you do just have to accept that kind of thing when you read the genre.

The mystery was generally good, but it got overly complicated by the end, too messy. And there was some way too convenient plotting. Like when Charlotte's friend Minnie was introduced just in time to get a job at Oscar's restaurant and then was able to pass Charlotte the key to his office. Plus what was a regular cook doing with keys to the dead owner's office after one day on the job?

And now that I think about it, we never did find out why someone picked Charlotte for the job. Did I miss it? Deanna said she liked the restaurant, but Charlotte didn't think that was it, she thought there was a deeper, more suspicious reason. Huh.

The romance was pretty typical too. Charlotte likes Boy 1, Brendan, the handsome warlock, but they're both super busy with their jobs and she's afraid to commit or get at all serious. And she also likes Boy 2, Anatole, the charming vampire, but he's a restaurant critic and an association with him would make his good review of her restaurant look suspicious, But she keeps stringing him along too. Both relationships are very mild, it's not a hot, sexy romance novel. It's really much more about the mystery than the romance, but publishers love that love triangle, so, check!

As for the paranormal aspects, for a book with so many vampires, witches and warlocks in it, not much paranormal behavior happens. Don't expect any huge magical battles or wild vampire orgies. Paranormals have been integrated into this society, they're mostly just people like everyone else, or at least that's the tone. Figuring out what the witches or vampires might do, or what threat they might present, is part of the story, but it's mostly pretty civilized. I'm not expressing it very well. But if you're reading the book just because you love paranormals then you might be disappointed, the book is really about the chef trying to solve a mystery involving the paranormals.. On the other hand, if you like cozy mysteries about chefs and normally don't read paranormal romances, give this a try, I bet you find it a fun crossover. There, that's what I'm trying to say, it should appeal to both crowds because it's not crazy wild paranormal, just full of interesting characters with understandable motivations, a few of whom might have a few different abilities is all.

The depiction of the restaurant business continues to be very interesting and detailed without feeling cumbersome. The author definitely works the business and cooking aspects into the story in a lot of nice ways to both move the tale along and flesh out certain scenes to make them feel comfortable and real. The writing overall is very vivid and readable, it's a very enjoyable read. I just keep hoping for more from this author because I know she's capable of it. A cute little formula/checklist cozy mystery is nice, but she could do better.

Annoyed little note: would a guy like Brendan text l8tr? Seriously, he can't be bothered with one more letter to write a real word? He's kind of a formal guy. Especially the second time when he was home and not in a rush. (p260) It's not important to the story, obviously, just one of those things that annoys me in general and also didn't feel genuine to the character. I get when he was in a rush or maybe in danger and did the whole ...wish u wr here thing, but l8tr from an educated guy in an otherwise complete sentence irritated me.

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Review: A Taste of the Nightlife by Sarah Zettel

A Taste of the Nightlife by Sarah Zettel
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.5 stars. So what happens when a really great author decides to write a formula genre novel? You get A Taste of the Nightlife, a cute but uninspiring mystery/paranormal romance. I really adored Sarah Zettel's Fool's War, I gave it one of my very few five star reviews, so I was hoping for more from this book, despite having my doubts when I read the description. I'm a fan of this genre, so I hoped she'd write something a bit more special than the typical book, but it was really checklist cozy mystery/paranormal romance. Charlotte is a very typical average woman heroine who is a bit grouchy, isn't beautiful, is short and curvy, and hasn't had a date in a year, and yet of course the two absolutely stunning guys she meets are instantly head-over-heels for her after they've exchanged maybe five words. And this is despite the fact that one is a super powerful and very old vampire who could be a king among his kind. And the other is a powerful warlock who on the surface has every reason to dislike her and is in the middle of a family crisis and shouldn't be interested in romance at all right now. But both are completely charmed by her, are willing to risk danger to help her, and aren't bothered by competing with each other to boot. Because love triangles are the staple of paranormal romances, gotta have 'em, check! Anyway, the characters are cute, the mystery was fine, all of it was enjoyable, but none of it was especially unique. It just felt like a good author having fun with a genre that she enjoys (putting a positive spin on it) without making any great impact.

If you like cozy mysteries, this is a good bet for you. The romance is mild, just a few kisses, but the guys are very handsome. It's definitely not going to be a hot sexy series. I think the subtitle sums it up when it says that it's, "A Vampire Chef Mystery." So expect cute cozy paranormal mysteries with a dash of romance.

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Review: Blood on the Bayou by Stacey Jay

Blood on the Bayou by Stacey Jay
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I still really like this series a lot. This one wasn't as dark as the first one in some ways. People who had issues with Annabelle and her imperfections (i.e. drunkenness) might be more comfortable with her this time around because she is trying to clean up her act a bit. But I like this imperfect woman and her struggles are a big part of what make the series interesting and different for me and I hope she doesn't become too idealized too quickly. Her struggles and imperfections are what I related to in the first book.

Annabelle has had a lot to deal with. First, there is the basic premise of this world, it's a really stressful and frightening place to live in in many way, a sort of apocalyptic meets urban fantasy setting. A lot of people who live in the fairy-infested area where Annabelle lives have become addicted to sleeping pills because they have anxiety issues and nightmares - who wouldn't? And then there's her history. She's insecure, she drinks too much (less in this book), she too needs sleeping pills to deal with her crazy life (who doesn't?), oh, and did I mention that she's insecure? She's also dealing with having been rejected by her family, not trusted and dumped by the man she loved after his brother raped her, and probably has some depressive or anxiety issues (my diagnosis, just a guess). She's kind of a mess. But she's also smart as a whip (a former med student), brave, loving, generous and funny, loves good food (hot wings!), and generally the kind of gal that I'd like to be pals with.

As for this book specifically, in an attempt to be spoiler free, I'll just say that it was a study in betrayal and secrets. By the middle of the book it at least appeared that everyone that Annabelle ever cared about, except Deedee, had betrayed her. She felt completely isolated and alone. Her lovers, the people she'd come to think of as family, and even her bosses, had secrets that hurt her feelings and some of which threatened her life. There was a lot going on in this book but I really liked the way it all wove together. Now that I'm thinking about it, I never once rolled my eyes and thought that it was too much coincidence, or that certain people shouldn't have had any reason to know each other, none of the things that irritate me sometimes on other books. There was one person who did have a big secret that was revealed that could have been an eye-roller but it was built up to enough that it fine.

I really liked the layers that were revealed about the fairies in this book. I wondered in the first book about the the author's use of the word fairy for the creatures since they seemed to be just mindless insect-like animals at first. But I really enjoyed everything that was revealed about them in this book. And Grandpa Slake was just so creepy. I was intrigued by the hints of information about the Gentry and I'm looking forward to seeing how that plays out more in the next book.

It wasn't a perfect book. I was kind of surprised at some of the choices the author made when it came to the romances. I'm not sure Annabelle came off as positively as she could have. (Not that the guys looked so good either, let me tell you!) And I'm not quite sure about the overall change in Annabelle's character. Not that she isn't still screwed up, she's still making mistakes and drinking a bit too much, but she felt a bit too suddenly heroic, and yet judgmental of the guys' mistakes at the same time, it just felt odd sometimes. But I'm chalking it up to second book growing pains. Overall I like this world and this character and the author's writing very much and I'm looking forward to book three.

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