|
[ Home ]
[ About | Reviews | Search | Submit ]
Abby Shaw is the owner of a small but popular candy shop in Paradise, Colorado. The Divinity Candy Shop belonged to her aunt, who recently passed away. Abby is hoping to maintain the standards set by her aunt and for the business to succeed. For this reason she is a member of the local merchants association in addition to being an active member of the community. Brandon Mills is the owner of a local men's clothing store. He wants to extend the city's yearly arts festival in order to attract more people and hopefully more business. Many members of the merchants' association are against this move. Brandon is not the type of person who is overly concerned about what other people think and his opinions rub people the wrong way. He also seems to be sweet on Abby. When he does not arrive for a date, Abby is worried. Then when his store burns to the ground she is panicked. Once his body is discovered in the rubble, Abby learns the community's true opinion of Brandon's nature. She must listen to all of their gossip and innuendoes in order to find the truth about his murder. Along the way, she must learn more about herself as well as people she thought she knew. Considering Abby Shaw's personal life, the plot would be more realistic if she were more cynical about the world. She has the ability to see her own flaws but not those around her. While she does have a poor view of marriage due to her own experience, she does seem unwilling to see the worst in people. Her ability to misjudge people gives the book an undertone of helplessness. CANDY APPLE DEAD would seem more realistic to the reader if Abby had some of the jadedness her experience would have produced. CANDY APPLE DEAD is very much the stereotypical cozy. The latest craze of the genre seems to be food and hobby-related mysteries. While this genre does attract a large reading base, it is limited and constricting to the plot and characters. In fact this sub-genre is becoming over-saturated with uninspired mysteries. In order for a book to be memorable, it needs to stand outside of the genre, not in the center. I am a much bigger fan of police procedurals or private investigations, although there is nothing I enjoy more than a good cozy. Unfortunately for me, CANDY APPLE DEAD does not fit my requirements of a good cozy.
Reviewed by Sarah Dudley, October 2005
This book has more than one review. Click here to show all.
[ Top ]
QUICK SEARCH:
Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
[ About | Reviews | Search | Submit ]
[ Home ]
| 
