Not being much of a foodie, I have to admit to being largely unfamiliar with charcuterie boards. Ironically, what I have read of them is dog/cat targeted, so I definitely learned a few things during this read. That said, while a huge JC Eaton fan, I never quite warmed up to this book. One of those I didn't love but also didn't dislike, hence basically one others may love and wonder what my problem was. I lean toward the issue being that I haven't read any of the previous books in the series. Hence, being character driven in my reading, I wasn't able to find a connecting point with either main character Katie Aubrey or the supporting cast. Well, other than Katie's dog Speedbump, a name I sometimes label my own furry girl with, too, when she gets underfoot. In any case, while I wasn't quite taken in by the characters or story, it has its moments and, as noted, believe others with perhaps more of a foodie interest will fully enjoy this one but for me it was a 3.5 rounded to a 4 star.
I did like the tight group of friends and employees that Katie has attracted. That one of them, Mercedes Alvarez, is taken in for questioning after the discovery of a dead body behind their shops, and it's Katie that her daughter Marisa calls first for support shows the closeness of their friendship. Boyfriend Ian Monroe also plays an important role of sounding board and support although he seems to be constantly busy and much of their communication seems to occur via text messages. As for Katie's employees, I have to admit to never quite getting a grasp of who they were, again, possibly my failure, not the authors' as I was finding the plot a bit slow going and more focused on clues than character, unusual for me. I did get that the ghost Edith seems to have come with Katie's rental of a house, albeit I didn't find Edith terribly interesting or likable, or even dependable for that matter.
That said, much of the humor in the story comes due to Edith's involvement in either the case or a long running feud with a second ghost who seems to have access to an incredible wardrobe of designer wear. They have some useful and not so useful skills, too, apparently ones they're learning in their ghostly world. Of course, the problem is getting Edith to focus on the issue at hand, figuring out who murdered Lindstrom Neal and Grady LaPont. Given that both had connections to Katie's charcuterie class, she may want to rethink offering classes in the future, that's for sure.
Bottom line, a quick read that while it didn't suck me in, kept me entertained. I even learned a bit more about charcuterie boards and what thought goes into the designs, so keep some note paper handy while reading if you're so inclined. Now that I have the basic background down, I'll definitely be giving this series a second-chance, so I'm looking forward to whatever strange adventures Katie's life with ghosts and food may lead me. Thanks #NetGalley and #LevelBestBooks for this sneak peek at Katie's world of food and, yikes, murder.
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