Murder Melts in Your Mouth

December 17, 2007
The Blackbird sisters, Nora, Libby and Emma, find themselves in the middle of another Main Line society scandal in the breezy seventh entry in Martin’s cozy series (after 2007’s A Crazy Little Thing Called Death
). As the annual Chocolate Festival begins in Philadelphia, noted philanthropist Hoyt Cavendish dies. But did he jump or was he pushed? Nora, society reporter for the Philadelphia Intelligencer
, investigates after she discovers a mysterious man hiding near the scene and wonders if he could be her long-lost father. Adding to the mess, Libby falls head over heels for the driver of the car that hit her, and wild child Emma is pregnant. Nora uncovers Hoyt’s many enemies, as the devilish do-gooder was “charitable” with funds that didn’t belong to him. The connection to the unexpected homecoming of the Blackbird parents adds another surprising twist. Despite Martin’s trademark wit, events fly past so quickly that readers may feel dizzy. But the long-awaited reunion between the sisters and their parents will satisfy longtime fans.

Starred review from February 1, 2008
Nora Blackbird ("Have Your Cake and Kill Him Too") rushes to the aid of her best friend, Lexie Paine, when her business partner falls to his death from their office balcony. The trouble is that many of Philadelphia's blue bloods have been fleeced by Hoyt Cavendish, the dead man, and soon Nora must add her own parents to the list. Hilarious repartee and zany characters move the story along, but Martin never loses sight of the seriousness of death. The good news is that the entire Blackbird family is reunited in this volume. Martin is an outstanding mystery author who deserves more recognition and attention than she currently receives. If your patrons enjoy chick-lit mysteries featuring female sleuths who deal with their problems in unusual ways with a good belly laugh or two along the way (think Janet Evanovich and Lisa Scottoline), this excellent series is for your collection. [See Prepub Mystery, "LJ" 11/1/07.]

Copyright 2008 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 1, 2008
In her seventh adventure, Nora Blackbird has myriad problems in her life. One sister has been hit by a Rolls-Royce and is recovering at the Ritz, leaving Nora to care for her five children; her unmarried sister is pregnant; and Nora is on probation at her job at the Intelligencer newspaper. She has also recently broken up with her boyfriend, Michael Abruzzo, son of a New Jersey crime boss, and her parents, who had left town just ahead of the law, have returned. Complicating matters even more, philanthropist Hoyt Cavendish has fallen to his death from a balcony, and her good friend Lexie is the chief suspect in his murder. However, there are numerous other suspects as Hoyts clients have just found out that he has swindled them to obtain the money he has been freely donating around town. Nora solves the murder, but the charm of this humorous series is the rather conventional heroine dealing with her numerous quirky relatives. The series is reminiscent of Donna Andrews Meg Langslow series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)