Selling her corn fritters at a carnival, Deputy Donut Café owner Emily Westhill faces off against a murderer who doesn’t play fair . . .
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Emily and her assistant, Nina, are looking forward to manning the Deputy Donut tent at the Faker’s Dozen Carnival in Fallingbrook, Wisconsin—a festival held on Friday the thirteenth to celebrate good and bad luck. But Emily has barely dropped the corn fritters in oil when bad luck boils up. First, their bucket of confectioner’s sugar disappears—and then while a mime creates a distraction, a magician robs their cash register.
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After the carnival, their misfortune continues. Emily discovers that someone has broken into artist Nina’s loft and vandalized a large painting in progress with the bucket of stolen sugar, which is now on the head of the mime, who seems to have been suffocated. Emily would bet Nina was the intended victim, but the cops think Nina silenced the mime. Now Emily must catch the killer white-handed—before someone else kicks the bucket . . .
Release Date:Â May 25, 2021
Series:Â Deputy Donut
Book:Â 5
Publisher:Â Kensington
Price: $9.99
Welcome back to Fallingbrook.  Emily, Dep and friends are back on the case in this catching mystery-murder cozy. The fifth book in the A Deputy Donut Mystery series by Ginger Bolton.Â
There’s never a dull moment at Deputy Donut and this year. Deputy Donut will be serving at the exciting Fallingbrook’s Fairgrounds. Since arriving at the fair, things don’t go exactly as planned and a bizarre series of events lead to a mysterious murder by the end of the night. But when one of Deputy Donut’s employees is the main suspect, Emily will leave no donut unturned to get to the bottom of this mystery and catch the real killer. This time, lines are blurred and uncomfortable when friends become suspects, and your best friends belong to the Fallingbrook Police Department.Â
This is the second book that I have read in this series and for me, it was like coming home. I love that all of the established characters in this book have great chemistry. Emily, the protagonist, is calm and collected. She thinks everything through and tries to stay objective. I love that she has characters that adore and respect her and are willing to help her with whatever she needs. I’m a little sad that she’s still dancing around the notion of falling in love again. Emily has been a widow for some time and I really want her to get on with Detective Brent Fyne, those two love each other. It’s a bit frustrating, in the best way.Â
The supporting cast of characters feel every way like the characters you would find in your own family. I love the way Deputy Donut very much feels like a safe space for everyone. I could go on and on, but the bottom line is, the cast is family, and Deputy Donut feels like home. There is one particularly exceptional character, though. Her name is Dep, short for Deputy, and she is every bit paws-in, in the investigation. Her quick judgement and actions were detrimental in the resolution of this case. Meow.
Overall, a delightful cozy-mystery and an enjoyable read. Bonus points for the delicious recipes included at the end of the book.Â
~ Patricia
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