Catering a wake is not Goldy’s idea of fun. Yet the Colorado caterer throws herself into preparing a savory feast including Poached Salmon and Strawberry Shortcake Buffet designed to soothe forty mourners. And her culinary efforts seem to be exactly what the doctor ordered...until her ex-father-in-law gynecologist Fritz Korman is struck down and Goldy is accused of adding poison to the menu. Now, with the Department of Health impounding her leftovers, her ex-husband proclaiming her guilt, and her business about to be shut down, Goldy knows she can’t wait for the police to serve up the answers. She’ll soon uncover more than one family skeleton and a veritable stew of unpalatable secrets–the kind that could make Goldy the main course in an unsavory killer’s next murder!
Title: Catering to Nobody
Author: Diane Mott Davidson
Series: Goldy Catering, Book 1
Start & Finished: 3/6/08-3/7/08
Published: 1992
Publisher: Fawcett Crest
Pages: 320
Genre: Mystery
Everything is just right from Goldy Bear’s catering service. That is, everything except the
poisoning of her abusive ex-husband’s father during a wake that she caters. Catering to Nobody introduces Diane Mott Davidson’s long-running mystery series with murder, scandal, and recipes.Goldy seems like a good character and I really feel for her since she was abused by her now ex-husband and still made something of herself in a small town. I understood her withdrawal from men and life but I still would really like her to come out of her shell. So far personality wise, she isn’t someone who I would like to meet in real life though.
I’m not sure whether it was because I expected a culinary cozy mystery and got a plain mystery with recipes added or what but this story didn’t really impress me. It wasn’t bad, especially for a debut novel but Davidson is no Joanne Fluke that’s for sure. The recipes were actually some of the best parts of the book! I haven’t decided if I will continue this series to see if it improves even though I know it’s very popular because it was “just okay” and I was hoping for so much more.
The Goldy Bear Series: Catering to Nobody, Dying for Chocolate, The Cereal Murders, The Last Suppers, Killer Pancake, The Main Corpse, The Grilling Season, Prime Cut, Tough Cookie, Sticks and Scones, Chopping Spree, Double Shot, Dark Tort, Sweet Revenge
More about the author is on her Barnes and Noble and Wikipedia page, including an audio interview and trivia about her main character. Below is one of six videos that feature an interview with Davidson but in this one she discusses Catering to Nobody:
My mother is a huge fan of this series. I have yet to read it myself, but maybe someday. :-) Another great review, Jen!
ReplyDeleteI felt the same way about this book - I read the first one in the series years ago, and never went back to it. I know that is often a mistake, because as the author finds her stride the books can get better - and after all, the series is really popular. I guess I'll have to wait and see if you do, and hear how it goes! :-)
ReplyDeletehadnt heard of this one before. the cover is so cute!
ReplyDeletehttp://thebookworm07.blogspot.com/