Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for Cornbread, Ribs, and Murder (Chocolate Martini Sisters Mystery) by Brenda Whiteside and Joyce Proell! Today we are featuring a review of book three of this mystery series. Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews, and more! It’s a great way to add books to your TBR. There is also a Rafflecopter Giveaway for a $20 Amazon Gift Card! 

Cornbread, Ribs, and Murder (Chocolate Martini Sisters Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
3rd in Series
Setting – Arizona
Independently Published (April 20, 2024)
Digital Print length ‏ : ‎ 271 pages
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0CW1GPJR7

About the Book:

It’s a rib cookoff…with a recipe for murder.

Nicole Earp and Emma Banefield are celebrating another birthday at the Dulce Inn with the added fun of a rib cookoff in the park. Not only are chocolate martinis in their plans, Nic has her heart set on winning the cornbread contest. But as the excitement bakes, someone is stirring up trouble for the inn and its employees.

Strange occurrences at the Dulce are on the rise. Slashed tires, menacing phone calls, and unsavory characters add a vibe that threatens the sisters’ anticipated fun-filled stay. When the hot-headed hotel owner is caught wielding a bloody letter opener over a dead coworker, the sisters are embroiled in a caper to help the one person who finds their sleuthing as welcomed as a rattlesnake in her bed. But is she innocent?

The Chocolate Martini Sisters are primed to find out. First, they’ll have to eliminate a host of suspects that includes a dishonest restaurant owner, a jilted girlfriend, an ex-wife, the barkeeper, and a masseuse with a crush. If they can stay off the radar of the surly chief homicide detective long enough, they can put out the fire…unless the killer burns them first.

The third book in this amateur sleuths, cozy mystery series will have you chuckling and on the edge of your seat as the sisters solve the murder.

This was my first introduction to the Chocolate Martini Sisters Mysteries and it was such a fun read. While this is book three in the series, it read well as a standalone. 

Nicole (Nic) Earp and Emma Banefield are sisters who celebrate life’s milestones at the fancy and nearby Dulce Inn. This time they are ready to relax and celebrate Emma’s birthday. To add to the celebrations, there is an upcoming rib cookoff in a local park and a cornbread baking contest. Nic has been spending hours preparing the perfect cornbread recipe to enter into the contest. Not long into their visit, though, they hear a cry for help and find the hotel owner Jillian clutching a bloody letter opener while standing over the dead body of a hotel coworker. 

Nic and Emma are drawn into the mystery as they have with mysteries in the past, but this time Jillian asks for their help proving her innocence. Jillian isn’t the most endearing person, but Nic and Emma agree to investigate. They must comb through many suspects and not get too much in the way of a rather sour (and a little lovable?) chief homicide detective. 

Nic and Emma are lots of fun–stories of sisters are some of my favorites, and these two make a great pair. They play off of each other well and have the open and honest conversations that only sisters can have. They are also a hoot together–certainly not afraid to get a little messy in the hunt for the truth. I chuckled several times, wondering how they were going to get themselves out of certain spots. The mystery was solid and had excellent pacing. The many suspects and clues (and red herrings) had me turning the pages quickly, eager to reveal the culprit. And I’m certainly curious to know what a chocolate martini tastes like, although I’m much more likely to try the delicious cornbread recipe tucked in at the end of the novel. While this was my first adventure with Nic and Emma, it certainly won’t be my last! 

About the Authors:

Brenda Whiteside is the award-winning author of romantic suspense, romance, and cozy mystery. She writes children’s books under the pen name, Brenda Sue. After living in six states and two countries—so far—she and her husband have settled in Central Arizona. They admit to being gypsies at heart and won’t discount the possibility of another move. They share their home with a rescue dog named Amigo. While FDW fishes, Brenda writes.

Visit Brenda’s Website   Facebook    Twitter    Blog    Amazon Author Page    Goodreads Author Page    BookBub     Instagram  
Join her Newsletter Group here.

After hearing countless stories as a mental health professional, Joyce Proell retired to create her own tales. As an award-winning author, she writes historical romance and cozy mystery where all endings are guaranteed to be happy. She shares her home on the prairie with a husband and a little dog with a big personality. When she isn’t reading or writing, she likes to swim and finds baking almost as relaxing as a day at the spa.

Website    Facebook    Amazon Author Page   Goodreads Author Page

Purchase Links:

Amazon US   Amazon UK    Amazon Canada

TOUR PARTICIPANTS:

• May 1 – Sarah Can’t Stop Reading – REVIEW
• May 2 – Mystery, Thrillers, and Suspense – SPOTLIGHT
• May 2 – Baroness Book Trove – SPOTLIGHT
• May 3 – Literary Gold – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
• May 4 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT
• May 5 – Guatemala Paula Loves to Read – REVIEW
• May 5 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT WITH EXCERPT
• May 6 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – AUTHOR GUEST POST
• May 7 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – CHARACTER GUEST POST
• May 7 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
• May 8 – Hearts & Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT
• May 9 – Brooke Blogs – RECIPE POST
• May 10 – StoreyBook Reviews – CHARACTER GUEST POST
• May 11 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
• May 12 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT WITH EXCERPT
• May 13 – Read Your Writes Book Reviews – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
• May 14 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR GUEST POST

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