A Deadly Grind

Vintage Kitchen Mystery Series, # 1

By: Victoria Hamilton

Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller

Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

When vintage cookware and cookbook collector Jaymie Leighton spies an original 1920s Hoosier brand kitchen cabinet at an estate auction, it's love at first sight. Despite the protests of her sister that the 19th-century yellow-brick house they share in Michigan is already too cluttered with Jaymie's "junk," she successfully outbids the other buyers and triumphantly takes home her Hoosier.

But that night on the summer porch where they've left the Hoosier to be cleaned up, a man is murdered, struck on the head with the steel meat grinder that is part of the cabinet. Who is this stranger - and what was he doing on their porch? Does his death have anything to do with the Hoosier?

As the police struggle to determine the man's identity, Jaymie can't help doing a little digging on her own, accompanied by her three-legged Yorkie Poo, Hopalong. But in her bid to uncover the truth about the hidden secrets of the Hoosier, Jaymie may be the one who ends up going, going...gone.

©2012 Donna Lea Simpson (P)2013 Tantor

Critic reviews

"Smartly written and successfully plotted, the debut of this new cozy series . . . exudes authenticity." ( Library Journal)

cute cozy mystery

clean and entertaining. I appreciated the understated romance, the interaction between sisters, the nosy, friendly, helpful, gossipy, colorful people in town. It did make me hungry though as it talked about various types of food. the main character might have a slight horsing problem. I learned a little bit of history as well. good choice if you want a book that makes you curious without too much adrenaline or that doesn't ask existential questions.

Good - not great

I like the theme of the series but did not think it was up to par with her Muffin series. So it was a bit of a let down. I may or may not read book 2 in the series. If I do it will be much later.

History can be deadly in this cozy mystery!

A vintage Hoosier kitchen cabinet proves to be more than an interesting antique for Jamie Leighton. Against her sister's better judgment, Jamie really wanted that 1920's Hoosier to go along with all her old kitchen gadgets that she has collected in their old 19th century yellow brick house in Michigan, that she and her sister have inherited. She won the auction but she ended up getting a dead body on her back porch as well. Now she wants to find out what she has that others want before they kill her first.

The background story of the ownership connection between Canada and Michigan makes this story especially interesting. The Queen's Tea Celebration is fascinating, along with the description and history of the Hoosier Cabinet itself. The mystery starts out as purely a murder investigation and develops into a much more complicated quest for more parts of American history. A great start to this Vintage Kitchen Mystery Series.

Good story

I really enjoyed this book, one of the better ones I have beards so far!

Failed to keep me interested

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The book dragged in many places. Perhaps because there was a lot of history and I dislike extensive historical passages in my cozies. Also, I couldn't connect with these characters. That may be because of my dislike of kitchen collectibles.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

Once we knew the reason behind the Hoosier cabinet, I grew more interested in the mystery. I googled for pictures of a Hoosier cabinet to be able to relate more.

How could the performance have been better?

Narrator was very monotone and did not pull me into the mystery. I feel it is the narrator's responsibility to be able to build the story successfully. For this reason, I will discontinue the series, at least on audio, since this is the continuing narrator for this series.

Any additional comments?

This was a Daily Deal so I didn't pay much. However, if I were to use a full credit, I would have asked for a refund. It just wasn't that good, particularly the narration.

Refreshing

Love it , will go on my "Read Again" list. Enjoyment for young and old.

Hooked!

First experience with this author. I chose this book because it was about a vintage collector, something I am also interested in. To be honest, I got so much more from this book. An education AND a mystery. A win-win! I am ordering the whole series. I also really like the narrator.

Cute story

The story is a little slow to start, but I like the premise of the book and enjoyed listening to this one. I'll definitely get the next one in the series.

COZY BEGINNING; SCARY ENDING

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Needing a break from historical, intellectual mysteries, and piqued by the puns in the titles, I thought this worth trying.

The modern setting takes place in northern Michigan a ferry's crossing from Canada, with blended cultural events, in a small tourist- attractive town. The heroine, Jaimie, and her sister, Becca, inherited a wonderful old house there. Becca only comes some week-
ends, Jaimie's heart and body inhabit, and decorate, and fill it year round. Becca has a
china replacement business, and is the elder by a dozen years; Jaimie, only 32, is still
figuring out her life, but to me, seems to be happy, busy, connected with and helpful to her friends and neighbors, loving her little dog and big cat, while collecting interesting antiques of kitchen related kind, and is secretly writing her first book, an edited collection of vintage recipes. Her main challenge at the moment is that her boyfriend of several years just left her for another woman the very next morning after a warm, affectionate date, without explanation or word. It is six months later and she is still grieving somewhat, mainly due to the lack of communication and honesty.

Then, the night after a stimulating auction where she purchased an antique Hoosier cabinet, she is awakened by one of those disturbing dreams which incorporates the sounds and feelings from inexplicable events occurring before one regains consciousness. . A stranger has been hit on the back of the head with the
heavy metal meat grinder, part of the accoutrement to the Hoosier. Awakened by her
dog, and the thuds, she stumbles downstairs to murder.

Thus ensues an interesting pursuit of the mystery, which involves many people, many her old friends and new ones, with the charming events of the town preparing for the
tourist season as an integrated background.

The author has a good grasp on how to make an intricate, slowly unfolding mystery, so the reader maintains interest, but for me, Jaimie's personality wavered. Sometimes she was brave, and sometimes foolhardy, other times out of touch to what would be normal
feelings and good sense for a situation. I did get exasperated at times, even freaked a couple of times which wasn't comfortable. ( I like to feel the "detective" has the higher moral and intellectual ground.) As one murder turned into several, I didn't foresee her
being threatened (although the blurb gives hint), and did feel scared when she was. Maybe you wouldn't.

The denouement was too close to the scary part for me; I needed more confidence that at least she learned from her actions. However, I grew to like her friends, the town and its history, her overall character. I loved the part where she tracked down the previous
owner of the Hoosier who inherited it from his parents, and had a story to tell. That was
almost worth the whole book.

By the way, I own a Hoosier cabinet, and though it lacked a meat grinder, the other parts were real. If it would add to your pleasure, finding a picture of the cabinet may be worthwhile. They were the piece that brought a kitchen together and made it work.

GREAT NEW FIND

THESE CHARACTERS ARE FABULOUS, AND THE TWIST ACTUALLY CAUGHT ME BY SURPRISE. THAT RARELY HAPPENS. I LOVE JAYMIE'S RESPECT FOR THE PAST, AS WELL AS HER SPUNK WITHOUT BRASHNESS. I AM NOT AT ALL SURE ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP CHOICE. JOEL IS A JERK. THE MILLIONAIRE A BIT TOO NICE. THE LAWMAN MAY BE JUST RIGHT. WE WILL SEE. OH, AND DON'T THINK THE RELATIONSHIPS DOMINATE THIS TALE. THEY ARE JUST FUN BACKGROUND MUSIC. READ AND ENJOY!