Death at Breakfast

I love Agatha Christie but have never cared much for the modern Cozy Mystery. Dead at Breakfast sounds like it might be cozy--there are two older women investigating a case, it's set at an inn in Maine--but it's exactly the kind of thing Christie would write if she were around today. Tight plot, unusual clues, complex characters, intricate solution. This isn't melancholy, dark, serial killer stuff that's so popular in crime these days, nor does it go to the sweet end of the spectrum. This is sol [...]

I chose this book because Beth Gutcheon was the author and I read her novel 'More Than You Know' several years ago and enjoyed it. I was looking forward to her writing and was expecting to be charmed by her characters. I wish I had enjoyed this book as much as 'More Than You Know' but I have to be honest, I didn't. I admit the kernel of the mystery itself was interesting but I didn't find anything else in the story that was. Neither the setting (a very remote country inn, in Maine) the main prot [...]

Maggie Detweiler has finally retired and she and her friend Hope are planning to do some traveling to celebrate. Their first trip is to the famed Oquossoc Mountain Inn - a small resort inn located in the tiny village of Oquossoc, Maine. The trip is in part to see how well the two of them will do together but also o enjoy the new cooking class being offered by Oquossoc's much talked about new chef. But their little vacation turns into something of an adventure when the hotel catches fire and a fe [...]

Beth Gutcheon has written a smart and entertaining mystery. I liked the characters and I was pleased to see it looks like she might be starting a series around them.

Throughly enjoyed this murder mystery set at a failing inn on the coast of Maine. Former teacher and school head Maggie Detweiler and her instantly likable friend, Hope Babbin check into the Oquossoc Mountain Inn expecting rest, relaxation, and a few cooking classes taught by a professional chef. Their idyllic vacation is promptly cut short by the arrival of a trio of persnickety social elites (and their little dog, too!) Aroused from sleep by a suspicious fire the ladies join the rankers of the [...]

Interesting mystery which surprisingly reminded me of Agatha Christie. [Big fan here of A.C.] A five day cooking class at a Mountain Inn Resort in Maine, with the participants including a variety of personalities, starts the reader wondering who will be murdered. Or is it murder or is it an accident? Several subplots work their way into the story, keeping a deep-thinker guessing what one might have to do with the other! A fine, not totally unpredictable ending gives the book a satisfying feeling [...]

I enjoyed this mystery even as I found it a bit scattered. The amateur sleuths, Hope and Maggie, don't seem like they actually do much sleuthing, and the point of view hops all over the place, often stopping to give us the family histories of characters we've just met.Hope and Maggie are interesting characters, but I feel like we see far too little of them! Hope's son, Buster - the deputy sheriff who does a lot of the actual investigating in the case - looks on both of the women as unstoppable f [...]

An unusual duo call on their former friends and coworkers for help to solve a death at a New England inn. Entertaining characters, unusual plot.

When Maggie Detweiler and Hope Babbin arrive at the Oquossoc Mountain Inn set in Bergen, Maine, they are eager to begin the master cooking class offered.Maggie had recently retired from her position as the head of a private school, and Hope was financially secure. Almost immediately, we meet staff, guests, and assorted individuals that populate the town and work the inn, so it felt as though the reader has joined the melee surrounding a busy, yet charming retreat.When a wealthy and imposing man, [...]

I nearly always enjoy a cozy mystery series that features senior sleuths so Death at Breakfast had a head start with me from the beginning. I also enjoyed the setting in a bed and breakfast because such a location allows for a diverse cast of characters rather than the usual somebody-in-this-small-town-must-be-the-killer scenario and it accommodates a group of people who are mostly strangers to each other. Those points open up the solution to the crime to a wide range of possibilities.Another as [...]

A story set in the fall within a remote village in Maine, is balm to this New England girl's soul. The route from the airport to the inn was familiar and I was quickly transported back to scarlet maple tree-lined roads leading up to the mountain country. That is until the west coast personalities, one specifically with an ugly attitude, descended upon the front desk girl with high demands and no confirmed reservation. Such folk always ruin a good vacation. At this point the balance tips and you [...]

Pure pleasure read. Honesty disclosure - I got this book as an uncorrected proof back in April and it has been living in my night stand since then. I thought the cover looked spooky and so I had been moving it down in the pile - I WAS WRONG. I have never read this author before but now I will be looking for her other books. This was an entertaining mystery. Not in the cozy genre but leaning in that direction but with more substance in the plot and characters. Oh and a winner - two of the main ch [...]

I had high hopes for this one, but was a bit disappointed. Though I normally don't mind a bit of strong language in my books, there was a bit much in this one, particularly at the beginning. While some of the main characters were okay, I had difficulty keeping some of the secondary characters straight, and some were absolutely dreadful. I guessed whodunit as soon as it occurred, though the how and why were left to be explained. It also felt like a couple of threads pursued at the end were left d [...]

Gutcheon is an old fashioned story teller= and I was happy to receive this ARC from edelweiss to get a look at her new novel. She's done a boffo job with the characters and the story does not descend into the more traditional sweet cozy scenario, largely because the are so well written and mature. I really enjoyed this one. The Maine setting is nice (especially if you've vacationed there). Thumbs up!

A good start out of the gate for a promising new series. The two heroines and the large supporting cast were a very pleasant surprise in that they were fully developed 3-D people who could easily have been stock characters or stereotypes in the hands of a lazier or less skillful writer. I look forward to reading about Hope's and Maggie's next adventures.

Two friends attend a master cooking class in Maine where they become embroiled in a murder.Here is a link to my review:perfectretort/201

Nice mystery with a full cast of well drawn characters, good dialog, bits of humor, and a few surprises. Gutcheon is a fine writer and I look forward to more of this series.

Death at Breakfast is a light, whimsical mystery that finally comes together in the last two chapters.

Looking forward to the rest of the series!

Received through a Giveaway.Death at Breakfast is framed around the trip of two retirees to a resort in rural Maine. Early on it is referenced that this is the first trip the two ladies have taken together as a test to see if they will go on further adventures, setting up that this book is also a test to see if the characters will work for a longer series. Taken both as a stand alone work, and as the potential start of a new series, I found this book to be enjoyable but with a number of flaws.F [...]

Fine, but not outstanding. It's not exactly a waste of time, but if you have something you're dying to read, skip this and pick that one up instead. On the other hand, the choice of murder weapons is semi-unique.I guess my main problem with the book is that the character I found most interesting is the one who ends up dead. And he was interesting because of his thoughts, his way of seeing the world, things that we no longer see once he's dead.Maggie and Hope are nice and smart, but I didn't conn [...]

I feel like every review I've written in the last month has started with "So, this was an odd book". That applies to this book as well, but mainly because I made a mistake. I thought this book was the first in a cozy mystery series featuring two old lady friends as amateur detectives. It does feature two old lady friends who are kind of amateur detectives but I don't think is a cozy mystery or the first in a series, so my bad. The things that I thought were odd, like the fact that they didn't so [...]

I really liked the premise of how friends Maggie and Hope decide to go on a small trip to see if they would be compatible on longer journeys in their retirement. The Oquossoc Mountain Inn seems like a good place to start. The Inn, seemingly on the skids and losing money, is pretty full as the new Chef is offering cooking classes. Hope's son, Buster, is the deputy sheriff, another good reason for them to head to Maine. It took about 100 pages for me to really discern what I needed to know about t [...]

Maggie and Hope, two retired ladies, plan an idyllic vacation at a Maine hotel, partly because it's located in the same town as Hope's long-estranged son Buster (who was also a student of private-school teacher Maggie). The group at the hotel is harmonious enough, until a wealthy businessman, his unhappy wife (and the wife's annoying dog), and her B-movie star twin sister arrive, soon antagonizing most of the other guests and the staff. When he dies suddenly, the police (a group that includes de [...]

This author, the characters in this book, and the book itself all HATE fat people. This book is fat-phobic early on and only gets worse toward the end.The mystery is weak. I read a lot of mysteries because I'm someone who never guesses the answers. They always keep me guessing. However, I had this book, its mystery, and even its diversion, figured out before the halfway point. That's saying something.The two main characters are not developed enough to stand out from each other. The only truly in [...]

I have read 4 other books by Beth Gutcheon. One was a ghost story which was chilling and very well done. Her novel Leeward Cottage was full of characters I understood and liked. She is a skilled writer and an excellent researcher, introducing including interesting details and descriptions in her plots. I always learn something new when I read one of her books. Characterization is her strong suit. This book seems to be the beginning of a mystery series and has some good amateur detecting. I will [...]

DNF. Despite liking Maggie and Hope, I couldn't get past about 40 pages due to the writing. The author attempts to hit on some humor by shifting the POV into an omniscient narrator- which was distracting in itself- and insulting one thing or another. After taking a stab at vegetarians, poor old bloodhounds, and even one of her own characters, the author officially turned me off. Also, do we need to talk about people killing dogs? It added NOTHING to the narrative. It's just not worth continuing [...]

This is the first I've read Beth Gutcheon and I have a new author. Enjoyed the book very much. The characters are likeable and have depth. I especially enjoy that more will come out about these characters as the series continues. The plotting and story development were strong and kept me very interested. The writing is good. I got a bit confused on some of the characters and who could possibly be suspects. That may be due to my listening on audio and my drive being short. So the story was a bit [...]

Two and a half stars for this start of a new mystery serieso many characters accompanied by too much background info for each one; not completely clear until the very end who the recurring sleuths might be; finally, I am left wondering if I really needed to know all the backstories for the numerous characters introduced and if any of them will be recurring in future books planned for the series.

This was a new author for me and the story reminded me a little of an Agatha Christie mystery. I had a little trouble keeping all the characters straight for about half of the book. I did like the two main characters that were playing detective without being too obnoxious. I thought it had a nice surprising ending!