Chocolate Quake (Culinary Food Writer) [Paperback]

Nancy Fairbanks (Author)

Book Description

Series: Culinary Food Writer | Publication Date: April 1, 2003

Carolyn Blue's trip to San Francisco includes a visit to her mother-in-law, a few earthquake tremors-and a stint in prison as a murder suspect. A column on prison food might make for an interesting change of pace...

Editorial Reviews

Review

The perfect blend of mystery and mouthwatering foods. (Mystery Reader)

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Berkley (April 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425189465
• ISBN-13: 978-0425189467
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 4.5 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,034,324 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Food Columnist Mystery Books Result in Bland Fare, August 31, 2003

By 

penguinmama (St. Charles, MO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chocolate Quake (Culinary Food Writer) (Paperback)

I checked this book and "Truffled Feather" out from our library at the same time. While I thought the food writer + mystery would be a great premise, I was sadly disappointed with these two books. The plots are okay but I was distracted with the author's characterization of Carolyn Blue--a "Forty-Something" writer. I have no idea how old the author is, but she writes from the point of view of someone who has no idea what it is to be in your 40s in 2003 (when this book was published, and presumably, the time frame in which it was set.)I am 43, and Carolyn Blue comes across as more of my mother's age (69). In this book, Carolyn marvels at her ability to use the internet (hello? she has 2 kids in college!),and describes her first motorcycle ride from the perspective of well, my mother! The author's descriptions of Carolyn's wardrobe and hairstyle bring to mind 1970-s style polyester. Carolyn Blue has no sense of humor, and she is just not a very likable heroine. Even the food columns interspersed through the book sound stilted and prissy. In both books, Carolyn comes across as self-centered and self-righteous. The potential for an amusing, fun mystery is there, but the results are rather annoying. This problem with the character ruins the premise of these books for me...I won't be reading any more!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting, December 11, 2003

By 

Louis M. Perdue (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Chocolate Quake (Culinary Food Writer) (Paperback)

I never know how well I am going to like each entry in this series. They are rather inconsistent and this one falls somewhere in the middle of the rest. In this episode, Carolyn Blue and her husband are in San Francisco. Upon arriving, Carolyn dutifully calls her mother-in-law, who lives there, only to discover that she has been jailed on a murder charge.

As with her other books, Ms. Fairbanks, has written each chapter from the perspective of either Carolyn, her husband, or, in this case, the private detective hired to help find the real murderer. The chapter is then written in first person from that character's viewpoint.

There were several errors in this book. Twice was Carolyn to be written in the first person, but she was referred to in the third. Another error - the male private detective tells Carolyn that he has a relationship with a man, she comments on it, and then about 10 pages later, he tells her again and she is shocked. And, Carolyn and the detective go to a bar and order a Corona beer which is served to them on tap. Unless something has changed in the last year or so, Corona is only served in bottles.

And while this is not an error, I found it incredibly strange that Jason Blue, son of the accused murdered does absolutely nothing other than have his father hire the detective, to free his mother. If my mother were in jail, I would be doing whatever it took to get her out.

Not for sure if I will be buying the next in this series or not.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a good 'light' mystery, April 14, 2003

By 

tregatt (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chocolate Quake (Culinary Food Writer) (Paperback)

The Carolyn Blue culinary-travelogue mysteries are, I'll admit, one of my favourites. And while the multiple point-of view narratives were unnecessary, in my opinion, and a bit distracting, (in "Chocolate Quake" we're not only privy to Carolyn's and her husband, Jason's, thoughts but also those of San Francisco private detective, Sam Flamboise's thoughts as well), the mystery was so interesting and intriguing that it captured my attention completely.

Carolyn and Jason are in San Francisco -- he to attend a conference, while Carolyn has tagged along so that she can sample (and write about) the sights and foods of that unique city. But first business before pleasure: San Francisco is also the current home of Carolyn's critical feminist mother-in-law, Vera. But when Carolyn makes the curtesy call to Vera to inform her of their arrival, the last thing she expects is to be greeted with the news that Vera has been arrested for murder. Vera, who has been working at the Union Street Women's Center, has been accused of stabbing to death Denise Faulks, the center's accountant. The evidence against Vera is circumstantial at best, unfortunately the police believing that they have their murderer have stopped investigating the crime completely; while neither Vera, nor Jason for that matter, seem to be taking this crisis seriously. And it's beginning to dawn upon Carolyn that she will have to discover who the real murderer is and solve this crime herself! Now, if she can also figure out how to cope with all the tremors as well as fit in a couple of restaurant stopovers and some sight-seeing as well...

What made this book a fun read was Nancy Fairbanks's descriptions and sights and foods of San Francisco. Her character portrayals were very well done as well. And while I didn't really think all those multiple narratives were all that essential, they didn't in any way interfere with the smooth unfolding of the plot. Mystery-wise, however, I'll have to admit it was fairly easy to figure out who the culprit(s) actually was/were. Still, "Chocolate Quake" was a rather fun read and one that was well worth the money spent.