Business has been a little slow at the Moonlight Magnolia Detective Agency, but full-figured P.I. Savannah Reid doesn't have time to drown her sorrows in a box of double-chocolate truffles. She's too busy watching the Gourmet Network - and drooling over the sinfully scrumptious confections that Lady Eleanor ("The Queen of Chocolate") whips up on-air. But someone isn't sweet on the Queen's charming chatter - and wants her to hang up her oh-so-quaint apron - for good...When Savannah hears that Lady Eleanor's been getting death threats, she jumps at the chance to be her round the clock bodyguard. It's a great chance to meet her idol in person - and maybe pick up some free chocolates, tool But her sweet dreams melt away when the minute she meets Lady Eleanor. The woman is as rotten as last year's Valentine candy - and stingy with the chocolates to boot! But when the Queen of Chocolate bites into a chocolate and drops dead in the middle of her own live TV show, Savannah is horrified. After all, it was her job to protect Lady Eleanor - and now thousands of chocoholics know how horribly she failed. Talk about bad for business. Savannah has to figure out who's to blame for the Queen's untimely (and very ungraceful) demise...
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
The prolonged story of her heroine's dysfunctional family weighs down the pseudonymous McKevett's otherwise lively, sharply humorous mystery, the eighth (after 2002's Peaches and Screams) to feature zaftig PI Savannah Reid. Savannah, owner of the Moonlight Magnolia Detective Agency in San Carmelito, Calif., agrees to protect Eleanor Maxwell, aka the Gourmet Network's Lady Eleanor, after the self-titled "Queen of Chocolate" receives threatening letters. To Savannah's dismay, her client collapses after biting into a chocolate during a TV show taping and dies in her arms. Despite her seeming popularity, Lady Eleanor was notoriously bad-tempered-and worse, her recipes were a disaster. Aided and abetted by hungry, hardworking cop Dirk Coulter, Savannah encounters a number of coarse characters, notably the victim's vicious daughter and resentful ex-husband, in her search for the killer. Only one member of the Maxwell clan-Lady Eleanor's seven-year-old granddaughter, Gilly-elicits our sympathy. The unexpected arrival of Savannah's sister Cordele, who's determined to rehash the issues of their relationship and their harsh childhood, tests everyone's patience, including the reader's. Established fans may welcome the family analysis, but the uninitiated, especially those lured by the dark cat and chocolate goodies (brownies, fudge, cake, etc.) on the jacket, will find this caper a lot less cozy than meets the eye.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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More About the Author
Since publication of her first novel in 1986, Sonja Massie has authored over fifty published works, including the highly popular and critically acclaimed SAVANNAH REID MYSTERIES under the pseudonym G. A. McKevett.
Sonja's novels range from Irish historicals to contemporary thrillers. Her earthy humor and fast-paced plots delight her fans, while critics applaud her offbeat characterizations and incisive observations on human nature.
Irish by ancestry, Sonja has authored two non-fiction books on the history of Ireland: THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO IRISH HISTORY AND CULTURE and IRISH PRIDE: 101 REASONS TO BE PROUD YOU'RE IRISH. Both books impart detailed knowledge of the complex and controversial Irish story with a light hand and plenty of humor. Her Irish novels include: DREAM CARVER, CAROUSEL, DAUGHTER OF IRELAND and the bestselling FAR AND AWAY - the novelization of the Ron Howard movie starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman.
On nationwide tours, Sonja lectures to published and "pre-published" authors in her workshop, "The Novel Approach," a seminar which covers such topics as: story structure, characterization, plotting, pacing, and marketing manuscripts.
Sonja has taught numerous courses at university and adult continuing education facilities including: general fiction, historical research, and mystery writing. She was managing editor at "Single Living" magazine and has functioned as a manuscript doctor and storyline editor for major publishers. Earlier in her career, she was a prolific ghostwriter, authoring both fictional and non-fictional books for celebrities and professionals.
Having lived in Los Angeles, Toronto, and County Kerry, Ireland, she now resides in New York.
Sonja's novels range from Irish historicals to contemporary thrillers. Her earthy humor and fast-paced plots delight her fans, while critics applaud her offbeat characterizations and incisive observations on human nature.
Irish by ancestry, Sonja has authored two non-fiction books on the history of Ireland: THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO IRISH HISTORY AND CULTURE and IRISH PRIDE: 101 REASONS TO BE PROUD YOU'RE IRISH. Both books impart detailed knowledge of the complex and controversial Irish story with a light hand and plenty of humor. Her Irish novels include: DREAM CARVER, CAROUSEL, DAUGHTER OF IRELAND and the bestselling FAR AND AWAY - the novelization of the Ron Howard movie starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman.
On nationwide tours, Sonja lectures to published and "pre-published" authors in her workshop, "The Novel Approach," a seminar which covers such topics as: story structure, characterization, plotting, pacing, and marketing manuscripts.
Sonja has taught numerous courses at university and adult continuing education facilities including: general fiction, historical research, and mystery writing. She was managing editor at "Single Living" magazine and has functioned as a manuscript doctor and storyline editor for major publishers. Earlier in her career, she was a prolific ghostwriter, authoring both fictional and non-fictional books for celebrities and professionals.
Having lived in Los Angeles, Toronto, and County Kerry, Ireland, she now resides in New York.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
strong Savannah Reid,
This review is from: Death By Chocolate (Savannah Reid Mysteries) (Hardcover)
She comes from McGill, Georgia but Savannah Reid migrated to California to gain independence from her large and needy family. She is a full-figured woman who is conformable in her own skins. Her idol is Lady Eleanor, the queen of chocolates, who makes mouth watering desserts on her television show and sells her chocolates in her specialty shops. When Eleanor starts getting death threats, she hires Savannah as her bodyguard and to find who is sending the frightening letters.When Savannah finally gets to meet Eleanor, she is very disappointed because the woman is a mean-spirited, spiteful virago. Her husband left her for another woman, her twin sister doesn't visit her, and her own daughter refuses to venture near her. The only person who seems to love Eleanor is her six-year-old granddaughter. Yet when somebody murders her, Savannah feels obligated to find out who killed her because she died while her bodyguard was only yards away from her. Savannah Reid is a mixture of Southern California cool and Southern Georgia sentiment. A person has to admire this protagonist because even though she didn't like her client very much, she works extra hard to find out whom her killer was. There are so many legitimate suspects that the reader won't be able to deduce whom the culprit is until the shocking climax. DEATH BY CHOCOLATE is G.A. McKevett at her very best. Harriet Klausner
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Chocolate to Die For,
By
This review is from: Death By Chocolate (Savannah Reid Mysteries) (Hardcover)
Do not let the dysfunctional family bit scare you away from this wonderful Savannah Reid episode. As usual, McKevett links Savannah's family into the the storyline. The reader can either relate or empathize as the happenings reveal. I chuckled and winced while reading and enjoyed almost every twist and turn. This is a purely enjoyable weekend read.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Outdated chocolate,
By "tsm224" (Cleveland ohio) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Death By Chocolate (Savannah Reid Mysteries) (Hardcover)
Savannah is back home in California where she is in between jobs and low on funds. She takes on an assignment of being a bodyguard to the Chocolate Queen. On the first day she learns the Queen she may be but of nastiness not chocolate. This woman doesn't't want help and thinks everyone is trying to kill her. As things escalate Savannah learns this is a neurotic family about to implode upon herself. I didn't enjoy this novel as the mystery was poorly done and I didn't care who the killer was nor the motive for it. Bringing in another of her siblings for added drama was a bad idea. And the normal cast of supporting characters were lifeless in this novel and offered no support to the plot.
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