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Crime Brulee (Culinary Food Writer) (Paperback)

by Nancy Fairbanks (Author) "Any cook who aspires to duplicate Cajun or Creole cooking must be willing to master the art of making roux, that seemingly simple mixture of..." (more)
Key Phrases: voodoo museum, swamp tour, cabernet sauce, New Orleans, Lieutenant Boudreaux, Linus Torelli (more...)

2.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (29 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Forty-something food writer Carolyn Blue gets a taste of New Orleans cookery and crime. When her friend goes missing, Carolyn turns sleuth to search for answers-a trail that leads right into an alligator swamp.

Product Details

Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Berkley (April 10, 2001)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0425179184
ISBN-13: 978-0425179185
Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (29 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #514,583 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Front Cover | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
Any cook who aspires to duplicate Cajun or Creole cooking must be willing to master the art of making roux, that seemingly simple mixture of flour with oil, butter, or-horror of horrors!-lard. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
voodoo museum, swamp tour, cabernet sauce, king cake, plastic gun, chicory coffee

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New Orleans, Lieutenant Boudreaux, Linus Torelli, Miz Blue, Carolyn Blue, Father Claude, Big Easy, Officer O'Brien, French Quarter, Jackson Square, Hotel de la Poste, Vieux Carre, Mardi Gras, American Chemical Society, Praline Connection, Superior Inn, Detective Mannifill, Detective Boutaire, Miz Carolyn, Pat O'Brien, Philippe Delacroix, Alphonse Boudreaux, Fannie Delacroix, Grime Brilis, Julienne Magnussen

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Front Cover | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

Citations (learn more)

This book cites 5 books:

City State: A Contemporary History of the City and How Money Triumphed by Richard Roberts in Back Matter
Name Book: Surnames, Given Names and Nicknames (One Hour Wordpower) by Graham King in Back Matter
The Louisiana New Garde by Nancy Ross Ryan in Front Matter
Murder on High by Stefanie Matteson in Front Matter
Memory Can Be Murder by Elizabeth Daniels Squire in Front Matter

Books on Related Topics (learn more)

The Unofficial Guide to New Orleans by Eve Zibart

Discusses:

Insight Guide New Orleans by Martha Ellen Zenfell

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Frommer's Irreverent Guide to New Orleans by Malia Boyd

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Three-Course Murder by Nancy Fairbanks

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	77% buy the item featured on this page: Crime Brulee (Culinary Food Writer) 2.5 out of 5 stars (29) $6.99
	13% buy Death A L'Orange (Culinary Food Writer) 4.2 out of 5 stars (4) $6.99
	11% buy Truffled Feathers (Culinary Food Writer) 3.0 out of 5 stars (9) $6.99

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Customer Reviews

29 Reviews

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(9)

Average Customer Review

2.5 out of 5 stars (29 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a fun read, April 9, 2001

By	tregatt (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

"Crime Brulee" is more of a culinary travelogue with a search for a missing person attached to it than a 'straight' mystery novel. Nonetheless it is one of the most droll and attention -grabbing books that I've read in quite a while.

Now that her children have flown the coop and are attending college, Carolyn Blue has firmly put her days as family cook and housekeeper behind her, especially as she has been fortunate enough to land a contract to write a book of anecdotes about eating in interesting places. And since Carolyn will be be accompanying her her husband to an academic conference in New Orleans, Carolyn decides that her first assignment will be to write about the many culinary delights to be found in that city. Carolyn is also excited as this will be a chance for her to catch up with a few old college friends that she hasn't seen in a while, and with her best friend in particular, Julienne Magnussen. However the reunion does not live up to Carolyn's expectations. To begin with Julienne and her husband, Nils, are on the outs. He suspects her of having an affair, and Julienne is tired of having to justify herself and of his accusations. And at the very first reunion dinner, Julienne and Nils quarrel bitterly, and Julienne leaves the resturant in a huff before Carolyn can stop her. The next morning, Carolyn fully expects to meet up with Julienne but just cannot seem to find her. Nor has anyone else seen her since the night before. Afraid for Julienne's safety, Carolyn goes to the police. But they cannot do anything until Julienne has been missing for more than 48 hours. Frantic and scared, Carolyn tries to find Julienne by herself. Where can Julienne be? And why is no one else, Julienne's husband and her supposed lover for example, interested in finding her? Carlyn eats her way all over New Orleans, meeting all kinds of people, and has all kinds of adventures (falling into the swamp being one of them) in her quest to find her missing friend. But will she find her alive or dead?

"Crime Brulee" is a really fun read. Nancy Fairbanks's humour is droll, and Carolyn's asides and observations about the city and the people she met, made me chuckle. The last few mystery novels I read were a little sad and dour, so that "Crime Brulee was a welcome relief. This novel is a culinary homage to the city of New Orleans, and I enjoyed the bits of historical information that were peppered all over the novel. "Crime Brulee" is a great read, and I'm eagerly looking forward to reading the next Carolyn Blue culinary mystery.

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Awful, March 13, 2005

By	A Reader - See all my reviews

Normally I read a book of this type in a day or two. This one took over two weeks because I couldn't get past reading a chapter or two at a time before I had to put it down.

Carolyn Blue may be the most stupid, irritating character to hit the cozy scene in a long time. She's pushy, nosy, condescending and flat out stupid. The whole book consisted of her eating and running around talking to people. The plot and the story never moved forward -- she just happened to show up at the murderer's place one time when he decided to let her in and confess.

Cross this author off your list, and save your money.

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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Slow Starter, May 14, 2006

By	alpha_grrl (Olympia, WA) - See all my reviews

It took me a while to warm up to this one. The main character, Carolyn Blue, comes off as a snob (bordering on bigoted) and a bit unlikeable in the beginning. I know I've read another one of the series and it didn't strike me the same, so as this is the first in the series, I assume she's evolved. The book also reads as though it was written with thesaurus in hand with awkward big words used in context where more "normal" ones would be typically used. I didn't really detect much genuine passion for the food angle of the book either, it is more like the author is just jumping on the bandwagon of "mysteries with recipes". Oh well, I eventually got into it and the ending wasn't bad. I'd try another in the series.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Very disappointing
Confession: I am a mystery novel junkie, and have been one for years. I read everything from Christie and Sayers to Braun and Evanovich. Read more

Published 11 months ago by Elizabeth Spencer

3.0 out of 5 stars New Orleans Sort Order
"Crime Br�l�e" by Nancy Fairbanks, � 2001

I have read another story of this culinary crime genre, and, sad to say, the other one was better, both in crime and food... Read more

Published 15 months ago by David Brockert

2.0 out of 5 stars Good food, annoying main character
I really tried to like this series. Most of the recipes look great, I enjoy the bits of history.... but the author's main character (Carolyn Blue) is so annoying it is jarring to... Read more

Published 15 months ago by PenneyL

3.0 out of 5 stars Not too bad.
There was much to like about this book -- an interesting setting (who doesn't love N'Awlins?), a curious premise, and the added benefit of great recipes. Read more

Published 17 months ago by Lois Lain

4.0 out of 5 stars A concoction that is oft-times hard to swallow
Forty-something homemaker and budding food columnist, Carolyn Blue has always been satisfied with her life. Read more

Published on March 13, 2007 by Erika Sorocco

1.0 out of 5 stars I am glad I am not the only one who thought this was horrible.
Absolutely one of the worst books of all time. It took at minimum sixty pages to realize the heifer was missing and then it was downhill from there. Read more

Published on December 4, 2006 by Beaux Badger

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointment
This book has all the 'hooks' to make a good read, but it isn't. The repetitive self-questioning done by the main character, Carolyn Blue, seems unending. Read more

Published on July 9, 2006 by Barbara

3.0 out of 5 stars Mouth-watering
This book is strictly for fun, although it's bittersweet when you think about what is left of New Orleans since the hurricane. Read more

Published on February 18, 2006 by E. Stoller

3.0 out of 5 stars Meals while looking for a missing person
Carolyn Blue now has an empty nest. Her husband, a chemistry professor in El Paso, is going to a conference in New Orleans. Read more

Published on June 10, 2005 by Gayle Surrette

1.0 out of 5 stars Skip this one
I agree with the reviewer who said the first few pages indicated that this book was a chore rather than a pleasure. Read more

Published on June 2, 2003 by A. Triplett

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