Review and Giveaway: The Diva Frosts a Cupcake

The Diva Frosts a Cupcake (Domestic Diva Mystery - Book 7) by Krista Davis

Publication Date: June 4, 2013
Publisher: Penguin Group
Imprint: Berkley Prime Crime
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Pages: 304
ISBN-10: 0425258130
ISBN-13: 978-0425258132

(Received for an honest review from Berkley Prime Crime)

Purchase: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, IndieBound

Krista Davis on the WEB: Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads

Books in the Series:

The Diva Runs Out of Thyme (2008), The Diva Takes the Cake (2009), The Diva Paints the Town (2009), The Diva Cooks a Goose (2010), The Diva Haunts the House (2011), The Diva Digs Up the Dirt (2012), The Diva Frosts a Cupcake (2013)

Coverart: Click on the image for a larger, clearer view of the covers in this series.

Excerpt from The Diva Frosts a Cupcake, courtesy of Amazon Look Inside

Synopsis:

Revenge is sweet...
Sophie Winston and her BFF, Nina Reid Norwood, share a sweet spot for animals. So Sophie is delighted to help when Nina cooks up Cupcakes and Pupcakes - a fundraising event for animal shelters.  All the local bakeries will be selling treats, with the profits going to pups and kitties in need. But Old Town is in for a whole batch of trouble when a cupcake war erupts between two bakeries...
 
Tongues wag and tempers rise when a partner leaves Sugar Baby Bakery and unveils her competing cupcakery, Sugar Mama, precisely as the fundraiser gets under way. Just as it seems nothing else can go wrong, Sugar Baby's sole remaining employee is found dead. Suspicion falls on the feuding owners, but the scrumptious new guy in town is also raising some eyebrows. Now Sophie and Nina have to sift through the clues and discover who isn't as sweet as they seem...

Delicious recipes and entertaining tips included!

Thoughts:

Krista Davis may not necessarily be a domestic diva but her seventh book in the Domestic Diva mystery series, The Diva Frosts a Cupcake is sure to delight cozy mystery lovers and cat and dog enthusiasts alike. Sophie Winston is back to her old tricks and this time she's raising money for the animal shelters in Old Town. Readers who are fans of the series know that Davis has a soft spot for animals and this is a great way to share awareness as well as entertain. 

Davis is very adept at contriving the motives for her suspects and at planting just the right amount of clues. With a few red herrings thrown in for good measure, she creates suspense and drives the plot home with well written dialogue and the perfect characters. Everything worked together to make The Diva Frosts a Cupcake a wonderful addition to an already fantastic series. 

I love Sophie, she is such a great character. She's the kind of gal I wish I could be. The one who always throws the best dinner parties and knows just the right way to decorate to bring out the perfect atmosphere. She reminds me of a young Martha Stewart. And she has enough curiosity to make a cat take notice. She is so observant and has a way of thinking outside the box that makes the mystery aspect of the story come alive. Davis does such a wonderful job writing her. She is very realistic and easy to identify with.

I also really liked the combination of mystery and animal awareness. I enjoy cozies that have cat and dog characters, but Davis chose a different approach which was much more realistic. She allowed the characters in her book to use a fund raiser for the animal shelter to bring awareness to their fictional community while also inspiring readers in real life to be aware of needs of their own local animal shelters. I am a big advocate for animal rights and I thought Davis did a masterful job of incorporating awareness into a great mystery. 

The Diva Frosts a Cupcake is available NOW from your favorite bookseller.

I'm giving this one 5 out of 5 apples from my book bag!

About the Author:

Krista Davis is the national bestselling author of the Domestic Diva Mysteries. Her first book, The Diva Runs Out of Thyme, was nominated for an Agatha Award. Krista lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia with an Ocicat named Mochie and a brood of dogs. Her friends and family complain about being guinea pigs for her recipes, but she notices that they keep coming back for more.  

Giveaway Details:

The publisher is sponsoring a giveaway for one copy of The Diva Frosts a Cupcake by Krista Davis.

~You must be a GFC follower or Email Subscriber to participate.
~US addresses only (publisher request)
~The deadline to enter this giveaway is Midnight EST, June 25th.

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