Love these!

This was a terrific installment of the Cupcake Bakery series! Unlike Mel, I enjoy my class reunions and activities. Thankfully, none of mine have come with a murder!!

This series has great characters that are well-rounded and while some have their own quirks, everyone's mostly likeable. This particular book introduced us to some of the people in Mel's past and was well-done. Even the new characters had plausible back stories on how they fit into Mel's life in high school.

I did figure out who the villain was before the end, but not much before the end. And I like how some of the new characters ended up being great people and some relationships changed for the better.

I wish McKinlay would put a little more effort into her writing, especially the endings. As usual, I guessed the murderer as soon as they were introduced in the story. And does her heroine always have to follow the now archaic route of letting herself be alone with the killer? The characters are entertaining, but the plotting needs a lot of work.

Lots of sizism in this one.

DYING FOR DEVIL’S FOOD, the eleventh book in the Cupcake Bakery Mystery series, by Jenn McKinlay, is another fun addition to an entertaining series! The three long-term friends, who banded together during the tumultuous years during high school, have created a successful chain of cupcake bakeries called Fairy Tale Cupcakes. I greatly admire the strong bond between Mel (Melanie), Angie, and Tate and how they have strengthened their friendship throughout the years. It’s been fun watching them evolve throughout the series while the author inserts lots of laugh out loud humorous moments. In DYING FOR DEVIL’S FOOD, Ms. McKinlay recreates the angst of bullying in high school when the committee planning their fifteen class reunion asks Mel and Angie to design and provide a huge order of cupcakes for the party. Mel, a victim of bullying, is adamant that they aren’t going to do it and she will not attend their reunion. Angie, on the other hand, has her own plans and she creatively changes Mel’s mind through joining forces with their bakery’s nemesis.

While murder is never good, it’s a little more palatable when a truly awful person is the victim. Such was the case in this newest release. A bully that tormented Mel all through high school and hasn’t grown out of that bullying, is found murdered in the ladies’ room. Unfortunately it’s Mel that finds the victim. Ms. McKinley weaves clues into a tightly plotted tale of angst, ambition, and acceptance. There are many suspects (because there’s almost no one who didn’t hate the victim) but still the author manages to bring some twists and turns to surprise the reader. With a heartwarming ending, this reader is looking forward to the next book in this series.

Fairy Tale Cupcakes serves an amazing assortment of delectable cupcakes! Ms. McKinlay offers several delicious recipes at the back of the book and they all sound mouthwatering.