Death by Food Truck: 4 Cozy Culinary Mysteries by Joi Copeland, Cynthia Hickey, Linda Baten Johnson, and Teresa Ives Lilly Review

 Happy Friday Friends :)

I pray today finds you all doing well, and I'm happy to welcome you or welcome you back to The Preppy Book Princess.

I'm Kirby, and I'm thankful you chose to stop by my little corner of the internet.

I love books from so many different genres, and cozy mysteries are definitely one of my favorites.

I prefer my cozies clean and cozy, and I'm so thankful that some Christian publishers are getting on board with publishing some of these titles.

I recently had the opportunity to read an upcoming cozy mystery novella collection from Barbour Fiction, and today I'm looking forward to sharing my full review with you all about it.

Keep reading down below for my full review.

Death by Food Truck: 4 Cozy Culinary Mysteries by Jodi Copeland, Cynthia Hickey, Linda Baten Johnson, and Teresa Ives Lilly:

Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Publisher: Barbour Fiction

Publication Date: July 1st, 2023

Genre: Christian Fiction/Cozy Mystery

Synopsis:

Food Trucks Can Be Murderously Good
 
Get a taste of murder and mayhem in four cozy mysteries.
 
Birch Tree, Maine, is experiencing a rash of deaths, all mysteriously linked to food trucks that frequent the Birch Point Lake Park. Angel’s new donut truck was doing great, until deathly rumors started. Shanice thought she had customer support when taking over her grandpa’s potato truck, until one started complaining. Marisol’s taco truck is a fixture in the park, until linked to a food judge’s death. Mey’s noodle truck was her ticket to a new life, until her ex-boyfriend threatens to take it away. Could competition between vendors have led to this murder and mayhem?

(synopsis from goodreads)

My Review:

Cozy mysteries and Christian fiction have long been two of my favorite genres, and I'm thrilled that publishers are finally starting to combine these two in more recent releases. I've now read a few of these novella collections from Barbour, and each one has been a wonderful collection of cozies. I wasn't expecting this one to be any different, and I ended up enjoying it just as much. 

In Death by Food Truck, the reader travels to a food truck court in Birch Tree, Maine where murder seems to keep being added to the menu. Each individual story focuses around one food truck and it's corresponding murder, and I thought the food truck setting added an air of originality to this genre, and it was unlike any cozy I'd ever truly read before.

The first story was Unlucky Noodles, and it ended up being one of my favorite of the four. The main character had a wonderful friendship with her co-worker and her husband, and I also loved how strong the faith element was. The murder mystery kept me guessing, and it also touches on some deeper themes like domestic abuse. Overall, 4/5.

Next was Dead as Donut, and this one ended up being my least favorite of the three. While there were certain elements I enjoyed, like Ida and her hilarious group of gardening club friends, overall I felt it wasn't quite as good as the others. The story seemed a tad more on the juvenile side, and the mystery wasn't as well put together as I was hoping for. Overall, 2.5/5

Next was Lethal Spuds, which ended up being my other favorite. The story was touching and tragic, and I loved the amazing relationship that the main character had with her grandfather. This one touches on after effects that soldiers experience after serving in the military, and the murder mystery was well put together, and continued to keep me guessing. Overall, 4/5.

Lastly was Taco Tragedy, and this one would have ended up being probably my favorite of the entire collection if the culprit hadn't been beyond belief obvious. I liked the characters, the setting, and the writing style, but I was disappointed in how easily solvable the mystery was. Overall, 3.5/5

I think this is another wonderful collection of cozies from Barbour, and it's one I would definitely recommend if you enjoy clean cozy mysteries and/or Christian fiction. 

My only real complaint was that I wish there had been a bit more continuity between the stories. It seemed kind of implausible that a small town food truck court would have a different murder connected to each food truck without the owners of the corresponding trucks ever talking about it with each other, and/or encouraging or providing support through the process. It wasn't enough to make me dislike the collection, but it did seem a tad strange that the authors chose to write it this way. It probably would have been a five star read for me if that hadn't been the case.

Final Rating: 4/5.

Thanks so much to Barbour Fiction for allowing me to advance read and review this one!

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher (Barbour) via NetGalley. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own, and this is my honest review. 

Thanks so much for reading guys! Have a wonderful weekend, and God Bless!