I picked up this copy as part of a king donation to the BookCrossing cause. This book comes from an elderly family in the town of Alexandria, Virginia who embrace the ideals of BookCrossing and love to see their books travelling the world.

Here is the book description from the publisher:

When the great chefs of New Orleans stage an elegant banquet, tempers burn hotter than cayenne pepper. Up-and-coming Cajun chef Joseph Fontenot is found with a slender French cooking knife through his heart, and all the evidence points to Dora Levoyer, sublime cook to Boston's wealthhy and eccentric Mary Spraggue Hillman.

A guest at the banquet, Mary summons her nephew Michael Spraggue, actor-cum-private detective, to the scene. And soon Spraggue is investigating a murder case that will leave his mouth burning and his mind spinning. One thing is certain: the solution to the murder will make for a spicy mystery indeed!

Here are my thoughts on the book:

This is the fourth of the Michael Sprague mysteries, and unlike the others which are set in Boston, this one takes place in New Orleans. The book suffers because of this since the author seems to be more familiar with Boston.The grave yards and skeletons give it a spooky but light quality. The fierce jealousies portrayed among New Orleans chefs add to the story.

I found it an enjoyable book although it is not the best of Linda Barnes' work.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

This book is part of a controlled release being held at the home of BookCrossing member authorauthor in the city of Alexandria, Virginia.

The BookCrossers of the Washington metropolitan area, "BCinDC" as we are also known, were having the annual BookCrossing Christmas Party, where the gifts (what else?) were registered books. The premise was simple: Find a book with a catchy first line, wrap it up with a nice bow, and write the first line on the outside. We read the first line, and people pick up the books they think they want to read! Great fun!
Read and enjoy!

Picked up at the BCinDC Holiday Party today.

Well, it does have a snazzy first line. :')

I'm not familiar with the Michael Spraggue series, but this one stands well enough on its own. A pretty good read, but I probably won't go out of my way to hunt down others in the series.

2011 BookCrossing Convention at the Sheraton Crystal City in Arlington, VA.

Picked this up at the BC convention. Chose the wrapped book, based on the first sentence, "Where can you hide a body in a graveyard?" :-) Looking forward to reading it.

Left in LFL along the main road.

Left in LFL along the main road.