Hayley’s friend Bessie has a dream of making it big in the chocolate world, but her reputation for cat fur in her kitchen makes Hayley nervous to ever try the candy. When Bessie dies of a heart attack, Hayley just knows in her gut that it wasn’t the chocolate or the cat fur that killed Bessie. Now Hayley has to investigate everyone in Bessie’s life to see if her gut is right. Was Bessie’s death a homicide?
Hayley Powell is a good friend who doesn’t know how to say no. She gets talked into taste testing Bessie’s homemade chocolates only to find cat fur in one of them! Furry chocolates is no excuse for murder, so Hayley is determined to find the real reason for Bessie’s death. Included in this novel is a fast and fabulous recipe for Mole sauce. I love to use it with chicken tacos.
Death of a Chocoholic by Lee Hollis
Cozy Mystery Novel with Recipes by Lee Hollis
Book Review
Murder Mystery Books🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪
Book Review Outline and Tone:
This is A Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mystery Book 4. The cozy mystery is set in Bar Harbor, Maine. In Hayley’s world it is February which means there are no tourists in town, just the locals. Her coworker, Bruce the crime column writer, thinks this is the perfect time for a vacation. Hayley convinces her stern boss to let her cover Bruce’s column. There is not much crime in Bar Harbor at this time. But then, Hayley’s friend Bessie dies. Bessie is a classic cat lady who has dreams of grandeur for her chocolate business. Unfortunately for Bessie, her reputation for a messy kitchen and cat hairs in her chocolate candies have kept her dreams at bay.
Hayley is convinced that Bessie’s death is a homicide and not a natural heart attack. The problem is, she is the only one who is convinced. This leaves Hayley to investigate without the support of Sergio, her brother-in-law, town sheriff. And even her frenemy Sabrina, the local medical examiner has declared Bessie’s death as natural causes.
We know as readers of this cozy mystery that Hayley must be right. Bessi had to have been murdered. However, there are so many potential suspects that Hayley follows dead end after dead end adding to the suspense of how Hayley will get it figured out.
As with all of Hayley Powell books, the novel is interwoven with her food and cocktails columns. These columns provide what I consider comic relief. They are mini stories about life as a single mom with teenage kids and friends who have a knack for finding troublesome adventures. The food and cocktail recipes in this novel feature chocolate in honor of both Valentine’s Day and Bessie.
The author: Lee Hollis
This book was written by Lee Hollis. Well sort of… Lee Hollis is the pseudonym for the real authors, a brother and sister team, Rick Copp and Holly Simason. There is more information on Goodreads. Like their protagonist Hayley Powell, Copp and Simason are from Maine. Copp moved to Hollywood and wrote for The Golden Girls, Wings, Teen Titans and a long list of impressive television and movies. Simason is a columnist in Maine and writes a cooking column. Fortunately for us readers, they decided to combine their talents and write the Lee Hollis series, currently being published by Kensington House Publishing Corporation. The Hayley Powell series has a Facebook page. The authors are active on both Twitter and Instagram.
What is not to like?:
I love chocolate. I even loved the Mole, which to me seems like an odd dish (I mean chocolate in a sauce for meat? I was skeptical at first).
Here is what I don’t care for, nuts in baked goods. Whenever there are nuts in a chocolate dessert, it’s the nuts that stick in your teeth and therefore it is the nuts that are the lasting taste and not the chocolate. This is not for me. I want ooey-gooey rich chocolate flavor without nuts interfering. So many of the recipes in this novel have nuts in them, so what is not to like? For me there are too many nuts.
The verdict:
Hayley Powell cozy mystery books are always a great read. The way the authors intersperse Hayley’s food column with the mystery makes the book a fast paced read.
Books to Read 📕📗📘📙📕 I love this series!
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Mole Sauce from Death of a Chocoholic
A Cozy Mystery by Lee Hollis
Assemble the Ingredients
Easy dessert to make: 4/5 on the Easy as Pie scale 🥧🥧🥧🥧
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, oregano, cumin, and cinnamon.
When baking or cooking, I love
OXO’s measuring cups are labeled in a way that makes them easy to read.
Sizes are easy to read on the measuring cups.
Cover and cook until onion is almost tender, stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes. You may be tempted to reduce the amount of garlic, but don’t. The garlic adds and wonderful layer to the flavor.
Mix in the chili powder and flour, stirring for 3 minutes.
Gradually whisk in the chicken broth. Increase your heat to medium high. Boil until reduced, about 35 minutes, stirring occasionally. The sauce will thicken over this time.
Remove from heat and whisk in the chocolate; season with salt and pepper, if desired.
The chocolate makes the sauce darker and richer in flavor.
Serve in corn tortillas for a street taco. Put the spicy mole sauce on top of grilled chicken, sliced radish, cilantro, guacamole, a squeeze of lime, and pickled red onions. I am obsessed with pickled red onions with Latin dishes. I created a Baking Bonus post to show you how easy they are to make.
Delicious Food 😋😋😋😋😋
Fast Spicy Mole Sauce for Chicken or Beef from: Death of a Chocoholic Cozy Mystery
Ingredients
- 4½ cups chicken broth
- 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup onion, finely chopped
- 3 Tbsp fresh garlic, chopped
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 2½ Tbsp chili powder
- 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 oz your favorite dark chocolate, chopped
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
- Add the onion, garlic, oregano, cumin, and cinnamon.
- Cover and cook until onion is almost tender, stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes.
- Mix in the chili powder and flour, stirring for 3 minutes.
- Gradually whisk in the chicken broth.
- Increase your heat to medium high.
- Boil until reduced, about 35 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat and whisk in the chocolate.
- Season with salt and pepper, if desired.
What would I do differently next time?
This spicy mole is such a wonderful flavor, I can’t think of anything I would do differently next time. It even held up well for leftovers the next day.
Will I make it again?: Yes! 😋😋😋😋The mole and the pickled onions are versatile.
Here are more delicious recipes from Lee Hollis books.
Dreamy Orange Dreamsicle Cake from Death of a Cupcake Queen, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies from Death of a Pumpkin Carver, Southern Mac and Cheese from Death of a Country Fried Redneck, and Lemon Tart from Death of a Cupcake Queen.
