| Title | : | Irish Stewed (Ethnic Eats Mystery #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0425274888 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780425274880 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Mass Market Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 304 |
| Publication | : | First published May 3, 2016 |
After flopping as a personal chef to a Hollywood movie star, jobless Laurel Inwood finds herself humbled in Hubbard, Ohio, helping her aunt Sophie run her restaurant. Much to Laurel’s dismay, Sophie’s Terminal at the Tracks is not the cozy bistro her aunt would have had her believe—it’s a run-down greasy spoon in an old railroad station. To save the dingy diner, Laurel cooks up a plan to feature alternating ethnic cuisine as specials.
But first there’s the problem of the body in the booth. Slumped over a table with a receipt spike in his back is Jack Lancer—“the Lance of Justice”—an investigative reporter for local TV news. Assisted by the drop-dead gorgeous owner of the neighboring Irish store—who may or may not be a suspect—Laurel sets out to track down a killer who had no reservations about impaling a newshound. But as she turns up the heat, will she end up in the soup herself?
INCLUDES RECIPES
Irish Stewed (Ethnic Eats Mystery #1) Reviews
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Dollycas’s Thoughts
Laurel Inwood arrives in Hubbard, Ohio to find two surprises.
Her aunt Sophie’s restaurant is in nowhere close to what she expected – more greasy spoon – less cozy bistro cafe.
There is a dead body in a booth with a receipt spike stuck in his back.
What can Laurel do? her “aunt” is having surgery tomorrow and needs Laurel to run the restaurant. Maybe she can make a few “minor” changes. . . but how will business really be after someone was murdered there? She has a prime suspect in mind but can that handsome man really be a murderer. He also wants to help her track down the killer. She doesn’t trust him but he knows the residents of Hubbard better than she does. She may need the Luck of the Irish to get her out of this mess. Save the restaurant and find the killer . . . maybe Hollywood wasn’t that bad.
Reading this book was a delightful way to spend my Saturday. It brought back memories of my mother’s restaurant and the one she worked at while I was growing up. The later was called “the greasy spoon” by everyone. It is always hard to keep businesses like this thriving especially today with so many options. I loved Laurel’s idea and loved that she started her ethic eats concept with Irish comfort foods.
Laurel is smart and can cook virtually anything. She is given a recipe for Irish Stew and she takes it and runs with it. Her upbringing as a foster child gives her an interesting way to look at life and the relationships she makes. Laurel holds nothing back when she confronts her aunt about her deception about Sophie’s Terminal at the Tracks and that she may not be sticking around. She is a tough cookie on the outside and in this first story in this series, just a little bit of the softer inside begins to show. There is a potential for a lot of character growth and I want to get to know her better and Sophia too.
Laurel’s relationship with Declan, the hunky manager of The Irish Shop, is pretty complex. There is romantic tension, but she doesn’t trust him, and their arguments were very couple-ish. He also has a wonderful family that accepted Laurel immediately.
The man who was murdered Jack Lancer—“the Lance of Justice” was a local reporter that appeared to be loved by everyone, until Laural started really digging into his life and the stories he featured. I really enjoyed this way this progressed throughout the book. There were so many surprises in addition to a few twists that kept my eyes riveted to the page.
This series is off to a terrific start. Well-written, nicely plotted and characters I want to know better. I am looking forward to reading French Fried soon. -
A great start to another fantastic series by author Kylie Logan!
If you’re looking for a great cozy mystery, it’s always a safe bet to pick up a book by Kylie Logan. Her writing is so very enjoyable. It has the feel of having flowed effortlessly onto the pages.
IRISH STEWED, the first in Ms. Logan’s new Ethnic Eats Mystery series, was impossible for me to put down. Hooked from page one, I carried this book around with me just waiting for a chance to get back to Hubbard, Ohio, and Sophie’s Terminal at the Tracks, the restaurant owned by the aunt of the series lead. Laurel Inwood may not have been thrilled with it on first seeing it, but this diner housed in an old railroad terminal, stole my heart the first time I “walked” through the doors.
I was simply captivated by IRISH STEWED. Extremely well written with an outstanding plot, the story moved at a brisk pace, leaving me just about breathless by the time I reached the exciting conclusion.
If you’re looking to start a new series, look no further than the Ethnics Eats Mystery series.
The back of the book has a recipe, and a sneak peek of FRENCH FRIED, book two in the Ethnic Eats Mysteries by Kylie Logan! -
Former personal chef Laurel Inwood agrees to help her foster aunt Sophie run her restaurant while Sophie recovers from surgery. However, Laurel gets a shock when she discovers the upscale restaurant she’s expecting is actually a greasy spoon. She’s even more shocked when she finds a dead man in the supposedly closed kitchen. He’s an investigative reporter for the local TV station. But what is he doing there? What story got him killed?
This book starts off strongly and keeps us turning pages as we go from suspect to suspect. The climax is a tad rushed, but all the answers we need are there to tie things up. Laurel’s past as a foster child makes for an interesting main character. Occasionally, I was frustrated with her, but most of the time I liked her, and I see great potential for character growth over the course of the series. I’m already hungry for seconds.
NOTE: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Read my full review at
Carstairs Considers. -
DNF. I got to the part when she was outraged that everyone wanted their usual burgers and fries rather than the quinoa and lentil salad and by that point I realized this book was entirely irredeemable. 0 stars
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It's not the same old culinary cozy mystery this one has a twist, a ethnic twist with a different kind of amateur sleuth, Laurel. Laurel has come back home to Hubbard, Ohio after being fired from her personal chef job for a Hollywood superstar, Laurel's foster aunt Sophie Charnowski is going to be laid up in the hospital and Sophie asks Laurel to take care of her diner Sophie's at the Terminal at the Tracks at a train station that has been a gathering place for over forty years.
What Laurel finds at the diner is not her idea of a ideal working environment with kitchy Victorian dusty knick knacks and teddy bears considering when her aunt visited her and her deceased foster mother Sophie showed her pictures of an entirely different restaurant but after much debate Laurel decides to stay. Could it possibly have to do with the owner of the Irish Store and lawyer, sexy, hunky, Delcan?
When Sophie and Laurel meet at the Diner, Laurel finds investigate reporter,of Channel WKFJ Jack Lancer aka “The Lance of Justice.” a publicity hound, a fearless cavalier, at times charitable but loved to shame people on TV and a scumbag womanizer slumped over the table dead stabbed to death with a receipt spike that Sophie's grandfather brought over from Poland in 1913.
Suspects start to emerge and Laurel being new to town and to Sophie's want to find a killer, even when a media frenzy with pushy,noisy reporter, Kim Kline at the helm and a change of menu brings a hectic but good change to the diner after there's little to no customers. Laurel wonders if someone has a grudge over one of the “Lance of Justice's” news stories but looking a little closer to home is what Laurel may have to do.
This is one of the best first in a series cozy mysteries I have read in a long time. What a intriguing cast of characters with a unique premise for a foodie cozy mystery that made it exciting and a captivating read. The Lance of Justice is not the only one who needs justice when someone else is murdered but getting justice for two may not be as easy as Delcan's mom recipe for Irish stew. I can't wait to read French Fried, the second book in the series.
FTC Disclosure Thank you to the publisher and/or author or Net Galley for providing us with a copy of this book for review.This did not influence our thoughts in any way. All the opinions of the book are honest and our own. -
I've never read anything by Kylie Logan before and being Irish this one sounded especially interesting. Sadly... I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped I would. Laurel, the main character, has recently moved from LA to help out her aunt with a restaurant. From the first page, Laurel rubbed me the wrong way. She was snooty and privileged and judged everyone and everything. I kept thinking things would get better, but alas... I didn't feel any closer to her like I have with other characters. The books pace was good and the author kept me guessing with the murderer until the end. The title was somewhat confusing because the "ethnic eats" didn't really come into play until the middle of the book. I can see where the series is going and I think it will be charming, but not one I will most likely read.
*Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.* -
Mi sento di abbondare. La parte suspence è presente da subito, dalla fine del primo capitolo, e mi ha lasciato nel dubbio fino in fondo. Insomma, per una volta non avevo la più pallida idea di chi fosse il colpevole!
Bella protagonista e buoni coprotagonisti, soprattutto il bel Irlandese vicino di ... bottega.
La serie ha come tema il cibo etnico, ma nella sua versione comford food, quindi niente di elaborato. Per chi volesse, alla fine del libro c'è la ricetta dello stufato irlandese del titolo. -
I loved the title, and was thrilled to have picked up this book! I hated putting it down. Kylie Logan has written a very good first in series with Irish Stewed!
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Laurel has recently been fired as the personal chef to a megastar. With nowhere else to go, she heads to a small town in Ohio to help Sophie, her aunt, run her cozy bistro while she has knee surgery. When Laurel arrives in Hubbard, she discovers that Sophie's cozy bistro is actually a run-down diner. She's determined to leave the next day (she has no idea where she's going). But then Laurel and Sophie find Jack Lancer, a local investigative reporter, murdered at one of the tables in the diner late that night. Laurel decides to stay just until Sophie is out of rehab.
While she's managing the restaurant, Laurel decides to make some changes to attract business. Some are not popular, while others are, like the Irish menu specials. She meets Declan, the manager of the Irish store down the street. He lets here know he is attracted to her and though she is attracted to him, she doesn't want to pursue it since she is only staying there temporarily.
This the second book I read by this author and I thought it was okay. It is written in first person perspective in Laurel's voice. It's a "cozy mystery" so there is no swearing, violence or adult activity. It is the first in the Ethnic Eats series and I liked it enough to read the others.
Blog review post:
http://www.teenaintoronto.com/2020/06... -
Another good book by Ms. Logan. Most people, no doubt, can relate to the strip where the restaurant is located (and the greasy spoon itself). And who doesn't want to talk about a juicy murder? Over food and coffee? And Laurel, being new in town, everyone tells her all the gossip. Sometimes, it is good to be the outsider. I really liked it and will be reading book #2 in the series.
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Thoroughly enjoyed it!
I really liked this and just wanted to keep reading. I liked the characters and the concept and am interested to see how things evolve in book 2. #readforkimberly has pointed me towards some real winning books and I count this one among them. -
Irish Stewed, the first book in Kylie Logan's Ethnic Eats Mystery series, is a really fun cozy mystery featuring a reluctant amateur sleuth in former personal chef Laurel Inwood, an intriguing murder victim in local investigative reporter the "Lance of Justice" - Jack Lancer, and a large cast of suspects with a variety of motives.
Comfort food for your brain . . . with recipes included! -
I already love Kylie Logan. She had me at Pepper Martin mysteries that she writes under Casey Daniels. When I found out she was writing other series under Kylie Logan, I knew I had to try those too. I've read and enjoyed books in the Button Box mysteries, Chili Cook Off mysteries, and, especially, the League of Literary Ladies mysteries. Now I am adding the Ethnic Eats mysteries to the list.
One of the reasons I love cozies are the occupations or hobbies that are the center of each mystery. The main character quilts or cooks or does needlework or works with books..any number of seemingly innocuous livelihoods and/or diversions. Then the mystery comes along and we watch the main character leap into action. Sometimes if feels forced, but most of the time it is a seamless and genuine transition. The need to save themselves or someone they care about from being railroaded into being the suspect.
Backstories are key to my enjoyment too. This one is a doozy. Laurel Inwood was a personal chef to a famous movie celebrity until circumstances caused her to move back to Ohio. She reluctantly takes over the care of the rather shabby diner for her aunt who is recovering from surgery.
Enter handsome shop neighbor and the murder. I don't mind cozies having romantic possibilities, so long as the spark is there. Sparks aplenty here. And an excellent mystery to solve.
I really will have a hard time of it waiting for the next in the series to come out. Thankfully, Kylie has those other series....
Definite recommend. -
Irish Stewed is the first book in the An Ethnic Eats Mystery series.
For me, this was an enjoyable new series.
Laurel Inwood has moved to Hubbard, Ohio to help her aunt at her, as Aunt Sophie described it, quaint little restaurant. What Laurel finds is diner housed in the former train station and in need of a makeover.
The evening she arrives and as her aunt is giving the grand tour, they find the dead body of Jack Lancer, an investigative reporter for a local TV station. He had been stabbed in the neck with the diners receipt spindle. It is thought that Lancer might have been working on another investigative story, but no one is sure if he was or what it might have been about.
This is a fun new series set in a small town where just about everyone knows everybody else business. Laurel tries some new items on menu to renew interest in the restaurant, but health type foods are not a big hit. Declan, who has The Irish Store across the way from The Terminal at the Tracks and who just might be a romantic interest of Laurel invites her to his parents for Irish Stew. When Laurel adds he stew to the menu, it is a big hit and begins to feel much better about helping out.
The recipe for Irish Stew is included with the book, along with a teaser for the next book, French Fried.
Anxiously awaiting the next book to see what additional changes will be made at The Terminal and to visit with the interesting folks of Hubbard, Ohio. -
Well this was one that kept me guessing till the very end and it was a total surprise. Laurel has come to Hubbard, OH to help run her foster aunt's restaurant while she is having knee surgery. Laurel isn't happy about being there because she is used to being a personal chef for a Hollywood star. So when Laurel and her aunt find a the body of a local reporter at the Terminal on Laurel's first night in town, Laurel decides to stay for a while. Laurel suspects a lot of people for the murder, including the gorgeous guy, Declan, who runs the Irish Shop across the street. Laurel even suspects her aunt Sophie and the cook at the Terminal, George. When another local reporter winds up dead because she has stumbled upon who the killer is, Laurel is even more determined to find out who killed The Lance of Justice. Finally, with the help of Declan, Laurel figures it out and throws a party at The Terminal.
I was totally blown away by what Laurel figures out, because it involves more than just murder. This one kept my attention from the time I picked it up, till I finished it. It was well written and the plot was great. I also enjoyed meeting a lot of the characters and am looking forward to visiting The Terminal again. I am also curious as to where the relationship between Laurel and Declan is going to go. This was a great read.
I received a complimentary copy of this book for my honest review. -
Food themed mystery. I waffled on how I felt about the main character as she started out behaving rather badly. I felt like her attitude changed through the book, which helped. I feel like this was intentional by the author because of the main character's background, but it made her less than sympathetic at the start. I did find her treatment of a secret family recipe to be unethical, not even telling the family who gave it to her that she was going to use it in the restaurant. But they seemed all right with it.
Not a bad book. I'd probably read more in the series. -
I really enjoyed this mystery ... with a hint of romance ... and a lot of Irish culture! Loved it all ... except in true Logan style, she doesn't give me enough time to process the solution to the mystery. This one had me completely fooled though ... I had NO CLUE!
A delightful re-read ... it hasn't been that long so I remembered the characters and the incidents as I read them ... but had completely forgotten the solution. A delightful "Irish" read for March. -
To be honest the story started out a bit slow, but as I got into it I was drawn into the characters' world where I could close my eyes and be standing like a shadow watching it all unfold.
I'm looking forward to many years of entertaining reading from this new series. -
I enjoyed this new series, a culinary mystery with a different twist. I was surprised when the who dunit was discovered.
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For complete review check out my blog at
https://booksaplentybookreviews.blogs... -
Just okay. Didn't like the main character. She was too "hard". The story was okay, but I don't feel any compulsion to read farther in this series. Probably 2.5 stars at best.
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2020 bk 160. An enjoyable introduction to a new mystery series! Well plotted, interesting characters. Set in small town Ohio, a newbie to town walks into a murder at the restaurant she is going to manage while the owner has knee surgery. A family of Irish travellers, former wives, a television reporter, and restaurant employees all provide color and interest in this well-written contemporary mystery.
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I loved Kylie Logan’s League of Literary Ladies series and when I saw this title in my shop ON St Patrick’s Day I knew I needed to read it! I really liked this one! I liked that Laurel was sugary sweet like a lot of MC’s are. I loved the twists and turns the story took and it felt like a very intelligent cozy!
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Super obsessed with this series.
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There was not one character I liked in this book. Too bad because it was a nice idea.
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Synopsis:
The national bestselling author of the League of Literary Ladies Mysteries introduces an all-new cozy culinary mystery series featuring ethnic eats.
After flopping as a personal chef to a Hollywood movie star, jobless Laurel Inwood finds herself humbled in Hubbard, Ohio, helping her aunt Sophie run her restaurant. Much to Laurel’s dismay, Sophie’s Terminal at the Tracks is not the cozy bistro her aunt would have had her believe—it’s a run-down greasy spoon in an old railroad station. To save the dingy diner, Laurel cooks up a plan to feature alternating ethnic cuisine as specials.
But first there’s the problem of the body in the booth. Slumped over a table with a receipt spike in his back is Jack Lancer—”the Lance of Justice”—an investigative reporter for local TV news. Assisted by the drop-dead gorgeous owner of the neighboring Irish store—who may or may not be a suspect—Laurel sets out to track down a killer who had no reservations about impaling a newshound. But as she turns up the heat, will she end up in the soup herself?
INCLUDES RECIPES (Goodreads)
Review:
Laurel has agreed to help run Terminal at the Tracks for Sophie, her not quite “aunt” while she recovers from surgery. What she did not agree to was finding a dead body and trying to solve the mystery of the death. But that is exactly what happens when she heads to Hubbard, Ohio.
The characters are well rounded, well developed and three dimensional. Laurel is not really your typical cozy protagonist. She is much more cynical, matter-of-fact and not easily bulldozed by people. Most of the time the protagonist and sweet and friendly, but Laurel does not always act that way. To me, that made her seem more real and I enjoyed that. She is not happy that the restaurant is not the chic place that she was led to believe it was. And she lets her “aunt” know she is not happy. She clashes with Declan often and she is very wary of him. It was fun to read the bickering and bantering between the two. The secondary characters were also well presented and added a lot to the story.
The author is very talented in her descriptive writing and through much of the book, I felt like I was right there, smelling the delectable aromas of the food and listening to conversations going on around me. The writing style flows smoothly and the book is an easy read. The mystery was carried on well throughout the book and there were enough suspects, twists and turns to keep this reader guessing.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a well crafted cozy mystery. This is the first book in what I hope is a very long running series. Grab this book, start reading and enjoy your ride. -
Kylie Logan's new "Ethnic Eats" series has a delicious first course in "Irish Stewed". Her lead character Laurel is intelligent and quick witted. The setting of a railroad terminal restaurant was appealing to me especially since there are plenty of railroads in my area. And oh yeah, the "love interest"...who doesn't love a hunky Irishman! Yum! As with all of this author's cozy mysteries, the characters are interesting and in this particular book, as fleshed out as you can be for a "first in a new series". The actual mystery had me guessing till the end, which is always a fun thing for me! I also think that the concept for this series is extremely smart since everybody loves comfort food, and even more so if it is something from their own childhood. Then, to utilize the fact that America is still very much a melting pot, coming up with different international (but still comfort food) dishes for each new book speaks to this author's ingenuity and amazing talent. I'm German and Italian so even though my heritage says I can't win a war, my ancestors definitely knew how to make some incredible comfort food and I can't wait to see what this author cooks up for her next book!
*Please note: I recieved a copy of this book from a Facebook group called "The Cozy Mystery Review Crew" in exchange for an honest review. -
When a Hollywood private chef finds herself in Ohio to help her aunt out at her train depot diner and then stumbles on a body in that diner, things go from bad to worse.
Kylie Logan starts off her new series in good form. The setting caught me immediately. If you live in the Midwest, you've probably seen at least one train terminal that has been turned into a restaurant. Sophie's Terminal at the Tracks is a homey local restaurant that has the luck to be located right next to the railroad tracks, and you want to grab a seat by the window. The characters are well thought out and have a lot of depth to them. Our heroine, Laurel Inwood, is a great combination of Hollywood expectations combined with a foster care past. All of her thoughts and decisions make total sense with this background. The plot had some nice twists, but suffers from what I call "first in the series syndrome". By this, I mean that a lot of the setting and characters have to be established, so the plot doesn't have time to be as twisty with a lot of suspect trails to follow as there are once the series gets going. That being said, the books keeps you interested and eagerly waiting for the next book. All in all, a great addition to Ms. Logan's list of series.
I received a copy of this book for a fair and honest review. -
This book was cynical and sad. the main character, Lauren, had been a foster child, bounced from one lousy and uncaring "home" to another until at the age of fourteen Nina took her in. Nina taught Lauren a lot about flavorful and nutritious food and when Lauren aged out of the foster system, , by then Nina had inspired to go to culinary school, where she excelled. She landed a job as a personal chef to a rich and famous actress and life was very good for a while. Unfortunately, Lauren was fired and completely black balled by the Hollywoodelite when she was falsely accused of leaking a story about the actress's drug-abusing son. While this was happening, Nina died but Nina's sister Sophie kept in contact with Lauren. Sophie turned out to be an inveterate liar, which Lauren realized when she saw the restaurant Sophie had tricked her into coming out to temporarily manage while was having and recuperating from knee replacement surgery. While I felt sorry for Lauren, I found it impossible to like her and I absolutely despised Sophie. I mostly read cozies for relaxation but I merely found the characters in this story annoying. I most definitely do not recommend this book, even to the most avid readers of cozy mysteries.
