Steamed (Gourmet Girl Series #1) by Jessica Conant-Park, Susan Conant

Delectable Concotion!by TheBookResort

Reader Rating:
See Detailed Ratings

June 30, 2009: Ingredients:

Suspense

Amusement

Romance

Dating

Murder

Yummie Food

Laughs

Just toss it all together in a bowl, mix it up & you have a delectable concoction in Steamed!

Steamed isn't your classic cozy. It isn't your customary culinary mystery either. So, what exactly is it?

Enter the chick-lit mystery.

The mother-daughter mystery writing team of Jessica Conant-Park (daughter) & Susan Conant(mother) have created a fresh, fun, zesty series.

Jessica definitely inherited her mother's gift of establishing a charismatic story .

Susan Conant is best known for her delightful "Dog Lovers Mystery" series.

Together they created Chole Carter. Chole is an exhilarating, intelligent, snappy, chick. If you look up the word au courant don't be surprised if Chole Carter's name & photo appear under the definition.

Psst! I love the pop culture references!

Chole is refreshing. She isn't a caterer, chef, critic, or waitress. She's a foodie.

She is the real deal. She tells it like it is.

The plot flows & the writing is spunky.

This is a well-crafted mystery stuffed w/ plenty of motives & suspects.

The secondary characters are absorbing, delightful, lovable, quirky & add flavor to Chole's slightly neurotic, but riotous world.

This is a must for those w/ an appetite for murder!!!

I Also Recommend: Fatally Flaky (Culinary Mystery Series #15), Simmer Down (Gourmet Girl Series #2), Fed Up (Gourmet Girl Series #4), Turn up the Heat (Gourmet Girl Series #3), Sweet Revenge (Culinary Mystery Series #14).

Reviewed by Carrie Spellman for TeensReadToo.comby TeensReadToo

Reader Rating:
See Detailed Ratings

November 17, 2008: Chloe Carter is not exactly having the best week of her life. For starters, she's about to attend graduate school, studying social work. Not because she wants to but because that's the only way she can get her inheritance from her uncle. He didn't specify social work; it just seemed like a good idea at the time. Now that school is about to begin, Chloe's not so sure. Secondly, her downstairs neighbor/sometimes boyfriend is outside kissing some tiny blonde chick. Sure, he said he wasn't looking for a relationship, but that doesn't give him the right to parade around with the blonde. Well, maybe it does, but that's not the point! And she can't even use her backup date to make him jealous, since he has a girlfriend now! Not to mention the disaster her apartment has become since her last half-accomplished attempt to redecorate.

Chloe is desperate for something good in her life. It's time for drastic measures. It's time to try the Internet dating service her sister keeps pushing. It worked for her, she's married and has kids and is happy, so maybe it'll work for Chloe. That's the decision she comes to at 3am. A decision she regrets the minute she wakes up. What was she thinking? Normal people don't date through the Internet! Her membership must be cancelled and her profile deleted immediately! Though she could check the messages first, since the people did take the time to write them and all. Wonder of all wonders, there is a normal-seeming guy who seems to like food as much as she does. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all. Chloe and "DinnerDude" agree to meet at a new high-end restaurant that he's thinking about investing in. If this works out, just think about all of the great free dinners!

First instincts are usually right -- this was a bad idea. Chloe's week is rapidly spiraling from bad to worse. Her blind date is rude, overbearing, and completely self-absorbed. And the food -- well, it started off great, and now it's starting to mirror her week. After waiting for what seems like forever for her blind date to return from the phone call he answered during dinner, Chloe decides to hunt him down. She finds him in the bathroom. On the floor. Dead. Talk about the worst blind date ever!

From the date, to grieving parents who seem to think that Chloe was about to be their daughter-in-law, to the cute chef at the dinner after the funeral (who happens to be the main suspect), Chloe's life has certainly altered drastically. She's just not sure which direction it's headed in!

Chloe is neurotically, obsessively hilarious! And the situations she gets herself stuck in are absurd, but possible. They really could happen -- you just hope they would never happen to you. The characters are all well-drawn. They're all a little bit odd, which makes them that much more lovable and easy to relate to. The story takes awhile to get moving, but when it finally does, it's a whirlwind. Plus, it has recipes! Good story, fun characters, lots of food, AND recipes? Count me in! My only real question is why no one seems to notice that Chloe has missed her calling. She should be a detective, not a social worker.

*Disclaimer for those concerned that this is a book for adults: The main character is in her 20's. Sex is discussed and alluded to, but never described. The murder doesn't come off as gruesome or graphic. There is a limited amount of swearing.