by Susan Dunlap
First published 2012
Jill Smith stands over a dead body in the kitchen of Paradise, Berkeley's premier restaurant. The chef and owner lies poisoned by his own soup, a final taste that killed him. Jill knows she should feel steady investigating this murder, but a recent helicopter crash has left her nerves shattered. Fear creeps into situations where she once felt confident. The dead chef climbed Berkeley's competitive food scene by making enemies along the way. His dishwasher harbored resentment. His neighbors complained about the restaurant's impact. Earth Man, a local hippie who survived on kitchen scraps, had his own grudges. Each suspect had motive to slip poison into that fatal soup. As Jill digs deeper into the victim's relationships and the restaurant's secrets, she must confront more than just a murderer. She faces her own anxiety and the question of whether she can still do her job effectively. The case demands the fearless detective she used to be, not the shaken woman she has become.
Genres: mystery, crime, contemporary, thriller
Vibes: emotional, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: amateur-sleuth, shaken-protagonist
Setting: Berkeley, Paradise
284 pages · Kindle Edition · Open Road Media Mystery & Thriller
Content warnings: anxiety