karen_the_baroness's review
5.0
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Great Escapes Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.Two Bites Too Many by Debra H. Goldstein is a superb story with mystery, scandal, lies, corruption, and family dynamics.
Just when Sarah thinks things are going good, everything goes crazy. Sarah is finding herself, and her confidence is getting better. She has a good job, lives in a lovely house, and has the best guy, her cat RahRah to keep her company. What more could she want? The one thing she knows for sure is she doesn't want to cook. She has a great sense of humor and dedication to the local animal shelter. We could be friends.
The mystery was good. My mom and I debated over this one a lot, in the end, she figured it out before me. I like the way the town got involved in the fundraiser for the animal shelter and made it a success. However, I love all of the red herrings and the way that Sarah eliminated them.
The big question is which guy will Sarah date, Harlan her boss or Cliff the cute carpenter? I look forward to the next book to see.
My rating for Two Bites Too Many by Debra H. Goldstein is five stars. I think the mystery is excellent; the setting is adorable; the characters are well developed with fantastic backstories. I highly recommend this one to all cozy cat lovers.
Prize: (1) Print copy of Two Bites Too Many by Debra H. Goldstein (U.S. Only)
Will Sarah clear her mom before the Police Chief arrests her?
Sarah our Sleuth
Just when Sarah thinks things are going good, everything goes crazy. Sarah is finding herself, and her confidence is getting better. She has a good job, lives in a lovely house, and has the best guy, her cat RahRah to keep her company. What more could she want? The one thing she knows for sure is she doesn't want to cook. She has a great sense of humor and dedication to the local animal shelter. We could be friends.
The Mystery
The mystery was good. My mom and I debated over this one a lot, in the end, she figured it out before me. I like the way the town got involved in the fundraiser for the animal shelter and made it a success. However, I love all of the red herrings and the way that Sarah eliminated them.
The big question is which guy will Sarah date, Harlan her boss or Cliff the cute carpenter? I look forward to the next book to see.
5 Stars for Two Bites Too Many by Debra H. Goldstein
My rating for Two Bites Too Many by Debra H. Goldstein is five stars. I think the mystery is excellent; the setting is adorable; the characters are well developed with fantastic backstories. I highly recommend this one to all cozy cat lovers.
First Book in the Series
Giveaway
Prize: (1) Print copy of Two Bites Too Many by Debra H. Goldstein (U.S. Only)
Tour Organized by:
To find all the tour information, click the banner at the top of the page or HERE.
Have you signed up to be a Tour Host? Click Here Find Details and Sign Up Today!
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Two Bites Too Many by Debra H. Goldstein. Check out the other stops and giveaway if you have time.
Until the next time,
Happy Reading!
This review was originally posted on Baroness' Book Trove
bookwrm526's review
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
booknallnight's review
4.0
Emily & Marcus (owners of Southwind Pub), as well as many other businesses, are trying to rebuild after the crazy events of the Food Expo (see Book 1
maggietoussaint55's review
5.0
The murder of a banker upsets the city council balance of power, slows progress on financing and permitting new businesses, and causes serious problems for intrepid Sarah Blair. To make matters worse, her mother is the prime suspect and her twin sister can’t move forward with her business plans. Not one to sit idly by, Sarah dons her sleuthing cap and starts asking questions.
A delightful follow-up to Goldstein’s One Taste Too Many. Sarah Blair is a sleuth I’ll root for time and again.
Muddy Rose Reviews
A delightful follow-up to Goldstein’s One Taste Too Many. Sarah Blair is a sleuth I’ll root for time and again.
Muddy Rose Reviews
annarella's review against another edition
5.0
I liked this book better than the first one.
There's a lot of character development, the plot flows without any problems and the mystery kept me guessing.
It's an entertaining and engrossing read.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Kensington Books and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
There's a lot of character development, the plot flows without any problems and the mystery kept me guessing.
It's an entertaining and engrossing read.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Kensington Books and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
dollycas's review
5.0
Dollycas’s Thoughts
Sarah Blair doesn’t have to work but she enjoys her job at the law firm and is happy living in the carriage house with her cat RahRah. Her sister Emily along with Marcus have big plans for not just one restaurant but two! The one lost to a fire and one in the “big house” that Sarah inherited. When the bank turns down their loan request her the girl’s mother Maybelle drags Sarah to the bank to hash it out with the president of the bank. Apparently Sarah’s healthy bank account will remind the man who is dealing with. Promising he’ll look over the paperwork, Sarah heads to a meeting but Maybelle has other plans. She waits a short time and then returns to the president’s office where instead of getting the answer she wanted she finds the man dead. She then finds herself the police’s prime suspect.
Sarah is surprised by how quickly people believe her mother is a murderer. Emily has her hands full working at a local hotel until she can get her restaurants open. Sarah is busy with a fundraiser too but knows she needs to help lawyer Harlan do everything she can to keep Maybelle out of jail.
___________
There is a lot happening in Wheaton, Alabama and Sarah Blair seems to be caught up in all of it. She can do many things now that she has received her inheritance but for right now she is content working for Harlan, helping her sister and staying involved with things around town, like the fundraiser. She and Emily are best friends, the yin to the other’s yang. Maybelle knows just how to push their buttons, but we see a different side of her this time. Emily is very driven and Sarah is still finding her way. The core characters are evolving at a realistic pace. We learn more about Sarah’s neighbor George this time and because of that, we meet some new characters. Employees of the bank are also introduced. The author does an excellent job giving us characters to root for and those that could be villains/suspects. RahRah again stole my heart.
I did enjoy the way Ms. Goldstein sets the scene. The bank, the hotel, the carriage house and everything in between were all described so well. I could easily envision each place.
The mystery was murky for me but I latched onto the killer pretty early on. I just didn’t know the details of their motive until it was all laid out for me. There were several red herrings though that could have diverted my thinking but I held strong. Mini mysteries that eventually tied together to the murder were very interesting and pressed me to realize I was on the right track. The ending was pretty exciting.
Debra H. Goldstein has again given readers a fun and entertaining mystery filled with characters I wish I could know in person. Comfortable cozies, both books in this series so far have been Perfect Escapes. Once I started reading they were virtually impossible to put down. Two Bites Too Many has whet my appetite for book #3. I can’t wait to see what happens next.
Sarah Blair doesn’t have to work but she enjoys her job at the law firm and is happy living in the carriage house with her cat RahRah. Her sister Emily along with Marcus have big plans for not just one restaurant but two! The one lost to a fire and one in the “big house” that Sarah inherited. When the bank turns down their loan request her the girl’s mother Maybelle drags Sarah to the bank to hash it out with the president of the bank. Apparently Sarah’s healthy bank account will remind the man who is dealing with. Promising he’ll look over the paperwork, Sarah heads to a meeting but Maybelle has other plans. She waits a short time and then returns to the president’s office where instead of getting the answer she wanted she finds the man dead. She then finds herself the police’s prime suspect.
Sarah is surprised by how quickly people believe her mother is a murderer. Emily has her hands full working at a local hotel until she can get her restaurants open. Sarah is busy with a fundraiser too but knows she needs to help lawyer Harlan do everything she can to keep Maybelle out of jail.
___________
There is a lot happening in Wheaton, Alabama and Sarah Blair seems to be caught up in all of it. She can do many things now that she has received her inheritance but for right now she is content working for Harlan, helping her sister and staying involved with things around town, like the fundraiser. She and Emily are best friends, the yin to the other’s yang. Maybelle knows just how to push their buttons, but we see a different side of her this time. Emily is very driven and Sarah is still finding her way. The core characters are evolving at a realistic pace. We learn more about Sarah’s neighbor George this time and because of that, we meet some new characters. Employees of the bank are also introduced. The author does an excellent job giving us characters to root for and those that could be villains/suspects. RahRah again stole my heart.
I did enjoy the way Ms. Goldstein sets the scene. The bank, the hotel, the carriage house and everything in between were all described so well. I could easily envision each place.
The mystery was murky for me but I latched onto the killer pretty early on. I just didn’t know the details of their motive until it was all laid out for me. There were several red herrings though that could have diverted my thinking but I held strong. Mini mysteries that eventually tied together to the murder were very interesting and pressed me to realize I was on the right track. The ending was pretty exciting.
Debra H. Goldstein has again given readers a fun and entertaining mystery filled with characters I wish I could know in person. Comfortable cozies, both books in this series so far have been Perfect Escapes. Once I started reading they were virtually impossible to put down. Two Bites Too Many has whet my appetite for book #3. I can’t wait to see what happens next.
theatricalreader's review
4.0
Two Bites Too Many was such a joy to read. Small town? Check. Main character has a cozy house? Check. Cute pet? Check
This is the second book to the series but I was able to follow along and understand what happened in the previous book.
I will admit it took me a bit to get into the book BUT I will say I received this book in the middle of a reading slump but I once the slump was over, I DEVOURED it.
I really enjoyed Sarah Blair as a whole, she is very loyal and determined to to prove her mothers innocence when she is the main suspect in the murder of the president of the town bank. While I had my suspicions on who was the culprit, I was still questioning whodunnit and Debra H. Goldstein really kept me on my toes. The characters were fleshed out well and Sarah’s relationship with her twin felt so real and I also really felt her slight frustrations with her decisions.
Overall, I really enjoyed this and I hope to go back to read the first book soon.
I received this book in exchange for an honest review; all thoughts and opinions are my own.
This is the second book to the series but I was able to follow along and understand what happened in the previous book.
I will admit it took me a bit to get into the book BUT I will say I received this book in the middle of a reading slump but I once the slump was over, I DEVOURED it.
I really enjoyed Sarah Blair as a whole, she is very loyal and determined to to prove her mothers innocence when she is the main suspect in the murder of the president of the town bank. While I had my suspicions on who was the culprit, I was still questioning whodunnit and Debra H. Goldstein really kept me on my toes. The characters were fleshed out well and Sarah’s relationship with her twin felt so real and I also really felt her slight frustrations with her decisions.
Overall, I really enjoyed this and I hope to go back to read the first book soon.
I received this book in exchange for an honest review; all thoughts and opinions are my own.
annarella's review
5.0
I liked this book better than the first one.
There's a lot of character development, the plot flows without any problems and the mystery kept me guessing.
It's an entertaining and engrossing read.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Kensington Books and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
There's a lot of character development, the plot flows without any problems and the mystery kept me guessing.
It's an entertaining and engrossing read.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Kensington Books and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
txreadereabbd's review
3.0
When I got the opportunity to receive an ARC copy of this book to review, I immediately bought the first book in the series (reading them in order is a "thing" of mine). But I really think that Two Bites Too Many, the second book in the Sarah Blair Mystery series, could be enjoyed independently.
With both books, I just haven't been able to connect with the main characters. There's nothing I love more than characters that I actually miss in between books. And I just don't feel that with this series. The author also used a particular sentence structure (starting sentences with person's name [proper noun] and pronoun) that drove me nuts. And it was used a lot. It's not like it was grammatically incorrect. In my personal opinion, it was really awkward to read and became quite distracting.
All that being said, this was a quick, easy read with plenty of twists that will keep you guessing. I know some people cringe a three-star rating, but for me, that is a solid middle ground and means I will read more from this author.
With both books, I just haven't been able to connect with the main characters. There's nothing I love more than characters that I actually miss in between books. And I just don't feel that with this series. The author also used a particular sentence structure (starting sentences with person's name [proper noun] and pronoun) that drove me nuts. And it was used a lot. It's not like it was grammatically incorrect. In my personal opinion, it was really awkward to read and became quite distracting.
All that being said, this was a quick, easy read with plenty of twists that will keep you guessing. I know some people cringe a three-star rating, but for me, that is a solid middle ground and means I will read more from this author.
More...