Great cozy mystery. Some very funny moments and nice solution to capture the criminal. Enjoyed having Cherry as a sidekick. Always love to see Derrick. ( )

Rating: 3½ Stars

Lulu Taylor runs Aunt Pat's, a barbeque restaurant in the heart of Memphis. When she's not serving up the tastiest eats in town, Lulu is busy honing her amateur sleuthing skills. In HICKORY SMOKED HOMICIDE, Lulu is involved in another murder mystery when she discovers the body of Tristan Pembroke, a beauty pageant couch with more enemies than friends. With a list of suspects a mile long, and another murder on the heels of the first, Lulu has her work cut out for her, especially when the murderer takes a dislike to Lulu's snooping.

This is the third book in Riley Adams' A Memphis BBQ Mystery series, but it can easily be read stand-alone. I really enjoyed the characters in this story. Even the secondary characters had distinct personalities. I think my favorite was Cherry, Lulu's motorcycle riding, Elvis fanatic best friend. Cherry and Lulu together made for plenty of laughs. Ms. Adams did a fine job bringing Memphis to life, especially the descriptions of the delicious food! The mystery was good, and while I don't care a thing about beauty pageants, it was interesting to hear about the sinister goings on behind the curtain. Readers looking for a humorous Southern cozy mystery will be delighted by HICKORY SMOKED HOMICIDE.

I received my copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. ( )