Chopping Spree

A friend (AC) introduced me to this series a while back and I've read books in the series, though not always in order. I found this one in a lending library (and plan to return it there now that I've read it).

Goldy's catering business is booming! One of her clients is a college friend who now manages a local mall. Back in college they used to get coffee together and he liked creating scavenger hunts. Before he dies, he hints at needing to tell Goldy something--then ends up sending her on a scavenger hunt to find the proof he gathered. (I'm with Goldy on this one--there were probably better ways to get the information to her than a scavenger hunt.)

This was definitely my least favorite in the series. I enjoyed it - I mean, it's Diane Mott Davidson, how bad can it be? - but there were a lot of materialistic characters, the stakes were low, suspense almost nonexistent, and Goldy's son Arch was almost completely obnoxious (until the end). I kept waiting for some moralizing about the acquisitiveness of the characters, but Goldy almost seemed to be buying into it - going to great lengths to get Arch an expensive guitar, Palm Pilot, etc. - while gorging herself with food. I am pretty sure the series got back on track after this one, however.

Goldilocks' Catering is booming, and Goldy is frazzled by all the work she's getting. She's set to cater a party for rich shoppers at a local mall, and a few days later cater another party for the owner of one of the stores at the mall. Someone ends up dead, and Goldy's beloved one-time assistant Julian is jailed for murder. (At this point, I thought surely I had already read this one, but no.) Oh, and son Arch is about to turn 15, and has the sort of ridiculous demands for a gift that would have gotten me locked in my room until I was 25, rather than being indulged. Sigh.

I really, really, really wish the author could control her cartoonish impulses to put Goldy into ridiculous situations that don't just strain credulity, they snap it show more off at the root. And while I know many teenage boys are jerks, could we just see and hear a little less of this one? Again, the recipes are the real stars here. The rest of it's pretty bad. show less

Arch is rather rude in this book toward his Mom. I understand the teenage rebellion; however, Goldy (and Tom) were too passive about Arch's rudeness. Aside from that, the rest of the book was outstanding. More good food and of course a murder or two awaits the reader.

I would never want Goldy to cater an event for me because this time the client ends up dead! I don't know how Goldy gets herself into such messes! This time Julian, her assistant and family member, is arrested for the murder and Goldy tries everything she can to get him proved innocent by finding the real killer. But of course, she almost gets killed herself. A little predictable but with fun recipes and colorful characters, indeed!

Chopping Spree by Diane Mott Davidson is the 11th book in the Goldy Bear catering series. It is also the only one not performed by Barbara Rosenblat. As I didn't want to revisit familiar characters with a different voice, I read the book in print.

Goldy's catering service is taking off. It's the first time ever that she's earned enough money to think about splurging on things. Her now teenage son, Arch, has taken notice and has been bitten by the consumer bug. He wants an expensive guitar for his birthday. Goldy, feeling guilty for all their tight years as a single mother, agrees begrudgingly to get it for him after her catering gig at the new mall is complete.

Goldy also needing to pick up her gratuity after the investors' dinner at the show more mall, stumbles upon her employer among a heap of shoes. Before she do anything about it (like call 911), she's clonked on the head.

In fact, Goldy gets clonked on the head a lot in this book. When she's not being clonked on the head, she's drinking espresso — by the gallon it seems.

The mystery here revolves around problems with the mall construction. I think the inclusion of a mega mall in the otherwise rural / ski and hiking oriented Aspen Meadow area made believing the events of this book less plausible. Maybe too, it was the change in medium from audio to paper.

Then there was Arch's personality. He's usually a good, quiet kid who gets obsessed on his current hobby. Here, he's interested in music but he's so demanding. It's not like him and his personality change seemed mostly there for the sake of motivating the earliest chapters of the mystery. show less

Goldy Shultz, owner of Goldilock’s Catering, has a booming business. Things have gotten so busy that she hired a new assistant, Liz Fury. Liz is a great cook and caterer, but her children cause her massive problems. Her son Teddy is a thief and is banned from the local upscale mall. Goldy, Liz, and Julian, Goldy’s original assistant and chef in training are catering a big preferred customer sale in the mall. Goldy was hired by the mall manager Barry, who is an old college friend of Goldy. Unfortunately, Barry is having problems with new mall construction, which is going at a snail’s pace, as well as multiple girlfriend troubles. Lots of accidents have been happening in and around the mall. Goldy suspects that Barry hired her for show more catering due to the fact that Goldy is a snoopy person. However, before Goldy can find out what is going on, Barry is found murdered in the shoe store of the mall; killed with one of Goldy’s new knives. Julian, who discovered Barry and a unconscious Goldy is arrested for murder. Goldy not only wants to free Julian from jail, she also got custody of Barry’s young Basset Hound named Latte.

This was a good read. Lots of new characters combine with the extensive original cast of characters. I still get tired of Goldy constantly renumerating the clues to the murder. It gets old very quickly for me as the reader. However, there is enough action to satisfy me, with lots of red herrings thrown in. show less