A Cornish Recipe for Murder is another reliable instalment from the Nosey Parker series of cosy crime novels by Fiona Leitch. Former Metropolitan Police officer now caterer, Jodie Parker, has been secretly entered by her daughter, mum and boyfriend into a television baking contest. The Best of Britain Baking Roadshow has arrived in Cornwall at Boskern House, a stately home near Penstowan. The winning baker will compete in the national televised final. So, no pressure. Although cakes are not Jodie’s strong point, she throws herself into the competition against four other amateur bakers to become the Cornish regional baking champion.
The on-screen and off-screen team includes a complex mixture of personalities which provides lots of possibilities for disputes, injured pride, romance, reprisals, cheating and… murder. When a body is found in the grounds of the house, the local police arrive headed by DCI Nathan Withers, Jodie’s boyfriend. With the distraction of a murder to solve, Jodie finds it difficult to concentrate on her cakes. Each day has a different baking challenge and the contestants are filmed as they bake, followed by drag queen host Barbara Strident/Russell Lang, and two professional bakers Pete Banks and Esme Davies as judges. Every suspect is a stranger to Jodie, so red herring follows red herring. Suffice to say, not everyone is who they say they are. When Jodie’s chocolate custard filling is tampered with, her ingredients didn’t include salt, she realises she must be getting close to the perpetrator.
I really enjoyed this story, a quick read after a more serious historical novel. It’s a nice balance of murder mystery, satire of television baking shows, and more about Jodie’s home life and relationship with daughter Daisy and mum Shirley. And things are getting much closer with Nathan, which raises a different set of questions.
All in all, a fun read. An antidote to everyday life.

Here are my reviews of the first books in the Nosey Parker series:-
THE CORNISH WEDDING MURDER #1NOSEYPARKER
THE CORNISH VILLAGE MURDER #2NOSEYPARKER
THE PERFECT CORNISH MURDER #3NOSEYPARKER
A CORNISH CHRISTMAS MURDER #4NOSEYPARKER

If you like this, try:-
‘Death at the Dance’ by Verity Bright #2Lady Eleanor Swift
‘The Diabolical Bones’ by Bella Ellis #2BronteMysteries
‘Magpie Murders’ by Anthony Horowitz #1SusanRyeland

And if you’d like to tweet a link to THIS post, here’s my suggested tweet:
#BookReview A CORNISH RECIPE FOR MURDER by Fiona Leitch https://wp.me/p2ZHJe-83e via @SandraDanby

COMING SOON… THE NEXT BOOK I REVIEW WILL BE:-