Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
In THE UNINVITED CORPSE by Debra Sennefelder (first in the Food Blogger Mystery series), Hope Early has recently left New York City in the dust following an ugly divorce, an embarrassing appearance on a reality baking show, and her failed career as a magazine editor. After returning to her small hometown of Jefferson, Connecticut, Hope starts her life over as a blogger focusing on food and DIY projects. Hope also (literally) stumbles upon two dead bodies...The first is an unpopular real estate agent who was murdered after showing up uninvited at a spring garden tour at Hope's friend's house. Hope's sister, Claire, jumps to the top of the local detective's suspect list because Claire worked with the victim and had a history of not getting along with her. The second victim is Hope's very own assistant. She was murdered in her home mere minutes after calling Hope to tell her that she was pretty sure she had figured out who had killed the first victim. Because Hope knew both victims - and because her sister is the only suspect that the police seem to be focused on - Hope throws herself into conducting her own investigation into the murders. Hope's life is soon in danger, and someone (most likely the murderer) is now out to kill her. The police - including the Chief of Police, who is Hope's long-time friend - keep warning her to stay away from their investigation and stop trying to solve it on her own. Even if it places her in danger, Hope refuses to stop until she finds the killer and clears her sister.
THE UNINVITED CORPSE will be published by Kensington on March 27, 2018. It is a fun and intriguing cozy mystery novel. Sennefelder kept me guessing up until the end on the identity of the killer. Hope Early is a well-developed, captivating, and likeable amateur sleuth. Hope also had some very witty lines that had me laughing - especially when she said "I'm going to find the killer, prove my sister is innocent, and then I think I'll make a pan of brownies." Hope's baking, home projects, and budding romantic feelings for a certain someone perfectly balance out her investigation into the two murders. The other characters are also interesting as well. I particularly enjoyed former mystery writer Jane and local reporter Drew. I also felt that the small town of Jefferson was very well described. The small town drama and squabbles was very true-to-life. I'm looking forward to the next novel in the Food Blogger Mystery series.