Sophia Cummings and her bakery, For Goodness Cakes, are hired to provided desserts for the Library Fundraiser being held at the Grape Valley Winery. A major donor who backed out of his donation is found murdered in the vineyard, and numerous other disasters occur causing Sophia to wonder if her new business is going to survive.

The mystery was a little lite but the characters are fleshing out nicely in this second installment of this series. The pastries all sounded delicious! ( )

Sophia is clearly in her element when she is baking, and her bakery is becoming a popular place. But she also has a knack for tracking down killers, and when one her best friends is accused of murdering one of the town’s richest men, she has to help. She enlists the aid of some of her closest friends as well as her mother, and they get to work, despite being warned off investigating by her boyfriend, the sheriff. Unfortunately, the dead man was disliked by so many people, it’s hard to narrow down the suspect list. Interesting characters in an engaging plot will entertain readers and keep them flipping pages until the very end. Plot twists illustrating that Sophia may be in over her head and side storylines add depth to the tale. ( )

Sophia Cummings has returned home to the small town of Rumford, Kentucky, where her mother rules the local society and her father is a successful attorney. She's recently opened a bakery, For Goodness Cakes, and has been kept busy with catering jobs, special orders, and people wanting to buy her amazing pastries. She's surrounded by her best friends Madison, who's a real estate agent, and Charlotte, who's a newlywed come to work for Sophia.

She's working on a charity fundraiser for the library, to be held at a local winery. Although Sophia hasn't been paid yet for the treats she's created, she hopes to collect a check that evening from the winery's owner, Giles Dugan. The librarian, Catherine Fraxman, is also excited because a local bigwig, Ray Peel, has offered a huge donation that will pay for the library's new addition.

When she arrives at the winery she runs into Madison, who seems excited about an upcoming meeting with Ray; and she also heads to Giles' office to collect her check, but finds him having a heated argument with his daughter, which she finds out due to an employee, is because Ray is planning on selling the winery immediately, which explains his meeting with Madison.

While shes' setting up Madison returns, obviously upset. Unfortunately, she's not in a good mood anymore, due to the result of her meeting with Ray. It seems Ray doesn't think Madison is right to sell his property, and she's understandably angry. But when she goes looking for Giles in order to get her check, she literally trips over the body of Ray.

Someone murdered the man, in the middle of the party, in the vineyard, and Sheriff Carter Kincaid, now Sophia's boyfriend, isn't pleased that this is the second time she's found a dead body. But then again, neither is Sophia. According to her, all she wants to do is create the tasty pastries for the town and live a quiet life.

But that's not to be, especially since she learns that Madison is the main - and probably only - suspect in the murder, since what she said to Sophia about Ray was overheard. When Carter refuses to eliminate Madison, Sophia feels that her only choice - with Madison and Charlotte begging her to help - is to try and figure out who hated Ray enough to kill him. Once she starts looking, she finds out that there are several people who might have wanted him out of the picture. But who had the best motive? And which one of them were angry enough to kill?...

This is the second book in the series, and, I am glad to say, is just as good as the first. I was delighted in the first book, Cakes & Punishment, and this one picks up shortly after the last. The plot is again well thought out, with a host of suspects who all had a reason for Ray to be out of the picture. However, it seems that Carter is only focused on Madison, which irritates Sophia no end.

When he asks her to stay out of the investigation, deep down he knows it isn't going to happen; and when her mother Bitsy seems to 'want in', it only makes it worse. Carter accepts the fact his girlfriend isn't going to stop what she's doing, but only hopes that she doesn't try to expose herself to danger, and insist she share all her information with him.

The characters are a lively bunch, and Sophia and her friends and family have a believable relationship with each other. You can practically feel the rapport between the three women, their closeness with each other coming through the pages. Her relationship with Carter is also very well done. He's an intelligent man who follows the clues and does a thorough job, even if it's not fast enough for Sophia. He knows he can't change her and doesn't try, and she never imagines herself smarter than him or a better sleuth.

There were a couple of things that bothered me, even as I didn't allow them to spoil my enjoyment of the book. I was a tad uncomfortable with some of Sophia's blatant questioning of people and then going so far as to search offices while there were people right down the hall (not a smart move); and I did get tired of everything being 'mouth-watering.' Really, I don't think I've ever in my lifetime had any food make my mouth water thinking about it or seeing it, yet this happens a lot to her. (Maybe I just don't have tons of saliva in my mouth, but hey...)

When the ending came and the killer was revealed, it made sense in a twisted sort of way, although I didn't feel that we were given any clues to the murderer (although I may or may not have hidden a few in my review). Although the ending was put together well, it would have been nice to have a couple of clues at least that led us in the right direction.

Ms. Bell has given us a tale with crisp writing and a great deal of southern charm, people you'd like to know and a town you'd like to visit. All in all, a worthy second entry to a series that I hope will be around for a good long while. Recommended. ( )

“Batter Off Dead” is the second in a series about a small town bakery, run by a former big-city pastry chef. However, the chef did not count on dealing with murder when she came back to town. The murder occurs in a local vineyard, and the plot moves the action forward to the final apprehension of the murderer. During the course of the investigation, the amateur sleuth ignores the admonitions of the sheriff (her boyfriend) to stay out of the case. As the suspects are eliminated one by one, the suspense builds to its final conclusion.

This was the first book in the series that I read, and I enjoyed the quirky characters. I suggest readers suspend their disbelief that law enforcement would even allow the continual involvement of an amateur sleuth in a murder investigation to the extent written in this novel.

I received this book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own. ( )

Batter Off Dead by Maymee Bell has us traveling to Rumford, Kentucky. Sophia Cummings has opened For Goodness Sakes, a bakery, in her hometown with the help of her best friend, Charlotte Harrington. It is Sunday and they are busy preparing the treats for The Heart of the Town fundraiser being held that evening at Grape Valley Winery owned by Giles Dugan. The fundraiser is to raise funds for the new library addition. This is Sophia’s first big catering gig for which she has laid out a significant amount of money, so she wants to make sure that everything is perfect. At the fundraiser, Ray Peel is making enemies left and right. He reneges on the donation he promised the library, insults Madison Ridge, and has upset the winery owners. Sophia is on her way to the winery offices to collect her check, when she trips and finds herself face to face with a dead Ray Peel. Sophia quickly calls Sheriff Carter Kincaid who races to the scene to comfort her and then takes charge of the crime scene. The next day, Charlotte requests that Sophia don her sleuthing cap once again. Their friend, Madison finds herself at the top of the suspect list and her realtor clients are dropping her like a hot potato. Sophia has her hands full since Ray had made numerous enemies and her mother is assisting her with what she has termed Operation Merlot. She also must create her baked delights for the bakery and deal with a coupon issue. Someone, though, is not happy with Sophia’s involvement and tries to dissuade her. Grab a glass of wine and settle down to join Sophia on her latest case in Batter Off Dead.

Batter Off Dead is a humorous cozy mystery. There are quirky characters and a charming, small Southern town for which Tonya Kappes is known for creating. Sophia is opening up her bakery, but she has not worked out all the kinks yet. She is unsure whether to ask for deposits from catering clients (the answer is yes) nor does she have them sign a contract (every catering event should have a contract with a deposit). Catering The Heart of the Town will show clients what For Goodness Sakes can provide, but Sophia has outlaid a large amount of money for The Heart of the Town fundraiser. After Sophia makes a big deal about getting paid, the matter then gets dropped and is not resolved. Sophia’s mother, Bitsy is not happy that Sophia has stumbled over another dead body, but it tickled when Sophia asks her to keep her ears open for helpful gossip. Sheriff Carter Kincaid does not want Sophia sticking her nose into his case and repeatedly warns her (he is wasting his breath). I like Maymee Bell’s (aka Tonya Kappes) writing style. It is what I refer to as conversational or friendly which engages the reader. It makes for an easy to read story which is enhanced with the steady pacing and Southern humor. I recommend reading Cake and Punishment before embarking on Batter Off Dead. It sets the stage for the rest of the series. The mystery will have you guessing with multiple suspects who each have a good motive to kill the victim. There are recipes at the end for the yummy baked goods Sophia creates in her bakery. Batter Off Dead contains friendship, family, wine, scrumptious confectionary delights, community, murder, romance and wit. ( )