It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder by Maria DiRico

Item: It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder
Rating: 5
Author: karenbaron

Posted November 3, 2021 by karenbaron in #BookishRecipe, #HolidayMystery, Blog Tour, Contest - Giveaway, Mystery, Review, Series / 1 Comment

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from Great Escapes Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder

by Maria DiRico

Series: Catering Hall Mystery #3
Series Rating:

on October 26, 2021
Genres: Cozy Culinary Holiday Mystery
Pages: 182
Format: Kindle
Source: Great Escapes Book Tours
Goodreads
BookBub
Get Your Copy at: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, IndieBound
Also in this series: Here Comes the Body , Long Island Iced Tina, Four Parties and a Funeral, The Witless Protection Program

Astoria, Queens, is decorated within an inch of its life for the Christmas season, and Mia Carina is juggling her job at the Belle View catering hall with a case of murder . . .

Mia’s busy with a full schedule of events at the family business—among them an over-the-top Nativity-themed first birthday party and a Sweet Sixteen for a teen drama queen. But her personal life is even more challenging. Her estranged mother has returned—and her lifelong friend Jamie has discovered a shocking secret about his past. He’s so angry that he starts hanging out with Lorenzo, who claims to be his long-lost brother—even after it becomes clear that Lorenzo’s story is as fake as a plastic Christmas tree.

Then a body turns up among the elves in a Santa’s-workshop lawn display, and amateur sleuth Mia has a buffet of suspects to choose from. Amid the holiday celebrations, she intends to find out who’s the guilty party . . .

Italian recipes included!

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder by Maria DiRico is a fantastic holiday book that has you sitting on the edge of your seat.

Will Mia Carina find out who killed Lorenzo Puglia?

Mia Carina

Mia Carina is our main character and she is a hoot. I love her and her nonna Elisabetta. Mia is a great character and I like everything about her. She has her flaws as any character does but that doesn’t stop you from wanting to know her. One of her flaws is that she does have ties to the Italian mob. Another one of them is liking her worker Shane. Mia is still a great character. Mostly because of the fact that she doesn’t take anyone’s problems to heart unless it’s someone she cares about. She is an Italian kid through and through. Mia is good at solving mysteries but she does not realize what connects until all the pieces are put together. The mystery in this installment is very personal for Mia and everyone involved.

The Mystery

A dead guy’s feet are shown being seen outside in Christmas light decorations in Mia’s neighborhood. Not only that but the dead guy is supposedly Jamie’s long-lost brother. A lot of things are coming out into the open in this installment and it was awesome. Mia wants to investigate as the police detective is still only directing his thinking that the mob family that Mia knows did it. To keep the Family out of jail she has to prove that someone else wanted Lorenzo Puglia dead. Especially since the dude was a creep. During this investigation, another dead body ends up coming out of the woodworks and Mia is on a time crunch to figure it out. I didn’t figure out who did either killing but wow was it easy to see the patterns for them once I knew who did the murders.

Five Stars

Mia and company are back in this third installment and I adore this series. Ms. DiRico is doing an amazing job of writing this series and I can’t wait to see what is in store next for Mia and her family. It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder by Maria DiRico is a great book that gets five stars and a huge recommendation from me.

There are recipes in the back that sound really good. They are Three Cheese Baked Rigatoni, Shrimp, Crab, and Artichoke Cavatelli, Almond Florentine Lace Cookies, Rummy Tiramisu, Christmas Frittata, Mushroom Pasta al la Carbonara, and Christmas Tarrali. We also have event tips after the recipes.

A Catering Hall Mystery

Tour Giveaway

Prize: (3) Print Copy of It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder (A Catering Hall Mystery) by Maria DiRico U.S. Only

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Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder by Maria DiRico. Don’t forget to enter the giveaway!

Until the next time,

Happy Reading!

About Maria DiRico

Maria DiRico was born in Queens, New York, and raised in Queens and Westchester County. She is a first-generation Italian-American on her mother’s side. On her father’s side, her grandfather was a low-level Jewish mobster who disappeared in 1933 under mysterious circumstances. She also writes the award-winning, bestselling Cajun Country Mystery series under the name Ellen Byron.

Reading this book contributed to these challenges: