An entertaining story that keeps the reader engaged throughout. There are plenty of clues but also plenty of suspects when a celebrity chef is murdered.
The characters are well drawn and the pace of the book is good and doesn’t falter.
A good read that I would happily recommend to my friends.

Good food and a gory murder - what more could you want in this cosy murder mystery! When a close friend of Paul Delamare asks him to help out at a Belgravia cookery school after he has had an ‘accident’ little does Paul know what he’s letting himself in for. In the frame for the murder Paul needs to prove his innocence and he needs to find the culprit quickly before there are other victims. This novel was a quick fun read which kept me guessing until the end. Not many of the characters were likable, but there is a murderer on the loose. I would definitely pick up another book by this author but a cookery school. I’m not sure. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the AOC of this novel in return for an honest review.

First of all a big thank you to the author, Netgalley and the publishers for sending me a copy of this book to read and review.

I was so excited to start this book. The blurb and the fact that this is set in a culinary school made me want to jump into this.

I’m not sure why but I just couldn’t get into this. I didn’t enjoy the characters or the plot.

I’m torn with this one. For the longest time - a good 75% of the book in fact - it was a really enjoyable, twisty turny cosy mystery. And then it’s like a switch flipped, and it all went a bit preposterous. Paul roaming around the house in the middle of the night, and someone leaving their bedroom door open (who would do that, in what is effectively a boutique hotel?) so he can then rifle through their handbag for clues. Or the student who admits playing footsie under the table with what seems like half the guests. And as for the big finale show down… it was wham bam no thank you ma’am, done and dusted in a few pages.

I agree with other people’s comments about Paul’s slightly off putting highbrow way of speaking/writing, and Julie’s annoying emojis in texts (I gave up even trying to decipher them - they were minute on my phone’s Kindle app, and the message got explained by Paul anyway… all this served was to pull me out of the story each time). And what was with the dangling of Jonny as the big bad stepson, that fizzled out?

The first 75% was a fairly solid 4 stars, and a meritable debut by the author. The last 25% really let it down for me, sadly. I do hope there are more books to come though, and would definitely give the next one a go.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

soo i had been looking to get into reading more cosy murder mysteries after thoroughly enjoying vera wong's unsolicited advice for murderers, so when i came across this book on NetGalley i decided to give it a go. unfortunately, i had given this a few short reading sessions, each time losing interest fairly quickly until one day i realised my access through NetGalley had expired. which in honesty, i wasn't too mad about as it took the burden of finishing it off of me.

the book wasn't awful but even by the time the actual murder had occurred, it had done nothing to grip me. all the characters were very bland, including the main character, and the writing was such that you could definitely tell it was written by (and probably for) an older adult. even though i read a lot of young adult literature, i love a good adult story, however this one felt quite inaccessible to me (being in my mid-20s) and out of touch (especially the character who communicated almost exclusively using emojis...)

although i could definitely tell it wasn't for me, i will leave it unrated as it's probably unfair to give a rating based on approx. 70 pages (for NetGalley requirements i have given it 2*. massive thanks to Random House UK, Transworld Publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed this one, I loved the food talk and the POV from a kitchen as a chef, it was intense and a rollercoaster at times and it had me gripped and couldnt wait to find out what happened and who the killer was.

Thanks to netgalley and the Author for an advanced copy

3 stars

A good cozy crime mystery featuring chef, Paul Delamare helping his friend out at a cookery school and turning sleuth when his friend is found dead shortly after. A mixture of mystery, cooking, recipes and fun. Lovely to read.

Paul Delamare has lived a fairly retiring life since the death of his partner. He has a lifetime lease on a lovely cottage in Belgravia but little else apart from a vengeful stepson. When an old friend, the celebrity chaf Christian Wagner, asks him to run a week's cookery school as a favour Paul is railroaded into agreeing. However on the first night Christian is murdered and Paul is suddenly suspect number one - can he solve the crime before he is locked away?
This is a debut novel by an acclaimed food writer and it fits neatly into a fairly cosy crime setting. The plot is fairly obvious and the characters rather cliched but it works. There is a love of the finer things in life running through the novel (wine, perfume, watches etc) as well as a couple of recipes and the mix makes a quick and quite fun read.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

Part whodunnit, part cookery book. Really enjoyed this and might even try out a few of of the recipes.

The problem I encountered with reading this book was that the characters stayed very much two dimensional and I just didn't care what happened to any of them throughout the story. None of them were rounded/fleshed out that much to create people that could mater in any way. We were given brief descriptions of who/what they are and then their reactions to the events but little more which I found rather disappointing and made the read, at times, a bit of a slog.
However, that being said, it was an interesting story and even with the character issues and that I did guess our villain before half way, it was entertaining to a degree. It was also interesting learning why the person I suspected was the guilty party did what they did.
A particularly nice bit about this book was the inclusion of some of the recipes from the class.

This debut novel is a cosy murder mystery set around a cookery school in London. As you would expect from a master chef semi-finalist and food editor, the cookery detail (and included recipes) are a major feature of the story. There’s a diverse cast of possible murderers in the guise of the students and staff and the plot twists and turns throughout. There’s plenty of red herrings scattered throughout the real details leaving you guessing whodunnit.
Paul Delamare is asked to cover the tutoring of cookery students at an exclusive london residential school, when his old friend, the famous Christian, breaks his arm and can no longer cook. When Christian is found dead the day after, his head lopped off with a cleaver, Paul is looking like a likely suspect.
At times the overly complex and slightly pompous phrases that Paul uses and Julie’s emoji speak detracted a bit from the story, but I’m sure they were carefully considered character quirks.
I enjoyed the story, which had me guessing almost to the end, even though I’d spotted a lot of the clues as to the culprit. I’ve given it 4.5/5 and I’d be more than happy to read any follow up stories. Thanks to NetGalley for a free ARC in return for an honest review.

I really liked this. I was hoping it would be good and fun, and it actually exceeded my expectations. And a lot of that is because Paul is a much more interesting character than you expect from the blurb so it makes a change from the usual cozy-crime sleuths. The murder mystery is also good and plenty twisty enough for me. I really liked the recipes too - i know a lot of American mysteries have recipes but they're never ones I actually want to cook, but with these ones I did think "oh that sounds nice". I hope there is a sequel - there was certainly enough left hanging when it comes to Paul's life to sustain another book with him at the centre...

It took me a little while to get into this one and to begin with I got confused thinking it was going to be similar to the TV show The Bear, but it quickly turned into a murder mystery. It was really good cosy mystery and the knowledge of the author about cooking is obvious and I really enjoyed the food and drink descriptions.

There were a lot of suspects which helped keep the reveal for longer but also meant that there were a lot of characters not fleshed out.

Overall I really liked it and look forward to reading more by the author.

Paul Delamare takes a job as a tutor at an exclusive cookery school , he does so as a favour to his friend Christian .
After the first few days of Paul teaching ,Christian is found decapitated and Paul finds himself the main suspect.
Paul decides to investigate to find the murderer before he’s charged with a murder he didn’t commit.
More than one of his students has a secret to hide , and a link to Christian.
I found the story slow moving at times but overall I enjoyed the book and didn’t guess the perpetrator.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK.

When chef Paul Delamare takes a job teaching at an exclusive residential cookery school in Belgravia, the only thing he expects his students to murder is his taste buds. But on the first night, the unthinkable happens: someone turns up dead... The school rests on a knife-edge. The police are convinced Paul is the culprit. After all, he's good with a blade, was first on the scene - and everyone knows it doesn't take much to push a chef over the edge. To prove his innocence, he must find the killer. Could it be one of his students? Or the owner of the school - a woman with secrets and a murky past? It all boils down to murder. If Paul can't solve the mystery fast - as well as teach his students how to make a perfect hollandaise sauce - he'll be next to get the chop.

This book is a fun read that keeps you guessing and delivers a great twist at the end. If you are keen on a light, cosy crime read then you will not want to miss this book.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this arc in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I am in two minds about this one, I loved some parts but found others really annoying- the emoji text messages didn't work for me and weren't very easy to read in the kindle app. So they put me in a bad mood every time I saw them. But I liked the concept and the cast of characters, they were easy to read about if not particularly likeable.
And the main character Paul's overwhelming p0liteness and failure to ask about key facts like how much he was getting paid for the work - so frustrating to read about.
A 3 star rating for the bits I enjoyed

I do enjoy a cosy crime and was drawn to this one with its premise of a cookery school, an eclectic group of students, celebrity chefs, and a Belgravia mansion. It was a light read with lots of potential suspects amongst the students who all had secret links to the murder victim. I enjoyed following Paul’s private investigation and the way he dug around for clues and evidence to prove his innocence. There were lots of interesting characters, who all came with their own backstories. Paul’s best friend is a great character and I loved her emoji filled text messages! Interspersed throughout are notes and recipes from Christian, quite a few sounded rather tempting! All in all an enjoyable debut from a chef / food writer!
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher Random House UK, Transworld for an arc in exchange for a review.

This was a fantastic story, full of cooking, intrigue and wonderful twisty turny occasions, the characters very well written and with enough back story to keep it interesting, in fact, towards the end I couldn't turn the pages fast enough

I love a crime novel with a twist, and Orlando Murrin has certainly written a cracker. Steeped in brilliant but unobtrusive detail, and peppered with delicious-sounding recipes, I really enjoyed the set-dressing and scene-setting. My main gripe was with the behaviour of the protagonist, but I understand that if your crime-solver isn't officially law enforcement then they're going to have to stick their nose in and make themselves look guilty. I would happily read another work by Murrin.

I thoroughly enjoyed this cosy crime read set in a cookery school. Paul is a great character and I found myself really laughing at his often innapropriate and forthright conversations with people. I could just picture all of the characters and the school so clearly, this would make a brilliant Sunday evening crime drama on TV. As Paul tries to solve the murder to stop himself being chief suspect he bumbles along thinking he is being really clever but often is totally clueless about how his behaviour is perceived by others. I found him really endearing. I feel there is much more to learn about Paul and I hope there will be more books about him in the future. The murder is well plotted and I liked the twist at the end that I hadn't seen coming. A great read that ticked all the cosy crime boxes.