Death by Devil’s Breath
by Kylie Logan
There’s no month steamier than August, no town hotter than Las Vegas and nothing on the planet as spicy as Devi’s Breath chili! It’s the perfect combination, especially since the second book in my Chili Cook-Off mystery series, “Death by Devil’s Breath,” will hit store shelves on August 5.
Once again, Maxie Pierce and the band of pepper purveyors, bean sellers, chili aficionados and hot sauce honchos who make up the Chili Showdown are on the road, and after the trouble they got into in Taos (“Chili Con Carnage”), they’re hoping for a little R&R in Sin City. Knowing that over-the-top is never over-the-top enough in Vegas, the Showdown has scheduled it’s hotly (pun intended!) awaited Devil’s Breath chili contest for the first morning of the show. The regional winners are set with bowls of the spiciest of the spicy, and the contest is going to be judged by local celebrity performers.
It’s perfect. Or at least it would be if comedian Dicky Dunkin didn’t fall over dead in his bowl of Devil’s Breath.
With another murder on her hands and a mysterious person from her past plaguing her, Maxie doesn’t waste any time jumping into the case and she encounters a host of suspects including Dickie’s fellow performers:
There’s Hermosa (one name, like Cher, but without the looks or the talent) who says she was in love with Dickie, and fails to mention that lately, there’s been serious trouble in Paradise.
And jazzman Yancy Harris who has his own secrets to keep, secrets Dickie threatened to expose.
Then there’s lousy magician, The Great Osborn, who’s trying to compete for Hermosa’s affections and even Linda Love, owner of the largest wedding chapel in Vegas.
If all that wasn’t enough to get Maxie into big time trouble, somebody’s sabotaging the Chili Chick costume she wears to dance out from of the Hot-Cha Chili Seasoning Palace and entice buyers inside.
Hot? Oh yeah, Vegas is plenty hot. And Maxie is about to find out that Devil’s Breath chili is just the tip of one peppery iceberg!
About the Author:
Kylie Logan has loved mysteries since she was a kid. Her dad was a Cleveland Police detective and he introduced her to Sherlock Holmes stories and gave her investigating experience when on his days off, they’d pile into the car and hit the streets to look for stolen cars. When he retired from the force, Dad became head of security for the Cleveland Public Library.
Crooks and books! Kylie comes by her love of mysteries honestly.
Kylie began her career writing historical romance and her book, “Devil’s Diamond” was nominated for a RITA award as historical romance of the year by Romance Writers of America. She’s also written contemporary romance (as Connie Lane), young adult horror (as Zoe Daniels and Connie Laux) and she writes the popular Pepper Martin Mysteries as Casey Daniels.
Kylie is currently writing three different mystery series: the Button Box Mysteries, the League of Literary Ladies mysteries and now, the Chili Cook-Off mysteries. She can’t pass up an antique shop…there might be buttons in there! She can’t put down a classic book . . . even if she already knows the story. And she can’t say no to a good bowl of chili. Luckily, her husband is the world’s greatest chili maker.
When she’s not writing, she’s usually with her family and their two dogs, Ernie, an adorable Airedale, and Oscar, a rescued Jack Russell who came for a short-term stay and ten years later, is still around. Kylie says that those of you who have ever met/lived with/had dealings with a Russell will certainly understand how knowing him has increased her propensity for murder.
Cold-blooded murder can be hot as hell…
In Las Vegas, the stakes are high—and so is the Scoville scale. Maxie Pierce and the Chili Showdown are in town for a very heated contest devoted to judging the legendary and notorious-for-being-self-combustible Devil’s Breath chili. The guest judges are casino performers with a taste for chili and an eye for publicity.
Maxie is already going mad organizing the event, dealing with her snide half sister, Sylvia, and trying to figure out her hothead of security, Nick. But when a local hack comedian drops dead in the middle of the Showdown, it isn’t the spicy dish—it’s poison. And Maxie is going to have to shuffle through a full deck of suspects to pick out the culprit.
Jennifer’s Review of Death by Devil’s Breath
Review (4.5 Stars): Maxie Pierce is in Las Vegas for a Chili competition and during the middle of the judging of the hotter than hot Devil’s Breath chili, a celebrity judge ends up dead right after the taste testing. The last thing that Maxie wants to do is get involved in another murder mystery but she decides to help find the killer to save the Chili Showdown. Hopefully, she finds the killer soon before the competition and their reputation goes up in smoke.
Death by Devil’s Breath is the second book in the Chili Cook-Off mystery series and I definitely loved this story more than the first. Maxie is a character that you will immediately fall in love with because she has a spunky personality and is very entertaining to read. I am always amazed at the crazy situations that Maxie finds herself in and I find myself laughing throughout most of the book. This series keeps getting better and better with well-written mysteries and a fun cast of characters that will keep you coming back for more. I’m looking forward to reading the third book in the series, which I hope will come out sometime next year.
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