Suzanne Hart is back frying up donuts in April Springs, North Carolina. This time around Suzanne's mother, Dorothy, has had it with the corrupt Mayor and has decided to take a stand by running against him in the upcoming mayoral election. She has lots of support from the town, except for maybe Evelyn, the ex-wife of the Chief of Police and Dorothy's new boyfriend. Evelyn thought her husband would come back to her and now wants to (unfairly) blame Dorothy for ruining her marriage. Evelyn throws her hat in the Mayoral ring so she can reveal Dorothy's true nature.

The campaign is just getting going when the Mayor is murdered in an empty building owned by Dorothy. Suzanne must prove her mom's innocence and everyone is a suspect. Suzanne's biggest challenge is staying away from boyfriend Jake who is in town to investigate the murder and must remain impartial, hard to do when you have such close ties to the prime suspect.

DROP DEAD CHOCOLATE, book seven in the Donut Mysteries series, brings back a favorite amateur sleuth and her band of assistants. I always enjoy getting updates on familiar characters, best friend Grace has a boyfriend who may or may not be a good thing, George is recovering from injuries sustained in an earlier book, and Jake and Suzanne have settled in to their relationship. Ms. Beck efficiently develops lots of suspects and kept me guessing until the end. I haven't tried the donut recipes but they are definitely tempting.

Book Summary

The whole town of April Springs is stirring over the upcoming mayoral election. Suzanne Hart's mother, for one, is dead-set on replacing the current mayor…and what better way for Momma to drum up support than by luring in voters with Suzanne's drop-dead-delicious donuts? Just add chocolate, and they're sure to kill the competition…With Momma's half-baked campaign heating up faster than a donut shop deep fryer, Suzanne wonders if they've bitten off more than they can chew. But when Momma's opponent is brutally murdered, the odds of winning are suddenly, and suspiciously, in their favor. Sure, they'd been planning to beat the mayor—but with speeches and donuts, not a blunt instrument. If Suzanne hopes to reveal the killer's recipe for revenge, she'll have to uncover a plot that's darker than any chocolate…