Usually, White House Executive Chef Olivia "Ollie" Paras is going about her business of leading a team of chefs prepping and cooking official dinners for the White House when she accidentally gets into trouble investigating various issues that happen to come into the most famous house in the United States. FONDUING FATHERS, the latest installment of the White House Chef Mystery Series, was a bit different, though.

Ollie discovers from her mother that much of what she knew about her father, particularly his death, was wrong. She had been told that he was a military hero who died a sudden death, but Ollie's mother discloses that he was dishonourably discharged from the military and is believed to have been murdered after entering civilian life. Further, he was suspected to have been selling corporate secrets from the company he worked for after leaving the military.

With the help of Gav, her Secret Service boyfriend, Ollie sets out to discover the truth, knowing in her heart that her father couldn't be a dishonourable person or someone who sold proprietary information. Ollie is able to make much headway in a short amount of time due to a combination of Gav's far-reaching connections, Ollie's vacation time, and a stroke of serendipity regarding the number of former colleagues of Ollie's father that are still in the area. Things take a turn, though, when Ollie's investigation ends up threatening national security. Will she ever discover the truth about her father?

Although the plot was a bit of departure for the typical mystery that Ollie usually solves, it was just as engaging as the previous mysteries in this series. As always, the political intrigue was compelling without being overbearing or confusing, and the same can be said for the culinary aspects of the book. The plot moved forward in a way that was interesting, both from a plot perspective and from a relational perspective as Gav was central to the investigation, rather than peripheral.

It was also nice to read about how Ollie's relationship with Gav evolves as the investigation continued. One detail I did miss, though, was that since Ollie spent most of her time out in the field investigating, she didn't interact with the White House staff as much as she does in previous books. All that being said, I very nearly enjoyed the sub-plot almost as much as I enjoyed the plot. Should Julie Hyzy ever decide to write a series about the relationship between Ollie and her budding mentoring relationship with the First Son, I would most definitely read that!

Book Summary

White House executive chef Olivia Paras has enough on her plate. But after gaining new information about her father’s death, the First Family isn’t the only family Olivia is concerned about…

Olivia has always believed that her father was an honorable man—until a trip to visit her mother reveals that he was dishonorably discharged from the army. Olivia is even more shocked to learn that he was brutally murdered because someone at his company suspected him of selling corporate secrets. Refusing to believe that her father was a scoundrel, Olivia won’t rest until she proves his innocence.

Enlisting the help of her boyfriend, Gav, Olivia must reach out to her father’s colleagues to discover the truth behind his murder. What she’s about to discover may not only put her at risk, but threaten national security as well…