Book Review: Getting Skinny by Monique Domovitch

Getting Skinny by Monique Domovitch is the first book in the Chef Landry Mystery series. This cozy mystery for foodie fans follows Nicky Landry, a chef who has put on a few extra pounds. However, she thinks her life is good, she has great friends, partial ownership of her own restaurant, and is about to be proposed to by her boyfriend Rob. Except, things are not as great as they appear. After discovering Rob has been cheating and confronting him, Nicky discovers his body in her backyard and becomes the main suspect. Determined to clear her name, and find the real killer, Nicky begins to investigate only to discover that everyone around her has secrets of their own, and very well could be the killer.

Getting Skinny was a great mystery read. The suspects for Rob's killer were many, and I was left guessing and suspicious about just about every character until the reveal. Nicky is a smart character, with some self esteem issues, but while they did color some of the story they did not detract from her confidence in her abilities, only in her appearance. While that can get annoying, the line of being aware of her own flaws as well as her strengths, did not cross the line to the level of some other fiction about those of us that carry a few extra pounds. Nicky's friends are strong characters in their own right, and do not feel like secondary characters at all, rather in many cases I was wondering if they pulled the murder off or worried that since this is the start of a series, that they might just be the victim of the next murder mystery.

I recommend Getting Skinny to readers that enjoy a solid mystery with well written characters and a mystery that leaves you guessing about even the main character's best friends as suspects. Cozy mystery lovers, particularly those that enjoy food related fiction, will enjoy the story. There are even recipes for some of the dishes described in the story included at the end of the book.