When old friend and Old Town Alexandria gourmet shop owner Jacques Lavoie doesn’t show up as scheduled for his guest appearance at a cooking class, Annie heads to his store where she finds Jacques’s assistant Greg shot on the floor and dead. Annie’s best friend Eve’s ex-boyfriend detective Tyler shows up on the scene and is not surprised to find Annie there. 

Realizing that Greg was shot in the feet and bled to death because of the blood thinners he was taking, Annie and Tyler agree that someone just wanted Greg to talk. Because Jacques has disappeared, he becomes Tyler’s number one suspect. Annie and Jim can’t believe their old friend could be involved in Greg’s death and begin a frantic search for him which turns up quite a few secrets from his past that make the pair wonder how well they knew the Frenchman. 

At the same time, Annie’s ex-husband Pete returns into the picture. Pete begins turning up at odd moments when Annie is around, leaving her to wonder what’s up with him and whether her feelings for Jim are strong enough to survive around her handsome and charming ex (even if he is a lying cheater).  

Dying for Dinner starts out at a quick pace, but a couple of times during the story, readers will have a, “why didn’t anyone else think of that?” moment, making the plot lose some momentum. A couple of trips away from Virginia (to Atlantic City, NJ and Pennsylvania) that take several hours each, and a multi-thousand dollar poker game, don’t seem to phase Annie and company in the least as they search for their friend. 

Loyal to a fault, Annie is a warm, caring person, most often wanting to give people the benefit of the doubt, even ex-husband Pete, except when Eve and Tyler appear to be getting close again. There are plenty of culinary gadgets described in the narrative, and a selection of recipes appears at the end, an added bonus for the foodie in all of us.                                                  

--Jennifer Monahan Winberry