Just before Thanksgiving, the two are once again competing, this time in a stuffing competition for a television special and a magazine cover. But first, Sophie finds a dead body at her local organic market while shopping for ingredients. While on her way into the store, Sophie is accosted by a man trying to give her a kitten. During her shopping trip, Sophie has a change of heart and decides to at least bring the kitten to pal Nina who works with animal rescue. When she drives around the back of the store looking for the kitten, she finds the man dead in a dumpster and becomes the police’s number one suspect.  

A few days later at the stuffing cook-off, someone switches ingredients on the contestants and the event’s sponsor, Simon, is found dead in a ballroom, mostly likely killed with the contest trophy. Once again, Sophie is in the wrong place at the wrong time and becomes suspect number one.  Not wanting to have to deal with all this two days before Thanksgiving with a houseful of guests, including her sister’s new fiancé Craig about whom Sophie has a funny feeling, Sophie throws herself into holiday preparations. 

A fire at Natasha and Mars’s home increases the guest list for dinner and almost the body count when Mars is poisoned after eating his first course.  Sophie is beginning to take this personally and feels that Natasha is the link to all this.  Hunky detective Wolf seems to believe in Sophie’s innocence, even seems attracted to her, but the rest of the force still thinks Sophie is too near to all the bodies.  

A very fun mystery, The Diva Runs Out of Thyme is full of great characters and an interesting plot. As each body falls, new relationships among the players are revealed making everyone a suspect. There is also a stalker in Sophie’s neighborhood, allowing the introduction of some local characters, who are definitely characters who fit in well with Sophie’s odd, extended family, including ex-mother-in-law June who talks to her dead sister Faye in Sophie’s kitchen that was once Faye’s kitchen. 

Gracious living tips and entertaining ideas are presented at the beginning of each chapter, more fancy ideas from Natasha, more practical from Sophie, but there are also a lot of ideas woven neatly into the plot, almost transparently, though Sophie mentions a few times too often that her ingredients are organic. 

The Diva Runs Out of Thyme is a great start to a series that will leave readers’ mouths watering for the next installment.                                        

--Jennifer Monahan Winberry