DEATH BY CARAMEL MACCHIATO

Yet another murder game turns into the real thing.

Several teams of Pine Hills, Ohio, residents are working to solve a fake murder that’s part of an event directed by Oliver Quick. One of the teams includes a real police detective, John Buchannan; another includes coffee shop owner Krissy Hancock, who’s already solved several murders, much to Buchannan’s annoyance. Originally, Oliver was going to use local actors for the game, but then he changed his mind and imported professionals, a decision that’s led to bad feelings. When Scott, a member of one of the other teams, is found dead by Krissy’s group, the game quickly gets serious. Krissy is warned off by Buchannan and her own boyfriend, Paul. He’s also a police officer, but he knows that Krissy’s curiosity won’t let her walk away, especially once she’s egged on by the friends who’ve helped her in other cases. The self-absorbed Oliver has no problem using the murder to boost his event, and many of the actors don’t want to make waves because they need the work. Krissy has faith that looking into the complex relationships among the actors and members of the detective teams will help reveal a killer, but she’s tested by all the players who lie about their own relationships for reasons utterly unrelated to Scott’s death. Krissy’s sleuthing puts her in danger, and a reporter highlighting her past successes makes her life even more difficult. Despite it all, tidbits of information come together little by little, pointing her in the right direction.

The amateur detective’s irresistible need to investigate drives a story with plenty of red herrings. Maybe too many.