This is the third book in the Candy Coated series and the second one that I have read. I enjoyed the second book in the series a little more than this one, but it was still a good story. I would actually give it 3.5 stars.

Allie McMurphy runs the Historic McMurphy hotel that her family owns. She is a wonderful fudge maker and a relative newbie to the island. Trying to get in with the locals and not be considered a "fudgie" anymore, she becomes a member of the Fourth of July committee and is tasked with organizing the Fireworks Displays. When the pyrotechnician she hires turns up dead and all the fireworks are destroyed she has to find replacement fireworks and a new technician. Not only that, but Mal, her bichon-frise, finds fires that have been set on the island and now Allie herself is a target of the arsonist. With the help of Jenn, Liz, her boyfriend Trent and others, they find the arsonist and the celebrations are saved.

I love the interactions between the characters in these stories, but I do figure out who the culprit is before the characters in the book which is why it is a little lower in the star rating. If you are handy in the kitchen and would like to try your hand at making fudge, there are a lot of great recipes included.

Overall, this is a fun, light read that cozy mystery readers should enjoy. ( )

While running the McMurphy hotel and fudge shop Allie McMurphy is also in charge of planning the Fourth of July fireworks for the Mackinac Island fireworks celebration. She decides to hire Rodney Rivers to the aerial display instead of the company that had been doing the display for the past few years. When Allie receives several phone calls from Rodney, she goes looking for him all over the island. She discovers his dead body sitting at a desk in the office at the warehouse storing the celebration fireworks. Without Allie knowing it the warehouse has been booby-trapped to explode to destroy the body and evidence of the crime, Rex pulls Allie out of the building just seconds before it explodes. Rex thinks that the explosion is connected to the arson cases he's been working on for the past couple of months. Allie and her group of friends decide to help find the arsonist and Rodney's killer. Allie also has 3 days to find replacement fireworks and a licensed expert to set the display off.

The book is well written with a nice consistency throughout the story which makes it easy to read. It has a good story line from beginning to end and the descriptions of the island make it easy to picture what's going on. The characters have grown and developed throughout the series and so have their relationships in friendship and love. ( )

While running the McMurphy hotel and fudge shop Allie McMurphy is also in charge of planning the Fourth of July fireworks for the Mackinac Island fireworks celebration. She decides to hire Rodney Rivers to the aerial display instead of the company that had been doing the display for the past few years. When Allie receives several phone calls from Rodney, she goes looking for him all over the island. She discovers his dead body sitting at a desk in the office at the warehouse storing the celebration fireworks. Without Allie knowing it the warehouse has been booby-trapped to explode to destroy the body and evidence of the crime, Rex pulls Allie out of the building just seconds before it explodes. Rex thinks that the explosion is connected to the arson cases he's been working on for the past couple of months. Allie and her group of friends decide to help find the arsonist and Rodney's killer. Allie also has 3 days to find replacement fireworks and a licensed expert to set the display off.

The book is well written with a nice consistency throughout the story which makes it easy to read. It has a good story line from beginning to end and the descriptions of the island make it easy to picture what's going on. The characters have grown and developed throughout the series and so have their relationships in friendship and love. ( )

I was so excited and knew I had to read this book when I discovered it took place on Mackinac Island.

I visited there a few times and loved it. A ferry is the only access to the island and no cars are allowed. You can hire horse drawn carriages or bikes, or you can stroll and take in the loveliness. And the Marriott Grande Hotel is beautiful.

Hard to imagine a murder taking place there, but you know what they say, “I never would have believed it would happen here.”

This started out a bit slow for me in the beginning. It took me a bit to get all of the characters straight as I hadn’t read the first two books. Once I got everyone sorted out in my mind, it picked up.

I learned I’m a troll! People who live under the Mackinac Bridge (the lower peninsula of Michigan). I seem to recall that fact now.

Allie finagled her way into being in charge of the fireworks for the Star Spangled 4th celebration and everything is ready to go. And it does. It goes boom. She received an urgent call from the pyro tech warning her that the fireworks had been tampered with. When she was finally able to get to the warehouse, she discovered a dead body and barely got out before the building disintegrated.

Apparently, this isn’t the first dead body Allie’s stumbled over. I wonder if she’s contagious and next her friends will start finding dead bodies.

Allie knows the show must go on, but while scrambling to find more fireworks and a new pyro tech, plus running her hotel, the Historic McMurphy Hotel and Fudge Shop,and making the delicious fudge, she still finds time to do some snooping. She just can’t help it. She’s naturally nosy and this puts her in danger. The next dead body might be hers.

And what’s a cozy without some critters. Allie has Mal, her Bichon-poo puppy, and a stray calico cat that adopted her. I was always waiting for more scenes with these cuties.

Also there’s more than one kind of fireworks happening too. Allie’s rich, sexy boyfriend, Trent, and local police officer, Rex, who has a crush on her. It’s not a love triangle on her part, as she’s head over heels for Trent, but I thought Rex would be a better match for her. He’s bossy and stern when in cop mode, but all bashful when he’s not. Probably why he always appears in uniform when around her.

The cover art is adorable and perfect as it features her two furry friends and the main theme of the book, the fireworks. So cute and colorful.

Sprinkled at the end of about every other chapter are some yummy recipes. I’m going to try some of them. That’s a bonus, food and critters!

I always enjoy the colorful characters in cozy mysteries and there are plenty in this book. From snooty to quirky to grouchy, the author brought them to life.

I mentioned wanting to read this book because of the location. It was fun to flash back to my visits to the island. It helped me to visualize this story and relish it when I recognized something.

Great mystery too. It really was a surprise when the culprit was revealed.

I’ll be going back to read the first two books and any new ones that are released. ( )