The Chocolate Bear Burglary (2002) - Plot & Excerpts
With the second book of the Chocoholic series, I enjoyed some elements of it and while I didn't like others.When an antique dealer Gail is killed, and her stepson is accused of the crime, Lee has to prove his innocence. Is mainly the plot of the book but there are a lot of elements of the book that eventually ties together though not well for the reader to understand in my opinion. For the holiday, Lee and her Aunt have displayed some Teddy Bear molds while there is one that Lee does not like and wishes to wash but her aunt denies that. When the mold is stolen, Lee and her aunt are confused as to why the burglar stole that specific mold when it wasn't the most expensive of the collection. While trying to figure out who broke into the shop, the arrival of her former stepson has her wondering why he is town and what he is hiding. The reader does eventually figure out what he is doing there.Like I said earlier, the mystery and all the elements and plot lines do tie together but to me, I was a little confused. Or at least it took me sometime to understand how everything tied together. Within the first fifty pages, I knew who the killer was, but I didn't understand why the killer killed Gail. There were too many characters with odd behaviors to understand how they all fit in the story. And within the last 20 pages of the story, it had me thinking of a soap opera with the dialogue and tone. On the other hand, I wanted to read this book to find out how Lee and Joe's relationship was going, but because of the media and reporters Joe is still not out in public with his relationship with Lee, which is mainly a phone relationship. I honestly wanted Lee to date the guy running for senator, so Joe would react mainly get out of his uncertainty. By the end, Joe seems to want to make it work and be more public, so I'm interested to see what happens in the third book. And I hope the plot lines fit together better by the end.
I still plan to read the entire series but it seems to be developing some predictability which may or may not be a bad thing. Whatever the Special Chocolate is will be involved in a crime somehow. The person who is either new in town or has not been "home" in years and unexpectedly returns will either end up dead or be accused of killing someone. There is a building romance between the main character and the guy she had a crush on in High School. The pace of their romance due to both having just come out of a bad relationship (Actually the victim in Book 1 is the ex wife of the guy, no he didn't do it) is excruciatingly slow. Either way its a good story and its fun to see who did what and why. The person suspected is usually up to something but it always seems to turn out for the good although they went about it wrong. Course I may have just spoiled it a bit by saying that but its still worth reading to find out what the person is really up to and of course whodunnit and why.
What do You think about The Chocolate Bear Burglary (2002)?
Lee's ex-stepson shows up in a sullen snit and is promptly accused of murder. Lee works to free him and figure out what the deal is about the antique chocolate molds and the burglary. Joe and she actually go public. All ends well.
—ChrisGA
This is the second book in the Chocoholic Mystery series and I am still not thrilled with the author's writing style. But I have been told by a reliable source that this series does get better, so I plan to stick it out. I figured out 'whodunit' fairly early in the story. There really were no surprises. I find the main character to be a bit annoying, but was happy that the whole 'twisted tongue' thing was not as prevalent in this book as the last one. Have #3 here on my TBR shelf so will continue to read this series in the hopes that it improves soon.
—Wendy
Lee McKinney is handling her first winter in Michigan rather well for a Texas gal. She insists that the cold won't slow her down. What does stop her in her tracks is the sudden appearance of her ex-stepson, Jeff. Sullen and refusing to discuss why he's there, Aunt Nettie offers him a temporary job at TenHuis Chocolade.Meanwhile, the town is getting ready for a teddy bear promotion to try to attract winter visitors. Lee and Nettie have borrowed some antique chocolate molds to decorate the shop. But then the shop is broken into late at night and a murder takes place. Are the two related? Why did Jeff sneak out of the house both nights? And, most importantly, can Lee clear him of murder?
—Tabby Kat
