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Rating: 
Summary: one of her best
Review: "The Last Suppers" was the first one of Diane Mott Davidson's charming Goldy Bear Schulz series that I read, and I rate it as one of her best. As the book opens, Goldy is at the Episcopal church gowned in full wedding splendor, worrying not only about the life-changing ceremony but also about the food for the reception.....A female British mystery author once wrote that, despite whatever else is happening in life, women still have to worry about what to make for dinner! This is certainly true for caterer Goldy, who cooks and serves no matter what or where.The wedding does not happen as planned. The priest is found murdered, and the groom, police officer Tom Schulz, disappears. For much of the action in this book, Goldy is on her own, worrying about Tom, focused on finding him. There is more tension for Goldy in "The Last Suppers" than in any of the books of the series, but she carries on and the plot will carry you along with her. Recommended as a page-turner!
Rating: 
Summary: Not quite satisfying...
Review: This is the second Diane Mott Davidson that I have read, and although it is light and fluffy and entertaining, we're not talking great fiction or even great mystery here. Davidson is one of the many mystery writers nowadays who has come upon a theme, and her theme is food. The main character, Goldy Bear, is a caterer and while she's running around solving crimes, she's also cooking up a storm. Three things kept me from giving this book more stars. First, the plot is rather hokey and it's hard to believe that after Goldy's fiance' is kidnapped just minutes before her wedding, that in the three days following, she would take on last minute catering jobs. Also, Goldy never listens to the police and always tries to solve things on her own (makes you wonder why she hasn't been killed). Second, I'm a devout Episcopalian and while I usually enjoy books with Episcopal themes, the complicated jargon of the Episcopal Church even got tiring to me after awhile. Most non-Episcopalians would be hard pressed to give definitions of narthex or ambry. Finally, as someone who likes to cook and entertains quite a bit, I found that the dozen or so recipes that are included in this book didn't even appear appetizing (except for maybe the cinnamon buns). Anyway, I will admit that I was anxious to keep turning pages to see who the villain was in this book. But overall, I don't think it is one of Davidson's better efforts.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable
Review: This may be the last book that I read in the Goldy Bear series. While the writing is enjoyable and the characters are engaging, the mystery takes a back seat to the food. This is not necessarily bad, but I was able to figure out who and what fairly early into the story. On the positive side, I still wanted to read the book and find out how the solution developed - how Goldy puts all the pieces together. The long descriptions of food and its preparations made me very hungry, and the recipes that Ms. Davidson includes seem almost worth the price of the book, even if I am slightly disappointed in the mystery. So I offer a qualified recommendation of this book - enjoyable and tasty but not quite filling
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