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Summary: Bitterness spoils the fun
Review: Goldy is most fun when she has a fiesty attitude. In this mystery she's too pre-occupied with the Jerk. Memories weight her down. The plot and relationships get bogged down, too. Loose ends (such as the window damage left by her ex) aren't resolved. Not what I'd come to expect.
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Summary: Her recipes are an added bonus to a great read!
Review: As usual Ms. Davidson has caught my interest with the first chapter and I couldn't put it down until the finishing line. I almost had this murderer figured out but as usual she gives it a twist at the end which totally leaves me out on the limb. Her characters are every day real people and the integrated humor is very enjoyable. I love this book and her others. My 13-year old daughter is also hooked on them. Can't wait for her next book!
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Summary: I haven't had this much fun since I read Nancy Drew !
Review: Davidson is an easy read. I eagerly await each of her new books. I find it difficult to second- guess her plots. The development of her relationships with the men in her life is a twisted path, but insteresting to read. The Grilling Season won't give you nightmares-- but then you will probably finish it before going to bed.
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Summary: Light bite, not very filling...
Review: In Diane Mott Davidson's The Grilling Season, caterer and amateur sleuth Goldy Schulz once again finds herself in the soup. Goldy discovers the body of Suz Craig, lying in a ditch by the side of the road. Craig was a vice president of a local HMO, and also the girlfriend of Goldy's ex-husband, Dr. John Richard Korman. When her body is found, Dr. Korman (prominent ob/gyn) is arrested for her murder. Korman has a history of brutal physical and verbal abuse toward women, although most people in small Aspen Meadows know little about this violent side.
Goldy is a key witness in the case and is told not to interfere in any way with the investigation. But when she can't stand the whining of her 14 year old son, she agrees to snoop around. She quickly discovers that Suz Craig is not very well liked (personally or professionally) and that there are plenty of individuals with a good motive for the killing. Throughout her snooping, Goldy continually cooks and prepares for catering affairs. The book is sprinkled with a number of recipes for foods mentioned in The Grilling Season.
This is my third book of this series, and I'm not really that impressed. The plots are simple and many of the characters are truly annoying. Also, for someone who likes to cook, I find the recipes are not even tempting. This book was a little better than the last book I read, but I'd much rather read Grafton or Evanovich. There are too many other good mystery series out there. But at least it's a light, fluffy and very fast read.
Rating: 
Summary: The Grilling Season
Review: This book is a MAJOR let down! What the heck is wrong with the main character Goldy .. someone who has supposedly suffered severe abuse from her ex, yet goes to his aid when he's accused of murder thanks mental and physical abuse that their son inflicts upon her! (Given his behaviour in this novel, why can't she see she's basically raising her son to be a carbon copy of her ex?)
Just what is Mott Davidson thinking?
Lets get real here.
Would any NORMAL woman allow herself to be subjected to this kind of unbelievable nonsense? Come to think of it, why the heck is Goldy still living in the same town as JRK if she's SO damn scared of him?
I can't believe there are future volumes regarding Miss Goldy who, IMO must love abuse or wouldn't have been tolerating this stuff for so long.
I can't say I'll be bothered reading them though!
Rating: 
Summary: OK but not her best
Review: I've come late to this series and I'm trying to read them in order. On the whole I've enjoyed them and the characters, but I think Arch needs an attitude adjustment and Golda needs to get some backbone...I have never been abused so maybe the victim mentality continues forever but Arch seems to be turning into a manipulator who knows all the right buttons to push. This is probably too harsh a criticism for a book that is over all a good read.
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Summary: Enough of the JERK! Enough of the series.
Review: It was all I could do to listen to all of this book. As far as I am concerned Ms. Davidson goes over the top in this book in her treatment of the JERK and his rampages. He could show up far less often in this book to far better effect. So intensly mean and abusive is he that I had to turn off the tape and take a break from his tirades. For those who have not read it I will not say weather we see the last of him here. But in more recent books the adolescent Arch seems to take more and more after him. It is for that reason I will read no futher in the series.
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Summary: Tuna and Suspects on Goldy's Grill
Review: The food is the best part of this entertaining mystery. The dishes all sound irresistible, and food as therapy is well displayed both through cooking and eating. If that were all there was to the book, it would be a five star effort.The story involves Goldy Schulz in some sleuthing when her ex-husband is charged with killing his latest girl friend. On the surface, it looks like he went overboard with his favorite activity of beating up women. Their son, Arch, is horrified and wants to protect and help his Dad. Reluctantly, Goldy tries to do the right thing, even though she cannot stand the vicious creep (referred to as The Jerk in the book). Unfortunately, Ms. Davidson chooses to turn Goldy into a punching bag for physical and mental abuse throughout the often-distressing plot. Her ex-husband hurts her, suspects hurt her, and her son treats her like something he stepped in. Now really, enough is enough. We all know that much such abuse occurs every day. I did not see that it advanced the plot or my understanding of it to have the heroine being constantly assaulted. On the other hand, Ms. Davidson's development of the theme is well done. She nicely captures the lassitude and passive cooperation of the victim mentality, and the utter insensitivity of the abusers. The mystery itself involves a sort of HMO gothic, filled with evil careerists who stop at nothing to advance their own ends. Where are the silver stakes when we need them? I thought that the legal aspects of the plot were badly flawed. Goldy is married to a police officer, and she repeatedly acts in ways that compromise the legal case against various suspects. Ms. Davidson needs someone who knows criminal procedure to look these stories over for her. Goldy's marriage would have lasted about 4 minutes if she had done these things as the real wife of a real police officer. Her abuses of the legal process are awful! If you are a devoted Diane Mott Davidson fan, you will probably enjoy the story enough to read it, but it will probably be your least favorite of her books. If you have not yet read her work, I suggest you skip this one and read any of the earlier ones instead. After you finish the book (if you decide to read it), I suggest that you think about how you could use comfort food in a healthy and supportive way to improve your life and the lives of those you love. Bon appetit!
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