Never Trust a Skinny Cupcake Baker by D.E. Haggerty is the first book in the NEW “Death by Cupcake” humorous mystery series, published in April 2016.

A mystery with a heap of laughs, a generous portion of romance, and just a smidgeon of suspense.

Callie’s life is rather awesome. She owns a successful bakery and teaches German literature at the local university. There’s just one tiny problem. She has no self-confidence when it comes to her body. And then there’s the little matter of her being accused of murdering her pole dancing instructor. There’s no way Callie’s going to risk losing her teaching position and thus she embarks, with her best baker bud Anna, on a journey to discover the real killer. Between stripper auditions and a detective who insists Callie is the woman of his dreams, it’s a roller coaster adventure. Cupcakes not included.

This was a fun read and it begins when BFF Anna talks Callie into attending a pole dancing class where immediately the instructor antagonizes Callie. When she is later found dead, Callie becomes the only suspect and it is pink-haired Anna, the rambunctious spitfire, whose glee helps propel Callie into clearing her name and thus ensues the hilarity of the situations these two women encounter that created a fast-paced and action-filled drama that had me laughing from beginning to the sweet ending.

The author did a good job in delivering a well-baked and hilarious mystery that kept me engaged and entertained with witty repartee, a lovable cast of characters and I especially liked the zany sayings that greeted each chapter. Some of the statements were: “My Diet Plan: Make all of my friends cupcakes: the fatter they get, the thinner I’ll look. . .”; “A balanced diet is a cupcake in each hand” and this one had me laughing “An apple a day will keep anyone away, if thrown hard enough” and this one “‘Wow, the Lean Cuisine really filled me up,’ said no one ever.” I can’t wait to read Bring Your Own Baker, the next book in this enticingly amusing new series.