From Publishers Weekly
Chef Heaven Lee is up to her ears in work as she juggles running her restaurant, Cafe Heaven, and the food committee for Kansas City's Eighteenth and Vine Historical District dedication and jazz festival. The area's revitalization is cause for a celebration intended to bring together many diverse groups from the city and beyond in a long-overdue tribute to the area's musicians and their music. But planner Evelyn Edwards, brought in from outside, has ruffled a lot of local feathers, as has Miss Ella Jackson, elbowing into K.C. with her Harlem-launched Miss Ella's Soul Food chain. With her daughter studying abroad and her current love off in Houston for two months, Heaven turns to her friends Mona Kirk and Detective Bonnie Weber when the situation gets dicey. More than the food begins to heat up with Evelyn's electrocution onstage at the Ruby Theater, and the arrival of a documentary film crew and a Russian piano prodigy. Mix in the theft of a painting and the disappearance of Charley Parker's plastic sax from the new Jazz Museum, and matters reach the boiling point. Preservation, recognition and reconciliation are among Temple's (Death by Rhubarb; Bread on Arrival) themes this time around; when local restaurants refuse to supply the festival's soul food, Heaven calls upon the ladies of the city's black social clubs to take charge and work their magic. At the start of each chapter, Temple whets the appetite with instructions for dishes such as Escargot with Pernod, Greens with Leeks and Apples, Hoppin' John, Kansas City Chili and Banana Pudding Trifle, all of which are served during the festivities--making this a pleasure for anyone who likes their mysteries served with recipes on the side. Author tour. (Dec.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Restaurant-owner, chef, and part-time sleuth Heaven Lee mixes herself up with trouble in Kansas City--again. When a blackmailing events planner for an upcoming neighborhood black heritage celebration dies under suspicious circumstances, several members of the celebration committee--including Heaven's good friend Mona--squirm with nervousness. Add to this mix several returning jazz musicians with old grudges, a jealous former star of the black baseball league, and at least two musical imposters, and Heaven has her hands full. An abundance of interesting action, characters, and recipes will place this high on the acquisitions list. Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Book Description
Heaven Lee is not your typical chef. Sure, she's a pro when it comes to whipping up a souffle or a batch of tasty tarts, but Heaven is also a top-notch sleuth.When a big jazz festival rolls into Kansas City, big names and even bigger egos follow. Soul singer divas and renowned jazzmen take over the usually sleepy city, and Heaven Lee has to cook for them all. While Heaven is up to her elbows in hoppin' john and sweet potato pecan pie getting ready for the festivities, the events much despised organizer is murdered. Evelyn Edwards, the snooty events planner hired to run the weekend's festivities, made fast enemies with most of Kansas City. Just before she's murdered, Heaven Lee finds out that she's taking kickbacks from the local restaurateurs involved in the festival. Of course, Heaven also has the pleasure of finding Evelyn's body, which makes her a prime suspect in the eyes of the local police. Just because she's about to be falsely accused of murder, that doesn't mean the unflappable Heaven is going to slow down. The show must go on, and Heaven's headed back to the kitchen with the rest of her crew to cook up some more soul food and get the music started, all while avoiding becoming the killer's next target.


About the Author
Lou Jane Temple is an adventurer. She has taken on the food world, cooking and catering, being a restaurateur, writing about food and wine, and authoring culinary mysteries featuring Heaven Lee. She has also been a guest chef at the Culinary Institute of American and at the famed James Beard Foundation. She lives in Kansas City, Missouri.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Heaven Lee has come into her own as a respected Kansas City chef, and she's savoring every minute of it. With a big-name jazz festival rolling into town, Heaven is on food detail—which means crockpot after crockpot of signature soul food dishes. But murder arrives on the menu when the festival planner—an out-of-towner who'd made a lot of enemies—is electrocuted on the stage of the concert hall. Add the thefts of a priceless painting and Charlie Parker's legendary sax, and it looks like someone's trying to sabotage the celebration. With a stew of suspects—including Heaven herself—she's looking for clues while a killer simmers on the back burner, perparing to serve up a deadly final course...

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Chef Heaven Lee is up to her ears in work as she juggles running her restaurant, Cafe Heaven, and the food committee for Kansas City's Eighteenth and Vine Historical District dedication and jazz festival. The area's revitalization is cause for a celebration intended to bring together many diverse groups from the city and beyond in a long-overdue tribute to the area's musicians and their music. But planner Evelyn Edwards, brought in from outside, has ruffled a lot of local feathers, as has Miss Ella Jackson, elbowing into K.C. with her Harlem-launched Miss Ella's Soul Food chain. With her daughter studying abroad and her current love off in Houston for two months, Heaven turns to her friends Mona Kirk and Detective Bonnie Weber when the situation gets dicey. More than the food begins to heat up with Evelyn's electrocution onstage at the Ruby Theater, and the arrival of a documentary film crew and a Russian piano prodigy. Mix in the theft of a painting and the disappearance of Charley Parker's plastic sax from the new Jazz Museum, and matters reach the boiling point. Preservation, recognition and reconciliation are among Temple's (Death by Rhubarb; Bread on Arrival) themes this time around; when local restaurants refuse to supply the festival's soul food, Heaven calls upon the ladies of the city's black social clubs to take charge and work their magic. At the start of each chapter, Temple whets the appetite with instructions for dishes such as Escargot with Pernod, Greens with Leeks and Apples, Hoppin' John, Kansas City Chili and Banana Pudding Trifle, all of which are served during the festivities--making this a pleasure for anyone who likes their mysteries served with recipes on the side. Author tour. (Dec.) Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal