Cathy C. (cathyskye) - , reviewed on 4/22/2023 + 2307 more book reviews

In Mastering the Art of French Murder, author Colleen Cambridge does for Julia Child what she's done for Agatha Christie in her other historical mystery series featuring Christie's housekeeper, Phyllida Bright. As in the Phyllida Bright series, Julia doesn't take center stage in the investigation. She is there to provide Tabitha with a sounding board, a little encouragement, and plenty of cooking tips. For someone like me who is familiar with Child through her television series The French Chef and the movie Julie & Julia, this book brought a smile to my face.

Young Tabitha Knight shows the dilemma many women faced at the end of World War II. She thrived as one of the many Rosie the Riveters, but when the war ended, her job disappeared, and it's almost impossible to find an alternative that feels just as important and just as fulfilling. Although Tabitha is a dab hand with a Swiss Army knife, I did find her to be annoying. Always pushing. Always snooping. Always taking just one more risk. There were times I wished she'd stay in the kitchen with Julia, and that's not normal because I don't like to cook.

The mystery surrounding the young woman's death is an excellent one, and Julia Child's cameos kept me from paying as much attention to it as I should have. All in all, Mastering the Art of French Murder is a good start to a new series and should appeal to readers who are interested in solving an intriguing mystery vividly set in a Paris still recovering from World War II.

(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley)

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