A kickoff to the Tiffany Black series. Tiff is a black jack dealer in Vegas & is working on her private investigator license. A high school acquaintance, Sophia, has asked her to look into the charges against her for the murder of her husband Ethan. He was a casino owner, philanderer, father, & has ex wives. Tiffany is reluctant but takes the case (her 1st case). Piecing together an array of people involved with Ethan & the casino sends her to all sides of Vegas hunting down other suspects and information. A physical threat on Tiffany's life has her reevaluating if she really wants the case. Enter Jonathan Stone, security specialist who helps Tiffany learn basic security measures, weapon handling, & encourages her to take self defense classes. He rides to the rescue more than once and there maybe a little spark between them. Tiffany delves deeper into the mystery, ferreting out another crime that ties to the one she's working on. The book was a fast read but had too many characters, misspelled words, & had shades of other authors who use the irritating mother & wacky grandma trope. ( )

A new light hearted cozy mystery series. Tiffany Black is a dealer in a casino on the strip in Las Vegas. I really like the setting for this series. The glamour of the strip and then the complete ordinariness of the rest of the town was endearing for some reason. Tiffany can be a lot of ditz (think Stephanie Plum by Janet Evanovich) but it wasn't too bad. I loved her Nanna. And Glenn (her neighbor and cupcake supplier!) And Stone. The mystery was predictable but I enjoyed the journey getting there. Perfect beach read. ( )

It's such an obvious copy of the Stephanie Plum books it's painful. The only change is her being in Vegas and holding a steady job. It wasn't bad... quick easy read but I was hoping for something new. ( )

from amazon: A Laugh-Out-Loud Cupcakes and Crime Caper

“I tell myself every day that I don’t hate my job… But there‘s a reason I’m trying to leave the madness of the casino pit to become a Private Investigator.”

Cupcake-loving croupier Tiffany Black is determined to leave her job at the casino for good. She’s one small step away from acquiring her Private Investigator license, and has her eye on the prize.

Accepting her first real case – investigating the murder of casino-mogul Ethan Becker – should be exciting. Instead, things spiral out of control and Tiffany finds herself in over her head, as she confronts secretive suspects, corrupt casino henchmen and her mysterious, ex-Special Forces bodyguard.

Tiffany’s poker-hustling Nanna and pushy parents want her to find a nice man and settle down, but Tiffany just wants to track down the real murderer before he finds her first…

I recall that i enjoyed this one - not enough to stick with me forever, but a light fun read ( )

I was ready to give this a better rating, until the author did something unforgivably stupid. WHO with any sense goes on her own to confront a murderer with their murder, without weaponry or any effective knowledge of self-defense??? Even though Tiffany did tell 1 person where she was going, it didn't help- though if she'd not done that, it would have been even more stupid.

That being said, this was a light and entertaining read. The secondary characters had a lot of life and personality to them. The cupcakes are pretty much a gimmick. The mystery was solid- lots of potential, and more complicated than it could have been. ( )