Author: Krista Davis
Published: May 27, 2025 by Kensington Cozies
Format: Kindle, Harcover, 320 Pages
Genre: Amateur Sleuth
Source: My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.
Series: A Domestic Diva Mystery #18
Blurb: Stylish brunches are all the rage this autumn in Old Town Alexandria, and everyone’s posting their parties on social media. But while Domestic Diva Sophie Winston juggles her event-filled calendar, she’s approached by local designer Mitzi Lawson—who is afraid someone is following her. The very next day Mitzi loses her best friend and business partner, Denise. The two were renovating a generations-old house where Denise died unexpectedly, and Mitzi fears that it wasn’t a medical condition to blame, but murder.
It could just be the shock talking, but Sophie agrees to help Mitzi involve the police. Then she receives a panicked phone call from Mitzi, and when she rushes to the old house, Mitzi is nowhere to be found. Now Sophie’s appetite for investigation is piqued even more than her appetite for eggs Benedict and mimosas.
Could Denise’s death be connected to her viper’s nest of in-laws or the house she was working on which her husband just inherited? What of the self-proclaimed etiquette expert with some improper secrets, or the scheming mistress? Or does the old house harbor secrets of its own? There’s a generous buffet of suspects to keep the Diva scrambling for an answer . . .
My Opinion: Eighteen books in, and Sophie Winston is still at it in Old Town, Virginia. Solving murders, relying on gossip and rumor, and somehow always wearing the perfect seasonal outfit from her magic closet, since she rarely steps inside a boutique.
If you’re new to the series, don’t worry. Davis gives a friendly recap of the usual cast of characters (because who can remember seventeen books' worth of backstory?). That said, this installment throws in a whole batch of new names and you might need to reference a family tree, or at least a nap and a notepad, to keep them straight.
The setup is classic cozy: a historic mansion, a dead interior designer with complicated connections, and a whodunnit that hinges on hearsay and social slipups. With so much in the mix, Sophie is summoned, yet again, because being an amateur sleuth seventeen times gives you lifetime murder-solving privileges. And yes, on occasion, she lets the actual police do their job.
Aunt Faye’s maybe-haunted portrait (this was a plot point in an earlier book) gets a revisit in this book. The light is golden, the frame tilts, but alas, the supernatural subplot from previous books seems to have fizzled into little more than a nod. Still, that detail, plus a twisty discovery of bones from the late 1960s found behind a wall, and Faye’s journal, offers just enough surprise to keep things rolling.
The Diva Poaches a Bad Egg is exactly what you'd expect from Krista Davis: a cozy mystery that’s more about quirky charm and familiar rhythms than heart-pounding suspense. Is this groundbreaking? Nope. But it’s not supposed to be. This is your revisit with fictional friends who get the job done while never missing brunch.
It could just be the shock talking, but Sophie agrees to help Mitzi involve the police. Then she receives a panicked phone call from Mitzi, and when she rushes to the old house, Mitzi is nowhere to be found. Now Sophie’s appetite for investigation is piqued even more than her appetite for eggs Benedict and mimosas.
Could Denise’s death be connected to her viper’s nest of in-laws or the house she was working on which her husband just inherited? What of the self-proclaimed etiquette expert with some improper secrets, or the scheming mistress? Or does the old house harbor secrets of its own? There’s a generous buffet of suspects to keep the Diva scrambling for an answer . . .
My Opinion: Eighteen books in, and Sophie Winston is still at it in Old Town, Virginia. Solving murders, relying on gossip and rumor, and somehow always wearing the perfect seasonal outfit from her magic closet, since she rarely steps inside a boutique.
If you’re new to the series, don’t worry. Davis gives a friendly recap of the usual cast of characters (because who can remember seventeen books' worth of backstory?). That said, this installment throws in a whole batch of new names and you might need to reference a family tree, or at least a nap and a notepad, to keep them straight.
The setup is classic cozy: a historic mansion, a dead interior designer with complicated connections, and a whodunnit that hinges on hearsay and social slipups. With so much in the mix, Sophie is summoned, yet again, because being an amateur sleuth seventeen times gives you lifetime murder-solving privileges. And yes, on occasion, she lets the actual police do their job.
Aunt Faye’s maybe-haunted portrait (this was a plot point in an earlier book) gets a revisit in this book. The light is golden, the frame tilts, but alas, the supernatural subplot from previous books seems to have fizzled into little more than a nod. Still, that detail, plus a twisty discovery of bones from the late 1960s found behind a wall, and Faye’s journal, offers just enough surprise to keep things rolling.
The Diva Poaches a Bad Egg is exactly what you'd expect from Krista Davis: a cozy mystery that’s more about quirky charm and familiar rhythms than heart-pounding suspense. Is this groundbreaking? Nope. But it’s not supposed to be. This is your revisit with fictional friends who get the job done while never missing brunch.
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