Title:	Dangerously Dark
	Author:	Colette London
	Published:	2015, Kensington
	No. of Pages:	352
	Cover Price:	$7.99 Paperback, $5.84 Kindle

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Just what is a "Chocolate Whisperer" anyway? Dangerously Dark is the second novel in the Chocolate Whisperer Mystery series, and it's a unique take on the traditional culinary mystery. Hayden Mundy Moore (a trust fund kid and chocolate expert) is invited to an engagement party weekend for her college friend, Carissa, who runs Churn PDX, a food trailer in a cart pod called Cartorama in Portland, Oregon. When Hayden arrives, Carissa opens her cart and discovers her fiancé, Declan, dead on the floor. The police rule it an accident; Hayden isn't so sure. Declan died from inhaling liquid nitrogen, which is used in Carissa's cart to flash freeze all of her different chocolate ice creams. Hayden has recently been involved in a murder at her last chocolate consulting job, and has it on her mind.

As Hayden investigates, she learns that the cart owners in the Cartorama, as well as the owner of the bar, consider each other family; they rally around Carissa, who is suspiciously not all that upset about the death. In fact, none of the "family" members are all that upset, and Carissa is a viable suspect. Hayden is determined to vindicate her friend, and discovers plenty of incriminating evidence against almost everyone, and since she is not a trained detective, misses plenty of clues. At one time or another she suspects each of Carissa's acquaintances. Unfortunately, Hayden's snooping is upsetting to the others. She isn't sure if she's imagining it, but thinks someone is trying to kill her. There are several attempts on her life, as well as some of the other characters.

Although it is difficult to imagine that chocolate could be suspenseful, the nuances of chocolate serve as a perfect backdrop for the events surrounding the murder, funeral, and investigation. The chocolate dishes mentioned, as well as the recipes and the chocolate trivia add to the fun. London does a good job of creating very unique characters, and the entire novel is a bit touch-in-cheek, so even though there is suspense, and the main character is in grave danger, readers will be smiling as they read the humorous parts and puns.

Chocolate lovers, cozy lovers, and culinary mystery lovers will certainly enjoy this novel. It is well-written, fast moving, and entertaining. The ending is also surprising. Hayden is a likeable character, as well as her bodyguard and her trust-fund administrator, so most readers will want to read all the books in the series. There are several errors in the review copy, especially having to do with spaces between words; they really don't affect the enjoyment of the book, and it is expected that they will be fixed in the print copy.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying an advance review copy of this book.

This book may be purchased at Amazon:
Dangerously Dark (A Chocolate Whisperer Mystery), Paperback
Dangerously Dark (A Chocolate Whisperer Mystery), Kindle