If you were ever worried about the security at the White House, don’t be, the chef has it all under control. This series by Julie Hyzy features Ollie (Olivia) Paras as the Executive Chef at the White House. (Actually, in the first book, Ollie is competing for the position of Executive Chef so she is just the first assistant to the Executive Chef.) Extremely well written, you just lose yourself in the story as it flows smoothly along. The characters are very well developed but after a while I realized there was very little in the way of physical description for most of the characters other than short or tall, which lets you form your own picture in your head. I liked that. At the beginning of the series, Ollie has a boyfriend, Tom, who is a secret service agent. Didn’t like him, he really orders around. It was called for, just not the way he did it. Early reviews showed other people felt the same way. And the author obviously listened. The relationships between all the characters change and grow as you make your way through the series. You pick up a lot on the scope of Ollie’s job and a good deal of White House history without it overpowering the story. You also get to see how a change in the first family affects the staff. Having worked in municipal government, I could really relate to how the repeated changes in administration affect those who are always there – for better or worse. Reading the author’s bio, I see nothing to indicate she ever worked at the White House so she must be a very good researcher. The way in which Ollie gets involved in matters of national security is always accidental and very believable. She isn’t butting her nose in where it doesn’t belong. She is just one of those people things happen to. Superb mysteries that have you holding your breath at times, great writing, dashes of history and romance, and recipes at the end. What more could you ask for? One gripe. The Kindle editions cost more than the paperback. What’s up with that? Of course that is a complaint about the publisher, not the author. ♥♥♥♥♥
- State of the Onion
- Hail to the Chef
- Eggsecutive Orders
- Buffalo West Wing
- Affairs of Steak
- Fonduing Fathers
Kate Eileen Shannon 