There are so many people involved in this mystery that it feels that a scorecard is needed just to keep up with them all. The economy has been tough on everyone and caterer Goldy Schulz has seen a drop-off in people hiring her. Still, she knows Yolanda Garcia is struggling and hires Yolanda to help her on the few jobs she has. Yolanda has a lot of problems, including an abusive ex-boyfriend, and soon, due to a chain of circumstances, Yolanda and her aunt Ferdinanda are living with Goldy, her cop husband Tom, and her son Arch. Trouble follows Yolanda and soon Goldy is involved in arson, murder, theft, a puppy mill, and more. Like many of Davidson’s other books, the gist of the story is that Colorado-based Goldy gets tangled up in a case that her husband, who’s a sheriff, is working on and would prefer her to stay OUT of. When their neighbor is murdered and leaves Goldy and her hubby to shelter his tenants–one of Goldy’s employees and her wheelchair-bound-aunt-from-Cuba who wields a very nasty baton–along with nine puppies, and a fellow law enforcement officer, let’s just say things get interesting. Each of them is wrapped up in solving the murder for their own different reasons, and the mystery goes in many different directions before it’s all neatly tied up at the end.

Max grins. 'We should have numbers on our butts.' He turns to Daisy. 'Hi, I'm a two thousand. Nice to meet you.' Fantastic caterer she might be, but having a Goldy Shulz dinner might be your last. All she needed last time was a food fight to break out.Really,could more have gone wrong? Crunch Time" is the fifteenth book in Diane Mott Davidson's Goldy Schulz series - a series that at this point I think I'm reading out of habit rather than enjoyment. While better than some of her more recent books (for example Sweet Revenge) it is not as good as the early books in the series. Some of the plot devices are stale at this point - for example you know that Goldy is going to get beat up or injured several times in the book. The things Goldy does to try to solve a mystery have always been a bit too much, but in this book she went way over the top (it amazes me how often her husband and the entire police force simply turn their heads as Goldy breaks law after law). The book also relies far too much on Goldy being in the right place at the right time (or is it the wrong place at the right time?) that puts her in the center of action and danger. Goldy's best friend Marla was barely in the book and while I hardly missed her, I did miss Julian's character quite a bit. His convenient absence seems to serve merely as a way to get Yolanda in the book. While she grew on me as a character, she felt awkwardly thrust into the book - Davidson tries to make it seem like she was always an important part of Goldy's life, but if she was in earlier books I don't remember her. As for the mystery - parts of it were very good, but there were so many things going on the book felt a bit convoluted. Finally, while the book is a good size, the ending still felt a bit rushed and Davidson left a few plot lines dangling. When I read this, I was thinking about taking the ACTs and SATs. In high school, teachers try to get you to take each at least once, if not twice, before going to college. Now I believe more colleges are removing it from being a requirement or making it optional for you to submit it. I am not the best test taker so I was nervous about what my scores would look like and how that would affect my application process. Randomly, I found this book and thought it would be a great idea to read it. I just want to make it known that this was a mistake because I was incredibly nervous about taking the test after reading this.... and ended up not getting the best score. If you are interested in this book review, you can read an interview with author Dr Aliya Hamid Rao on Crunch Time and the implications of its findings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

About the Book

Daisy herself starts out cool. Until, in a spur of a moment, ditches Max and Jane one evening, to go out on a date with Leo. Bitchy, no? Concerned for her friends, Goldy invites them to stay with her while the sheriff’s department investigates. Yet even Goldy’s house isn’t safe, and after a failed break-in by an unknown intruder a cop is sent to keep an eye on things. Then a second body is found. The second problem, which isn't really a problem, I just don't know how I feel, is about the way that the synopsis is. I understand that they tell you about the cheating scandal because it is one of the big draws to the novel. I'm just not sure if I like that it only happened with only about 1/4 of the book left.

Diane Mott Davidson's "Goldy Bear Culinary" mystery series is one of my early favorites, and I'm sad that the author isn't writing anymore. There were about 20 books in total, but this review is for #16, Crunch Time. This was the second or third cozy mystery series I took on, and only the second where I've been able to finish reading all books. (LJB's "Cat Who" series is the other one). I have never had to write the SATs, so I can't really comment on the authenticity of the portrayal of the SATs, but I will say that it is on par with what I know from the movies and other tv shows. A very interesting premise. The idea that someone has cheated on their SATs test and then it is looking at a specific group of friends. I have not really seen a book on this subject. I enjoy this series because she is such a real character. And the supporting cast feel like people you'd love to be around. Humor, sarcasm, love... Goldy's husband and son are very real people.

FOLLOW US

Like family or very old friends,these characters have been defined by certain character flaws and strengths. As readers,we can't control their behavior so we choose to accept it as we continue with the series. Goldy is too inquisitive. Arch is a pain. Tom is steady and Marla generous and gossipy.If one of the novels presented a cautious Goldy,tyranical Tom,skinny Marla and mature Arch,would we bother with these folks? Mariah does a great job in not "bunching" up all these events into one giant one. She goes into one event or situation at a time and doesn't go on until it the previous one is clarified. I personally liked how the book was written from each characters pint of view and not just one. I think reading books that have to do with your time peroid or generation are much more fun to read. Being a high schooler myself, I loved how when i read the book I could relate to many things that happen here at my very own high school. I would recommend this book to high school sophmores and up, just because usually students in there sophmore year are being introduced to SAT's and will have a better understandment of the book. Over all, on a scale of 1-10 I would rate this book a 9 ! Eat good, do good, stay odd. Get creative in the kitchen and join the fight against food waste with Oddbox. In this book, the crime action comes right to Goldy's home, which makes for even more fun. Friends are staying with Goldy after their house burns down, and Goldy knows they are keeping secrets. She pushes her way in and tries to figure out how to help them, keep her business running and ensure her own home and family aren't impacted. But of course, Goldy falls prey to the culprit at one point, too.

So, we created this cookbook to help you, our community, fight the problem of food waste in their own homes. We wanted to show people that fighting food waste is as simple as making the most of what you already have. Sure, it might require a slight shift in how you think about food and how you use your kitchen, but it’s also about having a whole lot of fun (and enjoying some pretty tasty dishes) along the way. When can I buy it? He'll change," I thought flippantly, "He'll grow up and develop into a good person by the end of this novel." This was the most chaotic and unbelievable book in this series to date. It had a confusing plot, distasteful and annoying whiny `too stupid to live' secondary characters and the red herring was so convoluted and unbelievable that it was laughable.In Crunch Time: How Married Couples Confront Unemployment , Aliya Hamid Rao offers a new addition to sociological research on unemployment, delving into the ways that gender beliefs unequally shape men’s and women’s experiences of job search and unemployment. Sarah Damaske recommends this wonderful and engagingly written book for introducing a much-needed gender and work-family lens to the unemployment literature. Davidson has volunteered for numerous organizations. She was a tutor in a correctional facility, rape-victim counselor, and served for 10 years on the Board of Examining Chaplains of the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado. For years she taught the adult Bible study at her parish, where she was also licensed to preach.