Nora Franke is a food writer, or "Foodie" as they are called in the business. She recently broke up with her long-term boyfriend, which has made her eat too much and worry too much. He tells her, "We need a break." Nora decides that getting away from the hustle and bustle of New York is just what she needs. Her solution is to get a short-term job as a recipe consultant at a high-end spa in Baja. Nora is very happy. She will be spending three months in a beautiful place and will be able to combine her love of food with her need to lose weight from eating too much in New York.
At a health spa, life is a lot like life on a cruise ship. Time speeds up, and most people only stay for a week. Friendships that would usually take weeks or months to grow can happen in just a few minutes, but so can hatred. Nora finds that the guests like her more than the staff, and she quickly becomes part of a loose group of friends who come to the Spa every year to relax and think. This group of rich-looking friends accepts Nora as easily as if they've known her since kindergarten.
The place seems like the perfect place for something bad to happen, and Helen Barer is the perfect author to make it happen. Helen has written a few cook books before, but this is her first murder mystery.
The Louis Vuitton bags start to fall apart the next morning, when Alan's body is found on a nearby mountain. It looks like he died while climbing. Nora notices how the other people in the group react in different ways, from sadness to indifference to maybe something more sinister. The exclusive retreat has been around for 50 years, and this is the first time someone has died there. Before this, the worst injuries were sprained ankles and a mild heart attack from overwork.
There is a second death that can't be explained as an accident. Now Nora is caught in a web of lies. What is going on, and who is to blame for the deaths of these two people?
Nora is right on the trail! She has no training in investigating, but she is determined to find the truth. Obviously, this might not be the best way to live a long life!
I really liked this book, and I think it's a great first try. At 200 pages, it's short enough to read quickly, but it's also long enough to give the characters a lot of depth. I think Nora Franke will show up in more of Helen Barer's books in the future. I think Fitness Kills is a good choice if you want a fun and quick murder mystery.
Helen Barer's first cosy mystery is called "Fitness Kills." It is the first book in a series. Helen was a nonfiction writer for a long time. She wrote everything from cookbooks to TV documentaries. She is at work on her next Nora Franke mystery right now.
