ARC Review: Savvy Summers and the Po'boy Perils by Sandra Jackson-Opoku

Savvy Summers and the Po'boy Perils
Author: Sandra Jackson-Opoku
Series: Savvy Summers (Book 2)
Publication: Minotaur Books (July 21, 2026)

Description: The next delectable mystery featuring quick-witted, unforgettable Savvy Summers, owner of a soul food café in Chicago.

Savvy has her work cut out when an old friend hires her to cater a company luncheon at a nearby office building on Chicago's South Side. Stepping out of her traditional soul food comfort zone, Savvy whips together a menu of Creole classics, with her own spin, of course―mini po’boys with assorted fillings, sunburst salad, and bread pudding using Great Aunt Essie’s famous buttermilk biscuits.

But when someone is found dead in the company’s conference room, Savvy’s culinary creations are suddenly in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. While the focus should be on their delicious flavors and inventive techniques, Savvy’s beloved café instead becomes the center of a murder investigation once again.

Caught within a messy web of gossip, miscommunication, and fraught coworker relationships, Savvy will have to settle the confusion to clear her name. Somebody’s hiding something, and with the help of her trusty assistant manager, Penny Lopés, Savvy sets out uncover exactly who is to blame. With familiar faces turning up the heat on her investigation and her café still in hot water, will Savvy be able to save her reputation before it’s too late?

My Thoughts: The second Savvy Summers mystery, set on the South Side of Chicago, has the chef expanding her repertoire into Cajun food and catering an event for an old acquaintance. When one of the attendees is killed by poison in one of Savvy's po-boys, Savvy is on the case. 

Savvy is helped by her first ex-husband Fanon who is a Chicago police officer. She's also helped by the unhoused man who wanders the neighborhood with his canine companion Sergeant Stubby. 

Savvy is also dealing with the closing of her restaurant because of a construction project in the neighborhood. Even though her new restaurant will be a flagship part of the new development, it is hard for her to leave the memories built there since she opened.

This was an entertaining cozy mystery filled with mostly likeable characters. I enjoyed the Chicago setting. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.