Roberta Isleib gets it right. In her Key West Food Critic mysteries — written under the pen name Lucy Burdette and starring the irrepressible Hayley Snow — she depicts Key West’s end-of-the-road edginess, tight-knit community and unashamed eccentricity with a rare authenticity.
That authenticity is born of Isleib’s deep affection for the island she calls home, and her dedicated immersion into everything from its festivals to its lesser-known eateries. Other writers have set books in Key West, but Isleib brings a refreshingly genuine perspective to her portrayal of its character (and characters!).
Isleib and her husband John Brady, then Connecticut residents, made their “Key West connection” during an exploratory tour around Florida more than 15 years ago.
“We came down for six days, and he fell madly in love with it and so did I,” said Isleib of the island. “That just seems to be the way — people either fall for it or they don’t get it.”
A similar serendipity led Isleib, a clinical psychologist who had published several previous mystery books, to create her now-bestselling Key West Food Critic series.
“I heard about an editor who wanted a food critic character in a tropical setting,” she said. “I love to eat and there we were in Key West, so I pitched it and she bought it. It was a little bit of dumb luck and being in the right place at the right time.”
Beginning with “An Appetite for Murder,” released in January 2012, the series continued with such food-focused volumes as “Death on the Menu,” “The Key Lime Crime” and “The Mango Murders.” As well as a tasty mystery, they feature recipes that readers can prepare.
The world of series protagonist Hayley Snow is a reflection of Isleib’s research and involvement in the Key West community. Hayley lives on a houseboat, writes food pieces for a local publication and has an octogenarian roommate named Miss Gloria who’s a favorite with readers.
She gets around on a scooter, attends local festivals, endures romantic ups and downs, and is fiercely loyal to her friends. Except for her penchant for stumbling across murder and other crimes, she could be a real-life Key West woman.
Hayley’s authenticity, and that of other characters including the exuberant Miss Gloria, isn’t the only thing that makes Isleib’s books such a treat for Key West residents and visitors.
Real-life island restaurants and other locations pepper the pages, as do events ranging from the nightly Sunset Celebration to the Fantasy Fest costuming and masking extravaganza. All are depicted with vivid accuracy.
“That’s one of the things readers like — especially people who have visited Key West and don’t get to come back as often as they like,” said Isleib. “And I know there are readers who take the books and follow around to where Hayley goes, so that’s really fun.”
It’s not just island locales that appear in the books; island locals tend to pop up too. Key West Police Department chaplain and former officer Steve Torrence, Sunset Celebration tarot card reader Ron Augustine (reinvented as Lorenzo) and chef Martha Hubbard are just a few island residents who populate Hayley’s world.
They also populate Isleib’s world. Former president and longtime board member of the Friends of the Key West Library, she’s also a great fan of the local bookstores and a supporter of The Studios of Key West. An active member and volunteer for the Key West Woman’s Club, she edited the latest edition of the organization’s historic cookbook.
All her experiences, and the people she encounters, help shape her perspective and her novels’ characters. She credits those characters with keeping her energized and inspired to continue the Key West Food Critic series, which includes 16 books following the mid-July debut of “A Delicious Deception.”
“The characters are everything to me,” Isleib said. “The thing I love the most is watching the characters change and their relationships grow.”
Also important to her is the books’ depiction of family — whether biological, adoptive, step or the “found families” of close friends that are so common in Key West.
Isleib said her next mystery is likely to have a slight “time jump” following a life change in Hayley’s family, and may feature the real-life Wisteria Island that lies just off Key West.
She has also devised a plan, based on reader request, to include even more food content in future adventures — a plan likely to please not just readers, but her husband John and Key West restaurateurs as well.
“We love food, and John says I’ve gotten to be a better cook since (creating) Hayley,” Isleib said. “But I told him that he and I will have to go out more this year, because people want more food in the books.”
