Campervans, Cooking, and Corpses: A humorous van life cozy murder mystery by Tyler Rhodes

Blog posted written by Yvette, The TechieScrapper

Author: Tyler Rhodes

Series: Max’s Campervan Case Files -  Book 1 of 15

Book released: 2023

Started: 26 September 2025

Completed: 28 September 2025

Format: Libby, borrowed – do not own

Listening time: 6 hours

Total pages: 197 pages

Star rating: 3.25

Book synopsis/review:

This read is very light-hearted about a chef who quit his job and went on the road with his dog, Anxious, making one-pot meals, no stress, and getting back to a simple life.  The life of a chef cost him his marriage and, at times, his sanity.

Max (MMC) Effort (note the pun) was a chef at a Michelin 3-star restaurant, and he has a plan, and he thinks it's a cunning one. Sick of preparing high-class food and despairing of anything served on a slate rather than a plate, he embarked on a tour of the backroads of Britain. 

When he realized that he was not winning back his ex-wife, Min, he sold his house and bought a VW campervan.  He heads out on the road with his dog, Anxious (a Jack Russell terrier – having had one for a dog, the name completely fits this breed of dog. It’s the dog that played Eddie on the Frasier TV show).

His goal is to create only one-pot meals and tour the back roads of the British countryside.  He and his dog, Anxious, arrive at the first campsite only to run headlong into a murderer who rolled up in a tent placed in the middle of the road.

The local Constable is named BethAnn. She is enthusiastic, very young, and wants to solve the case. Bring in her grandfather, Dai, a grumpy farmer and campsite owner, with some nasty characters who wish to buy the farm to turn it into a holiday park, plus other family members, possibly up to no good, and there's a complex set of stories going on. There is an awful lot of 'living in a camper', which is fun and true, and there is too much about Max's hippy parents, ex-wife, and how he really wants to get back with her. The story also includes two detailed one-pot cast-iron recipes.

It was a fun palate cleanser to get back into reading.  This is a light and easy read. I really enjoyed it; the characters are good, and the story continued at a good pace, with some nice twists and turns.  I can see reading the next book in the series (“Slaughter At The Seaside”) if I get in another rut.  There are 15 books in this series (Max’s Campervan Case Files).