Monday, September 23, 2019

A Cup of Holiday Fear - Cozy Mystery Review

Goodreads:  A Cup of Holiday Fear (Bakeshop Mystery #10) by Ellie Alexander

Rating: Very Good
Source: Publisher

Description:  Ashland, Oregon, looks as pretty as a postcard this holiday season. The halls are decked, stockings hung, and eyes are all aglow--mostly thanks to the buttered rum. Jules Capshaw and her staff at Torte are busier than ever. . . still, even the town's most in-demand bakers need to take a break. So Jules invites everyone to celebrate at the local Winchester Inn's Dickens Feast, a six-course extravaganza with Yorkshire Pudding, Christmas goose, and all the trimmings. But as the weather outside becomes frightful, things inside turn less delightful when one of the guests ends up as dead as Scrooge's doornail. Now it's up to Jules and her helpers to make a list of suspects--and check it twice--to try to find out who's naughty, who's nice, and who's guilty of murder...

Genre: Mystery - Cozy

Why I Picked This Book:  This is a favorite series so of course I had to scoop up this Christmas themed mystery!

My Impression:  This has been a favorite series from the beginning and this latest book is no different.  I love the cast - every member of Torte feels like a friend and while Jules can sometimes be a bit too perfect the feeling of hanging out with friends more then makes up for it.  I've actually missed the last couple of books in this series so I was anxious to catch up with Jules, Andy, Sterling and the rest of the crew.  As expected they're coming up with all kinds of tasty drinks and treats and stumbling across the occasional dead body.

I really liked the addition of the Winchester and the Dickens Feast as the setting and getting some history of Jules' parents in the early days of Torte was really fun.  The mystery was a fun one with lots of twists and turns and a bit of a surprise ending.  If you enjoy small town cozies with characters that feel like friends and a setting you wish was real then this a great series to pick up!

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  Absolutely!  This is one of my favorite series and this author has at least one other series I'd like to try.

Would I Recommend this Book?  If you enjoy cozies - especially foodie ones - then this is a must not miss!

* I received this book in exchange for an honest review.  As always my opinions and impressions are completely my own. *

7 comments:

  1. This looks good and perfect for the #HoHoHoRAT. It's the first day of Fall and you have me thinking about Christmas and murder!

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  2. This looks so good. I really want to read this series.

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  3. Looks fun! Always nice to revisit bookish friends or a cozy small town. :)

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  4. A Christmas cozy! This sounds like a lot of fun. I am glad you enjoyed it, Katherine.

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  5. Sounds very tasty and good to hear the mystery kept you surprised at the end.

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  6. This sounds like a wonderful series! It is hard to believe that the Christmas books are already hitting the shelves.

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