Monday, September 4, 2017

Brewing Up Murder by Neila Young

Summary:


As the owner of Mystery Cup Café in Wilton, Missouri, a town made famous by a string of long-ago murders, Blake Harper is used to the mysterious. When her barista is found strangled in a mound of coffee beans, Blake vows to find the killer, even though her sister, the town’s lead police detective, tells her to stay out of it.

Blake finds plenty of suspects, like the owners of a rival coffee shop and the handsome new bookstore owner. But when new threats are made, she soon realizes the danger is centered around Mystery Cup and someone is targeting her personally.

Will Blake be able to solve the murder, find a new barista, and perfect her recipe for espresso brownies before she becomes the next victim?



My Thoughts:

     I use to be an avid Cozy Mystery reader several years ago but got burnt out when it seemed like every other book was identical.  I was intrigued when Brewing Up Murder was offered to me for an honest review because...coffee! When the book showed up in my mailbox and I saw that the author was local to me? YAY! I have always wanted to find local authors to read and support.  It was also fun to read about places that I have actually been!
     Blake and family were fun and a joy to read about and get to know.  I love the setting of the little town of Wilton, Missouri, that is only famous because it was the backdrop to a serial killer's rampage over fifty years ago.  The coffee shop, Mystery Cup, sounds like a great place to go to and the locals were funny, nosy and realistically written as anyone who lives in a small town can attest to!
     I did not figure out "who dunnit" ahead of time (always a bonus) and Ms. Young did a good job of throwing suspicion out everywhere so you were never sure who to trust. 
      I have a small list of complaints and really two are a bit nit-picky:
1) Even in a small town, I don't think that Blake's sister would be allowed to question her in a murder investigation.
2) It seemed like every character had dead parents!? A bit depressing and worrisome!
3) I am looking forward to more in this series as long as the plotline involving the love life of Blake is not drawn out painfully in several books.  This is a HUGE pet peeve of mine stemming from an old cozy series I used to read.

     If you are looking for a new cozy mystery series to read I think this new series show great promise: 4/5 stars


Author's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/NeilaYoungAuthor/

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