When an ice cream vendor discovers a frozen stiff, a Florida diner owner must serve up some just desserts . . . “A fun new series.”—E. J. Copperman, national bestselling author of the Haunted Guesthouse Mysteries
Gia has become good friends with Trevor, a fun, flirtatious bachelor who owns the ice cream parlor down the street from her popular All-Day Breakfast Café. Trevor has the scoop on all … Trevor has the scoop on all sorts of local attractions and activities. But when he bursts into her diner, trembling and paler than a pint of French Vanilla, she can tell something’s very wrong. Trevor points her toward his shop, then passes out cold. When Gia arrives there, she discovers a chilling sight—a dead body in the open freezer. But the ice cream man’s troubles are just beginning. The police suspect him of this murder a la mode, especially when details of his questionable past surface. Gia believes in her friend and is determined to clear his name and find the real cold-blooded killer before someone else gets put on ice . . .
Praise for the writing of Lena Gregory
“Hold on to your plates for this fast-paced mystery that will leave you hungering for more!” —J. C. Eaton, author of the Sophie Kimball Mysteries, on Scone Cold Killer
“Family secrets, old mansions, and a growing list of murder victims—these elements and more blend together to make an intriguing as well as entertaining cozy mystery.” —RT Book Reviews on Occult and Battery
“As breezy and salty as a gust of wind off the chilly bay waters.” —Juliet Blackwell, New York Times–bestselling author of the Witchcraft Mysteries on Death at First Sightmore
Another great addition to the series! I very much enjoyed the mystery and the characters. I’m hoping this series will continue!
*I received a free copy of this book which I voluntarily chose to write an honest review for.
Gregory has become one of my go-to cozy mystery authors when I am felling in the mood and this new installment to the adorable series was no exception. I fell in love from the very first page as Gia yet again charms the reader as she runs her breakfast cafe with efficiency. Things are going pretty well until her friend Trevor finds a dead body in the freezer of his ice cream shop. Well of course Gia has to get involved in the mystery even if she does try not to. Her curiosity just will not abate but that is what this so great. The blend of the characters, the cafe, and the mystery comes together to create this absolutely fantastic cozy that I just could not put down once I started. If like great characters, food, and a mystery you really have to read this one though the whole series has been amazing. In case you cannot tell I totally loved it so I give it 5/5 stars.
What a lovely cozy mystery! I didn’t read the previous instalment but I had no problems in understanding the lovely cast of characters and what was going.
I loved the plot, that kept guessing till the end, as much as the setting and the cast of characters.
The style of writing was very good, the plot is engaging and entertaining.
Recommended!
Many thanks to Kensington Books and Netgalley for this ARC
A Cold Brew Killing
All-Day Breakfast Cafe Mystery, Book #3
Lena Gregory
5 Stars
Synopsis:
When an ice cream vendor discovers a frozen stiff, Florida diner owner Gia Morelli has to serve up some just desserts . . .
Gia has become good friends with Trevor, a fun, flirtatious bachelor who owns the ice cream parlor down the street from her popular All-Day Breakfast Café. Trevor has the scoop on all sorts of local attractions and activities. But when he bursts into her diner, trembling and paler than a pint of French Vanilla, she can tell something’s very wrong. Trevor points her toward his shop then passes out cold. When Gia runs down to his shop, she discovers a chilling sight—a dead body in the open freezer. But the ice cream man’s troubles are just beginning. The police suspect him of this murder a la mode, especially when details of his questionable past surface. Gia believes in her friend and is determined to clear his name and find the real cold-blooded killer before someone else gets put on ice . . . (Goodreads)
Review:
The characters are well rounded and well developed. Although Gia does not have a conventional family, she has a family of friends and co-workers who mean so much to her. I love the relationship between Gia and Savannah, it seems so warm and sincere. All of her relationships feel that way.
The writing style flows smoothly and the book was an easy read. The author is very talented in her descriptive writing and drew me into the story from the very beginning. Boggy Creek and all of the shops and restaurants came to life in my mind and it is a place I would like to visit.
The mystery was well plotted and moved along at a nice pace. There were plenty of twists and turns and red herrings thrown in and it was a difficult mystery to solve, which is fine with me.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a well crafted cozy mystery. It has humor, personable characters, loving friendships and an intriguing mystery. I have read all the books in this series and they just keep getting better.
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by the publisher, Kensington Books, and NetGalley, which I greatly appreciate.
Some people said that crime increased once Gia Morelli moved to Florida.
This time, she did not bring it, but crime is dropped right at her doorway.
All the wonderful crowd from her breakfast cafe are included as this mystery revived from the past regenerates in Gia’s neighborhood and friends circle. A timely novel as there are political elections nearing and none of the candidates are fit for office.
This all seem to be taking a toll on Skyla and Trevor is taken in as a person of interest in a murder.
Gia and Savannah are supposed to take a few days of vacation, but what should be a ”5 minute stop” takes them in a new direction. Of course this all takes a toll on Gia’s budding romance as well.
Action packed, tense and timely, this book has something for every adrenaline junkie!
A Cold Brew Killing is the fourth novel in Lena Gregory’s All Day Breakfast Cafe series. Cafe owner Gia Morelli is drawn into a murder investigation when her good friend and fellow business owner, Trevor Barnes, finds the body of mayoral candidate Ron Parker in the walk in freezer at his Storm Scoopers ice cream parlor.
This death spurs decades old history regarding the actions of a group of wealthy, entitled boys and their actions during high school. It seems that one of these men is now running against his one time buddy for mayor, that is until his opponent is murdered and a second from their group is also killed.
In a dark mystery involving the present-day topics of date rape drugs and sexual misconduct, as well as the current political climate, Ms. Gregory spins a thoughtful tale which will keep the reader engaged and guessing until the end. I did enjoy this book and do recommend it!
Another enjoyable book in the series. A lot of great characters and I like how they are evolving.
This series is great. Love her writing. Can’t wait for the next in the series.
Quick and easy. It kept my interest I did not out it down until I was done. Love rappirt between the main charecters.
“A Cold Brew Killing” earns 5/5 earns Scoops of Frozen Treats…Murderously Fun!
I love breakfast! So, besides eggs, bacon, and toast, you get a side order of murder with Lean Gregory’s entertaining third book. This book is much like a standalone making it easy for newbies to start here…engaging murder mystery than concludes, no spoilers to other books, and character connections are revisited. The murder mystery is very clever requiring Gia Morelli to step in and support her friend who has found a dead body in his freezer tucked in next to the Italian Ice. Plenty of suspects with motives and secrets revealed make it a nice mystery all the way to a satisfying conclusion. Characters are developing nicely with fun banter and budding and endearing relationships. “A Cold Brew Killing” was a great read…definitely recommended!
Gia is back at it in A Cold Brew Killing. Partnering with her friend Trevor who owns the ice cream shop, Gia is working on cold brew that the two shops will share. When Trevor stumbles into her café in shock and she finds a dead body in his, her only instinct is to figure out what happened. Gia is certain that Trevor is innocent even though, now, she may be the only one. As the mystery unfolds, childhood friends, enemies, and frenemies crawl out of the woodwork bringing with them means and motive for both the murder and the set up, if indeed, Trevor is innocent.
I really enjoyed A Cold Brew Killing. The book is perfectly paced – not too fast and not too slow. I was pulled in from the very beginning and engaged in the plot. The character development continues, and we learn more about the characters and learn backstory without being bogged down with useless filler. The story was fun, exciting, suspenseful, and full of twists and turns. I had a wonderful time trying to figure out just what happened and who was responsible. The continued world building is great, and I was able to visualize the story.
Gia came from New York one person and has since evolved into another as she gets used to the differences in Florida. Gia is a very strong character and I enjoy the books about her world. I love that the author does not, at any time, write her as weak or unstable. She’s just had a very rough past that she thought she would escape by moving away from her former life and completely starting over. Samantha and Hunt are stability characters for Gia. Savannah is a wonderful best friend and Hunt proves to be another person who has Gia’s back.
As in previous books, Gia does some questionable things in A Cold Brew Killing that made me shake my head. Her shenanigans don’t detract from the story, though. The characters are all likeable, the setting in Florida is nice. The chemistry between Gia and Hunt is sweet and believable. I prefer a little bit of soft romance in my cozy mysteries. I really enjoy the author’s writing style and love her Bay Island Mystery series.
A small-town homicide puzzles café owner Gia and her friend Savannah, while it sets the rest of the town on edge. As Gia sets out to prove her accused friend innocent, gradually a picture forms of the murky past that lead to the truth coming out.
I liked how much time the main character, Gia, spent working in her cafe. I also appreciated how her routine was explained and the food was made to sound so appetizing. I think I would like to visit the All-Day Breakfast Café when life is quiet.
By the end of the book, I just felt like I was in mourning for a certain group of friends. I wished they had had someone they could have turned to who would have helped them deal with life better. I also wanted to see Hunt spend a little more attention on Gia. It seemed he was an all or nothing guy, and sometimes she got nothing. I will be looking to see how the next books in the series develop the characters and town.
Quotable:
”Sometimes you didn’t need a friend to interfere; sometimes you needed them to stand by while you made a mess of your life, then jump in and pick up the pieces.”
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. No positive review was required and all opinions are solely my own.
A COLD BREW KILLING by Lena Gregory
The Third All-Day Breakfast Café Mystery
Gia Morelli has had it with politics! She’s tired of Earl and Savannah bickering over the upcoming mayoral election and concerned with Skyla’s reaction to one of the candidates. The election is thrown a curve when Trevor finds one of the men murdered in his ice cream parlor’s freezer. Gia is certain of Trevor’s innocence, but she soon discovers there’s much more to him than she realized. More and more people are acting angry and scared and Gia soon realizes that all of them were friends in high school. Something that happened back then must be the root of the current murder, but what?
Can you ever escape your past? Should people be made accountable for past transgressions? Can people really change? The third All-Day Breakfast Café provides a fascinating look at these questions from a variety of angles. The themes explored are particularly relevant today, in relation to entitled young men, politics, and those who seek justice.
I love how the basis of the mystery was created in the past, a past about which Gia is totally unfamiliar. Gia’s reacting without thinking and her jitteriness still annoys me, but her dedication, loyalty, and devotion to friends makes me like her. Her negative habits are slowly abating and I enjoy seeing her grow as a person. I’m also excited to see the development of some of the secondary characters, Cybil in particular.
A COLD BREW KILLING is a fast paced mystery that holds particular relevance in today’s world. It’s important to stand up for what you believe in and trust that your friends and family will support you. And remember family doesn’t have to be blood, we can make our own family with those friends we hold dear.
FTC Disclosure – The publisher sent me a digital ARC provided through NetGalley, in the hopes I would review it.
Murder in a Small Town
This cozy mystery in the third in a series. It stands alone well, but the story will be better for the reader if they have read the first two installments. The plot is great! There are all sorts of motives and suspects and secrets that go way back. It keeps the reader guessing! I enjoyed it and want to read more of this author’s books. I received this book for free and this is my honest review.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
It gets mighty chilly in Florida when a dead body is found in the freezer of the ice cream parlor of Gia’s new friend Trevor. She and Trevor had big plans for bringing cold brews to both their businesses but that is on ice for now. Of course, Trevor is the prime suspect of the police but Gia just knows in her heart the man is innocent. Now she just has to find the evidence to prove it.
It was so good to get back to these characters. I don’t know how I got behind on this series but I plan to rectify that very soon.
Gia, Savannah, Hunt, Leo, Willow, Earl, Harley, Cybil, Cole, and Thor all return and are joined by several new characters. Two mayoral candidates, although one doesn’t last long, ice cream shop owner, Trevor, Willow’s mom, Skyla, join the cast. Ms. Gregory’s characters are all realistic. People you would expect to find in Boggy Creek at Gia’s All-Day Breakfast Café. I enjoy Gia and Savannah’s friendship. This time it is tested just a bit but I really liked the way Savannah convinced Gia it was okay to take some time off. Their relationship is believable and steady. They have each other’s back even when things get downright crazy.
The new secondary characters along with Harley play key roles in the mystery. They have been Boggy Creek residents for a long time and while the murder maybe political it could also be something in their pasts that has gotten Ron Parker killed. There are several twists and turns, shots fired, and another death before all the clues align and secrets come out for the killer to be revealed. The author has plotted an intriguing mystery with many possibilities.
The book also has a message and a revelation for Gia regarding families. It is so true and heartwarming.
A Cold Brew Killing was so entertaining! Great characters, a wonderful mystery and don’t even get me started on the food. We did have breakfast for dinner during the time I was reading this book. Yummy!
Stay tuned, in my quest to get caught up on this series I will be reading A Waffle Lot of Murder soon so I am ready when Whole Latte Murder hits stores on April 27.
Breakfast café owner Gia Morelli finds her good friend, Trevor, is the most likely suspect in the murder of a local mayoral candidate. She is certain of Trevor’s innocence but she discovers there is a lot she does not know about him. It seems that secrets from the past have more to do with the murder than the candidate’s current political life.
At the beginning of the story it was a bit of a challenge to keep track of the large cast of characters but they proved to be necessary to the story. It did become much easier to keep track of who was who after the initial introductions. I enjoyed how the story unfolded and it had a good flow with everything tying together at the end.
This is the third All-Day Breakfast Café Mystery book. It could be read as a stand alone but it might be easier to keep track the all the characters if you have read at least one of the other two books.