Christmas is right around the corner.Fresh off the Christmas Pawrade and Central Park tree lightening, Honey Springs is buzzing with the excitement of the season.Roxy Bloom and Patrick Cane are hosting the ultimate Christmas Day Diner for all of their friends and family at The Bean Hive. Roxy has been so busy with her Jingle Bells Lattes and planning the party that Patrick whisks her off for a … whisks her off for a romantic dinner at the Watershed for some alone time.
Their dinner turns out to be a headache. They were seated next to Ryan and Yvonne Moore, who fought the entire time.
After dinner, Roxy and Patrick see the couple drive off the road into Lake Honey Springs, Patrick dives into the frigid lake to save the couple only to find Ryan was already dead.
After a preliminary autopsy, Ryan Moore’s death was not an accident, leaving Yvonne Moore the number one suspect.
When Yvonne asks Roxy Bloom to help her figure out who killed her husband, Roxy jumps at the chance to put her Jingle Bell Lattes and holiday planning aside to help out a friend.
One problem, Roxy starts to wonder if Yvonne is really the killer and using Roxy to get away with murder after Kirk, Roxy’s ex-husband and defending lawyer for the deceased Ryan Moore, lets her know a big secret that would change the entire investigation.
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HOLIDAY ROAST MORTEM, the seventh book in the popular Killer Coffee Mystery series, provides a good mystery to solve and is fun holiday season reading for cozy fans.
Coffee shop owner Roxy finds herself putting on her lawyer cap (she maintains her law license even though she does not practice) when a local businessman Ryan Moore is poisoned and his wife Yvonne arrested for the crime. Surely, Yvonne did not do it…right? With Christmas rapidly approaching and bad weather to boot, Roxy must solve the mystery quickly, especially after another person dies.
The Killer Coffee series is always entertaining. The installments are quick reads, but I always wish the books were longer to better flush out the story. However, in HOLIDAY ROAST MORTEM, the plot is well thought out and the pace is good. No rushed ending this time around. Yay! Other than Roxy sharing confidential client information with others (yes, I realize this propels the plot forward), everything makes sense. Since we are now well into the series, the characters feel like old friends, and time spent with them is never wasted.
I recommend HOLIDAY ROAST MORTEM to any cozy reader looking for a lighthearted Christmas themed mystery.
I received and ARC of this title from the author and voluntarily shared my thoughts here.
It’s Christmas at Honey Springs and everyone has their shops decorated for the season! With Christmas fast approaching Roxy and Patrick are getting ready for their Christmas Dinner at the Bean Hive. Rozy and Patrick are coming home from a night out when the Ryan and Yvonne Moore’s truck going off the road into the water and Ryan doesn’t make it our alive. Yvonne is to believed to have poisoned her her husband, Ryan and she hires Roxy to be her attorney. While Roxy is trying to solve this murder Aunt Maxi and Bunny are having a fight about Floyd and Lesley Roarke has eyes for Sheriff Spence Shephard. I guess the Christmas holiday is going to be really interesting.
I really enjoyed reading this book and it had great characters!
This one really had me guessing who the culprit was. Ms. Kappes did a great job with the twists in this mystery. I was happy to return to Lake Honey Springs and catch up with Roxie, Patrick and the rest of the regulars. Not only is there a murder or two to solve but Aunt Maxie is acting very strange. Roxie needs to wrap up the mystery like a nice present so Christmas can be celebrated in a holly jolly way. I received a complimentary copy and I am voluntarily reviewing.
A wonderful holiday read… even if there is a murder involved. This author is great with the descriptive visualization. You’ll be able to really see how beautiful the town is, especially during the holiday season. While the case seems pretty open and shut, it is anything but. Suspects start to come out of the woodwork. As this series progresses, (which each book can be read as a stand alone,) I like that Roxy’s (the Protagonist) boyfriend turned husband begins to accept her meddling ways and no matter how often he pleads for her to keep her nose out of the investigation, she is set in her ways and wants to find justice. In addition to the crime she’s trying to help solve, there are a couple other things that pull her attention. One of which is her elderly aunt dating. The side characters bring some humor to the books, though the characters in this series aren’t as wacky or off beat as some of the other series’s by the same author. This is a quick and easy read that is safe for teens and up. (There is some mention of infidelity.)
*I received an ARC of this book.
I have been reading A Killer Coffee Mystery Series from the start. I highly recommend reading it in order.
In this book Christmas has come to Honey Springs, Kentucky. The town is decorated and Roxy has been busy with making holiday blend coffee, making special treats and planning the Christmas Day supper. That’s right. Roxy is hosting a big Christmas supper at the Bean Hive Coffee Shop. She has been busy as a bee with little time to just enjoy her husband of one year. So Roxy and Patrick go out for dinner hoping for a nice romantic night out. Unfortunately they are seated next to a couple who are loudly arguing. Driving home, they notice they are behind the arguing couple when they witness the truck cross the line, go through the trees and into the lake! Patrick dives in to rescue the couple. Unfortunately the man is dead. The sheriff is suspicious and, when his suspicions are confirmed, the wife is the number one suspect. Did she do it?
I love the town, the people and the pets in this series. I feel at home in it. One thing I especially adore about it, is the author has woven pet adoption into the series. Each book has a little background story going about it. I love that the author cares about animals enough to keep that reminder that pets need a home. I look forward to reading about the pet up for adoption in each book. Roxy, Patrick and the supporting characters are realistically written. I feel like I know them and could just step into the Bean Hive for some coffee and gossip with them. The mystery in this book wasn’t an easy one. There are a few suspects. With people not being completely honest, finding the killer could prove fatal.
*I received an ecopy of this book for review consideration. I voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts are my opinion of the book and series.*
I really enjoy this series. I enjoy the recipes in the back of the book too. Poor Roxy and Patrick can’t even have a romantic dinner without a dead body. After Patrick rescues a woman from a truck in the lake, Roxy is hired to be her attorney because her husband did not make it out of the lake alive. He had been poisoned before he ran off the road. Roxy knows the woman is innocent, but she has so many secrets. Roxy keeps discovering more secrets. but she is still sure that she didn’t commit the murder. He was not well liked and there are plenty of suspects.
Happy to be back in Honey Springs, full of small town charm and a great cast of characters – love the coffee shop! While out at a romantic dinner, Roxy and Patrick can’t help but overhear the couple nearby having a heated argument. On their way home, they come across an accident – and the arguing couple are the victims, one of whom dies. But it turns out to be no accident – but who did it? The author’s mysteries are always interesting and keep me guessing – half the run of reading her books is sleuthing right along with Roxy! Very good story that I would highly recommend.
What a great Christmas mystery! I really enjoy this series. The characters are engaging and defined well through conversations and actions, and with regards to Roxy, her thoughts. The mystery is well-plotted and executed. The Bean Hive Coffee Shop sounds like the kind of place I would enjoy, especially with the seniors who work at and frequent the shop, Pepper, and the adoptable pet of the week in the shop.
The Bean Hive Coffee Shop is Roxy’s happy place; opened when she returned to her hometown after catching her ex-husband and law office partner providing a special consultation to a female client. She has since married her high school sweetheart, Patrick, who sounds like the perfect guy for her. Roxy keeps her license current, occasionally taking on work for those who request her help.
Christmas is almost here, and Roxy and Patrick have a date night at the elegant Washershed Restaurant. The couple at the next table are having a heated argument, with one of the final exclamations from the husband being “over my dead body!” Their argument continues to the parking lot, where Patrick recognizes them as Ryan Moore, who owns the butcher shop where he purchases their favorite cuts of meat, and his wife, Yvonne. The Moores are ahead of them as they head for home, and they watch the Moores’ vehicle veer across the line, then back, then down the embankment…into the lake.
Patrick dives in, gets Yvonne out of the truck and to the shore. Ryan doesn’t fare as well. When Patrick brings him to shore, the EMT’s arrive but cannot revive him. The next morning, Sheriff Spencer Shephard comes to interview Roxy again, this time about the argument they overheard the couple having. Preliminary toxicology reports showed Ryan had a lethal dose of hemlock. Shortly afterwards, Yvonne comes in to see Roxy. She has to see the sheriff for questioning, and she wants Roxy to be her attorney.
As if that doesn’t present enough challenge, Kirk, Roxy’s ex-husband arrives in town. He is representing the late Ryan and his daughter, Jo Beth, pregnant with his first grandchild. Ryan, according to what he told Yvonne before they were married. He promised that when Jo Beth has a child, she would inherit his fortune for herself and that child. Jo Beth believes her pregnancy gave Yvonne motive to kill Ryan.
Plot twists and turns reveal several possible suspects, including one with questionable business practices, and another that I was almost completely convinced of after Yvonne was booked for murder. Yvonne maintains her innocence until hearing about a piece of evidence, then confesses to the murder herself. Did she know she was caught, or was there another reason? I don’t know why, as an attorney, Roxy shares details about the murder and aspects of it and Yvonne’s life, but it does help give her reciprocal information to investigate and find the real culprit. And it surely doesn’t take away from the excitement of finding the bad guy. Small town folks really do know all the secrets!
Don’t miss this exciting, challenging Christmas mystery! I highly recommend it to those who appreciate well-written cozy mysteries, coffee, dogs, Christmas, recipes from Tonya’s readers, and more coffee!
From a thankful heart: I received a complimentary copy of this novel and this is my honest review.
Although the plot was good, I found myself getting distracted and just wanted the story to be over. I like Tonya Kappes’s books but this one was not a favorite. I honestly hope it was just me.
I loved Holiday Roast Mortem! This is such a fun book. The mystery is interesting. There are so many twists and red herrings that you are kept guessing to the very end. The characters are wonderful and charming. You just fall in love with the whole town. The book is full of wonderful southern charm, witty humor, an intriguing mystery and beautiful holiday spirit. Such a perfect book to cozy up and read! I highly recommend this book.
When the local butcher and his wife drive off the road into a very cold Kentucky lake, Patrick and Roxy witnessing the accident pull over to help. Patrick dives into the water pulling the wife out first and then heads back for the husband. The wife is okay but the husband doesn’t make it. After an autopsy, the husband’s death is ruled as a murder since poison is found in his system. The wife asks Roxy to be her attorney, so of course, Roxy gets involved in the investigation.
Another great book in the Killer Coffee Cozy Mystery Series. I love how Author Tonya Kappes writes, she has the perfect blend of mystery, humor, pets, and romance. The characters of Roxy, her husband -Patrick, and the other characters are full of southern charm and quirky personalities. The plot is well developed with several twists and turns to keep the reader engaged until the big reveal. There are also recipes included for the food cozy fans.
I received a copy of this book at my request, and I have voluntarily left this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own and in no way have been influenced.