An entertaining series perfect for fans for Joanne Fluke that highlights delicious new recipes for you to try this holiday season! A merry Christmas mystery is the festive read you need this time of year… “The lavish food descriptions and appended recipes are the best parts.” —Kirkus Reviews Christmas cheer has sent the griddle into overdrive at Robbie Jordan’s popular country store and café. griddle into overdrive at Robbie Jordan’s popular country store and café. And this year, there’s a new seasonal special to feast on: murder…
As December sweeps through South Lick, Indiana, Robbie’s life seems merry and bright like the string lights glistening around town. But strange happenings signal a bumpy ride into the holidays. First a man raises eyebrows at Pans ‘N Pancakes when he claiming to be the long-lost half-brother of Robbie’s assistant. Then a fire destroys the home of a controversial anesthesiologist, exposing skeletal remains in his attic. Helplessly intrigued, all Robbie wants for Christmas is to stop her winter wonderland from becoming a real nightmare. With a decades-old mystery taking shape, can she run as fast as she can in pursuit of a killer who’s harder to crack than a stale gingerbread man?
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Am loving these books in the Country Store Mysteries and the good folks who hang out at the Pans N’ Pancakes Country Store. This is another great story with even a cold case thrown in just for some fun. We have a new character or two, who I hope will be around for a while. I love these people and how they take care of each other. I feel like I’m right there with them, through the good and bad and they are my friends. I can’t wait to hang out with them again. I received this book from NetGalley, but my opinion is my own.
Candy Slain Murder by Maddie Day is the latest in her Country Store Mysteries series featuring Robbie Jordan and her country store/restaurant, Pans ‘N Pancakes. There hasn’t been a murder in South Lick in nearly a year. Everyone was mighty pleased with that fact. Still, things were far from boring. Just that day a young man had come in and announced to Danna that he was her brother, well, half-brother that her mother had given up for adoption years before she was born. That had everyone hopping for a day or two. Corrine admitted it right away and told Danna the whole story. Just a couple nights later Corrine hosted a big dinner for her whole family and included Abe and Robbie. It all seemed to be going well. There was a big storm and the news reported a house aflame, the house of a local doctor, William Geller. Abe called her to report that when they hacked through the roof to put out of fire, they found a skeleton. That was a lot to take in. it was a funny thing, how people related to these crimes in South Lick ended up in Robbie’s store within a few days. Some had been there before, some hadn’t. Within just a couple of days, the sister of the skeleton was found dead in her home. Murder?
This is a terrific series with lots of great characters. Like all cozies, it is character driven. Robbie has at last found a home in South Lick. She has a business, a pet, a boyfriend, her aunt, and after 30 years, her father, although he is in Italy. She’s a terrific friend and an important member of the community. Her staff, Danna and Turner, love their jobs and the three of them really enjoy working together. The first murder was almost the perfect crime. If the house hadn’t caught on fire, who knows when the skeleton would have been discovered? The suspects were so inter-related that it was difficult to navigate. They author did a fabulous job with the mystery and the investigation. It was a joy to read, leaving the read satisfied but unsure until the end. I recommend it.
I was invited to read a free ARC of Candy Slain Murder by Netgalley. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #candyslainmurder
Robbie is back in South Lick and her Pans and Pancakes is hopping at the start of the Holiday Season. There’s a fire at a local house which reveals an old skeleton. And Danna’s unknown half brother shows up. Robbie is keeping her ears to the ground to hear all the gossip about both.
It is good to return to South Lick with all the familiar characters. There are wonderful characters in this book and I love the interactions. If you’re a Country Store fan you do not want to miss this book!
Holiday Time Murder in South Lick
This is the eighth book in a series. The background and storyline are very good. The mystery has lots of twists and turns that keep it more than interesting. However, there is so much standing on a soapbox about racial and religious tolerance in inclusion. Some of it is disguised as bits of the story. Much of it is flat out preaching. And it is present in every chapter! I prefer my entertainment to be just that. If I wanted a lesson in civil discourse I would not be looking for it in a cozy mystery. There was so much of it that it ruined the story for me. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.
It’s almost Christmas and Robbie Jordan is looking forward to it, ready to decorate the tree, make cookies and enjoy time with family. In short order things get complicated. A storm roars into town and a fire threatens to destroy a local home. As the house smolders the town is abuzz when it’s revealed that there was a skeleton found in the attic. Considering that the doctor who owned the house has always claimed that his wife had simply walked out on him a decade ago, never to be heard from again. Everyone has the same thought – is the skeleton his departed wife?
The same day her employee, Danna, gets a shock. Into the Pans N’ Pancakes walks a young man asking for her by name. He claims that he is her half brother, given up for adoption as an infant by her mother – who is the town mayor. On the surface he seems okay but cracks start to appear and Robbie wants to know a lot more in order to protect Danna.
I always enjoy spending my reading time in South Lick, Indiana and imagining eating the yummy food at the Pan N’ Pancake, maybe even reserving a room upstairs as a guest of her B&B. Watching Robbie interact with her family and friends is heartwarming, she’s a wonderful character and a good sleuth when crime crosses her path. The puzzle always engages me and I find myself sorry to read the last page.
My thanks to the publisher Kensington and to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
Candy Slain Murder is the eighth book in the Country Store Mysteries series by Maddie Day.
After a short vacation to California, Robbie Jordan is happy to be back at her restaurant/country store, Pan ‘n Pancakes. She is looking forward to spending Christmas with her boyfriend Abe and his son Sean.
One morning when Danna arrives for her work shift, she asks Robbie if she had heard about the fire at Dr. Geller’s house the previous evening, and a body found in the attic. Danna wonders if the skeleton found could be Geller’s wife, Tina. Geller’s wife disappeared about ten years ago, and when questioned at the time, Geller claimed she had left him. Toni, Tina’s twin sister, who still lives in South Lick, wasn’t so sure that Tina had left.
While Robbie is waiting on her customers, she finds that most of them are talking about the skeleton found in Dr. Geller’s home. Doing what she does best, Robbie makes mental notes of the conversations and, on occasion, will ask questions of her own. She hopes that she will learn something useful to relay to Buck, South Lick policeman, and Olivia, the detective assigned to investigate the remains found in the house fire. When another murder occurs, Robbie steps up her sleuthing before the killer strikes again.
A young man enters Pot ‘N Pancakes shortly after opening one morning in a subplot to the story. He asks Robbie if Danna Beedle is working there, Robbie is wary of this person, as he appears nervous. After being introduced to Danna, he tells her that he is her half-brother. This news takes Danna by complete surprise. Robbie wants to learn more information on this young man, as she doesn’t wish Danna hurt if it turns out he isn’t, in fact, her half-brother.
I love this series. As I know, I will get a well-written and plotted book reading about the exciting residents of South Lick. I especially like that Robbie isn’t like many business owners in cozies who are always leaving their business’ to their employees while they are out sleuthing. I also like that Ms. Day uses the local dialect of the area. Being a Hoosier myself, I have heard many of the words. Some readers think the characters are ignorant because of the way they talk. Many areas of this country have their speaking manner, and I don’t think any less than them.
The book also includes delicious-sounding recipes.
I’m looking forward to the next book in this great series.
I was very happy to get this book at Netgalley (in exchange for my honest review), but as you can tell from my OK rating that this one fell a little flat for me. Perhaps because the story (which isn’t bad) didn’t really grab my attention, I noticed the weird way the author was having the characters speak as if they were uneducated or hicks. (Why do Danna and Corinne speak differently when they are mother and daughter??) Now this is either something new and/or increased or the previous 7 books engaged me more because I didn’t remember this style. It irritated me.
It didn’t matter to me, but if you’re looking for a really Christmas themed mystery this isn’t it either. Gift shopping and a mention of lights in the store and gingerbread cookies is about the only nod to the holidays. I also thought the ending was unexpected and a bit rushed.
So, despite being one of my favorite cozy series this was a mild miss for me.
Excellent book. I love Robbie, Abe, Adele, and all the residents of South Lick, Indiana. The mystery was interesting and kept me guessing with all the red herrings.
I especially loved the surprise at the end. I definitely recommend this book and the whole series.
Thank you to the publisher, Kensington, and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias or favor.
I received a free copy of this book through the publisher on Netgalley and voluntarily reviewed it.
Candy Slain Murder is the 8th book in this series. This is one of my favorite cozy mystery series and I am always happy to be back in South Lick for another mystery. Even more so this time as the previous book took place in another setting and it felt great to be back in the familiar setting again. This was again a great read and I really enjoyed it.
One of the things I like about this series is seeing main character Robbie going through her normal every day life of managing her store and restaurant as well as solving the mystery. Most of her sleuthing is done by talking to people in her restaurant when she can or going for short trips after the store closes. I like how her job comes first and how the author still managed to strike a great balance between her normal every day life and solving the mystery. There’s something comforting about picking up another book in this series and spending some time with Robbie in her restaurant.
The mystery in this book had a very interesting set-up. Not only is a cold case opened again when the bones of person are found after a storm hits a house, but a new case quickly follows when a women is found death in her house. I thought the combination of a cold case and a new case that might or might not be related was quite interesting. The way the mystery developed was a bit of on the slow side with only rarely new clues surfacing, but there still was some progression and I liked how Robbie discovers some important clues and how she makes sure to pass those along to the detectives. There are a few potential suspects and the reveal of who the murderer is wasn’t too surprising, but it was a good mystery all around.
This book had besides the mystery some interesting plot lines involving the characters as well. A young man arrives claimed he’s the half-brother of Robbie’s assistant, Dana. They never knew she had a half brother and there’s a bit of uncertainty about whether he is who he claims he and how the characters deal with this new revelation. There also were a few more Abe scenes and we saw a bit more of his son Sean as well. I don’t think we’ve seen much of him before this book, so it was nice to see more of him here.
Then there is the usual, by now large cast, of side characters that all play a role in the story, from the detective Buck, to another detective Octavia that’s back in town to solve these mysteries. Then there is Robbie’s aunt Adele and her partner Samuel. We see quite a bit of Dana’s mother Corinne too. And then there are the persons of interest in the mystery as well. This book also has a mild Christmas/ holidays theme, which was subtly done, but still added some holiday cheer to the book.
To summarize: Another great read in this series. This is one of my favorite cozy mystery series and it always feels so comforting to return to South Lick and Robbie’s store in another book. The author has a great balance between Robbie’s daily life and side character related plot lines as well as a solid mystery. I liked reading about Robbie’s restaurant and store and have a great mystery as well. This mystery had an unique set-up with both a new murder and a cold case, which might be connected or not. The mystery progressed a bit slowly, but it was interesting to follow along and I liked Robbie’s role in finding some important clues. The reveals of who the murderer was wasn’t really a surprise, but I didn’t really mind too much. It was a solid mystery. I also like seeing more of the side characters and some plot lines related to those. Another great read and I hope there will be more books in this series!
Indiana, small-business, small-town, law-enforcement, murder-investigation, amateur-sleuth, family-dynamics, friendship, cozy-mystery
The house fire exposes a skeleton in the attic, but was it misadventure or murder. Lots of stuff and gossip going on in the Country Store and restaurant in the small southern Indiana town. Surprise relatives, newcomers, misguided hatred by an already suspicious character. Then there’s another body that only the coroner knows what questions to ask. Great characters and and a cohesive mystery plot are the best assets, add in the concerns and lingo of the characters which are classic small town everywhere, and the problems of the small business owner who is the central character, and a lot of
witticisms. Great but quick read!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Kensington Books via NetGalley. Thank you!
What do I love about Candy Slain Murder? Everything. The advent of a man who says he is Danna’s half brother and son of the Mayor Corinne Beedle kicks off both the Christmas holiday season and a new set of mysteries for Robbie to solve. I love that touches of the holiday a woven through the story even as murder is the focal point. Among the things that keep me coming back to this series is the great group of regular characters, the warm community feeling, awesome and complex mysteries, and way everything is woven together around the diner; we actually see that work is a major part of Robbie’s life even as she solves murders, friends deal with issues in their lives, and her relationship with Abe and his son Sean grows. In Candy Slain Murder there is the probability of more than one murder when old but modern day skeleton appears and possibly leads to a new death.
As a BIG fan of the series I requested an ARC via NetGalley and was thrilled to be approved.
If not the best of the series, it is strong competitor for the for that title. Of course I have to share my excitement with my friends and followers.