Join Penn and Stella on their latest adventure!There’s a legend in the Sea Islands that before a hurricane hits the Gray Lady can be seen walking down the beach warning of doom. Penn doesn’t believe in such silly stories, but she does believe weather forecasters. A powerful hurricane is heading their way. Everyone on the island of Camellia Beach is busy boarding up windows and securing valuables … valuables to upper levels of buildings. Joe Davies, a local treasure hunter with an unquenchable sweet tooth, claims to have seen the Gray Lady walking toward him just that morning and is terrified for his life.
After the storm passes everyone returns to survey the damage. As Penn walks her little dog Stella on the beach, she finds Joe Davies’ body washed up onshore. Not only that, it looks as if an exploding transformer caused Joe’s seaside shack to burn to the ground. Did the Gray Lady claim another victim? Many on the island believe that is exactly what happened.
Penn is sure there’s another explanation. She follows the clues and hints of lost gold to discover that the truth behind the treasure hunter’s death is as much of a maze as the boating channels winding their way through the local marshes.
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Charity Penn ‘Penn’ has come a long way in the year since she moved to Camellia Beach, an island in South Carolina, along with her papillon, Stella. Penn runs the Chocolate Box Shop she inherited from her late grandmother. The love of her life, Harley Dalton, a sexy, surfing lawyer lives next door. Life is good.
Until Hurricane Avery slams into Camellia Beach. Afterward, Stella sniffs out a body half-buried on the sandy beach. Rumors of pirate treasure and ghosts appear to have some truth to them, and news reporters, ghost hunters, and gold diggers flood the island town with unwanted attention. Slowly, but surely, the townspeople began to make repairs after the hurricane damage, and Penn and friends solve the mystery behind the murders. This story is an exciting and excellent beach read! I recommend the entire Southern Chocolate Shop series!
Great book!! A treasure hunter, a ghost, and a hurricane all in one book. A hurricane comes through Camellia Beach and a man who was supposedly hunting treasure is found dead on the beach. Penn, Bertie, Harley, Althea, and Bubba all work together to investigate. A second man is killed and a millionaire’s brother, who turns out to be a friend of Harley’s, is thought to be involved in possibly both deaths. This book was intriguing as we saw the town come together to help one another after the hurricane and we got to see Penn open up a little bit more. I found the story intriguing and never would have guessed the outcome. I hope there will be more books in this series and we get to see more of Penn and Harley’s relationship and more chocolate recipes!!
Bonbon with the Wind has lots of my favorite things: the beach, pets, a storm, chocolate, a ghost story, and a couple of quirky, elderly sisters named Trixie and Barbie.
Since this is the first book I’ve read in the Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery, I was unfamiliar with Penn and her friends, but thankfully the author weaves the story in a way that not only familiarizes you with the characters but also the backstory. I like how she doesn’t just throw all of that at you at once. She puts it in subtly, so it feels natural. I quickly became attached to the characters and enchanted with Camellia Beach. Needless to say, this won’t be the last book I read in this series!
Penn and other business owners are battening down the hatches as they prepare for the hurricane to hit. True story… When I was growing up in the 70s and 80s, my sisters and I loved to play “Fisher Price people.” (That’s what we called it.) We’d always have some scenario going on, and a lot of the time the scenario included a blizzard or tornado for which our people would have to prepare. They’d go to the store, put all of the stuff in one room, get extra blankets…stuff like that. So, naturally, I like it when books have some big natural disaster going on in them. Weird? Maybe. But I’ve read enough books to know that natural disasters are central to many of them! Anyway, back to the book…
In the aftermath of the storm, Penn’s dog finds a body. Naturally. And, of course, Penn gets involved much to the dismay of local law enforcement. Does danger await Penn? Will Trixie and Barbie ever lose at Wheel of Fortune? Do Penn and her male friend, Harley, become more than friends? Are ghosts real?! Find out in this delightful cozy mystery, Bonbon with the Wind.
Dollycas’s Thoughts
A hurricane is headed for the island of Camellia Beach and everyone is battening down the hatches and getting ready to evacuate. As Penn looks out over the beach she sees local treasure hunter Joe Davies in the distance talking to a woman. He approaches Penn and tells her he is afraid for his life and hurries away. Everyone, except Penn, thinks the woman was the Gray Lady of legend who is known to walk the beach before a storm. Meeting her could mean tragedy is headed to your life. Penn doesn’t believe in the legend or the stories people are sharing.
Penn and her papillon Stella return to Camilla Beach after the storm passes to assess the damages. Stella runs off and when Penn catches up with her she sees her dog has made a gruesome discovery. Joe Davies’ body has been washed up on the shore and has been mostly covered with sand. She later learns his seaside home had burned to the ground during the storm. Was it the Gray Lady that crossed his path and delivered all this calamity or is there a human to blame. Penn has been asked to find out. Hopefully, that won’t bring death and destruction to her door.
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After a short hiatus, the Southern Chocolate Shop Mysteries are back and I am so happy they are!
Charity Penn ‘Penn’, Bertie, Harley, Althea, and Stella return in a rich story with a folklore twist. I really enjoyed the bit a paranormal legend that was twisted throughout this story. Hurricanes are scary enough without ghosts predicted doom. It also brought a slew of ghosthunters to Camellia Beach all in hopes to witness the phenomenon which meant more business for Penn’s shop but a lot more craziness.
Character development was key in this story as well. Penn’s candy-making skills are improving but her interpersonal relationships take a real hit. That opens her eyes in many ways. She is still on the outs with her family but she is getting strong enough to deal with them now. A friend from Harley’s past makes an appearance and that opens his eyes too. Penn and Harley make a great team but Bertie and Althea definitely add their talents to the mix.
The devastation of the hurricane was described vividly. I appreciated the resident’s perseverance and the way the town pulled together after the storm. Finding displaced people places to live, sign up sheets for those who needed help and volunteers willing to help, locating material and contactors, and for Penn ingredient supplies to keep her shop filled with goodies.
The mystery was quite complex. Along with the Gray Lady and that drama, there was a buried treasure and a murder to solve. There were hurricane twists and turns and clues that really had to be dug up to find. I was totally captivated by the entire story.
Bonbon with the Wind is an excellent addition to this series. You can’t go wrong when you combine mystery with chocolate. Oh, I almost forgot, the Pumpkin Seed Bonbons had my mouth watering. It is one of the recipes included at the end of the book.
I can’t wait for my next visit to Camella Beach!
Bonbon with the Wind by Dorothy St. James is an exciting read about trying to find the motive and person who killed a guy before the storm?
Will Penn and the gang figure out who killed Joe Davies?
Penn
Charity Penn, or known by her friends as Penn, is our main character and sleuth. She is an heiress in her own right from her dad but is loving working at the chocolate store owned by her mom’s family. Penn got the shop when her maternal grandmother left it to her. After that, well, she has become known around the small island as the person to go to to find things. Like clearing your name of being a suspect or anything like that. She is pretty good at solving the crimes, especially in this one.
What I like about her is that she takes in stride what her friends say, especially about trusting them more. Penn has trust issues thanks to both sides of her family, treating her like she has leprosy. She is learning that some people don’t care about who her family is. The one thing that I dislike is that Penn had a lot to happen to make her realize that, and I hope that she is better now.
The Mystery
Two victims, but were they killed by the same person or different people? What were they after? These were the questions that I was asking myself as I was reading this mystery novel. Well, at first, it was only one murder victim until there were two. Ms. St James did a fabulous job on this. I figured out who did it but not the motive. Until a piece of crucial evidence that popped up. Just be careful reading it, and you might be able to pick it up as well.
Four Stars
Bonbon with the Wind by Dorothy St. James is my first novel from her and for this series. I have to say that I loved everything about it. Penn, Stella, Harley, Bertie, and Althea are all wonderful characters, and I can’t wait to read more in this series.
I am giving it four stars and recommending it to anyone that loves a good cozy mystery.
Also, don’t forget to check out the recipes in the back.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the Great Escapes Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Thank you for dropping by! Please take a look at Bonbon with the Wind by Dorothy St. James.
Anyways, until next time,
Karen the Baroness
If you would like to see other reviews like this one, check out BaronessBookTrove.com.
Bonbon with the Wind by Dorothy St. James may look like a typical cute cozy on the cover, but there’s a lot of complexity and depth to this story, making for a very enjoyable reading experience. Tightly-knit plot, rich characters, and an atmospheric setting all combine to make South Carolina’s Lowcountry come alive. I found this story hard to put down and highly recommend it.
Penn is a multifaceted lead character and readers of the series will enjoy seeing the changes that take place in her attitudes and relationships. With a background from a wealthy, but dysfunctional, family, Penn is making a career from the chocolate shop that she inherited from her grandmother. She doesn’t find it easy to let people in and is actually more comfortable focuses on what happened to dead bodies than dealing with the real people in her life.
“The folklore surrounding Gray Lady’s existence dates back over a hundred years. Just the mention of her can make a brave man tremble” … Bonbon with the Wind is set against the backdrop of Camellia Beach, a barrier island off the South Carolina coast, and opens with the onset of a hurricane. This setting is so vividly conveyed and woven so tightly into the story that it literally becomes a major character. Many fascinating elements are featured – island folklore, myths, legends, especially that of the Gray Lady who appears and warns of impending disaster. Penn’s questions gradually uncover more, such as pirate treasure, stolen money and secret identities. And the discovery of Joe Davies’ body quickly results in the arrival of ghost and treasure hunters.
The mystery itself is well crafted and it was only after reaching the conclusion that I could see that possible clues had been scattered throughout. Chocolate fans will love Penn’s shop, especially the new pumpkin seed bonbons that she created. The hurricane – both it’s impending arrival and the aftermath – are realistically and vividly portrayed. The destruction was heartbreaking and it was great to see the Camellia Beach community working together after the disaster.
Bonbon with the Wind is a fascinating, character-driven mystery. It’s also clean, with no profanity or graphic scenes. The Southern Chocolate Shop is one of my favorite series and I look forward to my next visit to Camellia Beach.
Highly recommended.
I received a copy of this book through Great Escapes Tours. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.