“When you think that life cannot get better, Blake Pierce comes up with another masterpiece of thriller and mystery! This book is full of twists, and the end brings a surprising revelation. Strongly recommended for the permanent library of any reader who enjoys a very well-written thriller.”–Books and Movie Reviews (re Almost Gone) MURDER (AND BAKLAVA) is the debut novel in a charming new cozy … charming new cozy mystery series by #1 bestselling author Blake Pierce, whose Once Gone has over 1,500 five-star reviews.
When London Rose, 33, is proposed to by her long-time boyfriend, she realizes she is facing a stable, predictable, pre-determined (and passionless) life. She freaks out and runs the other way—accepting instead a job across the Atlantic, as a tour-guide on a high-end European cruise line that travels through a country a day. London is searching for a more romantic, unscripted and exciting life that she feels sure exists out there somewhere.
London is elated: the European river towns are small, historic and charming. She gets to see a new port every night, gets to sample an endless array of new cuisine and meet a stream of interesting people. It is a traveler’s dream, and it is anything but predictable.
But when a wealthy, high-maintenance passenger suddenly turns up dead outside of Budapest, the cruise has become a bit too unpredictable. Even worse: as the last person to see her alive, suspicion falls on London, leaving her no choice but to solve the crime (with her new sidekick, an orphaned dog), and save her cruise line and herself.
Laugh-out-loud funny, romantic, endearing, rife with new sights, culture and food, MURDER (AND BAKLAVA) offers a fun and suspenseful trip through the heart of Europe, anchored in an intriguing mystery that will keep you on the edge of your seat and guessing until the very last page.
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Enjoyable easy read. Loved the cast of characters!
I enjoyed all the wonderful descriptions of their destination sites. I felt I was on the cruise with them.Enjoyed the characters.
This entertaining read provides a mystery as delicious as the baklava described within!
Nice read like I was in Budapest
Interesting characters
As so-called “Cosy Mysteries”go this was a lot of fun.I especially liked the setting…Prague…and a small river-going cruise ship.Descriptions were excellent,the beautiful city was in my mind’s-eye as I read.Interesting characters,a strong story-line,and a very likeable heroine made this quick bit of escapism a light,fun read.Recommended
Great story!
This is really like an English murder mystery. It is good. It is pale by comparrison to her really great books they are set in the USA.
This book starts out with a cruise ship worker while at home. She’s faces with a choice. She can either marry a stable man and live a life she’s pretty sure she will not be happy with or accept a new job. She doesn’t hesitate… Much. She finds herself in a new position on a new ship that does river tours. In no time at all she’s in a huge mess. She a suspect of murder she’s surrounded by scared and mad guests and her boss has told her to solve it or else in not so many words.
I really enjoyed the story. It wasn’t overly clear who the killer was but I did figure it out before it was said and as alwaysthis author writes a great book with great characters and very close attention to detail!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I have been reading books since the early 1950s and reviewing/posting the reviews for the past decade. I do not know how I missed BLAKE PIERCE for all of those years. I have just read book one in the European Voyage Cozy Mystery series entitled MURDER (AND BAKLAVA). It has two components that I am very fond of – baklava (a dessert) and European travel. It is also a very good mystery with compelling characters. The author written and published nearly 100 books, mostly in genres I like to read. Why have I not heard of Blake before now?
London Rose is the protagonist of this series. Until this story begins, London had been a hostess/cruise director on ocean going cruise ships owned by Epoch World Cruise Line. While on a break, her boyfriend, Ian Mitchell, proposes “a merger” between them. London’s sister had arranged their first date over a year earlier and she is all for “the merger”. At that point, a bombshell is dropped into London’s life.
Jeremy Lapham owner of Epoch offers London a new position (and a promotion), Cruise Director of his newest ship, Nachtmusik. This is the first of Epoch’s new European River cruise ships. He has sold off his ocean liners for financial reasons. His only hope to stay in business is a successful inaugural river cruise. London agrees. Ian terminates his “merger” proposal.
London flies to Budapest where she joins the crew of Nachtmusik on its premiere two-week cruise up the Danube to the Rhine. That is one of my bucket list items to do. On board, London renews her friendship with Elsie Sloan, chief bartender. She meets her top assistant Amy Blasingame (the concierge) whom Elsie calls “the river troll”. Amy wanted the job London was given.
Among the other staff of the ship is Emil Waldmuller who is the ship’s historian and Bryce Yeaton the head chef and medical advisor. Of course, there is a ship’s captain as well. In addition, there are other crewmembers on board.
On her first day in Budapest, London organizes a city tour and dinner (at Duna Etterem) with about ten cruisers and a couple of other staff. One of the guests Mrs. Klimoski, whom all dislike, flaunts her wealth, is obnoxious and carries in a bag her champion Yorkshire terrier Sir Reginald Taft. At the café where they go to for dinner, their waiter makes a fuss about the dog. A stranger, an economics professor smoothes thing out. He also recommends a restaurant, Magyar Orom, in Gyor, the next stop on the cruise.
The next day, London organizes a city tour in Gyor for the same group with lunch at the recommended restaurant. Another confrontation takes place with a strolling street violinist. Afterwards, Mrs. Klimoski disappears with her dog. The dog returns to the café and starts barking at the cruisers. London follows the dog to the cathedral. She goes inside and finds the dog’s owner sitting in a pew. However, Mrs. Klimoski is dead.
Enter the local police who start an investigation. The ship’s departure is to be delayed until the case is solved. London’s boss says to her “solve the case”. Which she does with help of the dog and a sunflower.
This is a fun book with a clever murder/murderer woven into the fabric of the story. Fans of mysteries and travel will enjoy this story. I plan to read the other five in this series. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
GO! BUY! READ!
I did not care for this book. Felt that the writing and the plot were mundane and boring
London Rose is in her early 30’s where everyone thinks she should settle down and stop chasing dreams. She has worked on cruise ships and stays at her sister’s home when not working. She has been in a year long relationship with a solid stable guy who pops the question of marriage in a methodical and business like manner. She feels she’s on the verge of losing her job and is considering this proposal, because she isn’t sure what else she should do. She takes a video call from the owner of her cruise line not knowing that he is actually offering her a job for a much bigger adventure and more responsibility, he needs to know right away because she has to leave the next day. She decides to take it and thus begins her adventure on the European seas. London encounters interesting characters which of course includes the typical uncouth 40 something married couple, the kind elderly couple and the bitter rich elderly woman who is rude to everyone she meets. The book took too long to build up to the point of the story, halfway through it reveals the death of someone that is suspected as a murder and London is given the responsibility by her employer to solve the murder or else. I found London to be judgy of others when they expressed thoughts on certain people when she herself had the same thoughts but didn’t necessarily express them to others. She made herself sound above everyone else. I did enjoy a glimpse of the history of the tours of the cities they arrived at, but the lead up to the mystery and the finality of it felt a little forced. With the title including ‘Baklava ‘ I thought it was going to be something to do with the sugary dessert but it only was placed at a few spots in the story that was not necessarily needed. Especially since she did eventually solve the murder, all her employer thanked her with was the dessert, even though he practically threatened her that he would be ruined if she didn’t solve the case. Overall the book was ok for it being a first in a series, not sure how much I liked London Rose to continue on to the other books in the series. The rating kf 3 was given for the detailed research the author did in the cities as well as her detailed descriptions, London will hopefully grow in the next books. Thank you @BookSirens for giving me the opportunity to read this book and give my honest opinion.
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