Book 26 of 2023
Summary
Fudge and Jury is the fifth book of the Juliet Capshaw A Bakeshop Mystery series. Ellie Alexander treats us to a wonderful scene in Ashland, Oregon just as the chocolate festival is about to begin. Juliet and her mother Helen are full of wonderful chocolate ideas as their booth opens at the festival. All the excitement in the air and the wonderful aroma of chocolate is just icing on the proverbial cake. Every chocolate possibility is available here at the chocolate festival. But when Evan Rowe is murdered and it seems like Juliet’s cake may have been the culprit all eyes are turned to her. Can Juliet discover the murderer, survive the chocolate show, dance around Thomas, admit friendship with Lance, and thwart Richard Lord before the killer finds her? Only time will tell. This novel was a wonderful treat complete with recipes to add to your own “must try” recipe list.
Thoughts and Review
This latest instalment of the bakeshop mysteries is a real treat. Although seemingly simple in design it flows so easily and wonderfully. A wonderful trait of the bakeshop mysteries is that there is no flow of time beyond the books. So read them a year apart or less and time will have stood still while you were gone just waiting for you to return to town. And when you open up the pages it is as if you have never left. All the characters have just been waiting for you to return. It is really a great discovery to find a series where the lack of time passing really works. It really still has only been a few months since Jules left the cruise line, the heart is still uncertain, and the motions and rhythms are still being found in the bakeshop. For a cozy mystery this series does rank up there as one of my favourites. The murders are described in detail but not overly gory (like they are trying too hard,) investigating murders seems easy like a puzzle, and the characters are so easy to get to know. Regardless of how long it has been since the last book it is so easy to fall in to the rhythm with the entire crew.
Recommendations
I would recommend this book or series to anyone who enjoys the cozy mystery genre. It was so much fun to read and just escape in. The world is so beautiful and the characters so enjoyable in their own ways. There are not that many books that you would love to enter and live in. This is one of them. How could anyone not feel at home with a range of characters like these? Who would not want to live somewhere with a backdrop like this? So, if you are looking for a delicious murder mystery just lacking the politics and back stabbing of a usual murder mystery (that sometimes makes life seem so bleak from the drama and what is wrong with the world) this series would be a great fit for you. Of course if you enjoy baking that will make this series even more delicious. Happy Reading!