Sunday, January 5, 2020

RASPBERRY CHOCOLATE MURDER by Leena Clover


Title:  RASPBERRY CHOCOLATE MURDER

Series:  Dolphin Bay Cozy Mystery #1

Author:  Leena Clover

Publisher:  Leena Clover

Publish Date:   08.01.2019

Category /Genre:  Cozy Mystery

Recommended for:  18+ due to vocabulary

Grammar/editing:  received as an unedited ARC / errors excused

Received from:  Leena Clover


Date completed: 12.30.2019



Description from the publisher:

* Enraged Baseball Star Murders College Sweetheart *

The past two years have been tough for Anna Butler.  Widowed at fifty-five and diagnosed with a dreaded illness soon after, she is struggling to keep it all together.  Then the license for her dream café is rejected.  Anna feels she can’t get a break.



Cassie Butler dropped a glitzy Hollywood life and came home to nurse her mother.  Penniless after being duped by her crooked manager, she isn’t striving too hard to rebuild her flagging career.  Living with her estranged mother after twenty years is proving to be a challenge.



When a young college girl is found dead in the woods, her boyfriend becomes the top suspect.

Anna agrees to go sleuthing to help her friend’s son, a bright young kid she has watched grow up.  As Anna uncovers one clue after another, her faith in the boy begins to waver.  Is he really as innocent as he claims to be?



Raspberry Chocolate Murder is the first juicy mystery in a brand new cozy mystery series from international Amazon bestselling author Leena Clover.  Set in the small seaside town of Dolphin Bay on the California coast, this is a fast page-turner with plenty of twists and turns and luscious food.



If you love strong heroines, small town life, friendships that endure and yummy food that makes your mouth water, you will love Dolphin Bay.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 
RASPBERRY CHOCOLATE MURDER is the first book in the Dolphin Bay Cozy Mystery series.  I believe they’ll each stand on their own.



First I’ll mention the “ugly” – why I gave it three crowns instead of four or five.  Though this is the first in the series, there is a lot of back story that implies it may be a spin-off to one of the other series.  I don’t know, since this is the first book I am reading from Leena Clover.  Also, there are a lot of different storylines going on.  These, no doubt, are setting us up for future books in the series, but the information overload was just that!  Lastly, I couldn’t get a read on the dynamic between Anna and her daughter, Cassie.  That being said, I didn’t like Cassie.  Though it’s not easy to return home, Cassie is thirty years old going on thirteen.  She is a spoiled brat with a Napoleon complex!



Now for the good.  Anna and her friends are fantastic together.  They are the kind of friends everyone should be so blessed to have in their lives.  The cozy-mystery was nicely twisted and brought the opportunities to meet other characters we will need in future books.



I already have the next two books in the series and will be reading them soon!



Note:  While I received this book as a gifted ARC, my opinions are my own and are given freely.



Dolphin Bay Cozy Mysteries:
1.      Raspberry Chocolate Murder
2.      Orange Thyme Death
3.      Apple Caramel Mayhem
Also from Leena Clover:
Meera Patel Series:
1.      Gone with the Wings
2.      A Pocket Full of Pie
3.      For a Few Dumplings More
4.      Back to the Fajitas
5.      Christmas with the Franks
Pelican Cove Series:
1.      Strawberries and Strangers
2.      Cupcakes and Celebrities
3.      Berries and Birthdays
4.      Sprinkles and Skeletons
5.      Waffles and Weekends
6.      Muffins and Mobsters
7.      Parfaits and Paramours
8.      Truffles and Troubadours
9.      Sundaes and Sinners
10.  Croissants and Cruises
Pelican Cove Short Cozy Mystery Series:
1.      Hazelnuts and Halloween
2.      Candy Canes and Christmas















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