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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2544 KP) rated Christmas Cocoa Murder in Books

Sep 26, 2019  
Christmas Cocoa Murder
Christmas Cocoa Murder
Carlene O'Connor, Maddie Day, Alex Erickson | 2019 | Mystery
10
9.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Snuggle Up for this Christmas Novella Collection
Kensington has released another Christmas novella collection, this time featuring three authors that haven’t been featured before. All three stories feature hot cocoa is some capacity. Up first is “Christmas Cocoa Murder” by Carlene O’Connor, which takes place in an Irish village leading up to Christmas. Her series main character, Siobhan O’Sullivan, is just a couple of weeks away from joining the police force, but she gets pulled in early when the village’s Santa’s stunt at the annual panto goes horribly wrong and he’s found floating in a dunk tank filled with hot cocoa. Next, we get “Christmas Cocoa and a Corpse” by Maddie Day. Robbie Jordan, the star of the Country Store Mysteries, is looking forward to a quiet Christmas, but first she must figure out what happened to Jed Greenburg who was found dead while out walking a dog and drinking some of Robbie’s special hot chocolate mix. Finally, comes “Death by Hot Cocoa” by Alex Erickson. Krissy Hancock, his main character, has been talked into doing a Christmas themed escape room, but when she and the rest of the participants finish the first part, they find themselves locked in a second room with the body of their host next to a puddle of hot chocolate.

All three of these stories are fun. The only series I read regularly is Maddie Day’s, but that didn’t keep me from enjoying all of them. The plots are all wonderfully constructed and perfect for the shorter novella format. I did feel a little lost with some of the series regular characters in the first story, but that’s to be expected since I haven’t read the series before. However, it didn’t hamper my overall enjoyment at all. The main characters all come to life in the stories, and the suspects are just as vivid. Each story is filled with Christmas detail that will put you in the holiday spirit no matter what time of year you read them. A couple of the stories even feature some recipes, including two different versions of hot chocolate. So, make yourself a cup of hot chocolate (or maybe not given the theme of this book) and snuggle up and enjoy.
  
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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Feb 26, 2022  
Read up on the cozy mystery novel OUT OF TEMPER by Amber Royer Author on my blog, and check out all the awesome places that Amber's had some good coffee in her scrapbook page. Enter the giveaway for a chance to win a signed copy of her book and a chocolate bar from French Broad Chocolates!

https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2022/02/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-out-of.html


**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
Felicity Koerber's bean to bar chocolate shop on Galveston's historic Strand has been the scene of two murders - both of which she has been instrumental in helping solve. So when she gets invited to demo her chocolate skills aboard a cruise ship sailing out of the local port, she's excited at the chance to get away from the shop long enough to regain her equilibrium. She even brings her best friend along and makes plans for time at the spa. But when she gets on board, she finds out that she's been booked for a mystery-themed cruise, and said best friend, Autumn, has to finally deal with the real reasons she quit writing mysteries. Only - if that wasn't stressful enough - it doesn't take long before there's a real murder on the cruise, and someone Felicity knows becomes the prime suspect. When said suspect asks her for help, she can't exactly say no, can she?

Felicity finds herself surrounded by cruise goers who all had connections to the victim - and finds that both Logan (her business partner, whom she recently kissed) and Arlo (the cop who was once Felicity's first boyfriend, before she moved away from Galveston) are dealing with the case until more official help can arrive. How will Felicity survive the ensuing awkwardness?

One thing that helps: the retired police dog turned therapy dog she meets on board. Satchmo helps Felicity deal with being back on the water after tragedy in her past - and also helps her uncover a vital clue to the case. Can Felicity unmask the killer and keep a friend from being framed before all the suspects leave the ship?