A Deadly Inside Scoop (An Ice Cream Parlor Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
1st in Series
Publisher: Berkley (May 12, 2020)
Paperback: 384 pages

Synopsis

This book kicks off a charming cozy mystery series set in an ice cream shop—with a fabulous cast of quirky characters.

 

Recent MBA grad Bronwyn Crewse has just taken over her family’s ice cream shop in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and she’s going back to basics. Win is renovating Crewse Creamery to restore its former glory, and filling the menu with delicious, homemade ice cream flavors—many from her grandmother’s original recipes. But unexpected construction delays mean she misses the summer season, and the shop has a literal cold opening: the day she opens her doors an early first snow descends on the village and keeps the customers away.

To make matters worse, that evening, Win finds a body in the snow, and it turns out the dead man was a grifter with an old feud with the Crewse family. Soon, Win’s father is implicated in his death. It’s not easy to juggle a new-to-her business while solving a crime, but Win is determined to do it. With the help of her quirky best friends and her tight-knit family, she’ll catch the ice cold killer before she has a meltdown…

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Review

How can a new cozy series that features ice cream be bad?  It can’t!  In fact, it is downright delicious and the recipes at the end will have you pulling out an ice cream maker to make some for your own home.

Bronwyn Crewse, AKA Win, is our protagonist and amateur sleuth.  She has recently returned to Chagrin Falls from NY and is reopening her grandparent’s ice cream shop.  This shop has a history in that town and many have fond memories of her grandparents and the ice cream.  The relationship with PopPop is heartwarming since he has been waiting for Win to come back and run the shop.  Win’s parents are a bit overprotective of her since she is a girl and the baby of the family.  It isn’t too surprising to see that trait from her parents or even her older brothers – and there are three of those!

Win is not on her own, she has two close friends – Maisie and Riva.  Riva is a no-nonsense type of gal and you better watch out if you get on her bad side.  Maisie is something of a free spirit and I’m not really sure what to make of her character and I think she is something of a loose cannon.  She tended to jump in feet first without thinking things through and could potentially put them in harms way.  I think this line from the book sums up Maisie quite well and is the thoughts of one of Win’s brother, James:

“He thought Maisie was a bundle of fireworks hovering over an open flame. He said no one would ever know when her fuse would catch fire or what direction she’d take off in. She was festive, he said, but potentially dangerous.”

The mystery is well thought out and while there are several characters to suspect of being the killer, the true killer might come as a surprise.  I know I didn’t suspect this person but thought there was something strange about their actions.  Now we know why!

I enjoyed the nod to the original Pink Panther movie with characters using some of their names like Peter Sellers and David Nivens.

There is a potential budding romance with a former police officer turned law professor who goes by the nickname O.  He has his eye on Win and I think she might have some interest in him too despite her protests.  I am anxious to see how this might play out.  I also wonder about the police detective and if he might be interested in Win or if he was just working with her to get information?  Only time will tell.

The only thing I thought was really odd was that Win called her parents mommy and daddy.  Most people I know shorten it to mom and dad especially as they get older.

This is an enjoyable start to a new series and I suggest giving it a whirl.  I am tempted to try the recipes at the end of the book as they all sound delicious!  I just need an ice cream maker.

We give this book 4 paws up.

About the Author

Wall Street JournalBestselling Author Abby Collette loves a good mystery. Born and raised in Cleveland, it’s even a mystery to her why she has yet to move to a warmer place. Author of the two Southern cozy mystery series Logan Dickerson Mysteries featuring a second-generation archaeologist and a nonagenarian who is always digging up trouble, and the Romaine Wilder Mysteries, set in East Texas, it pairs a medical examiner and her feisty auntie who owns a funeral home and is always ready to solve a whodunnit. Abby spends her time writing, facilitating writing workshops at local libraries, and spending time with her grandchildren, each of which is her favorite.

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