Book Review: On Thin Icing (A Bakeshop Mystery #3) by Ellie Alexander

Rating: ☆☆☆
Audience: Cozy mystery
Length: 304 pages
Author: Ellie Alexander
Publisher: Minotaur Books
Release Date: December 29th, 2015
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Welcome to Torte-a small-town family bakeshop where the treats are killer good.

It’s the dead of winter in the sleepy town of Ashland, which means no tourists-and fewer customers-for Jules Capshaw and her bakery. But when she’s asked to cater an off-season retreat for the directors of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, business starts heating up…until Jules finds a dead body in the freezer.

Someone at the retreat has apparently iced the bartender, a well-known flirt with a legendary temper-that is, before a killer beat him to the punch. Then, from out of nowhere, Jules’s own ex-husband shows up at the shop-and soon becomes a suspect. With accusations piling up higher than the snow-and thicker than a chocolate mousse cake-Jules has to think outside the (recipe) box to find the real culprit…and make sure he gets his just desserts.

HIT AN ICE PATCH.

This was the first snag in this series for me. It wasn’t bad at all (my three star rating is a positive in this situation!), just missing some key elements for me.

I liked that there was a switch up in location. Getting out of the bakery and seeing some new sites. I did miss seeing some regular characters and how things are working for them. This is a long series so I imagine I’ll see plenty of everyone eventually.

CARLOS. *sigh* I knew he had to play a legitimate role eventually, so here it is. I honestly don’t know how things are going to shake out. I know how *I* want them to shake out, but unfortunately that remains to be seen. I’m hopeful though!! I actually really love that there’s a bit of romance interlude throughout. I always love a good romance component and this fits in well alongside the mystery aspects.

This mystery was a lot easier to solve with less characters roaming around. I actually called this one (and surprised myself) when I was right. Not necessarily a bad thing, but I hope that that trend doesn’t continue.

These are such a light and simple series. I’m excited to read the next one and see how things keep unfolding!

Overall audience notes: