I'm not a mystery reader. I do love Agatha Christie's Hallowe'en Party, which I was required to read in middle school. I also love cheese, which was what attracted me to Avery Aames' The Long Quiche Goodbye. It's the first in the Cheese Shop Mysteries series.
The cheese shop is Fromagerie Bessette in the little town of Providence, Ohio. Charlotte Bessette inherited her love of fine foods from Bernadette and Etienne, the grandparents who raised her. Charlotte lives with her cousin Matthew, recently divorced, and Matthew's twin daughters. Bernadette is Providence's mayor; Matthew is an oenophile.
The setting is charming. I love cheese, I'm not familiar with a lot of the different kinds of cheeses, but all of the meals and snacks mentioned in the book sounded delicious. The Bessette family is adorable, which is why you'll never once imagine Bernadette could be guilty of the murder. The mystery is well-written. I don't know if a more experienced mystery reading would have spotted the culprit early one, but I was surprised.
Best of all, four of Charlotte's recipes are in the back of The Long Quiche Goodbye, including the Peanut Butter Apple Pie Sandwich.
The next book in the series, coming out in May 2011, will be called Lost and Fondue. I'll have to read it just to learn more about the mysterious Jordan Pace, Charlotte's love interest. The romance reader in me wants to see how their relationship develops, and whether Charlotte's Amish co-worker Rebecca will find love in the "big city."
Avery Aames' books are easy to find in the bookstore. They're alphabetically first in the mystery section.
I won this book in a blog contest. I was not otherwise compensated for this review.
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