Reviews

Decaffeinated Corpse by Cleo Coyle

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erincataldi's review against another edition

3.0

I jumped right into this series on book 5, skipping the preliminaries and the first four in this cozy mystery series. That being said I didn't feel like I missed out on anything. Most cozies read fairly well as stand alone novels. This series takes place in a quaint coffee shop in New York. One of the co-owners has a knack for solving mysteries but her ex-husband (the other co-owner) never seems to appreciate her efforts. Business at the coffee shop is about to grow as they get exclusive rights to the world first decaffeinated coffee bean. Customers can't even tell the difference it's so good. Things take a weird turn though when her ex-husband's old friend and the creator of the new strain of coffee is found mugged right outside their coffee shop. The characters are pretty fun, it's a neat setting, and all the coffee talk made me extremely thirsty. It was alright, but not the fastest paced cozy I've ever read.

shilow's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

machadofam8's review against another edition

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3.0

Good quick coffee shop mystery. :)

bkdrgn303's review against another edition

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2.0

I read a few of these a several years ago and now I remember why I stopped reading them. The sections about coffee read like encyclopedia entries. Not horrible but not great. Meh. Fast read.

rebelbelle13's review against another edition

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3.0

This was a quick read, albeit not very memorable. I finished this yesterday and already I'm trying to recall what happened. Clare is back at the Village Blend in Manhattan (in the last book she was in the Hamptons) and it's Halloween time (no, I didn't plan that!) Her ex, Matt, is staying her ex, thank goodness, and Clare is moving on with her life. Matt and his friend from Brazil, Ric, are investing in a new, biologically, naturally decaffeinated coffee plant. Ric gets mugged, PI's get involved, there's a car chase, we learn about the history of smuggled coffee plants, and as usual, are educated on coffee brewing. I'm glad that Clare's back in the Village. Most of the charm and appeal of this series is in the atmosphere of Manhattan and the detail of the coffee, and the brewing and grinding and pressing process. Clare and her mother-in-law are their nosy sleuthy selves, Matt continues to be a player, and Joy continues to be the annoying, lacking all common sense, spoiled foible for her mother to play off of. The murder doesn't occur until page 200 out of a 260 page book. There's then two more in rapid succession- and it feels very rushed.
Honestly, this was OK. It read quickly and kept me entertained, but there's not much sticking power here. I'll continue with the series, because I finally like where Mike and Clare are headed, and I can always read more about coffee.