You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Funny and enjoyable cozy crime set in a French BnB.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Loveable characters:
Yes
challenging
Dollycas's Thoughts
The French take their cheese very seriously and Richard Ainsworth takes his quiet life seriously too. When he becomes involved in a cheese scandal in the nearby town of Saint-Sauver and a local cheese supplier is murdered or was it suicide, he is not happy. Then his wife comes to town with some plans of her own. Richard just wants to relax and spend a little time with his chickens but the murders keep stacking up. Can he cheese out what the heck is going on and get back to his quiet life? or will the murders and mayhem continue?
___
I really enjoyed the 1st book in this series, Death and Croissants. It was laugh-out-loud funny with crazy situations. But Death and Fromage missed the mark for me.
Femme fatale Valérie d'Orçay returns and pulls Richard into another strange case. Richard's wife, daughter, and son-in-law arrive for a visit in the middle of all the drama with some interesting plans to shake up Richard's life. Plus we are introduced to way too many people connected to the cheese world. Sadly, all the characters felt flat and like they were just going through the motions. No one stood out to get me engaged in the story. Genie and Martin, the unique couple that brought laughs in the last book when Richard met them added nothing to the story this time. Their proclivities are no longer surprising or humorous.
The mystery has multiple deaths in a small town but no one seems to be put out about them, it is all about the dreaded vegan cheese, male egos, other "investments", and someone who felt wronged. I feel this could have been an interesting mystery but the author kept trying to insert humor in the wrong places and he brought way too many characters into the story that weren't developed.
I do like the premise of Richard and his B&B in Val de Follet. I love that he loves old movies that he escapes to watch several times throughout the story and that he names his chickens after legendary ladies of Hollywood. He and Valerie working together has worked so it should be able to work again.
Death and Fromage was cheesy and not in a good way. I kept reading hoping that the qualities I enjoyed in the first book would appear, but sadly, they did not. In the last line of my review of Death and Croissants, I wrote "I don’t know how the author would top this story". He sure didn't do it in Death and Fromage. I know there are more books in this series so I hope this book was just a fluke.
The story is told from the point of view of Richard Ainsworth, an Englishman who runs a B & B in the Follet Valley in France. Fabrice Ménard, a goat-cheese supplier known as the king of cheese, is found dead. Is Ménard’s death the result of suicide or murder? Richard is drawn into discovering the cause of Ménard’s death by Valérie d”Orçay, a friend staying at his B & B.
While the mystery of Ménard’s death propels the main story, I find myself more interested in the relationships of Richard and Valérie and that of Richard and his wife, Claire. This book reminds me of a television series I recently watched, Madam Blanc Mysteries. Both are set in France and include quirky characters. The plot offers a good mystery, and Richard’s love of old movies and their stars and starlets is delightful. The setting and characters entice me to read more books in Ian Moore’s Follet Valley mystery series. Thank you, Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley, for the chance to read and review an ARC of DEATH AND FROMAGE.
While the mystery of Ménard’s death propels the main story, I find myself more interested in the relationships of Richard and Valérie and that of Richard and his wife, Claire. This book reminds me of a television series I recently watched, Madam Blanc Mysteries. Both are set in France and include quirky characters. The plot offers a good mystery, and Richard’s love of old movies and their stars and starlets is delightful. The setting and characters entice me to read more books in Ian Moore’s Follet Valley mystery series. Thank you, Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley, for the chance to read and review an ARC of DEATH AND FROMAGE.
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
I'm a bit disappointed in this second installment in the series. I struggled a bit to follow all the lines of the mystery, it seemed to go here and there too much . There were lots of characters and several with similar-ish French last names starting with G. It was hard to keep track of them all, especially when extra-martial affairs and their culinary related jobs were added to the mix. I didn't suspect the culprit of the murders though, so that's always a good thing. Once again, I enjoyed the antics Valerie and Richard found themselves in. That's definitely the shining star of the story. I just felt dissatisfied at the end of the story and left without the urge to continue reading the series.
Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for my e-arc. Death and Fromage releases March 5th!
Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for my e-arc. Death and Fromage releases March 5th!
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Despite rating the first in series 1 star, I decided it wouldn't be the worst thing to listen to the audiobook of the next in the series, Death and Fromage. I did enjoy this a little more, maybe due to the focus on cheese.
Compared to the first, the plot was interesting (French cheese, Michelin stars, rival chefs, family feuds, secrets) and not too complicated, and there was less of Richard moping about and not knowing what was going on (not helpful when his thoughts are the interface between the story and the reader!) so he was a much more pleasant narrator this time.
That being said, I wasn't a fan of the ending - quite a lot happened in a short space of time, it did tie up the story nicely but then the book just sort of ended. It seems it was purposefully left open for the next book in the series however I would've liked a bit more
Compared to the first, the plot was interesting (French cheese, Michelin stars, rival chefs, family feuds, secrets) and not too complicated, and there was less of Richard moping about and not knowing what was going on (not helpful when his thoughts are the interface between the story and the reader!) so he was a much more pleasant narrator this time.
That being said, I wasn't a fan of the ending - quite a lot happened in a short space of time, it did tie up the story nicely but then the book just sort of ended. It seems it was purposefully left open for the next book in the series however I would've liked a bit more