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theavidreaderandbibliophile's review against another edition
3.0
Death by Coffee by Alex Erickson is the first book in the new Bookstore Café Mystery series. Krissy Hancock has moved to Pine Hills to start a book store/coffee shop with her best friend, Vicki Patterson. They received the start-up money for their business from Krissy’s father, James Hancock. James Hancock is a retired mystery writer. Their new store is named Death by Coffee after James Hancock’s first book (despite Krissy’s many objections). On their opening day Brendon Lawyer comes in for a cup of coffee. He leaves after getting a call and returns to his insurance office across the street. Soon the police and an ambulance arrive across the street. When Officer Paul Dalton comes in Death by Coffee, he tells Krissy that Brendon is dead. Traces of peanut were found in his coffee. Brendon had a peanut allergy and died from anaphylactic shock. Brendon usually has an EpiPen in his briefcase, but there was no EpiPen in there today (sounds like he had a severe allergy to peanuts).
Krissy loves mysteries and puzzles. She has gotten into trouble in the past for sticking her nose into situations that she shouldn’t, but Krissy keeps doing it anyway. She sets out to find out who killed Brendon Lawyer despite Vicki’s (and the police’s) pleas. Krissy is not subtle about her questioning. She just barges in and asks her questions (and she wonders why the new business is suffering).
Vicki is a good partner. She keeps the business running while Krissy is out investigating. Chief Dalton likes Krissy and thinks she is perfect for her son (Officer Paul Dalton). Krissy still has not unpacked anything in her house, but she has a date! Who killed Brendon Lawyer and how did they do it?
I did not learn much about Vicki in the book. I know she went to high school and college with Krissy, she does not like acting (which is what her parents want her to do), and she wanted to live in a small town (and get away from her parents). I actually learned more about Krissy’s cat, Misfit (we get to hear a little too much about the cat). There is also a cat in Death by Coffee (the shop). Its name is Trouble and trouble is what it causes in the store.
I was really looking forward to Death by Coffee. It sounded like a good book, but I was very disappointed. The mystery was easy to solve if you follow the clues. There is a lot of repeating of information throughout the book (like how Krissy puts a cookie in the bottom of her coffee cup before putting in the coffee). There are many rambling paragraphs where Krissy is “thinking” about the case. Krissy tends to check out of reality when she is trying to solve a puzzle. Those ramblings also contain her thoughts on the hunky Paul Dalton. I give Death by Coffee 3 out of 5. This is just the first book of the series and a lot of series get better as they progress. We will have to wait and see.
I received a complimentary copy of Death by Coffee from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The review and opinions expressed are strictly my own.
http://bibliophileandavidreader.blogspot.com/2015/05/death-by-coffee.html
Krissy loves mysteries and puzzles. She has gotten into trouble in the past for sticking her nose into situations that she shouldn’t, but Krissy keeps doing it anyway. She sets out to find out who killed Brendon Lawyer despite Vicki’s (and the police’s) pleas. Krissy is not subtle about her questioning. She just barges in and asks her questions (and she wonders why the new business is suffering).
Vicki is a good partner. She keeps the business running while Krissy is out investigating. Chief Dalton likes Krissy and thinks she is perfect for her son (Officer Paul Dalton). Krissy still has not unpacked anything in her house, but she has a date! Who killed Brendon Lawyer and how did they do it?
I did not learn much about Vicki in the book. I know she went to high school and college with Krissy, she does not like acting (which is what her parents want her to do), and she wanted to live in a small town (and get away from her parents). I actually learned more about Krissy’s cat, Misfit (we get to hear a little too much about the cat). There is also a cat in Death by Coffee (the shop). Its name is Trouble and trouble is what it causes in the store.
I was really looking forward to Death by Coffee. It sounded like a good book, but I was very disappointed. The mystery was easy to solve if you follow the clues. There is a lot of repeating of information throughout the book (like how Krissy puts a cookie in the bottom of her coffee cup before putting in the coffee). There are many rambling paragraphs where Krissy is “thinking” about the case. Krissy tends to check out of reality when she is trying to solve a puzzle. Those ramblings also contain her thoughts on the hunky Paul Dalton. I give Death by Coffee 3 out of 5. This is just the first book of the series and a lot of series get better as they progress. We will have to wait and see.
I received a complimentary copy of Death by Coffee from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The review and opinions expressed are strictly my own.
http://bibliophileandavidreader.blogspot.com/2015/05/death-by-coffee.html
k_j71's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
badseedgirl's review against another edition
1.0
My bar for cozy mysteries are very low. I want to enjoy the mystery and like the characters. That's it, but This book did neither. I found the main protagonist to be annoying as hell, and so rude, I'm surprised she was not killed by everyone she interviewed. I also found the gay neighbor so cliché as to border on homophobic. Add to that, the murder "twist" and I'm shocked that I even finished this book. I will not be continuing with this series.
flutegirl24's review against another edition
I'm personally enjoying books with a likeable main character and Krissy was not it for me. I only made it to page 33 and thought that she was unbearable. In one scene she leaves her best friend, Vicki, and co-worker without an explanation or warning, doesn't apologize or explain upon returning, and later says she feels badly about how she treated her friend but would rather ignore that since Vicki doesn't stay mad for long.
lizrozanski's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
latishaloveslit's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This was a good cozy mystery but it had some flaws, specifically with the characters and dialogue. Overall I really liked the setting of a bookstore/coffee shop and that alone makes me want to continue reading this series. The mystery was predictable but not terrible.
_lilbey_'s review against another edition
2.0
I need to apologize to MHC for all those times I complained about her main characters being stupid or annoying. Compared to Krissy, they qualify for MENSA. The murder-related plot of this book was interesting and had lots of potential but I was SO AGGRAVATED by Krissy the whole time I couldn't enjoy it.
Krissy is just awful to other people. She is a terrible friend and colleague to Vicki, always leaving her at work and not pulling her own weight, and all so she can go harass locals in the town she JUST moved into. Then she is baffled when she is disliked. First day in town Krissy also meets a local who wants to get to know her, but is irritated by her, complaining that the woman is nosy and invasive, and frequently tries to avoid and ignore her, becoming annoyed when relentlessly pursued. I guess it takes one to know one because Krissy spends the rest of the book rudely poking her nose into the business of people she has never even met, relentlessly pursuing them while disliking the same behaviors she is engaging in when they are focused on her. Hypocrite.
She wants to solve the murder, which, great, classic mystery fodder, but she does it by bullying the people she thinks are involved into talking to her, refusing them to leave her alone until they answer her very invasive and forward questions- questions that people wouldn't answer if a FRIEND asked, let alone a person who JUST MOVED TO TOWN. Yet in this story, they ANSWER HER. WTF?
And why does she think she is equipped to solve a murder in a town she just moved to in which she is quickly angering and alienating people, you may ask? Oh, well, her dad writes mysteries. HUH? Yet, she doesn't use cunning or ingenuity to try to solve the crime (save one clue, that she arrived at due to, you guessed it, her harassing someone until she got what she wanted), just badgering people relentlessly.
If you need another reason to dislike Krissy, she seems to hate her cat. Which is an odd direction to take a book with a cat on the cover.
Krissy is just awful to other people. She is a terrible friend and colleague to Vicki, always leaving her at work and not pulling her own weight, and all so she can go harass locals in the town she JUST moved into. Then she is baffled when she is disliked. First day in town Krissy also meets a local who wants to get to know her, but is irritated by her, complaining that the woman is nosy and invasive, and frequently tries to avoid and ignore her, becoming annoyed when relentlessly pursued. I guess it takes one to know one because Krissy spends the rest of the book rudely poking her nose into the business of people she has never even met, relentlessly pursuing them while disliking the same behaviors she is engaging in when they are focused on her. Hypocrite.
She wants to solve the murder, which, great, classic mystery fodder, but she does it by bullying the people she thinks are involved into talking to her, refusing them to leave her alone until they answer her very invasive and forward questions- questions that people wouldn't answer if a FRIEND asked, let alone a person who JUST MOVED TO TOWN. Yet in this story, they ANSWER HER. WTF?
And why does she think she is equipped to solve a murder in a town she just moved to in which she is quickly angering and alienating people, you may ask? Oh, well, her dad writes mysteries. HUH? Yet, she doesn't use cunning or ingenuity to try to solve the crime (save one clue, that she arrived at due to, you guessed it, her harassing someone until she got what she wanted), just badgering people relentlessly.
If you need another reason to dislike Krissy, she seems to hate her cat. Which is an odd direction to take a book with a cat on the cover.
Spoiler
Also, the killer was a queer person... lovely. *insert eye roll at murderous gays trope*lesdialazo's review against another edition
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.25
The cats were the best characters in the books. The main character was unlikable and a bit selfish.