A review by carolsnotebook
Bait and Swiss: A Cheese Shop Mystery by Korina Moss

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No

4.0

 

Curds & Whey has only been open two years and Willa needs to solve a sixth murder.

Willa’s ex-fiancé, Pierce, and his partner, Willa’s former best friend, Riley, have opened a pop-up chocolate shop in the town’s revamped bakery. Willa is, reasonably in my opinion, angry that the pair has chosen her town for their newest store, but when a reporter is killed by poisoned chocolates, she knows she’s not guilty, even if the police chief isn’t so sure. I felt a little bad for the character who got killed. We met him, saw he was pushy, and then he was dead. There was never much consideration that he was even the intended victim.

The reader has several suspects to look at, although Willa would rather not believe any of them are guilty. And was destroying the business’s reputation the point, or was someone trying to kill AJ, the newspaper editor, or Willa herself? Turns out Pierce is not a very nice guy – no surprise, and not entirely honest. Duncan, the store manager, is unhappy with the contract. The owners of the town’s candy shop aren’t thrilled with the competition. And the bakery’s former bread baker/manager is out of a job due to the change in the bakery’s focus.

As always, I enjoy the friendship and banter between Willa, Archie, Baz, and Mrs. Schultz. Detective Heath annoys me a bit – I wish he could be more supportive, but the ending gives me hope.

I was surprised by who the killer turned out to be, but I probably should have seen it coming.

There are also a couple of recipes in the back that I might try: a creamy dip that sounds perfect for game night and pizza smashed potatoes.