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A review by kimdavishb
Once Upon a Grind by Cleo Coyle
5.0
In addition to having several incredibly delicious recipes, ONCE UPON A GRIND (a Coffeehouse Mystery) was also a delightful read. The play of words in the title sets the fairy-tale theme for Clare Cosi who manages the coffee shop, Village Blend, while her ex-husband, Matt, sources the coffee beans. A weekend long Storybook festival is being held in New York and Clare and Matt are fully involved thanks to Clare’s ex-mother-in-law volunteering them. Matt is conscripted to play the part of a prince which leaves Clare in charge of the Village Blend’s truck to organize a Jack and the Beanstalk theme (coffee beans equals magic beans). As if she doesn’t have her hands full already, her boyfriend, decorated narcotics cop Mike Quinn, asks her to keep an eye on his two kids, Jeremy and Molly, since he’s on his way to a funeral and he doesn’t trust his ex-wife to do so. Clare is happy to help out and finds that the kids’ sitter is none other than the Pink Princess who is paired up with her ex, Prince Matt.
As the festivities progress throughout the day the Pink Princess disappears….along with Mike’s kids. Thanks to some magical coffee beans Matt obtained on his last trip to Ethiopia, Clare has crazy visions after drinking a cup and she ends up finding the children who wandered off to look for their dog deep in the woods of Central Park. After rescuing Jeremy and Molly, she stumbles upon the Pink Princess who is in a deep Sleeping Beauty sleep, hidden in the forest. The doctors can find no antidote and since Matt was the last person to be seen with the Pink Princess and thanks to some of his personal issues in his past, becomes the main suspect. When another princess is murdered Clare realizes she must find the real killer in order to prove Matt’s innocence.
This is the 14th book in the Coffeehouse Mystery series but is quite easy to pick up and read as a stand-alone. I’ve had the pleasure of reading three of the Coffeehouse Mystery books and I’m impressed how the author lets the characters grow as the story progresses with each book. The interaction between Clare and Mike’s ex-wife is realistic and it’s sweet to see the love that Clare has for his children. On top of great characters, Cleo provides enough twists and turns so that it wasn’t easy to figure out the culprit. I look forward to reading many more of her books in the future!
As the festivities progress throughout the day the Pink Princess disappears….along with Mike’s kids. Thanks to some magical coffee beans Matt obtained on his last trip to Ethiopia, Clare has crazy visions after drinking a cup and she ends up finding the children who wandered off to look for their dog deep in the woods of Central Park. After rescuing Jeremy and Molly, she stumbles upon the Pink Princess who is in a deep Sleeping Beauty sleep, hidden in the forest. The doctors can find no antidote and since Matt was the last person to be seen with the Pink Princess and thanks to some of his personal issues in his past, becomes the main suspect. When another princess is murdered Clare realizes she must find the real killer in order to prove Matt’s innocence.
This is the 14th book in the Coffeehouse Mystery series but is quite easy to pick up and read as a stand-alone. I’ve had the pleasure of reading three of the Coffeehouse Mystery books and I’m impressed how the author lets the characters grow as the story progresses with each book. The interaction between Clare and Mike’s ex-wife is realistic and it’s sweet to see the love that Clare has for his children. On top of great characters, Cleo provides enough twists and turns so that it wasn’t easy to figure out the culprit. I look forward to reading many more of her books in the future!