What a joy to be in Honey Springs, Kentucky in autumn, Roxy’s favorite season! Preparations are almost completed for the Friendsgiving Harvest Festival. Roxy and her staff at her coffeehouse, Bean Hive, are putting final touches on her uniquely-frosted cookies and other treats for the opening night of the festival. Roxy loves her life with her husband, Patrick, Bean Hive, her family, friends, and dogs, and her work. It doesn’t matter how busy she gets, she takes time to delight in and be thankful for the cooler temperatures, changing leaves, and autumn flowers. The author tenderly paints a gorgeous picture with colors, scents, sounds, and even the early morning fog over Lake Honey Springs.
Louise from the Pet Palace brought a hound dog to the Bean Hive as part of a program with Roxy to foster a ready-to-adopt pet each week. Deputy is a lovable dog who has a few little issues to iron out. At his first opportunity, Deputy ran out the door, first chasing a running man to the marina where he leapt into a motorboat and took off. He then led the not-so-merry chase back, past the coffee shop, to the pier, with Roxy, Aunt Maxi, and Loretta running behind. The dog finally sat, where he led Roxy to a woman who had been murdered and hidden in plain sight in an unusual disguise.
Thanks to their calling Deputy’s name, Gloria, a recently promoted sheriff’s deputy, arrived. Spencer, the local sheriff, arrived at the scene within minutes. Roxy spoke briefly with Spencer and the coroner. She has helped solve several murders since moving to Honey Springs. She keeps her law license active, even though she rarely practices. The combination of her legal experience and spending every day with the locals at the Bean Hive gives her access to some of the most interesting information (gossip) available.
The deceased was Jennifer Armstrong, wife of Aiken Armstrong, who owns the majority share of the local resort and spa. Both are very active in the community, and her loss was hard for everyone to comprehend. At first, Roxy wasn’t going to get involved because of the festival and preparations for her Friendsgiving Day dinner for family, friends, and staff. Her curiosity took over and she and Aunt Maxi were ready to find a bad guy. The threats Roxy received only made her more determined to find whodunit.
The one thing that could make finding Jennifer’s killer difficult is that everybody liked her! She was a pleasant, diligent, meticulous woman who prioritized what would be best for her husband, their company, and the businesses they invested in. With the festival ongoing and many tourists and children present, they had to stop the person. My wild guesses about whodunit were very wild, as I had considered several people, but not the real killer. I enjoyed “watching” the chase, “listening” to the ladies, and “seeing” Deputy bond with his new human. I appreciated the surprise capture even more. I highly recommend Ice Coffee Corruption, especially to those who enjoy the charm of a well-written Southern cozy mystery, coffee and pastry flavors of the season, and the kind of festival that celebrates residents and tourists of all ages.
From a thankful heart: I received an uncorrected copy of this novel, and this is my honest review.