Molly Jenn, along with her pet parakeet, Whammy, decides to leave her small town of Brooks and start fresh on the East Coast. With her new dessert shop opening soon, Molly is excited to be following her dream.
The last thing she expects is to be caught up in the solving the murder of the town’s bully. Using her former investigative journalism skills, and with the help of the handsome police officer, Molly makes it her mission to find the killer before they strike again.
Book 1 in the Sweet Treat Cozy Mystery series, which can be read in one to two hours! Perfect for a lunchtime read or if you want to enjoy a quick light-hearted read, with a parrot-loving amateur sleuth, set in a seaside town with quirky characters.
A quick, light hearted read but a shame about the proofing errors. A nice little mystery that naturally evolves around the opening of a business and deals with cyber bullying. How it can get out of hand and the fact that there really aren't enough checks and counter balances in place to curb the spread of this. Great characters. Lively, fun but also show that youngsters can have a mentality that older than the hills and that some adults never leave the teenage state. She has driven from her previous home to her new one (hauling an ice cream van) whilst her parakeet enjoyed the ride. Now she's ready to tackle the shop that will soon house her business. The state is deplorable but two young teens are going to be helping (she's agreed with the building owner to give them a job once her business is open). Everything is going to schedule and her presence, plus the free ice cream, is going down a treat at the local festival. However all that comes crashing down when a young girl is found and one of her young helpers is taken into custody. The twins have been a great help to her and it might make meeting her opening deadline a problem without their help. With the agreement of the local handsome deputy she starts asking questions. Only to find that the young girl has led a systematic cyber bullying campaign against everyone she wanted to hurt. From business to individuals regardless of age and no-one had curbed her. Finding her mother's suicide doesn't help but the detailed noted the girl kept do. Can she find the real culprit? Can she get her two helpers back? Will she open on time?
A straightforward and cute murder mystery. Molly, a former investigative journalist, had the opportunity to open shop in a new town. With loving and helpful characters, her life seemed to be set. Until a murder and suicide got her investigative juices flowing.
My first book by this author, the story was extremely loving. Molly was clever and prudent. I would have loved to see more of her ice cream making skills. Various characters were supportive of her venture, exactly how a small town vibe ought to be.
Her investigation into the murder was clear, I liked how she stumbled into clues. Romance was hinted at and it went with the flow.
standalone. i am new to Lori ...such a great read. such a new fan. cute, short and such a sweet little fine read. my favorite genre is always been mystery ... my go 2. will read more from Lori soon enough. loved this book cover. awesome!!
A very cute, short and sweet little read. Just the thing to read before going to bed. As I have a terrible problem in not being able to put a book down till it is finished, I, many times, am up till 2, 3,or 4 in the morning. I appreciated this as I could finish it by a reasonable hour and get a good night's sleep. Unfortunately, I must give it a black mark for grammar, etc. I am really tired of reading books that the author does not take enough pride in to have properly edited/proofread. But, when you have sentences that read : "I kept HER wings clipped for the first couple of years I had HIM and SHE just got use to relying on me", I have to say something. Which leads me to ask "Is Whammy a He or a She?" This is inexcusable. Other errors, like starting a sentence with "The" when you mean "They" could be bypassed, but playing with gender cannot. In fact, the other errors of omission, even if not as bad, make the book unacceptable as a published book , maybe as an essay for an English class, but not a book that is offered for sale.. I will try with another Sweet Tea Mystery and see if the author improved as time passed.
I liked the main characters in this book, but the plot had holes big enough to drive an ice cream truck through! It reads very much like an unedited first draft. There are too many typos and grammar errors to count. Throughout most of the book we are told the parakeet is male, but in one random paragraph the author uses both male and female pronouns to refer to the bird.
We learn a few chapters in that the main character has been keeping already made ice cream in her truck. How did she keep it from melting? There's no mention of keeping the truck running constantly for days or plugging the generator into any sort of electric outlet.
What kind of police officer allows a civilian he's just met to enter the home of a crime victim and randomly pick up her stuff without wearing gloves to prevent her from leaving finger prints all over everything? Is the health department aware that she sometimes lets the bird out of its cage to fly around the ice cream shop?
We learn from the preview chapter for the next book that her kitchen wasn't installed until after her grand opening. So how and where did she make all the ice cream they served?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Entertaining. Fun. A young woman moves to Savannah, GA and opens up an ice cream shop near the popular riverfront shopping district. While getting ready to open the shop, she agrees to hire her landlord's two grandchildren. To promote her brand opening, she gives away free ice cream at a local vendor show. While at this show, the town bully, a nasty tempered teen, is found dead. Instantly, another teen is blamed and arrested for the death because of their strained history in school. As a former investigative reporter, the New business owner decides to help the local Police force solve the mystery surrounding the teen's murder.
A quick read, great for a rainy afternoon or a lazy evening.
Okay I have a serious complaint about this author's books. They are illogical. First, the main character "creates" new ice creams. No she doesn't. An ice cream plant is huge. It involves a whole lot of big equipment. She doesn't have an ice cream factory. She has a store. But it's never brought up with the reader. So, she creates new flavors - how? That threw me. Then there is that whole she was an investigative journalist whom the cops just trust. When have the police EVER trusted a journalist? Um, never. I guess I wanted to read more reality than what I got.
This is a cute, sweet and short read with interesting characters. Story deals with cyber bullying and teenagers. The girl who is killed is a very nasty character, bullying people in real life as well as by computer. She even goes after adults, writing negative comments to get their businesses to go under. Of course, she has a mother who always gets her out of any trouble-I wasn't sure if that was really realistic as she was able to stop anyone from pressing charges. There were some issues with grammar that interfered with my enjoyment some.
Likeable characters, simple straightforward plot, no surprises
Enjoyable effort with a very basic plot with no twists to make it more interesting. Note: The twins are 16 and 18, respectively, but are repeatedly referred to as "twins." Book very badly needs some editing and proofreading. Dialogue is stiff and self-conscious. Recommended only if constant word misuse and grammatical errors do not bother you.
Just discovered this new cozy mystery series and I love the first book! Molly Jenn moved to make a new start and gets involved in a murder mystery! There's a policeman in town that catches her eye and the two work together to find an answer!! She opens her I've great shop too!!!
Cute, little mystery that I finished in no time. New town, new business, new friends and a murder. Only thing that would help this story is "grammar check" prior to printing. Other readers might not notice but it was enough for me to rate the mystery 3 stars instead of 4.
Molly, wanting a new career, with an ice cream truck, minus an ex boyfriend. He wanted her to keep her investigation journalism experience. So, it failed, she now trying Savanah close to the beaches, everyone should want ice cream. New to town, she knows who the bully is, and with the police office, she is busy once again, investigating a murder.Delightful start to a new series
A cute story of a former investigative journalist turned I've cream entrepreneur, Molly with her bird named whammy who moved from small town brooks, ga. To open up her new ice cream business in savanah, ga. Molly ends up helping one of her employees accused of murder. The story needed more to it it was too short.
Very smooth read. Characters are easy to follow and Miss Woods paints a nice picture with her details. I gave it only 4 stars because of the death of this particular character was a bit off putting because of their age. Otherwise I enjoyed it very much. The mystery unfolded nicely. It made me want to continue with the rest in the series.
The main characters are good, likable, smart people. Molly is getting a fresh start in a new place and finds the best employees, landlord, neighbors and local cop. Then there is a mystery to solve. This is the first in a series, and is a rather short, easy, fun, relaxing read.
Strawberry Crunch Murder will keep you on your toes. Molly the Ice Cream and Dessert Shop owner and part time sleuth goes to work after a teenage girl is murdered. With dozens of possible suspects, Molly has her work cutout for her. Excellent writing, with wonderful characters and a twist you won’t see coming at the end. Great read!!!
Book one and I'm hooked already if you love a great cozy with characters you will love and a story that will keep you turning the page then this one by Lori Woods is a must read getting the next one now
I definitely recommend this book. The story had a good flow and fun characters. The pet bird Whammy is also a great addition than the standard cat or dog you read in a lot of other cozy mysteries.
This falls right in line with other cozy mystery series formats, so no surprises there. Some inconsistencies like whether the bird is a boy or a girl, but that should sort itself out.
This book was very cute, and quick. It has a bird, twins and an officer. While the owner of an ice cream shop is an investigator journalist. Some typing issues on words, but still fun.
Funny, Action-packed and intriguing. The storyline is great it moves along at a wonderful pace. The characters are interesting and the author really gives us a chance to get to know them.
Is Whammy a boy or girl??? Only a few pages in and already noticed editing errors. Kind of funny really. "kept her wings clipped, few years I had him, she became dependent". All in one paragraph!!"
Not bad, really really easy read, took no time at all to get through it.
I enjoyed this story. Molly is a good character. After moving into a new town, she finds herself investigating a murder. There are several suspects. I like the plot, and the way Molly makes new friends . This is a quick read