3.5 stars, rounded down
I’m now four books into this series and I still haven’t decided how I feel about it. I like the *idea of the books, but I’m not sure I like the... execution? of the books. A lot of cozies are set in cafés or bakeries, so that’s not unique, and quite a few are set in New England, although I’m not sure how many of those are café-based.
I like that Annie is a photographer, preparing to open her new art gallery, which is also something different from other cozies, but something about her personality makes me cringe, and I can’t really put a finger on what that something is. I like her friends, and have apparently decided to trust their judgement about her, or I wouldn’t keep reading these books.
For a short book, there was a lot going on – a murder, a wedding, ‘society people,’ a dinner cruise, missing money and jewels, and even a new detective who seems determined to pin the blame for all of it on Annie. It was hard to keep track of who was where at what time, so I was confused about who the killer and thief might be until the clues started piling up just before the confrontation scene near the end of the book.
I will read the next book in the series, if only to see if we learn why Detective Crank has it in for Annie.