Le macaron meurtrier: Un polar cosy, excellent moment d’évasion

Julie Cavallo Investigates #1

by Ana T. Drew

Le chef pâtissier Julie a sa liberté, sa boutique...
...et un macchabée qui refroidit sur son plancher.

Bienvenue à Beldoc, une petite ville au grand charme provençal ! Libre à vous de lézarder dans ses rues... ou d’enquêter sur un meurtre.

Quand un homme s’écroule sous ses yeux dans sa pâtisserie, Julie Cavallo est consternée.
Pourtant, elle ne fait pas partie des suspects.
Le capitaine de la gendarmerie locale est persuadé qu’il s’agit d’une mort naturelle. Un banal infarctus.
Or, pour une raison qui lui appartient, Julie est convaincue que Maurice Sauve a été empoisonné.
Alors que faire ?
Eh bien, tant pis si c’est risqué, elle partira seule à la découverte de la vérité au sujet de Maurice!

Enfin, pas tout à fait seule.
Sa grand-mère excentrique, sa sœur ronchonne et son geek de sous-chef sont là pour l’épauler.
L’amateurisme de cette équipe est un défi en soi.
Mais en plus, elle fait face à l’absence de preuves, d’indices, et très vite, de cadavre.
Le meurtre – si c’en était bien un – a été planifié et exécuté avec brio.

Une pâtissière saura-t-elle résoudre le crime parfait ?

« Le macaron meurtrier » est un polar cosy, teinté d'humour et de romance.

Il séduira les fans des enquêtes de Castle et Beckett, tout comme de Stéphanie Plum et d’Agatha Raisin, mais aussi du capitaine Marleau, du détective Murdoch ou encore de l’inspecteur Barnaby.

« Léger et drôle, avec une galerie de personnages hauts en couleur, en particulier la fabuleuse Rose!» – Kirkus Reviews

Genres: Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Cozy, France, Murder Mystery

250 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 5, 2020

About the author

Chanticleer Mystery & Mayhem Book Awards First Place winner, Ana T. Drew is the evil mastermind behind the recent series of murders in the fictional French town of Beldoc.

When she is not writing cozy mysteries or doing mom-and-wife things, she can be found watching “The Rookie” to help her get over “Castle”. She lives in Paris but her heart is in Provence.

>>> Sign up for her monthly newsletter to be notified when her next mystery comes out and get a free novella and a cookbook!

Reviews

[Melliane · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Alexandra Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wouldn’t fully considered it a cozy mysterious but enjoyed nonetheless. Quick read with a decent plot. Perfect palette cleanser after the last atrocity I read.

[Sandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a failed attempt to appeal to fans of cozy mysteries. It's effort to build intrigue was listless and unrealized. It's only redeeming quality was a comparatively energetically-written story climax.

[H.M.S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read as an ARC on iBooks.

Really glad I stuck this out – read on!

I added comments about 1/3 of the way through because I couldn’t tell where the book was really going. It ended up being a good story that just took a while to get off the ground. My original comments while still reading the book were:

• Dead person is dead before the story starts
• Main character has a vision a couple chapters in
• Couple chapters later, decides to ask questions about dead person (baking student of hers)
• Back story on main character arrives in Chapter 8
• No idea of nationality of main character – name doesn’t give it away.
• The setting is the south of France, but nothing in the writing really supports that other than the occasional mention of Arles (a gorgeous town in the south of France!), an occasional mention of having lived in Paris or an occasional "bonjour" - and even those are very few and far between. Nothing French is built into the dialogue beyond that.

All the characters are likable and having lived in France before and having traveled to places like Arles, Orange, Avignon (nearby towns to the fictional Beldoc) I'm hopeful that this book will eventually draw me in.

Well - the book drew me in (yea!) and it turns out that that was just the 1st murder victim. The 2nd started drawing the whole story together. I really liked the various quirky characters and could relate to the main character, Julie, (except for the ability to bake as well as she does!). While I still can’t really tell if she’s an expat or not, I do want to read the next book. I want to see more of Capitaine Adinian in the next book as well.

The story was character-driven and introduced a lot of fun people I look forward to getting to know better. Having lived in France before and having visited a few of the towns and cities mentioned, I wanted to see more of that. I’m not sure if the author has been there or just researched it, but I just hope to get a more French feel within the next book - which I definitely plan to read.

Book is an ARC by Hidden Gems in exchange for which I am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Andrea Guy · Rating 4 out of 5]

he Murderous Macaron was really a delightful little cozy mystery. Julie is the owner of a fancy gluten free bakery. It was during one of her classes that a student ended up suffering a heart attack.

This should have been a cut and dry death. Heat attack = no foul play, but Julie had a vision and that makes her want to investigate, which turns up some reasons why people may want him dead.

I liked getting to know Julie and her friends while the mystery unfolded. I liked that there may or may not be a love interest coming in the series as it continues. I really want to get to know more about her school nemesis turned would be suitor. Of course there's also the inspector too.

This was a light and easy read and really fun.

I only wanted to shake Julie once or twice during her investigation. Usually with cozy mysteries I want to do it multiple times because the amateur sleuths are often like the hot chick in horror flicks. A little stupid when it comes to their own lives. I'm not saying Julie wasn't stupid with her life, cos she was but not in that super irritating way that often happens in this genre.

The ending was not what I expected, especially in regards to the second death. (I promise I won't spoil anything)

I can't wait to see what happens next for these characters! Especially with Magda next door!!

[Charity Chimni · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Julie's first mystery! Her side kicks were hilarious. I loved all of the banter. The mystery was great and the touch of romance has me waiting for more! I can't wait to see the next mystery unfold!

[Ally Swanson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is filled with wickedly wonderful characters, intriguing plot twists, and enjoyable, suspenseful, mystery scenes!!

I love cozy mysteries and this book did not disappoint!!

This book is the perfect easy-going, leisure, effortless read that can be soaked up in just a few, short hours!!

I enjoyed the story line and felt engaged in the story structure and plot points. The writing style was steady and easily flowed. This book falls on the average to longer side at 268 eBook pages. But like I said, I thoroughly adored this book and every scene felt necessary for its success.

I really enjoyed the charming and delightful characters!! It’s clear the author made them a focal part of the story, and for good reason – they entertained!! Whether it was the silly bantering, witty comebacks, or the just the accents – these lovable characters certainly brought their A-game!!

I really liked Julie, the main character, and found an easy, relatable, connection with her. She was likable, realistic, and genuine. Also, of course, I loved Julie’s Grandma, Rose, (she’s hilarious!!), Julie’s Sous Chef, Eric, Julie’s Sister, Flo, Julie’s Twin-Sister, Cat, Capitaine Gabriel Adinian, Pascale, and all the rest of the folks of Beldoc!!

I loved the beautiful European setting!! There were lots of vivid details that made it very easy to picture many of the scenes.

I was hoping for a bit more of a French theme and overtone. Perhaps, this will develop over the course of the book series. Or was limited to not scare anyone away looking for a relaxing, easy read. Having personally taken French all through high school and college, I was looking forward to dusting off the old cobwebs, but then again, that was a few more years ago then I’d like to admit, so maybe I should be glad I didn’t have to worry about stumbling over a language I was once proficient in lol.

I really enjoyed the baking story line!! I love baking – errr, well, trying to lol!! Anywho, I still appreciated the delicious gluten-free delights Julie and Eric made. I think it would have been a nice extra if the author included a couple recipes at the back of the book of some of Julie’s favorite gluten-free delights that would sure to be baked in her adorable shop!!

This book also reminded me a bit of the “Murder She Baked,” Book Series by Joanne Fluke, which also went on to become Hallmark TV Movie successes!!

There are some predictable scenes. However, there are still a few very unexpected twists and turns that you won’t see coming!

This book is Book One of The Julie Cavallo Investigates Book Series. It can be read as a standalone. It seems the author has already written a total of three books in this series, with the last to be released at the end of this October. Like book one, book two seems well received with readers, as I am sure book three will be as well! I look forward to checking out the other books in this series!

All in all, I really enjoyed reading this book and would absolutely recommend it! I think all cozy mystery fans will like this book too – and this book series! So, add it to your TBR List and get to reading – you won’t be disappointed!

**Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book and have voluntarily provided an honest, and unbiased review in accordance with FTC regulations.**

[Lisa Hernandez · Rating 3 out of 5]

After a few serious frustrating snooze-fests and admittedly a delightful offer on Kindle, I gave this series starter a try. All in all, entertaining. A quick ‘cozy mystery’ in the vein of Hannah Swensen without the fire & action of Stephanie Plum. The story centers around a sleuth-y pastry chef, her cohorts & spunky Grandma (gotta have a spunky Grandma, am I right Plum fans?) & the maybe murder of 2 of the local townsfolk.
Set in a delightfully fleshed little Provençal town, the characters are engaging, quirky & share just enough camaraderie to make you want to know more. With the main character, Julie, there’s quite a bit of vagueness to her backstory (3 other sisters, mom deceased under unknown circumstances, prior failed marriage, etc.) and that lends itself to possible sequels. Without fleshing out some of them, though, they become a little distracting.
Overall a quick, easy read that didn’t make me want to scream WHY AM I READING THIS? or GET TO THE !):,!&5;, POINT! So that’s a plus! I’m sure I’ll pepper in later volumes if the other series starters on my list don’t pan out.

[E. · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Murderous Macaron” by Ana T. Drew stars Julie Cavallo, whose gluten-free bakery has been the site of a death. Julie’s sense that there is more to it than meets the eye puts her at odds with Capitaine Gabriel Adinian, who wants to get this cut-and-dried case off of his plate.

This cozy mystery with paranormal elements is part of the ‘Provence Cozy Mysteries’ series, and has the typical kooky cast of colorful characters, including a grandmother who teaches doga (doggy yoga), and a smart-mouthed and sometimes wise younger sister (I love her advice that…. “if you keep mentally photoshopping the ugly truth out of people, you’ll surround yourself with friends you can always rely on to backstab you.”)

The special talent that Julie evidently shares with her estranged twin was unexpected and added an odd element to the story, which already has its share of twists and turns. I enjoyed following the investigation and the red herrings as well as the opportunity to armchair travel to a small town in France, plus who could resist the sexy capitaine? Julie will undoubtedly have more adventures to come, and I look forward to reading about more of her madcap adventures and their alliterative titles.


A copy of this title was provided for review

[Pavithra M · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first ARC and had been a beautiful one.

The backdrop is a small town in France and the story is about how a Pasterrie chef, driven by her intuition and aided by her family solves a murder mystery.

This is a very light read but a good one at it. This book, brings in a lot of memory connected with Nancy drew cases and the famous five series.

I strongly recommend that teens and young adult should give a try to this neatly written book!

[☆☆Hannah☆☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good read. One day a man drops dead in front of Julie. They say he had a heart attack but Julie think differently. She then spends the rest of the book trying to figure out who did it and why. Of course she does figure it out by the end. I did enjoy this and look forward to reading the next book.

[Taylor Rae Cohee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I downloaded this for something fun, different, and easy but ended up loving it so much!!! The setting, the characters, the descriptions were all amazing. I can’t wait to read the rest of the series! 4.5⭐️

[Teri Ruscak · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Murderous Macaron by Ana T Drew was a easy, relaxing, fun read, and overall agood book.
ARC REVIEW

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Anjedah / bookriot_awesomeyou · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been binge reading some treasure hunting books and when i saw this book on tour i think i need to read this ,the cover looks soo cozy and cute . And i am always up for light read.


This book is really grippling and unexpected.I enjoyed reading about every character in this book. Its intresting.


No spoiling anything – just grab a copy of this book! It’s a great one-sitting read or a beach read.

I loved it overall and I am definitely excited to read more from the authors!

[Penny · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 *

It was a great cosy mystery, fun and i liked the characters

J'ai bien aimé le fait que cette histoire se passe dans une pâtisserie (enfin pas toutes les scènes bien sûr)
Juste un détail un peu agaçant, à la fin le personnage principal se libère de ses liens, j'ignore comment elle a fait, il est dit qu'elle frotte la corde, mais contre quoi, bref peut-être par magie lol

[window · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is an OK read, maybe 2.5 stars. I've been looking for books set in Provence, which is how I came across this one. Unfortunately, other than a few French phrases here and there, it could have been set just about anywhere - there was no real feeling of being in Provence, or even in France for that matter.

The story itself is also just OK. I have a hard time with "amateur sleuth" stories when the sleuth keeps investigating a murder (or murders....) for no compelling reason in the face of certain danger or threats. Such was the case here with Julie, who quickly annoyed me in this fashion. Not even after her cafe booth gets vandalized and she finds a threatening note, nor after her grandmother is a victim of arson that could have killed her, or even when she is pretty sure she found the murderer and decides to have a little chat with this person at their house...by herself....after not telling anyone where she was going.... I mean, at some point, you become TSTL.

Piled on to my "Julie, you're not the sharpest knife in the drawer" sentiments is the fact that she opened a gluten-free bakery in a very small town b/c she assumed there would be some demand for it. She's not even GF herself. I didn't really feel sorry for her that business was super slow. I would have liked it better if she was also GF and therefore had some personal connection to the concept of a GF bakery. But to do it just b/c it's trendy without evaluating the market seems dumb.

I expect a certain level of stretching believability in cozies but the final scenes where the grumpy gendarme allows Julie to not only sit in but to actively question the murder suspect in the police station almost made me roll my eyes. I'm certainly no expert on French police processes, but I'd be willing to bet they would not allow a civilian to interrogate a murder suspect. There were lots of other ways the information from this scene could have been conveyed to the reader to make it less eye-roll-y.

I came this close to DNF'ing this one multiple times, but kept going. Why? Je ne sais pas - apparently it had just enough charm to keep me from ditching it.

[Karen Siddall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Julie Cavallo returns to her hometown of Beldoc in the Provence region of France, to open her own patisserie, Julie’s Gluten-Free Delights, and get a fresh start after her recent, and sudden, divorce. Business has been slow to build up but Julie is optimistic that her planned marketing events will get the word out: free Wi-Fi, free samples during the upcoming lavender trade show, and a class on making macarons at the shop. However, when one of her students drops dead in the first macaron class, the effect on her business is anything but positive.

Then when a friend of the deceased comes to the shop, Julie gets a “vision” that Maurice was being poisoned rather than experiencing a heart attack, she asks the local officer handling the death to look deeper. When the gendarmerie goes ahead and closes the case anyway, she decides to investigate the murder herself and prove that the shop was is no way responsible.

This first in a new series by author Ana T. Drew is a solid mystery with great characters in a small town setting. It is set in France but other than a few French terms and phrases, it really could have been any small town, not a lot of flavor, but not a detractor at all.

Julie has three sisters and is a twin to one, Catherine. “Cat” is mentioned regularly but really doesn’t make much of an appearance; the girls are estranged over the existence of their psychic abilities. (Cat makes her living using her skill while Julie has hidden it from everyone her entire life, and Julie is uncomfortable with Cat’s making this ability public.) But other than the intermittent psychic “snapshots” she gets, Julie seems to be a pretty normal woman working through some past traumas. I liked her curiosity and willingness to go ask questions of anyone involved in the deceased man’s life and then doubting and re-thinking her choices. She’s confident enough to approach her hostile next door business neighbor, Magda, and to attempt to mend fences she doesn’t even know she broke.

Other characters of note include Julie’s grandmother, Rose Tassy, a youthful and sassy survivor of the 60s who teaches “doga” classes and knows everyone in town. Also, the local notary, Maître Serge Guichard, a nice older man who is attracted to Rose. And then there is the potential love interest for Julie, Capitaine Gabriel Adinian with the Beldoc gendarmerie.

On the other hand, there are a number of characters introduced in this first book that don’t get completely into this story but are perhaps being set up for the future such as Denis Noble, a former junior-high-level classmate of Julie’s that is trying really hard to interest her romantically. But even Julie doesn’t know much about Denis and we were both left wondering what his true motives are in showing up now. Another interesting character is Julie’s sous chef, Eric Dol. He’s funny, sweet, sometimes a little awkward, and has his own tragic past.

In all, I liked one enough to give it 3 stars out of 5 for a “Good” rating, and to put it on my list to look for more books in the series in the future. I would recommend this book to cozy mystery readers, especially those that enjoy culinary settings.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving a free copy.

[Lau · Rating 2 out of 5]

C’était un livre ok, rien d’extravagant, c’est plus un livre un peu cosy Mystery. Ça n’a pas révolutionné ma vie, mais ça se lit quand même.

[LitPick Book Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

After living half of her life in Paris, Julie Cavallo, the main character in The Murderous Macaron by Ana T. Drew, has decided to move back to her birthplace, a small village in Provence, France, to pursue her dream of becoming a pastry chef. Julie opens up her own gluten-free pastry shop, hoping it will become a bustling hub where people will come to enjoy her “delights”. But Julie soon learns that opening a new business isn’t quite as easy as she thought. She is constantly trying to find new ways to attract customers so she can keep “Julie’s Gluten-Free Delights” afloat. As if her shaky financial situation wasn’t bad enough, matters get even worse when a customer drops dead during her macaron making workshop. Julie isn’t a suspect - the police are dismissing his death as a natural occurrence - but she is convinced that he was murdered. As she tries to find out the truth behind his death, Julie forms closer bonds with her grandmother, sister, and sous chef who eagerly join her to crack the case. But she is also forced to forge relationships with several of her suspects, who are suspicious of Julie’s snooping and even willing to put Julie and her friends in harm’s way in order to protect their secrets. Will Julie be able to balance her roles as a pastry chef and an amateur detective? Will she be able to solve the mystery of Maurice Suave’s untimely death?

Opinion:
The Murderous Macaron by Ana T. Drew is an action-packed mystery full of suspense and unexpected plot twists that make the reader eager to keep reading. Since it is a “cozy mystery” the actual murder occurs “off-stage”, eliminating the violence and horror (but not the thrill!) found in other murder mysteries. Although the book contained the perfect number of main characters, it also contained a lot of secondary characters, mainly suspects. While such a large number of suspects kept the mystery exciting, I found myself having trouble keeping track of them and their relation to the victim. Something that I really enjoyed about this book was the way positive lessons, which are relatable to readers of all ages, were skillfully woven into the storyline. One such lesson was the value of teamwork: Julie and her fellow amateur detectives often investigated on their own but always shared what they learned with everyone on the team so that together, they could see the big picture and ultimately solve the mystery. Another lesson incorporated throughout the story was the value of open mindedness: Julie and her team had to be careful not to be too hasty to rule out suspects or jump to false conclusions. Every time they decided that it must be one suspect that had committed the murder, they uncovered something else that would prove their hunch wrong and force them to look into other answers. A perfect book to get “cozy” with on a rainy day, I highly recommend The Murderous Macaron to mystery lovers, ages 12 and up.

[Nancy (The Avid Reader) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Julie has just gone through a rather quick divorce. After her divorce, she decides to move back to her hometown. Julie opened up her own bakery shop. Julie loves to cook and is a chef. After opening her little bakery shop she decides to teach a class on how to make Macarons.

On the first day of her class, one of her students falls over dead. The local police rights the guy's death off as a heart attack. After having a vision Julie becomes to believe that the man did not have a heart attack but instead may have been poisoned.

Julie’s sister and grandmother encourages her to look into the guy's death. They believe that it will be very therapeutic for Julie with her recent and quick divorce. Julie is a wonderful person as she takes it all in stride although she is looking into the man’s death because she believes the man was murdered.

The Murderous Macaron was a fun sweet little murder mystery. It kept me guessing from beginning to end. It started out with a bang at the very beginning with a guy dead on the floor of Julie’s bakery shop. Julie had a list of suspects who may or may not have had a reason to kill the guy.

The Murderous Macaron had the same feel to it as Murder She Wrote. I pictured the houses in the town of Beldoc with soft light colors and white picket fences with little old ladies peeking out the windows. A usually quiet, quaint little town where everyone knows each other and gets along very well.

Although Julie tied up this little murder mystery nicely something tells me that there are going to be more murders and mystery for her to solve. I can’t wait to see what mystery she finds herself into next. While The Murderous Macaron was tied up nicely there were still questions about Julie and her past that I hope to learn more of in future books.

I would recommend The Murderous Macaron to anyone looking for a cozy little murder mystery. One-click your copy of The Murderous Macaron today!

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for a cozy mystery that takes place in bakery. Throw in Provence as a setting, and I'm totally in. (I spent time there twice when I was in school.)

This was a really cute cozy mystery. It starts the day after a man drops dead in Julie's backing class. It has been declared a natural cause, but her instincts are telling her differently. So she goes all Jessica Fletcher and decides to investigate on her own. (I was reminded a lot of Jessica while reading this, possibly because I have been watching Murder She Wrote lately. But bits and pieces really did remind me of her as she pursued her questioning and fact-gathering.)

She gets some help from her younger sister, her patisserie employee, and her grandmother. And can I just tell you how much I adore Ruth? I mean, can we all grow up to become a woman who does doga (yoga with dogs) classes? Each of them manages to find a little piece to the puzzle, but Julie is the one who puts it all together. And the twist may surprise you.

I wanted more of the psychic element to be developed in this book, but it looks like it may come into play in later stories? It's not a cliffhanger ending, but there's definitely a sequel that is introduced at the end. I am interested in checking it out.

Thank you to the author and to Goddess Fish Promotions for fulfilling my review request. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Cindy Cynthia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lavender and Provence and Pastry!

I am a baker and I love all things Provençal. I have spent the last few months of the COVID 19 virus sheltering at home and studying French. So when I saw this book, I had to try it. I enjoyed this fun story (although I am the age of the grandmother rather than the heroine) and read into the night to the end. While I don’t care for the “psychic” angle, it was not such a big part of the story that it was a dealbreaker for me. The weaving of past events into the story was well done. The solution to the mystery was clever and the touch of possible romance enticing.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love reading cozy mysteries, they are fast paced. This is a debut mystery to Julies Cavallo investigates series. You have a well written storyline with believable and interesting characters. You have Julie who opens "Julie's Gluten Free Delights". You have a client who drops dead, you question is this murder? This book will carry you to the end and you won't want to put it down. I enjoyed this book.

[Ange Baz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Une petite escapade dans le sud dans la France. Il est très sympa à lire, zéro difficulté de compréhension. Pour un premier tome d’une série (livre assez court) c’est prometteur !

[Gail Overholt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's a story that's a bit of a reverse from your normal cozy mystery. Oh, it's cozy all right. After all, this is Provence, the home of coziness. But here the police rule that the death is a result of natural causes, i.e., a heart attack. Probably triggered because he beat his egg whites too vigorously??

But Julie, our pastry chef heroine, under whose tutelage the victim died, knows otherwise. So, she spends much of the book trying to convince the local gendarme Capitane that there was foul play. And why does she know this? Oh yeah, she's kind of psychic but doesn't talk about it. To anyone. Ever.

The supporting characters are delightful. There's a "spicy" grandmother, a know-it-all younger sister (and two other sisters, one a twin, who don't appear in this book), and a young local man as her sous chef, who always refers to her as "chef." She loves it. (And so do I.)

Julie herself is quite headstrong. She's a bit snarky, a bit overwhelmed starting her own business, a tad insecure, and totally plucky. She's also self-aware enough that she recognizes her flaws.

Maybe because working out all the right constraints only to ignore them and do the wrong thing is a good girl’s polite way of giving the world the finger...

There's no romance. But that's okay. Julie is still reeling from her divorce (one reason she returned to her hometown) and isn't ready to find love again. But there are hints of what might be. (This is, after all, the first in a series of six books [so far]).

She finds herself unexpectedly attracted to the capitaine, even though she's certain his messy hair is just messy, and not a deliberate style choice. She's also pursued by a grade school nemesis who's done quite well for himself. Yet she spends most of their date interrogating the deceased's relative's neighbor. Yep, she's pretty much got a one-track mind.

There's a lot of charm to this book and I'll be reading the follow-on books.

P.S. The book depicted here is not the book I read. Rather, I picked up Provence Mysteries Box Set — 3 twisty and humorous detective novels and read the first story. Turns out the book is just as cute as the cover shown here.

[Sherrie Cronin · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Murderous Macaron is a fun read, sure to please fans of cozy mysteries and lovers of well-meaning and sometimes bumbling amateur sleuths. (I do happen to be one such fan.) Julie’s bakery is the focal point of this gentle who-done-it, and there is just enough of France woven into the story to appeal to lovers of travel as well.

What I liked best: Simply put, this is an enjoyable book. I appreciate that it was an easy read, well-paced and well written. The somewhat complex solutions to the case were believable yet not obvious, providing a satisfying ending.

My favorite thing was Drew’s stellar cast of secondary characters. Grandma is great. I do love feisty old women and she delivers. Sister Flo, the artist, is equally fun, and I could have done with more of the geeky sous chef as well. I’m not a huge dog fan, but I even enjoyed Lady, the sleuth dog who joins the team.

What I liked least: There is a fascinating backstory here, dribbled out in small pieces and never fully dealt with. It is difficult to reconcile the light tone of the novel with an unexplained traumatic family death, an estranged twin with unusual powers, and Julie’s issues with both of the above. Yet, it all comes up often enough to make it hard to ignore.

The reader wants answers. I suppose the author intends to weave more explanations into future novels, but as regarded these issues, I felt cheated at the end. Plus, the only part receiving a real explanation (why Julie doesn’t like her twin) is just odd.

However, Drew’s story was charming enough for me to put that frustration aside, along with my current irritation with the gluten-free world, brought on by a husband who’s decided to go gluten-free for no real reason, forcing me to abandon half of my favorite recipes.  That’s hardly Ana T. Drew’ fault, and I resolved early on not to hold Julie’s gluten-free bakery against her.

So, I’d be happy to read more books in this series and I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good mystery novel.

[Angelic Sword · Rating 3 out of 5]

🍰 Gourmand… mais classique
En trois mots : pâtisseries - meurtre - cosy

« Y a des gens qui préfèrent mourir chez les autres, me lance Flo. On n’y peut rien, Julie ! »

➡️ Encore une saga de cosy mystery qui combine meurtres et pâtisseries. Si le concept me séduit habituellement, ici j’ai eu plus de mal. L’introduction est quasiment inexistante, on arrive directement dans l’action et la découverte du corps.

➡️ Si entrer tout de suite dans le vif du sujet peut parfois être intéressant, dans un cosy mystery les personnages ont une grande importance et il est nécessaire d’apprendre à les connaître, de s’y attacher…

Ils sont pourtant gentils et hauts en couleur, mais l’attachement n’était pas au rendez-vous.

➡️ Les codes du genre sont bien présents : un petit village, un meurtre étrange mais pas sanglant, une héroïne qui investigue sans aucune expérience, un bel enquêteur, des situations rocambolesques…

➡️ L’enquête en elle-même ne m’a pas transcendée, elle fonctionne mais reste classique. En revanche, le petit plus de Julie (pour le coup assez surprenant pour un roman policier) apporte une certaine nouveauté.

➡️ Mention spéciale pour la version audio, bien réalisée et qui m’a permis de finir sans peine cette histoire, malgré mes réserves.

Un cosy mystery qui ne m’a pas totalement convaincue mais qui respecte les codes du genre.

[bambu78 · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a rule, I do not rate more than 3 stars to cozy mysteries, and keep the 4 and 5 stars for great literature.
In its own genre, The Murderous Macaron is really enjoyable though. It has kept me good company especially in these days, when there is not much you can do because of the coronavirus and reading is one of the few things allowing some evasion.
The mystery takes place in sunny Provence and the centre of the action is a gluten-free patisserie in Beldoc, a small town where everybody knows everybody. Or they think they do.
There is a lot of baking, amateurish investigating, some flirting and fun, since the characters are very lively, just as lively as the author's style.
Julie Cavallo is a very well rounded protagonist, coming from a marriage which didn't go as expected, with her heart still beating when she sees a nice looking guy, which promises some sentimental development in the next installment of the series. She does a lot of thinking, and also takes many risks, both in life (like opening a gluten-free patisserie in provincial Beldoc) and in solving this mystery.
I don't really like the paranormal element in the book, but that is my personal taste.

[Anusha · Rating 2 out of 5]

The killer can be predicted after reading the first few chapters only. It was the motive and "how did they do it" factor that kept me going. +1 star just for Rose. She was my favourite character. Personally I don't like the main character. I find her very hypocritical - I think maybe more of coward -
1. She does not want to solve her own family problems or even maybe, face them, but somehow, has enough time to poke other's.
2. Why in the freaking world did she not reject Dennis's date proposal when she clearly not like him - BeCaUsE oF ThE GoOd GiRl ThAt I Am. Maybe project some that energy to your sister who is trying to help you?. This is so frustrating!! For once I can forget about Dennis but MAGDAA!!! Why are you talking nicely to herrrr. OMYGODDD. She does nothing but always scorns at her. But she has to talk nicely.GOSH!
3. **Spoiler** AT LAST
Kevin killing his mother and his only father figure made sense but not Berth killing her cousin, who clearly has more motive than a teenager. If the former made sense the latter should also. And on a serious thought she clearly had her snapshot on this too - but yeah 👍 "ThAt WaS A hAllUciNaTiOn."
How hypocritical can you be?