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In this first in series, Win Crewse is a recent MBA graduate and she is set to re-open the family business - an ice cream parlor. She plans to use her grandmother's recipes, as well as her own. She had planned on opening in the summer, but unforeseen circumstances caused her to push it to the fall when the snow is falling in Ohio. She decides to embrace it anyway, and open the shop during this time of year. Unfortunately, Win discovers a dead body and her father is the prime suspect. Can she help the authorities clear her father's name, find out who the real killer is, and bring her focus back to running her shop during an already challenging time of year?
When I picked up this book, I thought it would be perfect for spring with the ice cream theme. Honestly, at first I was disappointed to learn it is set in the fall. However, this disappointment quickly melted away as I embraced the idea of having ice cream in the fall the way Win did. I don't know why it bothered me so much at first. After all, I do eat ice cream any time of year.
It took me some time to warm up to some of the main characters. I really loved Win, her parents, and her grandparents. One of my favorite aspects of cozies is when the entire family is present and gets along well. I find this very comforting.
On the other hand, I didn't like the way Win's bestie was fixated on one suspect through most of the book and I also thought she was quite harsh with her feelings about the detective. However, I appreciated that Win continuously set her straight, encouraging her to not have a one-track mind and to have more respect for the detective.
As far as the victim goes, we didn't have a lot of information on him in the beginning, but his backstory was gradually revealed, and by the end, I felt like I had a good idea of who he was. There were also enough viable suspects to consider.
The mystery took a while to get going. The crime happened fairly early in the book, but for a while, there was mostly speculation happening. Once the sleuthing and finding concrete clues got going, I was fully invested. I had a hunch who the culprit was, which turned out to be correct, but I enjoyed the ride to the big reveal.
The audiobook does not list recipes at the end, but if you read it in a different format, you will find some delicious-sounding concoctions. I do wish audiobooks would more consistently include the recipes. Everyone should be able to access them.
Until I was about 80% into this book, I was on the fence about continuing the series. However, I ended up liking the setting and characters enough that I do want to continue with it. Also, it is my understanding that the next one is set around Memorial Day, which, at the time of this writing, is coming up in a couple of weeks. So it's the perfect time of year to read or listen to it.
Let's talk ice cream. Do you prefer to eat it in the warmer months only or do you eat it year-round?
