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Carly, owner of Carly's Grilled Cheese Eatery, is asked by the elderly owner of a historic mansion to make one of her popular grilled cheese sandwiches. Carly enjoys spending time with the owner and she loves being in the mansion that feels like it's from Downton Abbey. So she agrees to make the sandwich at the mansion.
Meanwhile, Carly's husband, Ari, has been hired to do some rewiring in the mansion while it undergoes major renovations. When one of the contractors falls to his death, Ari is the prime suspect in what becomes a murder investigation. Naturally, Carly knows her husband is not capable of such foul play, so she sets out to do some sleuthing of her own to clear his name and find out who the real culprit is.
I had a great time revisiting the cozy town of Balsam Dell, Vermont and everyone in Carly's close knit circle. Carly is one of the most kind-hearted main characters I've ever read in a cozy, although sometimes I think she needs to say no to other people's requests more often. It always feels like I'm hanging out with old friends when I'm there. I did feel the detective was a little too harsh with Carly, but this was addressed beautifully later in the book. While some characters from earlier in the series have moved on with their lives outside of the eatery and out of state, they still make brief appearances, or they are at least mentioned. This feels like real life to me. Throughout our lives, we meet people who eventually move away. However, we may still keep in touch with them and occasionally see them.
I also had fun getting to know the suspects. They had depth, history, and secrets to uncover. The victim wasn't someone who easily made friends, so there are multiple people who could have wanted to see him gone. There were several viable suspects with possible motives and opportunity. I had a hunch early in the book who the culprit was, which turned out to be correct. However, there were enough twists and turns that made me question who I thought it was a few times. I really enjoyed the big reveal, which in itself had a bit of a twist.
The historic mansion combined with major renovations made for a great setting in this mystery. I could visualize the layout of the rooms, as well as the decor. There were times when I was confused about the overall floorplan of the mansion, but I just went along for the ride. Another aspect of the mystery I enjoyed was the jigsaw puzzle. Those who know me, know how much I love jigsaw puzzles. Adding this to a cozy and making it part of the story was absolute perfection!
There is a light-hearted subplot in this installment, which balanced out the seriousness of the mystery. It involved a grilled cheese competition. I loved reading about the mouth-watering creations. It made me wish I was there to taste-test all of them with Carly and her co-workers.
Since Carly and Ari were recently married, there is a new dynamic with there relationship. They clearly love and respect each other, and it was obvious they have great communication. It was fun to read about their day-to-day lives, even something as simple as what they were having for dinner. I also enjoyed reading about another possible budding romance with two of the characters. I'm equally invested in their relationship as I have been with Carly and Ari.
There was only one thing in this installment that felt jarring and out of place for me, and that was one instance of mild swearing. With this being the seventh book in the swearing and not a single swear word before now that I can remember, I've come to expect this series to be completely clean in that respect. So while it doesn't take anything away from the story and it fit in the context, it still felt off for me. I'm hoping this isn't an indication of where the series is going because I prefer cozies to be completely free of swear words.
As with every installment, there are a few mouth-watering recipes at the end of the book. I love how the story behind each one was part of the subplot in the book. And I learned something new. Before reading this book, I had never heard of Roquefort cheese before. Now I'll have to try it!
As I say with most cozies, Between a Roquefort and a Hard Place is a self-contained mystery. You can easily start with this book and not feel lost in the series. However, I'm confident you'll want to go back and read all previous installments to find out how the characters and their relationships have evolved.
Thank you to NetGalley and Beyond the Page Publishing for providing me with an eARC of this book.
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