Screaming About Bree Baker's Partners in Lime
THIS BOOK! Holy moly boy was I put on a roller coaster with this cozy mystery that I was NOT expecting. (Sorry for all the caps but this book completely took me by surprise!) I don’t know if I can do Partners in Lime any justice with my review, but let me start with the fact that this story is the sixth book in the Seaside Cafe Mystery series and I haven’t read any of the previous books yet. With that being said, Bree Baker (Julie Anne Lindsey) superbly catches the reader up to speed on who’s who, explains briefly about their history and how they connect to the story in such a manner that didn’t detract from the book, but rather, enhanced it.
The amateur sleuth, Everly Swan finds herself again having to investigate who the killer is to clear the name of one of her friends who has been identified as the prime suspect. Her boyfriend, Chief Detective Grady, tries to steer her away from the investigation when her attempts to discover the murderer are thwarted when her life is threatened multiple times. But they don’t stop Everly who admits she can’t help herself.
There were times where I felt like I was reading how a movie played out when these threats happened to Everly. The mystery element had me on the edge of my seat and gasping at surprising incidents throughout.
What I really loved was the romantic element between the protagonist and her new boyfriend. I believe reading the previous books will also make me love the build up between getting to this point in their relationship even more so, but this part of their love story within this book was delicious all on it’s own. Also, the depth of emotions were some I’ve never read in a cozy mystery before and gave me all the feels.
Overall, I cannot believe I haven’t read this series before but thankfully the previous books are on Scribd so I can binge them all immediately.
Thank you Poisoned Pen Press for this amazing gifted copy. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Book Description
Everly will have to go against the tide to crack this case!
It all seems to be smooth sailing for Everly Swan. The island of Charm, North Carolina is hosting tons of fun summer events, her iced tea shop is a hit, and best of all, she's finally dating the handsome Detective Grady Hays. But their romantic bubble bursts when tragedy strikes: a surf-pro is found murdered on the beach, killed with a theater prop.
Grady follows the evidence, all of which points to Matt, Everly's friend and one-time fling. As Grady does his job, so does Everly—her unofficial chef-turned-sleuth-job, that is. She's determined to clear her friend's name but the arrival of a fancy new teashop and The Town Charmer, a gossip blog determined to rock the boat, complicates things. As Everly tries to keep rumors at bay and investigate the murder (and her new tea rival), the killer leaves a message in the sand...