[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Hallmark Publishing in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]
Summary
Hollis Bisbee moved to Parkwood, Missouri after losing her newspaper job in Chicago and her boyfriend (and his dog) in one fell swoop. She’s trying to make the best of her new small town life. She has a job at the town paper, writing local interest stories like the new gravy recipe at the diner and the new hot dog roller at the high school stadium. She has a new best friend, Daisy, mother of four and baker extraordinaire. And if she can talk Daisy into it, she also has a true crime podcast.
Both women have an interest in true crime. And Hollis is watching her reporting skills atrophy with the work she is getting at the Parkwood Chronicle Weekly. So they launch the Knock ’em Dead podcast. Hollis is responsible for the tech side and the crime details while Daisy provides baked goods for sustenance – and baking tips for their listeners!
They don’t have to look hard for crime material as the town high school’s rival football coach was recently run down after a controversial game. Was it an accident? Or did the star quarterback – son of the local police chief – mean it when he said he’d kill the man if he kept stealing their plays? Could it be the man who owned the car the coach hit earlier that day? What about the assistant coach who wanted the man’s job?
But with the police chief insisting the man just had a heart attack, and Hollis’ editor refusing to investigate because of her friendship with the chief, Hollis is going to have to investigate this one on her own.
Review
This was so fun! I loved Hollis and Daisy as a team. They made me laugh a lot, and Daisy’s recipes all sounded amazing! (There is one recipe included in the book.) The writing is smart and funny; this was a treat to read!
The mystery in this was good, too. I was so frustrated that no one but Hollis was really taking the crime seriously. But the sleuthing and the solution all came together well. I enjoyed the budding relationship between Hollis and one of the local officers.
There were so many fun pieces to this – the description of Daisy’s family and her management of four high energy kids, the bad takes on the podcast, the banter over whether it’s a baking podcast or a true crime podcast, Hollis’ mom and aunt in Chicago, and so much more. I so enjoyed reading this, and I can’t wait to read more in this series. Cozy mystery fans should NOT miss this one!